Bharat’s businesses have come off age, taken over several global brands, top line corporates lock, stock, barrel or partnered in US, UK & Europe
K.A.Badarinath
Two large deals sealed in just one week speak volumes about Indian corporates verve, gut and appetite for going global.
Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL) and Walt Disney tango in Bharat’s media, television and entertainment industry is not limited to creation of US $ 8.5 billion behemoth. It opens up a zillion opportunities for Indian companies, vendors and challenges competition to surpass this milestone.
This joint venture also marks Bharat’s film-makers, entertainment and media firms going global hand in hand with best in the industry. Asia’s richest businessman Mukesh Ambani and his wife Nita Ambani being hands on RIL – Walt Disney gives a spicy twist to the deal.
Going forward, the joint venture model can work well and logically in global territories and it throws up an opportunity for Reliance – Disney – Century Fox to become a formidable player in media and entertainment sectors internationally.
Another home grown billionaire from The Punjab, Sunil Bharti Mittal sent tongues wagging when Bharti Airtel group heralded by him emerged biggest stakeholder in the British iconic telecom services provider, British Telecom.
Buying out the Israeli magnate Patrick Drahi led Altice group’s entire stake and cornering 24.5 per cent in British Telecom for US $ 4 billion is the icing on cake for Sunil Bharti Mittal whose Bharti group provides telecom services in 17 countries. In the process, Mittal has emerged largest stakeholder in British Telecom, hitherto the public telecom services provider.
What would have been more satisfying for Sunil Bharti Mittal is that life has come full circle. Before 2010, British Telecom held over 21.5 per cent stake in Mittal’s then fledgling Bharti Airtel. This deal not only provides high-stakes branding push but allows Bharti Airtel access to United Kingdom’s 5G technologies, artificial intelligence networks and cutting edge technologies. Deutsche Telecom and T-Mobile Holdings with 12 per cent each are the two other large owners of British Telecom.
Strategic insights in telecom, media and corporate markets in United Kingdom and Europe are something Sunil Bharti Mittal should look forward to being at head table of British Telecom.
Bharti is not the first Indian company to go shopping in United Kingdom, US or Europe for iconic companies and brands that were seen as value enhancing prepositions.
Most talked British brand and company acquired was Jaguar Land Rover by Tata group that was once mocked at for having produced the smallest and modest ‘Nano’ car. Uptight United Kingdom honchos could hardly come to terms with being led by a coloured team of Tata professionals to turn around the JLR that was once seen as a drain on the company and Britain was struggling to save the automobile brand.
When Ratan Tata, easily the most celebrated businessman walked into the boardroom of Ford on March 26, 2008 to acquire JLR business at US $ 2.3 billion, disbelief and disconnect confounded top leadership team of British company. In 15-years, the group has turned around JLR into a kicking Bharat – British brand that’s hard to compete with.
Tata group was labelled audacious when it took Corus Steel in $ 12 billion bid around the same time to emerge UK – Europe’s one of the largest players in steel market.
While this was happening, Reliance bought out one of the oldest and most recognized British toy company Hamleys with 259-years corporate history and British battery technology company, Faradion made global industry sit up to the onset of Indian buyers.
Reliance acquisitions were relatively more modest, around the same time, Kumarmangalam Birla, yet another Indian billionaire had set eyes on Atlanta-based Aluminium major Novelis and acquired it in 2007 for a whopping US $ six billion. This catapulted the Aditya Birla group into fortune 500 companies list.
After initial rush of half a dozen big ticket takeovers about 15-years back, scores of global brands and businesses came the Indian way or partnered to stay afloat.
The list seems quite a long one and this phenomenon is across sectors. Several of them were risky investments and the familial story of turnaround for many Western companies was scripted by Indian businesses that stayed nimble footed for quite some time.
For instance, none would have imagined that fourth Indian billionaire Anand Mahindra owned diversified group, Mahindra and Mahindra pumped life into BSA Motorcycles that stopped production about five decades ago.
Birmingham Small Arms Company founded way back in 1861 known for producing motorcycles after Mahindra and Mahindra took over this defunct brand in 2022.
As per Grant Thornton research, Indians own about 964 companies in UK alone as of last year if one were to go by a Reuters despatch earlier this month.
It may not be an overstatement, to say that Bharat’s businesses have arrived.
(Author is Director & Chief Executive of Centre for Integrated and Holistic Research based in New Delhi)