India’s biggest IPO is turning into a billion-dollar merger opportunity after British telecommunications giant Vodafone said it is in talks to merge its Indian unit with local mobile operator Idea Cellular.
Vodafone’s statement this week ended bankers’ hopes of the flotation of Vodafone India and the massive underwriting fees that would come with it. Some analysts had estimated that the IPO could raise as much as $4 billion. That would make it the country’s largest ever listing, beating Coal India’s $3.5 billion deal in 2010.
Just how big the loss is can be seen by the deal size relative to the market. At $4 billion, the...
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