Vodafone Idea Ltd. shares rose as much as 1.8% in early trade on Friday after a Bloomberg report said a group of lenders led by State Bank of India had agreed to provide about $3.5 billion of debt financing to the telecom operator.
The stock hit a high of Rs 15.17 and a low of Rs 14.84. It was trading at Rs 15.09, up 1.28% from the previous close of Rs 14.90, as of 9:42 a.m.
The funding would help Vodafone Idea improve its network and compete with Bharti Airtel Ltd. and Reliance Jio Infocomm Ltd., according to the report.
Other local lenders in the consortium include Union Bank of India Ltd. and the National Bank for Financing Infrastructure and Development, people familiar with the matter said, according to Bloomberg. They asked not to be identified because the information is not public.
The conditions of the proposed funding include billionaire Kumar Mangalam Birla remaining chairman throughout the nearly 10-year tenure of the loan, as well as guarantees of repayment in the event of a default, the people said.
Representatives for Vodafone Idea and the banks did not immediately respond to requests for comment, Bloomberg reported.
Vodafone Idea reported a loss of Rs 3,750 crore in the first quarter through June, which was smaller than expected, according to the report.
Vodafone Idea shares have gained almost 40% this year.
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