Vodafone Idea in discussion to sell minority of stake to raise up to $1 billion

As per news source in order to raise up to $1 billion, or approx. Rs 7,540 crore, Vodafone Idea (Vi) is in discussion to sell a minority stake to global private equity investors including Apollo Global Management and Carlyle, over the next two-to-three months.

The sources also said that Vi may follow that up with a follow-on public offer (FPO) to raise another $1 billion around June 2022 as institutional fundraising will boost the confidence of retail investors hoping for the telco's revival.

Vi may leverage the recent government relief package that has eased its immediate cash flow burden and made it more attractive to investors.

"Vi is open to offering a minority stake to global PEs if there is agreement on valuations and terms," one of the people said.

Unlike earlier rounds of fundraising talks that were focused on capital infusion through convertible debt instruments, this time the joint venture between the UK's Vodafone Group Plc and Aditya Birla Group (ABG) is looking to raise capital purely through the equity route.

The debt route, in fact, has been scrapped for now, the sources said.