Losers’ gambit: Vodafone Idea’s deal with the government

Just when it looked like the government and India’s third largest telco were going to end up losers, they have arrived at a compromise. Will it work?

It’s one blow after another for Kumar Mangalam Birla. Five years after the Aditya Birla Group chairman took the reins of what was then India’s largest telecoms company, he now appears close to losing the business.

Vodafone Idea—Vi—announced yesterday that it will allot new shares to the government, making it the biggest stakeholder in the company with a 38.5% stake; Birla himself would be reduced to the smallest promoter, with 17.8%. Last August, he had stepped down as chairman of the company and relinquished his seat on the board as it increasingly looked like the company would go under. 

With …

Author

T Surendar

Surendar helps lead the newsroom at The Morning Context as executive editor. Over the years, Surendar has worked in industries from pharmaceuticals to diamonds, as well as a stint as an equity analyst. In his long career as a business journalist, he has led teams at The Times of India, India Today and Fortune India. He was part of the founding team at Forbes India and interned at and published in The Times, London.

Executive Editor

surendar@mailtmc.com

Mumbai