Voda Idea announces ₹18k cr follow-on offer
NEW DELHI: Cash-strapped Vodafone Idea on Friday announced a follow-on public offer of up to ₹18,000 crore at a price band of ₹10-11 per share, marking the biggest FPO in the country.
The fundraise -- which comes close on the heels of a ₹2,075crore fund infusion by Aditya Birla group via a preferential share issue earlier this month, would give the ailing telco the firepower to improve its positioning in the Indian telecom market, where it currently trails larger rivals such as Reliance Jio and Bharti Airtel, by a wide margin.
The funds would also help VIL shore up finances for the much-delayed 5G rollout and strengthening 4G services, and in payment of vendor dues.
VIL has been hemorrhaging subscribers month-after-month, and fighting a desperate battle for survival saddled with debt of ₹2.1 lakh crore and quarterly losses. According to a statutory filing on Friday, VIL’s follow-on offer will open on April 18 and close on April 22.
“The Board of Directors of the company, at its meeting held on April 11, 2024 approved Further Public Offering (FPO) of equity shares, aggregating up to ₹18,000 crore. The capital raising committee in its meeting held today that is April 12, 2024 approved the price band for the FPO issuance,” the company said in a BSE filing.
Vodafone Idea shares, however, tanked in early trade following the announcement of the ₹18,000-crore FPO.
The floor price for the mega offer has been set at ₹10 and the cap at ₹11 per equity share.
The higher-end of the price band (₹11) is at a discount of about 26% compared to recently approved preferential issue price to the promoter entity at ₹14.87 and a discount of about 15% compared to last closing price of ₹12.95. A minimum bid lot will be 1,298 equity shares and in the multiples of 1,298 equity shares, thereafter, the company said.
The back of the envelope calculations show that at the upperend of the price band, the minimum application amount would add up to ₹14,278 for a single lot of shares.
“... Pursuant to the approval accorded by the Board of Directors of the company at its meeting held on February 27, 2024 and the special resolution passed by the members of the company on April 2, 2024, the Board has, at its meeting held today that is on April 11 2024...passed resolution for approving, adopting and filing of the red herring prospectus dated April 11, 2024 with the Registrar of Companies, Gujarat at Ahmedabad, in connection with the further public offering of Equity Shares, aggregating up to ₹18,000 crore,” VIL said.
Prior to this, the largest FPO in the Indian market was a ₹15,000 crore share sale by Yes Bank.
VIL on Friday said it will be participating in road shows and interacting with investors and analysts in various cities across India from the week of April 15, 2024 up to the bid closing day.
The board has also fixed the anchor investor bid/offer period to be April 16, 2024. The recent preferential issue of VIL has been a precursor-of-sorts to this blockbuster fundraising plan by the crisis-ridden telco.