Reliance backed Jio is having a dream time as they bag the 11th investment within nine weeks (since 22nd April 2020). PIF or Public Investment Fund is the sovereign wealth fund of Saudi Arabia, it has made an investment of ₹ 11,367 crores for a 2.32 % stake in Jio Platforms.
With this investment, Jio has now raised a total of ₹ 115,693.95 crores from leading technology investors including Facebook, Silver Lake Partners (two investments), Vista Equity Partners, General Atlantic, KKR, Mubadala, ADIA, TPG, L Catterton and PIF.
This huge series of investment makes Jio the largest continuous funds raise by a company anywhere in the world. Obviously this is a great achievement for an Indian company backed by Mukesh Ambani, especially in this global lock-down period.
This investment values Jio Platforms at an equity value of ₹ 4.91 lakh crore and an enterprise value of ₹ 5.16 lakh crore. PIF’s investment will translate into a 2.32% equity stake in Jio Platforms on a fully diluted basis.
According to Jio, this investment further reaffirms Jio’s continuing attraction among global investors for:
- being the best representative of India’s digital potential
- deep understanding of the Indian markets,
- the rapid digitisation opportunity post-COVID and
- capabilities to bring cutting-edge technologies and tools such as AI, Blockchain, AR/VR, Big data into play for all Indians
As we all know Jio has 388 million subscribers and growing at this pace, the company can has lot of scopes to continue the digital revolution in India. Its services spanning through broadband connectivity, smart devices, cloud and edge computing, big data analytics, artificial intelligence, Internet of Things, augmented and mixed reality and blockchain.
Mukesh Ambani, Chairman and Managing Director of Reliance Industries, said, “We at Reliance have enjoyed a long and fruitful relationship with the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia for many decades. From Oil Economy, this relationship is now moving to strengthen India’s New Oil (Data-driven) Economy, as is evident from PIF’s investment into Jio Platforms. I have greatly admired the defining role PIF has played in driving the economic transformation of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. I welcome PIF as a valued partner in Jio Platforms and look forward to their sustained support and guidance as we take ambitious steps to accelerate India’s digital transformation for enriching and empowering the lives of 1.3 billion Indians.”
According to the company, this investment is in line with PIF’s strategy and mandate of investing in sectors and companies that generate long-term commercial returns to drive Saudi Arabia’s economic transformation as part of Vision 2030 objectives. This investment supports PIF’s mandate of building strong global investment partnerships to further Saudi Arabia’s investment reach and exposure.
Yasir Al-Rumayyan, Governor of PIF, commented: “We are delighted to be investing in an innovative business which is at the forefront of the transformation of the technology sector in India. We believe that the potential of the Indian digital economy is very exciting and that Jio Platforms provides us with an excellent opportunity to gain access to that growth. This investment will also enable us to generate significant long-term commercial returns for the benefit of Saudi Arabia’s economy and our country’s citizens, in line with our mandate to safeguard and grow the national wealth of the Kingdom.”
The transaction is subject to Indian regulatory and other customary approvals. Morgan Stanley acted as financial advisor to Reliance Industries and AZB & Partners and Davis Polk & Wardwell acted as legal counsels.
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