KKR & Co. is in advanced talks to invest at least $ 1 billion in Indian billionaire Mukesh Ambani’s retail business, according to people familiar with the matter, in what could be another US investment in the unit following the Silver Lake deal. .
KKR is in talks for a stake in Reliance Retail Ventures Ltd., a unit of India’s largest retailer, said the people, who asked not to be identified because the information is not public. The private equity firm could invest up to $ 1.5 billion and an announcement could come as soon as this month, one of the people said.
The negotiations are ongoing and could be delayed or unraveled, the people said. Representatives for KKR and Reliance did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Weeks after Ambani, 63, raised about $ 20 billion by selling stakes in his tech company to investors like Facebook Inc. and Google, the mogul seeks to repeat the same with his retail business. Silver Lake agreed on Wednesday to invest 75 billion rupees ($ 1 billion) in Reliance Retail Ventures, valuing the business at around 4.2 trillion rupees.
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Earlier this year, Silver Lake invested $ 1.35 billion in a stake in Ambani’s telecommunications and digital services unit Jio Platforms Ltd., while KKR invested $ 1.5 billion.
Reliance Retail, a unit of telecommunications energy conglomerate Reliance Industries Ltd., operates supermarkets, India’s largest consumer electronics store chain, a cash and carry wholesaler, fast fashion stores and a grocery store in line called JioMart. It reported 1.63 trillion rupees in revenue in the year to March 2020. The unit operates nearly 12,000 stores in nearly 7,000 cities.
Ambani, the richest man in Asia, is also boosting his grocery and clothing businesses through acquisitions.
Last month, Reliance said it is buying assets from rival Future Group for Rs 247.1 billion, nearly doubling the footprint of its retail chains. The deal includes Future’s retail, wholesale, logistics and warehousing units, Reliance Retail Ventures Ltd. said on Aug. 29 in a statement.
Also last month, Reliance acquired a majority stake in the Netmeds digital pharmacy market for 6.2 billion rupees. It is also in negotiations to buy or buy stakes in companies such as Urban Ladder, an online furniture seller and Zivame, a lingerie manufacturer, according to people familiar with the matter.
Ambani’s success in attracting investors to Jio Platforms and now his retail business has also led to an increase in his personal assets. As Reliance Industries shares rallied, it has added about $ 22 billion to its net worth this year, advancing its rank among the world’s richest to number 7, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.
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