Ever since the Indian version of the show Shark Tank was announced, there had been a palpable excitement around the show. The show centred on startups created a lot of buzz among the entrepreneurs and has resulted in a revolution in the startup industry.
But there’s a real shark who knows how to play his cards right. And no prize for guessing who he is?
He is Mukesh Ambani, the second richest man in India. He is the owner of Reliance Industries Limited which is the largest company in India. His investment strategies are something that every entrepreneur looks up to. The article will define how Mukesh Ambani rightfully is the real shark of India.
Mukesh Ambani and his acquisition strategies
The Reliance owner raised over $20 billion in 2020 from global investors, including Facebook Inc, by selling stakes in its Jio Platforms digital business. Since then, it is lining up investors in its retail unit.
It is a well-known thing that Ambani’s investment and acquisition strategies are unmatchable. Not just overseas, throughout the years he has invested thousands of crores in startups in the country.
As per a Morgan Stanley report titled “What Reliance is Buying,” the Reliance group has invested more than $5.6 billion (about Rs 41,500 crore) across sectors, led by telecom and digital business at $2.5 billion.
From Dunzo to Embibo, Amabani’s investment in Indian firms
Ambani seemingly is on a shopping spree of new companies around the world. In the last few years, his company has acquired many companies, made investments in multiple startups, and stitched partnerships with numerous firms to make a big bang entry in various sectors including tech, energy, digital business etc.
You must have heard of delivery app Dunzo which offers numerous services ranging from grocery shopping, laundry pick-ups to last-minute gifting options. It started its journey as a hyperlocal delivery platform. However, after Ambani invested $240 million (around Rs 1,488 crore) in January 2022, the company stands at $775 million. Notably, it is the largest amount that Reliance has invested in any Indian firm till now and thus, it holds a 25.8% stake in the Bengaluru-based startup.
Read more: Recent Economic Survey map shows how Indian startups are booming
After Dunzo, it’s Embibo in which Ambani led Reliance group invested to empower the startup. Embibe is an Artificial Intelligence-powered learning platform that was founded in 2012 by entrepreneur Aditi Awasthi. In 2018 Reliance Industries acquired a 73% stake in the startup and has invested $180 million (Approx. Rs 1340 crore) so far.
In the most recent development, Mukesh Ambani acquired a Noida based Indian robotics startup too. The startup named Addverb Technologies has raised funding of a whopping $132 million (approximately ₹983 crores) and now, Reliance has a majority stake of 54% in the company. The five-year-old startup designs and makes software and installs robotic systems.
Read more: The transformation of Mukesh Ambani from a business builder to nation builder
You see, the sectors in which Ambani has invested does not restrict to one or two only. Reliance industries aim at empowering almost every sector to help India develop in every field.
In one such development, Reliance also invested in Saavn in March 2018. Saavn, as you know, is a leading global music OTT platform. The platform has now been merged with its digital music service Jio Music, valuing the combined music platform at about $1 billion with Jio Music’s implied valuation at $670 million.
The list does not end here. There are many companies, startups that have been acquired by Reliance industries.
The conglomerate had reported in August 2020 about the acquisition of a majority equity stake in Chennai-based online pharmacy delivery startup Netmeds (Vitalic Health Pvt. Ltd). Netmeds connects customers to pharmacists and enables doorstep delivery of medicines, nutritional health, and wellness products for a cash consideration of approximately Rs 620 crore. The conglomerate now holds a 60% stake in the Chennai-based company and 100 per cent direct equity ownership of its subsidiaries – Tresara Health Private Limited, Netmeds Market Place Limited, and Dadha Pharma Distribution Pvt. Limited.
Moreover, the company has also invested in other startups including Grab, Asteria, NowFloats, Urban ladder, Fynd and Reverie etc.
Reportedly, Reliance Industries (RIL) acquired Nasdaq-listed telecom solutions provider Radisys Corp. for about $75 million (Rs 510 crore) in cash. The investment was done to ensure a push into the Internet of Things (IoT) and 5G through its telecom arm, Reliance Jio Infocomm.
Undoubtedly, Mukesh Ambani is being benefitted enormously from all the acquisitions and investments. But what needs to be mentioned here is that the big shark entrepreneur is also encouraging the startups leading India to become ‘Aatmanirbhar.’