Abu Dhabi's Mubadala agrees 62.48b rupees deal with India's Reliance Retail

[DUBAI] Abu Dhabi state fund Mubadala Investment has agreed to invest 62.48 billion rupees (S$1.16 billion) in the retail division of India's Reliance Industries, the Indian conglomerate said in a statement.

Reliance Retail is on a fundraising spree and has secured around US$1.8 billion in the past few weeks from KKR & Co and Silver Lake Partners.

Mubadala's investment translates into a 1.4 per cent equity stake in Reliance Retail Ventures Limited on a fully diluted basis, according to the statement and a source close to the deal.

"This marks the second significant investment by Mubadala in a Reliance Industries subsidiary after the US$1.2 billion investment in Jio Platforms announced earlier this year," Reliance said.

Reliance, controlled by Asia's richest man Mukesh Ambani, has approached investors, who collectively pumped more than US$20 billion into its Jio Platforms digital business this year, to take stakes in its retail business. That business has nearly 12,000 stores and sells everything from groceries and electronics to fashion and shoes.

Reuters reported on Tuesday that Mubadala, which manages over US$230 billion in assets and is the second-biggest state investor in Abu Dhabi after Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, was in advanced talks to invest in Reliance Retail.

Mubadala's group chief executive Khaldoon Khalifa al-Mubarak said in June the fund was under-invested in Asia and planned to expand its portfolio in the region.

REUTERS