Billionaire Mukesh Ambani’s Reliance Industries Ltd. (RIL) is all set to acquire the German firm Metro AG’s India business. A deal that is expected to cost Rs 2,850 crore will see Reliance Retail Ventures Limited (RRVL) acquire Metro AG’s wholesale operations in India.
A joint statement about this takeover read, “Reliance Retail Ventures Limited (RRVL), a subsidiary of Reliance Industries Ltd, today signed definitive agreements to acquire a 100 percent equity stake in Metro Cash & Carry India for a total cash consideration of Rs 2,850 crore, subject to closing adjustments.”
The acquisition is expected to help Reliance Retail’s physical store footprint and the “ability to better serve consumers and small merchants by leveraging synergies and efficiencies across supply chain networks, technology platforms and sourcing capabilities,” Reliance said in a regulatory filing. The transaction is subject to certain regulatory and other customary closing conditions and is expected to complete by March 2023.
The acquisition comes days after Reliance Consumer Products, the fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) arm and a wholly owned subsidiary of Reliance Retail Ventures launched its consumer packaged goods brand, Independence, in Gujarat. Isha Ambani at Reliance Industries‘ 45th annual general meeting in August had announced that the company would foray into the FMCG space this year. Independence will offer a wide range of products under several categories, including staples, processed food, and other daily essentials. It plans to develop Gujarat as a “go-to-market” state to create excellence in execution for its FMCG business, as it prepares for a national rollout for the brand, the company said.
