Bharti offloads 10% stake in Bharti Telesoft

Bharti Enterprises today said it had sold more than 10 per cent of its stake in Bharti Telesoft to a group of US-based investors led by Westbridge Capital in a $13.5-million deal.

Westbridge Capital has invested $8 million, Sequois Capital, $3 million, and Cisco, $2.5 million, in Bharti Telesoft, a 100 per cent subsidiary of Bharti Enterprises.

"Bharti Telesoft has performed well over the last few years and this partnership will establish a platform to share knowledge and expertise and help us grow further," Bharti Enterprises Vice-Chairman Rakesh Mittal said at a press conference today.

Bharti Telesoft Chief Executive Officer Sanjiv Mittal said the company would use the investment to facilitate acquisitions, enhance product development and expand its presence in the international market.

As part of the deal, Westbridge Capital Partners' Managing Director SK Jain will join the Bharti Telesoft board.

For Sequois Capital, the deal signals its maiden investment in an Indian company. "We feel we can help them in their aim to become a major global player in the mobile value-added service space," Douglas Leone, partner, Sequioa Capital, said in a statement.

Bharti executives said the investment represented more than just "a dollar figure" as the investors would also bring with them expertise in the areas of technology and management.

For instance, the knowledge and industry expertise that Cisco would bring in would facilitate the company's expansion into new areas of technology, executives added.

Bharti Telesoft is a leading provider of value-added solutions and services to both wireless and wireline telecom companies. Its services include solutions for the mobile phone roaming facility, pre-paid mobile charges, messaging, call management, content, customer care and billing.