Airtel's African Unit Launch: India Ranking Drops to Third Place

## Bharti Airtel’s Strategic Move Towards an IPO

Bharti Airtel is advancing its plans to list Airtel Africa on the London Stock Exchange (LSE). This decision comes as the company faces declining subscriber numbers in its home market of India.

Airtel plans to offer at least 25% of its stake in Airtel Africa, with the possibility of an additional 15% through an over-allotment, details of which will be disclosed later. The company aims to raise approximately $750 million from this listing, which is intended to help alleviate its $5 billion debt burden. Additionally, there’s a possibility of listing its operations in Nigeria.

Last week, Airtel submitted an official application for the LSE listing, aligning with expectations that have been building for some time. Airtel Africa operates in 14 countries within Africa, providing both telecommunications and financial services. By the end of the previous year, it had successfully raised $1.25 billion, adding to the $200 million already secured from the Qatar Investment Authority.

### Challenges in the Indian Market

Despite growth prospects in Africa, Airtel is losing market share in India. In Q1 2019, the local Bharti Airtel division slipped to third place behind Reliance Jio, experiencing a year-on-year drop in subscribers of 7.1%.

As of the end of its fiscal Q4 (March), the company reported a total of 282.6 million subscribers, trailing Jio’s 307 million and Vodafone Idea’s 334 million. On a positive note, the loss of subscribers has begun to stabilize, with only a 0.6% decrease reported in the most recent quarter.

### Insights from Airtel’s Leadership

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Airtel’s India and South Asia MD and CEO, Gopal Vittal, highlighted that data usage has surged by 140% year-on-year, with average revenue per user (ARPU) reaching INR 123 ($1.77). However, he cautioned that this figure remains below sustainable levels for the industry.