The Qatar Foundation is acquiring a 5% stake in Bharti Airtel, India’s largest mobile operator, in a deal worth $1.26 billion (€961 million).
Bharti is reportedly selling the stake to address rising debt, after reporting a 47% drop in profit in the year to end March. The cellco will issue 199.9 million new shares to the Foundation, which is the official investment arm of the Middle East country, Bloomberg reports.
The operator’s profit fell to 22.67 billion rupees (€319 million) in the year to end March despite a 12% rise in revenue. The firm’s earnings were hit by regulatory orders in its home market, and a widening net loss from operations in Africa.