Vodafone Idea share in focus after telecom firm clears IDFC First Bank's Rs 3240-cr dues; Govt says will acquire stake in Vi on THIS condition

Vodafone Idea latest news: In good news for Vodafone Idea, the beleaguered telecom company has apparently paid the loan of IDFC First Bank.  As per Zee Business, the bank had exposure of Rs 3240 crore, which is 2.90% of loan book, in Vodafone Idea in September 2021. Out of the total loan amount, the telecom firm paid Rs 1500 crore along with interest of Rs 110 crore in December 2021. The remaining amount was cleared subsequently, which was also confirmed by V. Vaidyanathan, the MD and CEO of the bank.    

V. Vaidyanathan further told Zee Business that the bank has given another loan of Rs 500 crore to Vodafone Idea.    

It is learnt that the company has also received a nod from the Finance Ministry to convert the debt into equity, said Zee Business research analyst Kushal Gupta citing reports.    

वोडाफोन-आइडिया के लिए अच्छी खबर#vodafoneidea ने किया कर्ज का भुगतान

जानिए पूरी डिटेल्स कुशल से

साथ ही #IDFCFIRSTBank के MD & CEO, वी वैद्यनाथन ने वोडाफोन-आइडिया को दिए कर्ज को लेकर क्या कहा देखिए इस वीडियो में@IDFCFIRSTBank @KushalGupta44 @AnilSinghvi_ @anuragshah_ pic.twitter.com/9liCjhahv5

— Zee Business (@ZeeBusiness) September 8, 2022

As per reports, the telecom company had also paid a loan of Rs 2700 crore to another lender—State Bank of India (SBI).    

Interestingly, the stock breached Rs10-mark for the first time in the past three months.   

Despite the positive development, Vodafone Idea ended marginally lower by around one per cent to Rs 9.69 per share at the BSE, while IDFC First Bank gained nearly two per cent to close at Rs 51.10 per share on the exchange.     

Talking about IDFC First Bank target price, market expert Sumit Bagadia said the stock has showg good move from the lower level in the past 3-4 months. He said the stock will soon achieve the short-term target price of Rs 55-58. He suggested to stay invested in the counter.   

Meanwhile, in another positive development for Vodafone Idea, the government will acquire a stake in debt-ridden Vodafone Idea after the stock price of the company stabilises at Rs 10 or above, according to an official source. 

Vodafone Idea (VIL) board has offered a stake to the government at a par value of Rs 10 per share. 

"There is a SEBI norm that the acquisition should take place at par value. DoT will clear the acquisition after VIL shares stabilise at Rs 10 or above," an official source told PTI. 

The finance ministry had cleared the proposal to acquire stake in VIL in July.

Debt-ridden Vodafone Idea (VIL) has decided to opt for converting about Rs 16,000 crore of interest liability payable to the government into equity which will amount to around 33 per cent stake in the company while promoters' holding will come down from 74.99 per cent to 50 per cent.

The government has given telecom operators an option of paying the interest for four years of deferment on the deferred spectrum instalments and AGR (adjusted gross revenue) dues by way of conversion into equity of the NPV of such interest amount.