Idea-Vodafone merger gets green signal from NCLT

The National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) has approved the proposed merger between Idea Cellular and Vodafone — a move that brings the firms closer to culminating the deal. Both can go ahead for the final approval for merger from the Department of Telecom after Vodafone’s appeal for the scheme also gets NCLT’s nod. According to data published by sector regulator Trai, Idea and Vodafone jointly have over 400 million mobile subscribers and together account for the largest share in the Indian telecom segment. Vodafone is expected to hold around 47.5 per cent stake in the merged entity and the rest will be owned by Idea and promoter Aditya Birla Group. The proposed merger will create an entity with a revenue of ~77,500-80,000 crore, according to India Ratings and Research.