Jio acquires 100 pc stake in Reliance Infratel for about Rs 3,720 crore

Reliance Projects and Property Management Services, a subsidiary of telecom major Jio, has completed 100 per cent stake acquisition in Reliance Infratel for about Rs 3,725 crore, Reliance Industries Limited said on Thursday.

Billionaire Mukesh Dhirubhai Ambani-led Jio placed a bid of Rs 3,720 crore in November 2019 to acquire the tower and fibre assets of the debt-ridden subsidiary of his younger brother Anil Ambani-managed firm Reliance Communications.

The National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) gave approval to Reliance Projects and Property Management Services (RPPMSL) for the acquisition of Reliance Infratel (RITL) in November.

RIL, in a regulatory filing, said RITL on Thursday allotted to RPPMSL 50 lakh equity shares of Rs 10 each for cash aggregating to Rs 5 crore; and 372 crore zero coupon optionally fully convertible debentures of Rs 10 each, for cash aggregating to Rs 3,720 crore.

"The existing paid-up equity share capital of RITL has been cancelled. Upon such cancellation RPPMSL holds 100% equity share capital of RITL," the filing said.

Reliance had deposited Rs 3,720 crore in an SBI escrow account to acquire the mobile tower and fibre assets of Reliance Infratel.

The Committee of Creditors of the debt-laden firm had approved the resolution plan by Jio on March 4, 2020 with 100 per cent votes. RITL has fibre assets of around 1.78 lakh route kilometers and 43,540 mobile towers across the country.

The funds will be distributed among the lenders once an inter-creditor dispute over the distribution of resolution funds is settled.

SBI and a few other banks, including Doha Bank, Standard Chartered Bank and Emirates Bank, are engaged in a legal battle over the distribution of funds. The matter is pending before the Supreme Court. Doha Bank had challenged the classification of indirect creditors of RITL as the financial creditors by the resolution professional.