KKR to Invest Rs 11,367 Crore in RIL for 2.32% Stake, 5th Deal in Less than a Month

On Friday, Reliance Industries Limited (RIL) announced that private equity firm KKR was all set to pour in Rs 11,367 crore in Jio Platforms for a 2.32 per cent stake. This will be the fifth investment in RIL in rapid succession after investments made by social media major Facebook, private equity funds Silver Lake, Vista Equity Partners and General Atlantic.

A statement released by RIL said: “This transaction values Jio Platforms at an equity value of Rs4.91 lakh crore and an enterprise value of Rs5.16 lakh crore. This is KKR’s largest investment in Asia and will translate into a 2.32 per cent equity stake in Jio Platforms on a fully diluted basis.”

Following this investment deal, Jio Platforms will get a total of Rs 78,562 crore from the five investments.

Chairman and Managing Director Mukesh Ambani in a statement on Friday said, “KKR shares our ambitious goal of building a premier Digital Society in India. KKR has a proven track record of being a valuable partner to industry-leading franchises and has been committed to India for many years. We are looking forward to leveraging KKR’s global platform, industry knowledge and operational expertise to further grow Jio.”

The company added that the international transaction will be subject to regulatory and other customary approvals.

Earlier this month, Vista Equity Partners announced an investment of Rs 11,367 crore for a 2.32 per cent stake in the company, following this, on May 18, General Atlantic said it will buy 1.34 per cent stake in Jio Platforms for Rs 6,598.38 crore.

Prior to that, US private equity firm Silver Lake said it will invest Rs 5,655.75 crore in Jio Platforms for a 1.15 per cent stake and on April 22, Facebook said it would invest USD 5.7 billion for a 9.99 per cent stake.

Henry Kravis, Co-Founder and Co-CEO of KKR, in a statement on Friday said, “Few companies have the potential to transform a country’s digital ecosystem in the way that Jio Platforms is doing in India, and potentially worldwide. Jio Platforms is a true homegrown next generation technology leader in India that is unmatched in its ability to deliver technology solutions and services to a country that is experiencing a digital revolution. We are investing behind Jio Platforms’ impressive momentum, world-class innovation and strong leadership team, and we view this landmark investment as a strong indicator of KKR’s commitment to supporting leading technology companies in India and Asia Pacific.”