Reliance Industries Gains Nearly 3% On Retail Arm's Deal With KKR

Reliance Industries shares gained nearly 3 per cent, out-performing the benchmark indices' gains of 0.7 per cent, after the US-based investment firm KKR decided to buy a 1.28 per cent stake in its retail arm, Reliance Retail Ventures, for Rs 5,550 crore. The transaction gave Reliance Retail an equity value of Rs 4.21 lakh crore, Reliance Industries said in a regulatory filing before market hours on Wednesday. The shares of Reliance Industries opened the session at Rs 2,275 and touched an intra-day high of Rs 2,276.50, up 2.8 per cent, on the BSE at opening bell. At 9:22 am, the shares were trading marginally off intra-day highs at Rs 2267.05, up 2.53 per cent, on the BSE.

The investment into Reliance Retail Ventures marks the second investment by KKR in a subsidiary of Reliance Industries, following a Rs 11,367 crore investment in Jio Platforms announced earlier this year.

KKR follows the US-based private equity firm Silver Lake, which agreed to take a 1.75 per cent stake in Reliance Retail Ventures for Rs 7,500 crore earlier this month. Global investors including internet giants Facebook and Google are bullish on the Reliance Industries group businesses.

A subsidiary of the billionaire Mukesh-Ambani owned Reliance Industries, Reliance Retail Ventures is the holding company of all retail businesses under the conglomerate.

The BSE Sensex was trading at 38,009, higher by 0.7 per cent and NSE Nifty was at 11,231.40, up 0.7 per cent at the time, after four successive days of losses.