Kumar Mangalam Birla to be chairman of Idea-Vodafone merged entity

Aditya Birla Group chairman Kumar Mangalam Birla will be the chairman of the merged entity created by the merger of Idea Cellular and Vodafone India's operations.

After the successful implementation of the merger deal, the combined entity will create India's largest telecom firm with a revenue share of around 40 per cent and a subscriber base of over 380 million, according to India Ratings and Research.

The board of directors of Idea Cellular at its meeting held on Monday approved the "scheme of amalgamation of Vodafone India Limited (VIL) and its wholly owned subsidiary Vodafone Mobile Services Limited (VMSL) with the company", Idea said in a regulatory filing.

On Monday, both Vodafone and Idea Cellular gave details about the merger which it expects, will be completed during 2018 and will create the largest telecom provider in the country with about 400 million customers and 35% market share.

Also Read: Idea Cellular confirms merger with Vodafone India; set to create India's largest telecom company

The merger proposal has received a nod from Idea Cellular's board but is subject to several other approvals including from the Reserve Bank of India, markets regulator Securities and Exchange Board of India, Foreign Investment Promotion Board, the stock exchanges, and many others.

While Idea and Vodafone will both jointly control the merged entity, Vodafone will own 45.1% while the Aditya Birla Group will own 26%. The rest will be held by the shareholders.