MAM
Reliance Retail raises Rs 9,555 crore from PIF
MUMBAI: Reliance Retail Ventures Ltd (RRVL), a subsidiary of Reliance Industries, has raised Rs 9,555 crore from Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF), taking its pre-money equity value to Rs 4,587 lakh crore.
This is the second investment by PIF in the Mukesh Ambani-led conglomerate. It had earlier acquired a 2.32 per cent stake in Jio platforms for Rs 11,367 crore.
The transaction, an official statement said, is in line with PIF's strategy as a leading global investor with a proven track record of investing in innovative and transformative companies globally and develop strong partnerships with leading groups in their respective markets. India's retail sector is one of the largest in the world and accounts for over 10 per cent of its gross domestic product (GDP) which presents meaningful growth potential.
Reliance Industries chairman and managing director Mukesh Ambani said, "We at Reliance have a long-standing relationship with the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. PIF is at the forefront of the economic transformation of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. I welcome PIF as a valued partner in Reliance Retail and look forward to their sustained support and guidance as we continue our ambitious journey to transform India’s retail sector for enriching the lives of 1.3 billion Indians and millions of small merchants."
Yasir Al-Rumayyan, governor of PIF, said, "We are pleased to be furthering our trusted partnership with Reliance Industries. This transaction demonstrates PIF’s commitment to investing and partnering for the long-term with innovative businesses around the world that lead and transform their sectors.”
The investments come amid the ongoing festive season, which is primetime for the country's retail sector. Flush with these funds, Reliance is probably hoping to counter rivals like e-tailers Flipkart and Amazon.
Reliance Retail operates India's largest, fast-growing retail business, serving close to 640 million footfalls at its around 12,000 stores across the country.
MAM
Sameer Nair shares heartfelt note as he exits Applause Entertainment
After nine years building the streamer’s content engine, one of India’s best-known TV men is moving on
MUMBAI: Sameer Nair is out. The chief executive of Applause Entertainment, the content studio backed by Kumar Mangalam Birla’s media empire, has announced his departure after nearly nine years at the helm, closing the chapter on one of Indian entertainment’s more quietly consequential careers.
Nair, who built Applause from the ground up in its current avatar, oversaw a slate that spanned Indian originals and international adaptations, threading together a hub-and-spoke business model that partnered with streaming platforms, broadcasters and production houses alike. The results were uneven, as they always are in content, but the ambition was not.
In a post on LinkedIn, Nair was generous to his outgoing patron. He thanked Birla for being an “inspirational boss and a great patron of the arts,” and signed off with a cheerful “Au Revoir” and a promise to remain Applause’s biggest cheerleader. Whether that sentiment survives the next chapter remains to be seen.
No successor has been named. Applause Entertainment did not immediately comment.
Nair built the machine. Now someone else has to run it — and in a streaming market that is simultaneously consolidating and convulsing, that is no small ask.
