Voda Idea in danger of becoming a 'zombie' telco; may just about survive

The initial impression is that Vodafone Idea will struggle to manage this level of staggered payments, given that it owes over Rs 58,000 crore

The Supreme Court order brings some clarity to the telecom sector. The telcos will have to pay their AGR dues over a period of 10 years with the payment being made every February. The stock market reaction so far has been positive in terms of the Bharti Airtel stock rising, and negative for the Vodafone Idea stock, which has fallen sharply.

What does this do to the telecom sector? Reliance Jio (RJio) is fine and would have been fine anyway, regardless of the verdict. Analysts will need to examine the balance-sheets of Vodafone Idea and Bharti Airtel to see if