Intel has agreed to invest Rs. 1,894.50 crore for a 0.39% equity stake in Jio Platforms. The investment will come through Intel Capital, the investment arm of the US-based semiconductor giant. The company is now the eleventh investor to buy into Reliance Industry’s telecom and digital services unit this year. With the latest deal, Reliance Industries has now sold 25.09% of equity in Jio Platform for a total of Rs. 117,588.45 crore.
Announcing the Intel deal, Mukesh Ambani, the Chairman and Managing Director of Reliance Industries, said: “We are extremely delighted to deepen our ties with technology leaders that embody our vision of transforming India into a leading Digital Society in the world. Intel is a true industry leader, working towards creating world-changing technology and innovations. Intel Capital has an outstanding record of being a valuable partner for leading technology companies globally. We are therefore excited to work together with Intel to advance India’s capabilities in cutting-edge technologies that will empower all sectors of our economy and improve the quality of life of 1.3 billion Indians”.
Jio Platforms Investments Timeline
Prior to the investment from Intel, Jio Platforms raised Rs. 1,15,693.95 crores from leading global investors to help its parent company, Reliance Industries, eliminate part of its $21.4 billion (roughly Rs. 1.62 lakh crores) debt by the end of this year. It all started with a 9.9% stake sale to Facebook in April for Rs. 43,574 crores (around $5.7 billion). That was followed by a 1.15% stake sale to US private equity firm, Silver Lake, for Rs. 5,665.75 crores (around $750 million). In May, US-based Vista Equity Partners bought 2.32 percent stake in Jio Platforms for Rs. 11,367 crores (around $1.5 billion). Just days later, global equity firm, General Atlantic, picked up 1.34 percent stake in the company.
Thereafter, US-based private equity firm, KKR, bought a 2.32 percent stake in Jio Platforms for Rs. 11,367 crores (around $1.5 billion). A couple of sovereign funds from the Abu Dhabi government, Mubadala and Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, also invested in the company recently. For good measure, Silver Lake then came back and pumped in an additional Rs. 4,546.80 crores (around $5.96 billion) last month.
It was followed a week later by a couple of investments, totaling Rs. 6,441.3 crores ($847 million), from two US-based private equity firms called TPG and L Catterton. Finally, late last month, Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) bought a 2.32% stake in Jio Platforms for Rs. 11,367 crore (around Rs. $1.5 billion) in a deal that Reliance Industry had then claimed will end the current round of fundraising.
