Sunil Mittal eyes majority control in Airtel again
What's the story
Sunil Bharti Mittal, the reappointed chairman of the board of Bharti Airtel for five years until September 30, 2031, has revealed his long-term vision for the company. He wants to consolidate promoter holdings under Bharti Telecom Ltd (BTL) and restore its controlling stake to over 50%. This comes as strategic partner Singtel moves toward an equalized ownership structure with Bharti family entities. The move is part of a broader strategy to strengthen the company's position in the telecom sector.
Future plans
10% more to go: Mittal
Mittal said his personal goal is to bring Bharti Telecom's ownership back above the 50% mark in the next decade. "As I kind of come to a point where I hand over the reins to the next generation as shareholders, Bharti telecom should get back to controlling shareholding 51% or just over 50%. So that's 10% more to go," Mittal said.
Strategic move
Plans to consolidate holdings under Bharti Telecom over time
Mittal also revealed plans to consolidate holdings from Indian Continent Investment Ltd. (ICIL), Bharti family entities, and Singtel under Bharti Telecom over time. This is part of a larger vision he carries in his mind for the company. He said, "So, the principal direction or vision that I carry in my mind is all shared that we can from both Indian Continent Investment (ICIL), our Bharti family entities, and Singtel should go into Bharti Telecom as much as possible."
Ownership balance
Mittal clarifies on equalization process with Singtel
Mittal also clarified the equalization process with Singtel, which currently has a direct stake in Airtel."Singtel had a difference of about 7% or rather has 7% direct stake in Airtel and it had about 6% to equalize. Now with this transaction, once this is done and share that issued, this gap comes down to 3.6%," he said This means Singtel will need to divest far less over the next few years to achieve equalization.
Stake reduction
'Our stake must go back to Bharti Telecom'
"Our stake must go back to BTL. For that, I need a little bit more leeway in the hands of BTL, which I'm hoping will be delivered through continuously enhanced dividend as you are seeing," he said. "And I think hopefully in the next couple of years, some buybacks in addition to the dividend. And that will give us the necessary capacity in BTL to buy more," Mittal added.