Jio-L Catterton deal: After TPG, L Catterton becomes 10th investor in Jio Platforms in historic fundraising by RIL unit

L Catterton, the world’s largest consumer-focused private equity firm, will invest Rs 1,894.50 crore in exchange for a 0.39 percent stake in Jio Platforms, a record tenth investment in the Reliance Industries (RIL) digital unit in seven weeks.

RIL, the oil-to-retail-to-telecom conglomerate, has now sold 22.38 percent stake in Jio and collected Rs 104,326.65 crore from some of the world’s top technology investors in the largest continuous fundraising by a company anywhere in the world.

The investment by L Catterton, which has made more than 200 investments in leading consumer brands, in Jio Platforms is at an equity valuation of Rs 4.91 lakh crore and an enterprise valuation of Rs 5.16 lakh crore. It comes in the span of a little less than two hours after private equity firm TPG invested Rs 4,546.80 crore for a 0.93 percent stake.

Also Read: Jio-TPG deal: TPG joins rush of investors in Jio Platforms as RIL unit’s total fundraising races past Rs 1 lakh crore

Record fundraising deals

The series of investments in Jio, which runs movie, news and music apps as well as the telecom enterprise Jio Infocomm, was led by a 9.99 percent stake sale to Facebook Inc for Rs 43,574 crore on April 22.

Also Read: Facebook buys 9.9% stake in Reliance Jio for Rs 43,574 crore in largest tech FDI

Since then, General Atlantic, Silver Lake (twice), Vista Equity Partners, KKR, Mubadala Investment Company and ADIA and TPG have queued up for investments in Jio.

Mukesh Ambani, Chairman and Managing Director of Reliance Industries, said, “I am delighted to welcome L Catterton as a partner in our journey to unleash the power of digital for India while providing a consumer experience that is among the best in the world. I particularly look forward to gaining from L Catterton’s invaluable experience in creating consumer-centric businesses because technology and consumer experience need to work together to propel India to achieving digital leadership.”

Michael Chu, Global Co-CEO of L Catterton, said, “Over our more than 30 year history, we have established a track record of building many of the most important brands across all consumer categories and geographies, from retailers, omni-channel and digitally native brands. We are strong supporters of fostering growth through product development, enhanced digital capabilities and strategic alliances. We look forward to partnering with Jio, which is uniquely positioned to execute on its vision and mission to transform the country and build a digital society for 1.3 billion Indians through its unmatched digital and technological capabilities.”

Jio Platforms is a next-generation technology platform focused on providing high-quality and affordable digital services across India, with nearly 400 million subscribers. Jio Platforms has made significant investments across its digital ecosystem, powered by leading technologies spanning broadband connectivity, smart devices, cloud and edge computing, big data analytics, artificial intelligence, Internet of Things, augmented and mixed reality and blockchain.

More about L Catterton

L Catterton is a preferred investment partner for leading consumer-focused brands around the world. With a 30-year track record of leveraging its operational expertise, deep sector insights, global network of resources, and its unique partnership with LVMH and Groupe Arnault, L Catterton has successfully invested in and helped build some of the most innovative brands at the forefront of the evolving consumer landscape, including Peloton, Vroom, ClassPass, Owndays, FabIndia, and more.

The PE giant has roughly $20 billion of equity capital across seven fund strategies in 17 offices globally. L Catterton's team of nearly 200 investment and operating professionals partner with management teams around the world to implement strategic plans to foster growth, leveraging deep category insight, operational excellence, and a broad thought partnership network.

L Catterton was formed through the partnership of Catterton, LVMH, and Groupe Arnault.

Disclosure: Reliance Industries Ltd. is the sole beneficiary of Independent Media Trust which controls Network18 Media & Investments Ltd.