KKR raises stake in Indian billionaire Ambani’s Reliance Retail with $250 mn

KKR raises stake in Indian billionaire Ambani’s Reliance Retail with $250 mn

KKR & Co Inc (KKR.N) has increased its stake in Indian billionaire Mukesh Ambani’s Reliance Retail Ventures by investing an additional $250 million at a valuation of $100 billion, adding to its bet on the country’s biggest retailer.

The private equity firm’s follow-on investment translates into an additional equity stake of 0.25% in Reliance Retail on a fully-diluted basis, taking KKR’s total equity stake in the Indian company to 1.42%, the retailer said in a statement on Monday.

The investment marks growing interest in Ambani’s retail operations that stretch from groceries to electronics, and include foreign partnerships with brands such as Jimmy Choo, Marks & Spencer and Pret A Manger. It has more than 18,000 stores and also competes with Amazon (AMZN.O) and Walmart’s (WMT.N) Flipkart.

In 2020, Reliance Retail raised $5.71 billion by selling a 10.09% stake to investors including KKR, the Saudi Public Investment Fund, General Atlantic and the United Arab Emirates’ Mubadala.

That year, KKR had invested 55.5 billion rupees ($669.65 million) in Reliance Retail. Ambani recently said the 2020 fundraising valued the business at around $52 billion, and “in less than three years, the valuation of retail has almost doubled.”

KKR’s latest investment comes primarily from its Asian Fund IV and the transaction is subject to regulatory approvals, Reliance said. Morgan Stanley acted as financial adviser to Reliance Retail.

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