Vodafone and Idea Cellular are hoping that their merger will not only help them take on the competition but also get the regulatory authorities to take them more seriously.
“...by going together, we have (become) a strong player. So, now the regulator has a real chance to prove they are neutral, that they regulate what needs to be regulated,” Vittorio Colao, Vodafone Plc Chairman, told BusinessLine .
Colao has been bullish on India, calling it the jewel in Vodafone’s crown. “India has been wonderful for Vodafone from a market point of view, brand point of view and customer point of view. But it has not been good from the regulatory point of view,”
Asked why the new shareholding structure was complicated, KM Birla, Chairman, Aditya Birla Group, said: “Idea and Vodafone have been valued equally by the valuers. The structure of the deal is such that Vodafone and the promoter of Idea group, which is the Aditya Birla Group, will have equal shareholdings.”