India’s telecom Reliance Jio has announced that the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority has acquired a 1.16 percent in the company in a deal worth $752 million.
So far, Reliance has sold over 21 percent of its interest in Reliance Jio.
With regard to the stake acquisition in Reliance Jio, Hamad Shahwan Aldhaheri, executive director in Abu Dhabi Investment Authority ‘s private equities department, said in a statement, “The rapid growth of the (Jio) business, which has established itself as a market leader in just four years, has been built on a strong track record of strategic execution.”
Recently, Abu Dhabi-based investment sovereign fund Mubadala Investment also acquired a 1.85 percent stake in Reliance Jio in a deal worth $1.21 billion.
Launched in 2016, Reliance Jio has established itself as a telecom giant in India in a short spell due to its competitive pricing strategy. Backed by multibillionaire Mukesh Ambani, Reliance Jio disrupted the Indian telecom sector which led to many telcos exiting the market with Vodafone on the brink of shutting down its business in India.
The company currently has more than 376 million users in India.
So far Reliance has sold stakes in Jio Platforms to investors such as Facebook, Microsoft, and General Atlantic and has accumulated around $13 billion.
According to media reports published last month, Microsoft is also planning to acquire more than 2.5 percent stake in Jio Platforms for $2 billion. However, the deal is said to be in the early stages and many details are yet to be finalised.