Vodafone exits Bharti Airtel

Vodafone Group has offloaded its 4.2 per cent stake in Bharti Airtel for US$200 million to conform with new regulatory requirements in India.

A Bharti representative confirmed that Bharti Enterprises had bought the stake through one of its companies, the Economic Times said.

The sale follows new regulations under the unified licence regime that prohibit a company from holding an interest in more than one licensee company in the same service area. India has 22 service areas, or circles.

Vodafone India is the country’s second largest mobile player with a 19 per cent market share. Airtel is the market leader with a 23 per cent share, according to GSMA Intelligence.

Vodafone bought a 10 per cent stake in Airtel in 2005 and sold part of it in 2007 after its acquisition of Hutchison-Essar, which was later renamed Vodafone India.

Vodafone has faced multiple tax issues in India since that purchase. In April it hit another hurdle after the country’s income tax department asked the operator to re-file its 2009-10 tax return for re-assessment.