PepsiCo bottler Varun Beverages (VBL) plans to raise Rs 7,500 crore via the qualified institutional placement (QIP) route to fund its growth plans, it said on Wednesday.
The board of the company in a meeting approved the proposal in “one or more tranches”, adding that it would be subject to receipt of approval of equity shareholders of the company through a postal ballot.
The proceeds from the fundraise would be utilised in making investments in subsidiaries, joint ventures or associates or to fund the growth of existing businesses including expanding product portfolio, entering into new territories and making strategic acquisitions, the company said.
This fundraise would also help in “pre-payment or repayment” of debts and in general corporate purposes, the company said.
Varun Beverages accounts for 90% of PepsiCo’s beverage sales volume in India. For the full-year ended December 2023, the company reported net revenue of Rs 16,042.58 crore, up 21.8 % versus the previous year.
In the June quarter, VBL reported a 28.3% revenue growth to Rs 7,196.86 crore and its profit was up 25.5% to Rs 1,261.83 crore. It has also gone for a share split of 1:5.
Currently, VBL’s operations span six countries across the Indian sub-continent and Africa, collectively serving over 1.4 billion customers. However, 79% of its revenue, originates from its India business.