Silver Lake in talks to buy $1-billion stake in Reliance Retail

BY S VENKAT NARAYAN

Our Special Correspondent

NEW DELHI:

American private equity firm Silver Lake Partners is in talks to invest $1 billion in the retail arm of Indian business giant Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL), the Financial Times of London reported on Thursday, citing people with direct knowledge of the matter.

The investment, which would value Reliance Retail at about $57 billion, comes as the company is aiming to sell about 10% in new shares, the report added.

Silver Lake declined to comment on the report, while Reliance could not immediately be reached outside of normal business hours.

Silver Lake is a global technology investment firm, with more than $60 billion in combined assets under management and committed capital and a team of investment and operating professionals based in Menlo Park, New York, London, Hong Kong, Cupertino and San Francisco. The company’s portfolio of investments collectively generates more than $180 billion of revenue annually and employs 295,000 people globally.

Reliance, an oil-to-telecoms conglomerate controlled by India’s richest man Mukesh Ambani, is pitching its retail business as a formidable force in the world’s second most populous country, expanding rapidly to woo potential investors.

The company has raised more than $20 billion from global investors including Facebook Inc by selling stakes in its Jio Platforms digital business and has said it aims to attract investors to Reliance Retail over the next few quarters.

In late August, Reliance said it would acquire the retail and logistics businesses of India’s Future Group in a deal valued at $3.38 billion, including debt.