Providence Equity Partners-backed Indus Towers to Merge with KKR- and CPPIB-backed Bharti Infratel (Asia)

Source(s): Bharti Infratel

Shareholders of India-based mobile telecommunications infrastructure operator Indus Towers have agreed to merge their respective holdings in the company into Bharti Infratel, another India-based telecommunications company. Indus Towers is owned by Bharti Infratel, U.K.-based mobile network company Vodafone, India-based telecommunications company Idea Cellular and private equity firm Providence Equity Partners. The transaction values the combined entity at INR715 billion (approximately US$10.7 billion). Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPPIB) and global investment manager KKR acquired a 10.3 percent stake in Bharti Infratel in 2017. The merged company will operate under the Indus Towers name and continue to be listed on the Indian stock exchanges. The transaction, which is subject to closing conditions and shareholder and regulatory approvals, is expected to close by the second quarter of 2019.