Vodafone UK to sell remaining 3% stake in Indus Tower via book build offering for repaying debt | Stock Market News

Vodafone Group will sell its remaining 3% stake in Indian telecom infrastructure developer Indus Towers, the British telecom group said on Wednesday. The British firm said it has launched a placing of its remaining 79.2 million shares in Indus Towers through an accelerated book build offering.

The UK-based telecommunications firm is selling 79.2 million shares, representing a 3% stake, with some of the proceeds to be used to pay down debt, the company said in a statement Wednesday. The shares were worth about $334 million at Tuesday’s close.

As part of Chief Executive Officer Margherita Della Valle’s efforts to cut exposure to underperforming markets, Vodafone sold an 18% stake in Indus Towers in June.

The FTSE 100 company also said the proceeds from the placing will be used firstly to repay Vodafone’s outstanding borrowings of $101 million, which was secured against its Indian assets.

In June, Vodafone sold a bigger-than-planned 18% stake in Indus Towers, raising $1.82 billion.