Vodafone Idea is on a knife’s edge

The debt-ridden telco is losing customers by the droves and finding it tough to raise capital, while rivals with newly won spectrum amp up the pressure.

Prop up a business that’s getting whipped by the competition or let it bleed to death? That is one tough call to make for Kumar Mangalam Birla, chairman of the $44 billion Aditya Birla Group that straddles sectors ranging from commodities and telecommunication to finance and fashion.

Known for being unemotional about cutting off businesses that don’t make money, Birla is faced with the biggest challenge of his 25-year stewardship, which began when he took the reins of the group in 1995 following the death of his father, Aditya Vikram Birla. 

Group firm Vodafone Idea Ltd, now known as Vi, …

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