INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Mumbai: Reliance Jio Infocomm (Jio), telecom arm of billionaire-Mukesh Ambani owned Reliance Industries, has tapped the Korean credit market
to raise $1 billion (Rs6,800 crore), a move that will help it diversify its borrowing sources.
Korea Trade Insurance Corporation (K-Sure),
which manages loan assets running into trillions, will extend the $1 billion credit facility to Jio that will use it for purchasing
equivalent term loan facility covered by Korea Trade Insurance Corporation on June 22
The facility will be used to finance goods and services procured primarily from Samsung Electronics and Ace Technologies Corp," said the
telco in a statement on Monday.
The loan has a repayment time frame of 10.75 years and this will be the Korean company's largest deal in
both India and the telecom sector globally
According to Jio, it will also be K-SURE's fourth covered facility for the Reliance group in the last five years and the second one for
Jio in past three years.
A host of banks including Australia and New Zealand Banking Group and The Hongkong and Shanghai Banking
Corporation, JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A.; Mizuho Bank, MUFG Bank have helped the company to arrange the loan.
Jio, which has invested around
Rs2,50,000 crore in its business so far, has been raising funds for its network expansion as it takes on market leader Bharti Airtel,
Jio's debt at March end stood at some Rs78,000 crore.
A few weeks ago, the company had raised about Rs 2,500 crore by selling domestic
corporate bonds.
The operator with over 186 million subscribers has been scouting for different ways of raising money to fuel its telecom
operations, which started in 2016
ET had reported two weeks ago that, the telco has hit the bond street with the aim to raise about Rs 2,000 crore to fund the company's
expansion plans.
Jio is seeking to diversify its borrowing base and recently also raised $500 million through a syndicated Samurai loan from
three Japanese banks, including Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ (MUFG), Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation (SMBC) and Mizuho Bank
The floating-rate loan is for a seven-year period.
The telecom company's parent company - Reliance Industries - has also sought
shareholder approval to raise up to Rs 20,000 crore through a non-convertible debenture (NCD) issue in 2018-19, according to its annual
non-convertible debentures, in one or more series or tranches on private placement, issuable or redeemable at par, in order to augment
