Future Retail Raises $500 Mn from International Bond Market

Kishore Biyani-led Future Retail on Wednesday said it has raised USD 500 million through dollar-denominated bonds.

"The company has successfully priced a USD 500 million Fixed Rate Senior Secured 144A/Reg S Bond for a 5-year (non-call 3-year) tenor at 5.600 per cent," the company said in a regulatory fiiing.

As per the company, the bond transaction also marks the first international bond deal from the retail and consumer sector space in India.

"We are overwhelmed by the strong response of the global investor community which is a testament to our strong credit story. This transaction would help us further diversify our sources of funding, Future Retail Limited (FRL) Joint Managing Director Rakesh Biyani said.

Proceeds from the offering will be utilised to purchase store assets from Future Enterprises Ltd which will help significantly improve EBITDA margin profile of FRL, Biyani added.

The company intends to use all of the proceeds to meet the capital expenditure for the acquisition of certain instore retail infrastructure assets from Future Enterprises Limited.

The notes will be listed on the Singapore Exchange Securities Trading Limited (SGX- ST).

"The transaction witnessed 37 per cent participation from Asia, 42 per cent from the US and 21 per cent from EMEA with 84 per cent investment from long haul funds, 8 per cent from private banks, 5 per cent from insurance/pension funds and 3 per cent from banks and others," the filing said.

It further added that there has been strong demand from most of the blue chip names amongst the largest funds across the globe.

Deutsche Bank, Standard Chartered Bank, Barclays, J P Morgan and UBS acted as Joint Global Coordinators and Joint Bookrunners on the issue. SBICAP, Credit Suisse, Emirates NBD Capital and Rabobank acted as Joint Bookrunners, while A K Capital acted as Financial Advisor to the Issuer. PTI SID

Amazon India inks Long-Term Deals with Future Retail, FCL to become Authorized Online Sales Channel

Amazon India on Monday said it has entered into long-term business agreements with Future Group for expanding the reach of the latter's retail stores and consumer brands through its online marketplace.

The development comes after Amazon had agreed to buy 49 per cent stake in Future Coupons Ltd that in turn holds stake in Future Retail Ltd (FRL) last year.

"FRL and Amazon India signed two agreements focusing on key categories - grocery and general merchandise, and fashion and footwear," according to a statement released Monday.

Amazon India will also become the authorised online sales channel for FRL stores, and FRL will ensure participation of its relevant stores and programmes on the Amazon India marketplace, it added.

Besides, Future Consumer Ltd (FCL) has also inked a long-term agreement with Amazon Retail India Pvt Ltd (ARIPL) for distribution of Future Consumer's portfolio of brands online. Some of FCL brands include Tasty Treat, Voom, Dreamery, Karmiq, Mother Earth, Kara, CleanMate and others.

As part of the partnership, FRL will augment existing store-infrastructure at its retail outlets for facilitating seamless packaging and pickup of products ordered online. FRL and Amazon India have already launched this service across 22 stores. Both companies plan on rolling this out across the entire FRL store chain based on agreed timelines.

"FRL will leverage its existing infrastructure, strong product knowledge and extensive brand portfolio resulting in higher store productivity and improved margins," as per the statement.

Currently, FRL attracts over 350 million footfalls across its retail network, and Amazon India's marketplace will enable FRL to reach a wider customer base.

Also, FRL will list on the Amazon Prime Now programme, allowing customers to get food, grocery and general merchandise delivery within two hours in Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru, and Hyderabad.

FRL plans to soon list stores like Big Bazaar, and Foodhall in more cites on the Amazon India marketplace.

"In order to drive efficiencies, the two organisations will work closely through a dedicated team, and will explore synergies in distribution, customer acquisition, and marketing initiatives. This creates an enviable collaboration bringing together the best of consumer insights and geographical reach from the online and offline world," the statement said.

Kishore Biyani, Chairman and Managing Director of FRL, said "this arrangement will allow us to build upon each other's strengths in the physical and digital space so that customers benefit from the best services, products, assortment and price".

"FRL's national footprint of stores offering thousands of products across fashion, appliances, home, kitchen and grocery will now be available to millions of customers shopping on Amazon.in, in hours across over 25 cities,” Amazon India Senior Vice President and Country Head Amit Agarwal said.

On the FCL-ARIPL partnership, Future Consumer Ltd Managing Director Ashni Biyani said the collaboration will expand the reach of its brands to new sets of customers on Amazon India's online marketplace.

"We will be working closely with Amazon to develop marketing and promotion initiatives and look forward to using Amazon's technical expertise and resources to increase the reach of our brands. Our distinct portfolio of brands catering to aspirational categories will be an excellent addition to Amazon's offerings. Hence, we believe this is a win-win agreement,” Ashni Biyani added.

FCL brands are currently available across multiple channels including general trade, digital platforms and modern retail apart from over 1,700 stores across Future Group's retail chains including Big Bazaar, EasyDay, Heritage Fresh, Nilgiris, WH Smith and among others.

"Currently, Future Consumer has a largely offline presence. Through this agreement, Future Consumer will build an online channel and offer Future Consumer's brands to millions of Amazon's customers," the company said. PTI SR SID

Amazon to Buy 49% Stake in Future Retail Promoter Firm

New Delhi, Aug 23 (PTI) US-based commerce major Amazon would acquire 49 per cent stake in a Future Retail promoter firm, Future Coupons Ltd, for an undisclosed amount.

The promoter group of Future Group led by Kishore Biyani has entered into a share subscription agreement and a shareholders' agreement with Amazon.Com NV Investment Holdings LLC (Amazon).

