Bharti Airtel’s subsidiary Bharti Hexacom on Friday filed draft papers with regulator SEBI for an initial public offering (IPO) aimed at raising around Rs 7,000 crore. The offer will comprise solely an offer-for-sale (OFS) of up to 10 crore shares by existing shareholders, without any fresh issuance of shares.
Government-owned Telecommunications Consultants India Ltd, which owns a 30% stake in the firm, will offload up to 10 crore shares representing 20% equity. Bharti Airtel holds the remaining 70% interest in the company.
Bharti Hexacom provides fixed-line, broadband and mobile services in Rajasthan and North East India under the ‘Airtel’ brand. It seeks to attract and retain high-value customers through an omnichannel, data science-driven approach.
The proposed IPO will allow Telecommunications Consultants to partially monetize its investment in the telecom carrier. While Bharti Hexacom will not receive any proceeds, the offering will broaden its investor base when market conditions permit.
SBI Capital Markets is among the book runners managing what shapes up as one of 2023’s prominent IPOs within India’s booming telecom domain. The final IPO size will depend on regulatory approvals.