Billionaire, Mukesh Ambani and CEO of Jio Infocomm Ltd is planning the company’s biggest rupee bond sale. According to people familiar with the matter, the company is seeking commitments Tuesday for as much as 50 billion rupees ($671 million) of notes maturing in five years at a coupon of 6.20%.
Jio Infocomm Ltd last tapped into the local currency bond market in July 2018 and is planning to use the proceeds from the current proposed deal to refinance financial responsibilities, according to Bloomberg.
Jio’s entry into the wireless market in 2016 unleashed a tariff war in the country and shrank the telecom space from a dozen players to three private sector operators as others exited, merged or went bankrupt.
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Jio’s parent company has hired banks to arrange a series of fixed income investor calls for a potential multi-tranche dollar bond offering in addition to this. Jio is preparing to roll out 5G services in India this year after buying airwaves worth almost $5 billion in March and being the top bidder in the latest spectrum auctions, making its intention to have and maintain an edge over its rivals clear.
The billionaire is of the opinion that India should prioritize the rollout of 5G telecommunications and also ensure devices become affordable, a feat which looks easy for the telecommunications giant as it counts Google, Facebook, Qualcomm and Intel amongst its backers.
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Ambani also stated in an interview that Jio subscribers would soon be able to recharge their phone and make payments through WhatsApp, and bring consumer convenience like never before.
