Bharti Airtel, India’s second-largest telecom operator, will in March 2026 call the final tranche of its ₹21,000-crore rights issue announced in 2021.
The Sunil Mittal-promoted telco said its board has approved the “first and final call” on 392.3 million partly paid-up equity shares at ₹401.25 per share, totalling about ₹15,741 crore. These shares were originally issued in September 2021, with the total rights issue amounting to ₹20,987.4 crore, including a premium of ₹397.5 per share.
“The proceeds from the call on the partly paid-up equity shares will be utilised primarily for pre-payment or repayment of borrowings, including accrued interest, and general corporate purposes,” the company said in a statement to BSE on Thursday.
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Airtel claims repayment would materially clean up its balance sheet
“Following the pre/repayment of the borrowings and along with its organic cash generation, the company’s India operations are expected to become effectively net debt-free in the near term except for DoT (Department of Telecommunications) liabilities and Finance Lease Obligations, thereby further strengthening its balance sheet,” it said.
As of September 2025, Airtel’s net debt, including lease obligations, stood at ₹1.94 trillion. This included long-term debt of ₹20,194 crore, short-term borrowings of ₹26,385 crore, deferred spectrum payment liabilities of ₹93,474 crore, and lease obligations of ₹68,062 crore. Cash, investments and receivables together were close to ₹13,430 crore.
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The record date for the final call has been fixed as February 6, 2026, with the payment window opening on March 2 and closing on March 16. Airtel had earlier raised ₹5,247 crore from the first tranche of the rights issue in October 2021.
Separately, Airtel announced amendments to its shareholder agreement between Bharti Telecom and Singtel. “Singtel has relinquished several key reserved rights,” the filing read. The company clarified that “the proposed changes reflect the evolving maturity of the relationship” and “do not confer any new rights on either party".
Interestingly, amid this ruckus, Gopal Vittal will become executive vice chairman from January 1, 2026, while Shashwat Sharma will take over as MD & CEO.
