Reliance to reduce shareholding in ISPs Hathway and DEN

Reliance Industries Limited (RIL) – the parent company of India’s largest mobile provider by subscribers, Reliance Jio Infocomm (Jio) – is set to reduce its stake in ISPs Hathway Cable and Datacom and DEN Networks to ensure compliance with India’s minimum public shareholding rules, which require that at least 25% of the outstanding equity shares of listed companies are held by the public. To that end the promoter companies of Hathway – RIL subsidiaries Jio Content Distribution Holdings, Jio Internet Distribution Holdings and Jio Cable and Broadband Holdings – will sell a combined total of 337.98 million equity shares, representing a 19.09% stake, at a floor price of INR25.25 (USD0.35) per share. Similarly, DEN’s promoter companies – Jio Futuristic Digital Holdings, Jio Digital Distribution Holdings and Jio Television Distribution Holdings (also RIL subsidiaries) – will offload 55.49 million equity shares, representing a stake of 11.63%, with a floor price of INR48.5 per share.