Mukesh Ambani says Google will invest Rs 33,737 crore for 7.7% stake in Jio Platforms

Guwahati: Reliance India Limited's chairperson and managing director Mukesh Ambani on Wednesday said that multinational giant Google will buy a 7.7% stake in RIL's Jio platforms for Rs 33,737 crore. This will be the second such investment by a US tech company after Facebook Inc.

At the company's Annual General Meeting (AGM), Ambani said that RIL is "delighted" to welcome Google as a strategic investor in Jio Platforms and they have signed a binding partnership and an investment agreement under which Google will invest Rs 33,737 crore for a 7.7% stake in Jio Platforms.

With this, the cumulative fundraising by Reliance in less than three months has risen to Rs 212,809 crore, announced Mukesh Ambani. Earlier, investors including Facebook and KKR, have already put in Rs 1.17 lakh crore for just over 25% in RIL's digital arm Jio Platforms. This is inclusive of Rs 53,124 crore rights issue and investment by BP in fuel retailing venture. Ambani announced that this is in excess of the company's net debt of Rs 1,61,035 crore at the end of FY19-20.

He further proclaimed that Reliance is now truly a zero net debt company and well ahead of his goal of March 2021. It has an extremely strong Balance Sheet that will support growth plans for its three hyper-growth engines—Jio, Retail, and O2C, Ambani said, adding that Reliance has concluded its JV with BP in the existing fuel retailing business and that BP has invested Rs 7,629 crore for their 49 percent stake in the JV.

This development has come to the fore days after Google CEO Sundar Pichai said that the company would spend around $10 billion (roughly Rs 75,000 crore) in India over the next five to seven years through equity investments and tie-ups, in a continuation of its policy of looking east to tie-up with slowly emerging markets like India. RIL's 43rd AGM was held virtually for the first time due to the ongoing COVID-19 situation with shareholders from 500 locations in India and abroad joined in.

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