Why Facebook is spending billions for a minority stake in Reliance Jio

The social media giant apparently seeks to catch up on mobile commerce after its WhatsApp Pay failed to make a mark

Facebook (FB) is no stranger to large acquisitions. The social media giant bought Instagram for $1 billion in 2012, WhatsApp for $19 billion in 2014, and virtual reality firm Oculus VR the same year for another $2 billion.
 

In all three instances, the common denominators were obvious. The deals all gave FB majority ownership, and brought in technology that the world’s largest social network either didn’t have, or saw as prime bolt-on acquisitions.
 

Its latest investment of almost $5.7 billion in Reliance’s Jio — for just 10 per cent stake — makes the deal an aberration.

“This is the single biggest