As per a credible report, Vodafone Group's entire stake in mobile-tower operator Indus Towers could be offloaded through block deals next week. This stake is worth USD 2.3 billion constituting 21.5 percent via various group entities.
Furthermore, in case the demand is weak, the report also stated that the final deal could get less than the entire stake which Vodafone holds in Indus Towers. Also, to raise a sizeable corpus, Vodafone Idea has ambitious 5G rollout and 4G coverage plans going forward.
While Indus Towers fell from the highs of the day after the news report, the shares of Vodafone Idea were sharply higher at the close of trade today (June 14). However, there has not been any comment on the story from neither Vodafone India, its UK parent, nor Indus Towers who declined to comment on the story.
Additionally, Vodafone has reportedly hired Bank of America, Morgan Stanley and BNP Paribas to help manage the deal.
Also, it should be noted that on April 24, Bharti Airtel had denied news reports that it was in talks to buy Vodafone Group's 21.05 percent stake in Indus Towers. Just to note, billionaire Sunil Mittal-led Bharti Airtel is the largest shareholder of Indus Towers with a 47.95% stake at hand.
Bharti Airtel had said in its statement back in April, "Indus is a provider of critical infrastructure services to the telecom industry and Airtel relies heavily on it. Airtel will therefore always ensure that Indus remains in robust health and financially stable."
