"Currently,
there is no proposal as reported by the media that is being considered at the
Board," Vodafone Idea said in a regulatory filing.
At 2:30 pm, Vodafone Idea shares were
trading a Rs 6.55, higher by 12 per cent, on BSE
Vodafone Idea, has denied
media reports that tech titan Google was eyeing a minority stake in Vodafone
Inc's India business. "Currently, there is no proposal as reported by the
media that is being considered at the Board," Vodafone Idea clarified in a
regulatory filing to the exchanges. News agency Bloomberg had earlier reported,
quoting Financial Times, that Alphabet Inc's Google was considering acquiring
a stake in Vodafone Group Plc's struggling Indian business. Google may
take a stake of about 5 per cent in Vodafone Idea, though the deliberations are
at a very early state, the report had added.
At
the same time, Vodafone Idea pointed out that it evaluates opportunities at any
given time. "As part of corporate strategy, the company constantly
evaluates various opportunities for enhancing the stakeholders' value,"
the company said.
An
investment by Google in Vodafone Idea, if it materialises, would pit the search
giant against Facebook, which has already picked up a stake in Reliance Industries'
subsidiary, Jio Platforms. India has been a critical component of Google's Next
Billion Users initiative, which is an attempt to rope in millions of users as
they come on the internet in emerging markets such as India.
Vodafone Idea reiterated that
it will comply with disclosure obligations under the SEBI regulations as and
when proposals are considered by the board of directors.
The
stock of Vodafone Idea had rallied about 35 per cent on the BSE to an intra-day
high of Rs 7.85 in mid-day trading. However, the stock trimmed its gains post
the clarification and ended the trading session at Rs 6.56, higher by Rs 0.74
or 12 per cent, on the BSE.
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