Alphabet's (GOOG, GOOGL) Google subsidiary will invest up to $1 billion in Indian telecom Bharti Airtel, as the company expands its presence in the country and Bharti Airtel expands its digital offerings.
As part of the agreement announced on Friday, Google will invest $700 million in Airtel's equity at a price of $9.77, or 734 rupees, per share. An addition $300 million will go towards "potential multi-year commercial agreements," the companies said in a statement.
“Airtel is a leading pioneer shaping India’s digital future, and we are proud to partner on a shared vision for expanding connectivity and ensuring equitable access to the Internet for more Indians,” said Sundar Pichai, CEO of Google and Alphabet, in the statement.
“Our commercial and equity investment in Airtel is a continuation of our Google for India Digitization Fund's efforts to increase access to smartphones, enhance connectivity to support new business models, and help companies on their digital transformation journey.”
Alphabet (GOOG, GOOGL) shares were lower in pre-market trading on Friday, with the Class A stock falling more than 1% to $2,549.89.
Airtel shares gained slightly more than 0.5% to 711 rupees after the announcement.
Earlier this week, Washington D.C.'s attorney general said it was leading a group suing Google (GOOG, GOOGL) over its approach to tracking user locations.