Vodafone Idea, formerly known as 印통신사, rebrands to Vi... Secures large-scale funding

[Asia Economy Reporter Seulgina Jo] Indian telecom company Vodafone Idea is rebranding as 'Vi' and embarking on large-scale fundraising.

On the 8th, according to IT specialist media TechCrunch and local news outlets, Kumar Mangalam Birla, chairman of the Aditya Birla Group and Vodafone Idea, announced this policy at a conference the previous day.

Vodafone Idea was formed in 2018 through the merger of UK-based Vodafone and Indian conglomerate Idea Cellular. It had boasted over 400 million subscribers as the industry leader but recently lost more than 100 million subscribers to competitors, dropping to third place in market share this year. As of May, its market share stood at 27%.

Chairman Kumar Mangalam Birla emphasized, "India is the world's second-largest telecom market and the largest data consumer. Through the new brand Vi, we will accelerate the development of India's digital economy and help millions of citizens connect to the digital revolution to build a better future." He also stated that investment in 4G wireless technology, currently used by about 1 billion people in India, will continue and coverage will be expanded to twice the size at the time of the merger.

On this day, Vodafone Idea also announced plans to raise up to 250 billion rupees. It is expected to raise funds through issuing new shares and corporate bonds. Local media mentioned the possibility of investment from US companies such as Amazon.com and Google.

Due to recent market share declines and other impacts, Vodafone Idea recorded a loss of 255 billion rupees in the second quarter (April to June). The third quarter loss is estimated to be around 74 billion rupees. Indian telecom companies must pay a certain percentage of total revenue to the government in the form of license fees and telecom usage fees, making fundraising urgent.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.