Sunil Mittal’s Bharti Telecom mulls record $1.7 billion bond deal

Bharti Airtel branding.

Indian billionaire Sunil Mittal’s Bharti Telecom Ltd. is considering to offer about Rs 15,000 crore ($1.7 billion) of bonds as early as next week, according to people familiar with the matter.

Preliminary discussions are underway, including on terms such as tenor and pricing, the people said, asking not to be identified as the information is private. The proceeds would primarily be used for refinancing of upcoming debt maturities, they said.

A representative of the firm didn’t immediately reply to an email seeking comment.

Bharti Telecom’s unit Bharti Airtel Ltd., India’s second-largest wireless carrier, completed its nationwide 5G rollout last year and is expanding service offerings to retain high-value subscribers. The parent company has also been raising its stake in the unit and financing ongoing investment plans.

The Mittal family fortune stood at $27.3 billion, among the ten largest family fortunes in India, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.

Bharti Telecom has four domestic bonds totaling Rs 9,750 crore maturing in November and December, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

If completed, the deal would mark Bharti Telecom’s largest-ever rupee bond sale, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. The company last tapped the local debt market in November 2024, raising Rs 11,150 crore through a six-part issuance.