New Delhi: Bharti Airtel Managing Director Gopal Vittal on Wednesday said he is happy to see Vodafone Idea raising funds and added that India will be well served with three private players active in the market.
The comment assumes significance as Airtel's smaller rival Vodafone Idea recently raised Rs 18,000 crore in India's biggest ever follow-on public offering (FPO).
The fundraise is expected to provide VIL with the firepower to improve its competitive position in the Indian telecom market, where it lags behind Reliance Jio and Bharti Airtel by a large margin.
Speaking on Airtel's earnings call, Vittal questioned how he sees the competitive intensity in the market after VIL raises capital.
Vittal said he was happy to see that VIL had raised the funds and wished them well.
"If there are three operators in India... three private operators work then India will get good service. (on) Even if we need to put in more efforts, we are working hard every day, it is a continuous effort. ..It is an extremely competitive market, ever since and ever since the company has existed,” Vittal said.
With the volatile telecom market seeing ups and downs, “to deliver sustainable performance you need to be on top of your game in terms of execution”, Vittal said.
VIL is burdened with a debt of Rs 2.1 lakh crore and quarterly losses every month and is wreaking havoc on its customers month after month and fighting a desperate battle for survival. With the mega capital raise, Vodafone Idea has said it expects to launch 5G services in select areas in 6-9 months after the issue.
The comment assumes significance as Airtel's smaller rival Vodafone Idea recently raised Rs 18,000 crore in India's biggest ever follow-on public offering (FPO).
The fundraise is expected to provide VIL with the firepower to improve its competitive position in the Indian telecom market, where it lags behind Reliance Jio and Bharti Airtel by a large margin.
Speaking on Airtel's earnings call, Vittal questioned how he sees the competitive intensity in the market after VIL raises capital.
Vittal said he was happy to see that VIL had raised the funds and wished them well.
"If there are three operators in India... three private operators work then India will get good service. (on) Even if we need to put in more efforts, we are working hard every day, it is a continuous effort. ..It is an extremely competitive market, ever since and ever since the company has existed,” Vittal said.
With the volatile telecom market seeing ups and downs, “to deliver sustainable performance you need to be on top of your game in terms of execution”, Vittal said.
VIL is burdened with a debt of Rs 2.1 lakh crore and quarterly losses every month and is wreaking havoc on its customers month after month and fighting a desperate battle for survival. With the mega capital raise, Vodafone Idea has said it expects to launch 5G services in select areas in 6-9 months after the issue.
