Vodafone Idea denies being in discussions to be acquired by Verizon, Amazon or Starlink

New Delhi, Sep 18

Vodafone Idea on Monday denied reports that it is in discussion to be acquired by Verizon, Amazon, or Starlink.

In a regulatory filing, Vodafone Idea denied reports that it is being acquired by these parties and said the reports are incorrect.

“We wish to submit that the said News Item is incorrect. The company is not in any such discussion with any of the named parties," it added.

Vodafone Idea stock fell almost 6 per cent following the clarification. The stock is trading at Rs 11.04 on BSE.

Vodafone India has made a requisite payment of Rs 1,701 crore to the Department of Telecommunications telecom department towards 2022 Spectrum Auction Instalment.

In a regulatory filing, Vodafone Idea said the payment is in accordance with the terms of Notice Inviting Applications dated June 15, 2022.

In an earlier filing on August 14, Vodafone Idea had said that the company has received a communication from a promoter group entity confirming that in the event of any fund requirement for meeting its impending payment obligations by the company, it shall provide direct or indirect financial support to the extent of Rs 2,000 crore.

On August 24, CARE Ratings revised the outlook assigned to the long-term bank facilities and instruments of Vodafone Idea Limited (VIL) from ‘Positive’ to ‘Stable’ acknowledging delay in fund raising from investors and financial institutions against the envisaged timelines, while the ratings have been reaffirmed.

The ratings factor in the experienced management team, pan-India telecom presence with high brand recognition supported by a stable outlook for the Indian telecommunications industry, stance of the promoter groups (i.e., the Aditya Birla group (ABG) and the Vodafone group Plc (VGP) ) in assisting the entity and majority shareholding (33.14 per cent as on June 30, 2023) of the government through the Department of Investment and Public Asset Management.