Future Coupons holds about 7.3 per cent stake in Future Retail Ltd, which operates popular supermarket and hypermarket chains such as Big Bazaar and WHSmith, through convertible warrants.

The investment would help Future Retail to launch new products and digital payment solutions, a Future Group spokesperson said.

"This investment reflects our commitment to innovate for Indian customers and offer best-in-class shopping experience. This investment provides an opportunity for us to learn global trends in digital payments solutions and launch new products," the spokesperson said.

Future Retail in a filing to BSE said that Amazon has agreed to make an equity investment in Future Coupons Limited for acquiring a 49 per cent stake comprising both, voting and non-voting shares.

As part of the agreement, Amazon has been granted a call option, which allows the US commerce major to "acquire all or part of the promoters' shareholding in Future Retail and is exercisable between the 3rd to 10th years, in certain circumstances, subject to applicable law.”

This is the third investment of the Seattle-based e-commerce major in the Indian brick & mortar retail space and will help Amazon further strengthen its foothold here where it already operates an online marketplace.

Amazon already has stake in retail chains — K Raheja Corp Group's Shoppers Stop and Aditya Birla Retail's More.

In 2017, retail major Shoppers Stop had announced raising Rs 179.26 crore from Amazon.com Investment Holdings LLC through an issue of equity shares, which translated to just over 5 per cent shareholding for the American company.

In September last year, Amazon said it has co-invested in Witzig Advisory Services, the entity which had acquired Aditya Birla Retail's 'More' chain of stores in India. PTI KRH

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Amazon in advanced Talks to Buy 8-10% Stake in Future Retail

American e-commerce giant Amazon is in advanced stage of discussions with Future Retail Ltd for picking up 8-10 per cent stake in the Indian retail chain, according to sources.

The deal with the Kishore Biyani-led company is expected to close in the next few weeks, sources close to the development said.

When contacted, Amazon India said the company doesn't comment on speculation, while Future Retail declined to comment.

The deal, if it goes through, will help Amazon further strengthen its foothold in the Indian market where it already operates an online marketplace.

The discussions between the two players have been going on for a few months. However, the talks seemed to have been halted after the Indian government tightened FDI rules for e-commerce marketplaces earlier this year.

The new regulations bar online marketplaces with foreign investments from selling products of the companies in which they hold stakes, and ban exclusive marketing arrangements.

Also, the inventory of a vendor will be seen as controlled by the marketplace if over 25 per cent of the vendor's purchases are from the marketplace entity, including the latter's wholesale unit.

The discussions restarted some weeks ago and the final contours are now being drawn, another source said.

Amazon already has stake in Shoppers Stop and More. Future Retail would be Amazon's third investment in the Indian brick-and-mortar retail ecosystem.

In 2017, retail major Shoppers Stop had announced raising Rs 179.26 crore from Amazon.com Investment Holdings LLC through an issue of equity shares, which translated to just over 5 per cent shareholding for the American company.

In September last year, Amazon said it has co-invested in Witzig Advisory Services, the entity which had acquired Aditya Birla Retail's 'More' chain of stores in India.

A deal with Future Retail will also help Amazon compete more aggressively against Walmart-backed Flipkart as well as Mukesh Ambani's proposed e-commerce venture.

For Future Retail, the transaction could prove beneficial as it will give the brick-and-mortar chain access to funds as well as expertise for strengthening its own online presence.

As of June 2019, the promoter and promoter group held 47.02 per cent share in Future Retail, which operates hypermarket and supermarket under brands which include Big Bazaar, Easyday, Foodhall, HyperCity, FBB, Heritage fresh, ezone and WH Smith. PTI SR KRH

Amazon May Buy 7-8% Stake in Future Retail for $338 Million

US-based e-commerce giant Amazon Inc is likely to buy an at least 7-8% stake in India's Future Retail Ltd through an investment arm, reported CNBC-TV 18, citing sources privy to the development. With this, Amazon aims to strengthen its presence in the physical space and also to take on Walmart, said the report.

The potential cash-and-stock deal, which is in its final stages, could be worth $338 million or ₹2500 crores and is likely to be signed in the next two weeks.

Earlier in May this year, media reports suggested that Amazon was in talks to buy a 10 percent stake in Future Retail, competing with tech giant Google and Alibaba-backed Paytm. Future Retail had denied the reports.

The potential deal will be next in a series of acquisitions by Amazon.com Inc in one of the fastest-growing markets in the face of competition from Walmart Inc's Flipkart.

In September, Amazon, along with private equity firm Samara Capital, bought Aditya Birla Group-owned 'More' retail chain for an enterprise value of 42 billion rupees ($568.03 million).

Amazon May Buy 7-8% Stake in Future Retail for $338 Million

US-based e-commerce giant Amazon Inc is likely to buy an at least 7-8% stake in India's Future Retail Ltd through an investment arm, reported CNBC-TV 18, citing sources privy to the development. With this, Amazon aims to strengthen its presence in the physical space and also to take on Walmart, said the report.

The potential cash-and-stock deal, which is in its final stages, could be worth $338 million or ₹2500 crores and is likely to be signed in the next two weeks.

Earlier in May this year, media reports suggested that Amazon was in talks to buy a 10 percent stake in Future Retail, competing with tech giant Google and Alibaba-backed Paytm. Future Retail had denied the reports.

The potential deal will be next in a series of acquisitions by Amazon.com Inc in one of the fastest-growing markets in the face of competition from Walmart Inc's Flipkart.

In September, Amazon, along with private equity firm Samara Capital, bought Aditya Birla Group-owned 'More' retail chain for an enterprise value of 42 billion rupees ($568.03 million).