Bharti Telecom Limited (BTL), one of the largest promoters of Bharti Airtel, has increased its stake in the telecom company. The trade happened through the block deal mechanism on the National Stock Exchange (NSE) for an aggregate amount of Rs 8,301.73 crore. BTL purchased an additional 1.35% stake in the telecom operator for the mentioned amount. BTL got the stake from the Indian Continent Investment Limited (ICIL). After the deal, BTL now owns a 39.59% stake in Bharti Airtel while ICIL's stake is reduced to 4.56%.
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Bharti Airtel is the second-largest telecom company in India. The telco boasts the highest ARPU (average revenue per user) amongst its competitors in the wireless mobile services segment. Further, Airtel is one of the top players in the postpaid mobile business and serves customers as well as enterprises through its network services. The telco also has a pretty large B2B business brand called Airtel Business and over the years has collaborated with major tech companies to offer best-in-class digital solutions to enterprises.
On Friday, Airtel's shares closed at Rs 1,012, after touching a lifetime high of Rs 1022. Bharti Airtel's stock has been performing well over the last month and it has helped the telco in increasing its valuation significantly. Bharti Airtel is currently in the process of rolling 5G at a rapid pace throughout India and has also launched its 5G FWA (Fixed-Wireless Access) service called Airtel Xstream AirFiber. For now, Airtel is only offering the 5G FWA service in two cities in India - Delhi and Mumbai.
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The telco has elevated its capex levels and is looking to raise funds via the rights issue proceeds to prepay deferred dues of the 2015 spectrum auctions. Airtel has around Rs 12,000 crore worth of debt related to the 2015 spectrum auctions. Prepaying the debt amount will help Airtel in saving money in interest costs.
