In its 11th deal in eight weeks, Reliance Industries and Jio Platforms Limit has announced an investment of Rs 11,367 crore from The Public Investment Fund (PIF) for an equity stake of 2.32%. In total, Jio Platforms has now diluted a total of 24.7% stake.
This investment values Jio Platforms at an equity value of Rs 4.91 lakh crore and an enterprise value of Rs 5.16 lakh crore. With this investment, Jio Platforms has raised Rs 115,693.95 crore from leading global investors including Facebook, Silver Lake, Vista Equity Partners, General Atlantic, KKR, Mubadala, ADIA, TPG and L Catterton, since April 2020.
Jio Platforms, a wholly owned subsidiary of Reliance Industries, is a next-generation technology company that houses all of the group’s digital services with more than 388 million subscribers and services spanning broadband connectivity, smart devices, cloud and edge computing, big data analytics, artificial intelligence, Internet of Things, augmented and mixed reality and blockchain.
PIF is the sovereign wealth fund of Saudi Arabia and as part of its mandate to diversify its economy, has made its largest investment in India to-date.
“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,” Mukesh Ambani, Chairman and Managing Director of Reliance Industries, said in a statement.
The company said in a statement that 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.
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.