India’s largest mobile operator, Bharti Airtel, has shortlisted Standard Chartered, JP Morgan, Bank of America Merrill Lynch, HSBC, UBS and Kotak Mahindra to manage the listing of its tower operations, according to sources close to the matter cited by…
India’s largest mobile operator, Bharti Airtel, has shortlisted Standard Chartered, JP Morgan, Bank of America Merrill Lynch, HSBC, UBS and Kotak Mahindra to manage the listing of its tower operations, according to sources close to the matter cited by Reuters.
The IPO of Bharti Infratel, which may take place in the first half of 2013, could reportedly have a value of more than US$750m.
In early August, Bharti Airtel had confirmed it was considering floating 10% of its tower unit.
In a notice to the Bombay Stock Exchange the company said it had appointed a committee of the board of directors to examine options for an IPO. But Bharti stressed at the time that there was no assurance the listing would eventually take place.
The announcement itself followed media reports that the operator may issue new shares to public or institutional investors, seek external borrowings, or list Infratel in an attempt to boost revenues.
Bharti Airtel’s debt load has been weighed down by the acquisition of Zain’s African assets for US$10.7bn in 2010, and more specifically by a US$7.5bn loan taken out to finance the deal, reports noted.
