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Vodafone Group has successfully sold an 18% stake in India's Indus Towers, exceeding their initial plan and raising $1.82 billion to reduce their debt, as announced by the British telecom group on Wednesday.
In the transaction, Bharti Airtel, India's second-largest telecom company, acquired approximately 1% of Indus shares, increasing its ownership in the mobile tower operator to around 49%.
Originally intending to sell a 10% stake, Vodafone's sale size nearly doubled due to strong investor demand, according to an anonymous banking source familiar with the matter.
The sale involved 484.7 million Indus shares at 310-341 rupees per share, generating 153 billion rupees or 1.7 billion euros in gross proceeds, which will be used to repay debt.
Vodafone Group revealed that it had 1.8 billion euros in bank borrowings against its Indian assets, including a stake in Vodafone Idea, the third-largest telecom operator in India by subscribers.
Following the sale, Indus shares experienced a 3% decline, with Airtel, SBI Mutual Fund, and Kotak Securities identified as buyers of Indus' shares.
Vodafone Group now holds a 3.1% stake in Indus, while Vodafone Idea also maintains a stake in the company. Private equity firm KKR and Canadian fund CPPIB had previously sold their entire stakes in February.
The stake sale by Vodafone Group was conducted through block deals, a method that has gained popularity in India's stock market, which is currently trading at record-high levels.
Subsequent to these developments, Vodafone Idea shares ended 0.4% higher, while Bharti Airtel's shares closed down 2.5%.
