In a significant market development, Indian Continent Investment, a key promoter group entity of telecom giant Bharti Airtel, is set to raise approximately ₹7,200 crore through a major stake sale. The transaction involves selling around 3.4 crore shares, representing nearly 0.6% of the company's total equity.
Deal Structure and Pricing
The block trade, scheduled for Wednesday, is being managed by Goldman Sachs India according to the term sheet. The shares are being offered at a floor price of ₹2,097 per share, which represents a 3% discount to Bharti Airtel's Tuesday closing price of ₹2,162 on the National Stock Exchange.
This strategic move follows a pattern of similar transactions by promoter entities in recent months. Indian Continent Investment, listed as one of the foreign promoters of the telecom services major, currently holds nearly 1.5% stake in the company as per the last disclosed shareholding pattern of September 30 this year on the BSE.
Impact on Promoter Holding
The completion of this deal will mark a significant milestone for Bharti Airtel. Promoter holding will fall to just below the 50% mark, according to shareholding data from BSE. This development comes as the third block deal in Bharti Airtel by one of the promoter entities within the last six months.
The block deal process involves the managing brokers sending term sheets to large institutions after market hours. Interested institutions then submit their bids along with the number of shares they wish to purchase. The managing brokers compile these into a final demand book, and the actual transfer of shares occurs in the next trading session through the exchange's bulk/block deal segment.
Recent Promoter Stake Sales
This isn't the first time Indian Continent Investment has reduced its stake in the telecom major. On August 8, the same entity had offloaded a 0.8% stake in the company for approximately ₹9,300 crore.
Prior to that, on November 7, an arm of Singtel, the Singapore-based telecoms major, had sold about 0.8% in Bharti Airtel for roughly ₹10,600 crore. These consecutive stake sales indicate a strategic repositioning by the promoter groups while maintaining significant control over the company's operations.
The series of block deals demonstrates the continued investor interest in Bharti Airtel despite the gradual reduction in promoter holding. The telecom sector in India has been witnessing intense competition and significant capital expenditure requirements for network expansion and 5G rollout, making such large-scale transactions particularly noteworthy for market observers.
