The Mukesh Ambani-led Reliance Industries Ltd. is proposing to dispose of around $20 billion stake in its retail business to US e-commerce giant Amazon.com, sources with information on the offering disclosed.
Amazon has been in talks about infusing a decent amount of capital in the Indian group's Reliance Retail Ventures division, offering Jeff Bezos the opportunity to grab a strong foothold in the country.
The Seattle-based retail empire is reported to have shown interest with RRV over a potential 40 percent stake in the business, Bloomberg said. The two companies have been talking since this summer when reports came out that Amazon was considering snagging a 10 percent ownership of RRV.
Reliance currently has nearly 12,000 brick and mortar shops scattered across the country. It operates a chain of supermarkets, the country's biggest network of consumer electronics, clothing shops, and the popular online grocery shop JioMart that both Facebook and Alphabet have a stake in.
Abu Dhabi's state fund Mubadala Investment Co and Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund - both investors of Jio Platforms - are also examining a potential share acquisition, reports said.
If the contract pushes through, it would not only set the stage for a retail powerhouse in India but will also make the world's richest man, Jeff Bezos, and Asia's wealthiest person, Mukesh Ambani from business 'adversaries' into partners in India, whose retail market is estimated to be valued at $1 trillion.
At $20 billion, the partnership would be the largest in the history of Indian retail and for Amazon as well, figures compiled by Bloomberg showed. India's e-commerce market is projected to be worth $84 billion in 2021, up from only $2.4 billion a decade ago.
Shares in Reliance were up almost 9 percent Thursday, making it the first listed company in India to attain a market capitalization of over $200 billion.
