Network18 Media and Investments Ltd, the Raghav Bahl-promoted holding company of the Network18 group, today said it has raised Rs204.92 crore through a qualified institutional placement. In a statement to the Bombay Stock Exchange, the company said its board has approved the issue of 1,57,62,889 equity shares of Rs5 each at an issue price of Rs130. At the time of writing, the Network18 scrip was trading at Rs142.95, down 5.14% from its previous close of Rs150.70.
Last week, the company raised Rs120 crore through a preferential placement to SAIF Partners. The issue price then, too, was Rs130. Earlier this year, Raghav Bahl had infused Rs250 crore into the company, making the total amount the company has raised this year Rs574.92 crore.
In an interview to group channel CNBC TV18, Bahl said the company was well capitalized to repay short-term debt needs of Rs600 crore. The company may not raise any more money, he said.
He also said the company’s plans for a financial daily (in partnership with UK’s Financial Times) has been put on hold. While this comes as no surprise, this is the first time the company has said this on the record. “We had at an earlier stage some conversations as well as some plans for a financial daily which we have put on hold. We are going to watch that space very closely and see how newsprint prices as well as how the revenue and advertising market is looking, only then could we take a call. But as of now that continues to be on hold.”
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