Proximus Group to acquire major stake in Route Mobile

New Delhi Proximus Group has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire a majority stake in Route Mobile, a strategic move towards becoming one of the worldwide leaders in digital communications and digital identity.

Proximus Group has signed a definitive agreement to acquire through Proximus Opal, a 58 per cent interest in Route Mobile, a global company specialized in CPaaS services, listed on NSE and BSE in India with a market capitalization of EUR 1.1 billion.

As a part of the agreement, some of the founding shareholders of Route Mobile will reinvest in a minority stake in Proximus Opal, a subsidiary of the Proximus Group and the holding company of Telesign, Proximus' US-based affiliate.

Building on the combined strengths of Route Mobile and Telesign, the Group is paving the way to become one of the worldwide leaders in the fields of digital communications (CPaaS) and digital identity (DI). The strategic acquisition of Route Mobile generates substantial scale, with an annual revenue around EUR 900 million for Route Mobile and Telesign combined.

After closing of the transaction, the CPaaS activities of the Group will be led by Rajdip Gupta, the CEO of Route Mobile who will continue to execute his current role. Proximus Group will acquire 57.56 per cent of the shares3 in Route Mobile through Proximus Opal, for an initial Rs 59,224 million (EUR 643,0 million) for cash consideration for a price per share of Rs 1,626.40.

The acquisition of the majority stake in Route Mobile will, in accordance with Indian regulations, trigger a mandatory takeover offer ('MTO') for up to 26 per cent of the total shares outstanding of Route Mobile at the same price per share. Depending on the outcome of the MTO, the stake held by Proximus Opal could further increase to around 75 per cent7 of Route Mobile's shares. Total cash consideration for this part of the operation, will be determined by the effective MTO take-up. (PTI)