Global investment firm KKR today announced that it will invest US$1.5 billion in Jio Platforms, the digital services arm of Indian conglomerate Reliance Industries for a 2.32% equity stake on a fully diluted basis.
The new investment gives Jio an equity value of US$64.9 billion and an enterprise value of US$68.2 billion, according to a statement.
Photo credit: Jim Carter
With KKR’s backing, Jio has now raised a total of US$10.4 billion in just over a month.
In April, social media giant Facebook injected US$5.7 billion in Jio, with the two firms reportedly planning to create a WeChat-like super app. About two weeks later, US-based investment firms Silver Lake and Vista Equity Partners announced investments in Jio of US$747 million and US$1.5 billion, respectively.
And just this week, the digital services firm said it’s set to receive another US$870 million from General Atlantic.
Since its inception, KKR has invested over US$30 billion in total enterprise value in various tech companies, including Bytedance and Gojek. Its investment in Jio is backed by the firm’s Asia private equity and growth tech funds, according to the statement. India has been a key strategic market for KKR since 2006, the company said.
Moving forward, Jio aims to enable a digital society for 1.3 billion people and businesses across India, including small merchants, microbusinesses, and farmers.
It has created an ecosystem comprised of networks, devices, applications and content, platforms, service experiences, and affordable tariffs. It made voice calls for Jio customers free across India, helping it to gain over 388 million subscribers.
Editing by Charmaine de Lazo
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