In 2020, Mukesh Ambani aggressively monetised his stakes in the telecom and retail ventures that he’d spent much of the last decade building. The flurry of deal-making, which started in April, catapulted the Reliance Industries stock to an all-time high, taking Ambani’s net wealth to $88.7 billion, up by $37.3 billion in the last year. He is No 1 on the Forbes India Rich List for the 13th year (page 56).
Asia’s richest man has positioned his flagship Reliance Industries [owner of Network 18, the publisher of Forbes India] to be a major beneficiary of the consolidation playing out in telecom and retail. Both these consumer businesses have long growth runways ahead. In telecom, there is the opportunity to take prices up and cross-sell retail services while Reliance Retail has now reached the critical mass needed to take on consumer companies and negotiate better prices and pass them on to consumers.
It was the Facebook deal on April 22 that alerted the market to the potential in Jio’s customer base. It's 405 million users who paid an average of ₹145 a month for its services were now a sizeable base for a global technology company to be interested in. Facebook, which had been trying unsuccessfully to roll out its payments platform in India, had decided instead to partner with Jio, thereby lessening the competitive intensity. The company paid ₹43,574crore for a 9.9 percent stake in Jio Platforms and signaled that it would work to integrate WhatsApp with Reliance Retail’s ordering platform—a potential game-changer as the messaging platform has 400 million users across India.
Denne historien er fra November 20, 2020-utgaven av Forbes India.
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Denne historien er fra November 20, 2020-utgaven av Forbes India.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
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Home-Cooked Meal Is Now Greatly Valued
The pandemic has also brought with it an improved focus on hygiene, use of technology in dining, rise of cloud kitchens and resurgence in popularity of Indian ingredients
Paytm 3.0 - Reaching Near Breakeven In Two Years
As of 2020, Vijay Shekhar Sharma’s super app for financial services had run up losses in thousands of crores. Now, as digital payments gets yet another boost courtesy Covid-19, he’s hopeful of reaching near breakeven in two years
THE PANDEMIC HAS CAUSED WOMEN GREATER LABOUR PAIN
Covid-19 has shown that women are more likely to face the brunt of job losses than men, and find fewer opportunities when they want to resume. That apart, several have to deal with increased hours of unpaid work at home and even domestic abuse
LEADERSHIP WILL BE ABOUT SEEING THE BIGGER PICTURE
Leaders must not only guard their teams first during a crisis, but also deal with stakeholders with respect and dignity. And apart from pursuing business goals, they should remain committed to our planet and the environment
PHILANTHROPY SHOULD BE HUMBLE, BUT NOT MODEST
Apart from building a flexible and resilient framework for the future, philanthropists, civil society and the government must work in tandem so that every rupee is absorbed on the ground
INTEGRATED HEALTH CARE, TECH WILL DISRUPT SECTOR
While clinical research will get a boost, having a skilled workforce and public spending on health care will be challenges in the near term
DIGITALISATION WILL HELP IN VALUE CREATION
As the pandemic brings technology and innovation to the core of business and daily life, the next decade will see about 150 million digital-first families in India
Industry 4.0: Climate Revolution?
Augmenting sustainability alongside digital capabilities is an economic, competitive and global opportunity for India’s businesses, but regulations need to reflect intent
EV Dream Still Miles Away
Electric vehicles have remained a buzzword in India for years. But not much has moved on ground due to high upfront costs, range anxiety and charging infrastructure
Living Waters
A virus has caused us to scramble for oxygen but our chokehold on the environment is slowly strangling the very waters that breathe life into us. The virus is a timely reminder: We are merely consumers, not producers of life’s breath on this planet