Vodafone Group may file its draft prospectus in August for public listing of its Indian arm, Reuters reported, citing sources. In all likelihood, the move will see India's second largest telco make its market debut early next year.
With a potential to raise $2.5 billion, the initial public offering (IPO) is touted as India's largest since 2010. Though the company evinced interest for a float as early as 2011, it was only in November last year it initiated the process.
Vodafone, which is already one of India's largest corporate investor, has said it would use the proceeds from the IPO to buy more spectrum and expand its service in a country that has more than 1 billion mobile phone users -- second largest in the world after China.
Staying away from giving any timeline, a Vodafone spokeswoman told Reuters from London that India's listing process was lengthy and any announcement will have to wait till things are final.
Meanwhile, the source added that the listing would be timed based on India's market performance. In fact, its release of prospectus too will happen in the context of India's national indices witnessing record growth and setting a positive outlook for future offerings.
Vodafone's India prospectus will hold the entity's latest financial details from the first half of the calendar year. The company at present has 198 million subscribers, with 19.1 percent of the total market share, according to India telecom regulator TRAI.
At the end of March 31, the British company said its India business contributed to 5 percent growth in its total revenue to $6.68 billion, while its net debt stood at $12.09 billion.
