Abstract

The case study is about Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL)’s foreign currency bond issuance and listing on international stock exchanges. The case starts with a brief history of the company, from the founding of RIL by Dhirubhai Ambani in 1966 to being led by Mukesh Ambani in 2022.The case then moves on to the details of RIL’s financials, showcasing how the company has grown over the years, and how efficiently it has raised funds from the global capital market and utilized these funds for expansion. Finally, it delves into the details of foreign currency bonds issued by RIL. In the past, RIL had issued bonds whenever it needed to fulfill its existing debt or capital expenditure requirements. This had happened five times earlier, and RIL's bonds had been oversubscribed every time. In 2022, RIL issued the largest-ever jumbo bond issuance by an Indian company in foreign currency. The purpose of the issue was to refinance RIL's existing borrowings of US$ 1.5 billion. The case lastly highlights the views of some experts, some of whom are optimistic and some pessimistic about this jumbo bond issue and RIL’s future plans relating to the expansion of physical stores and digital commerce platforms and solar energy generation. The question was, which mode would the company opt for to raise long-term funds from the international market to fulfill its future plans?

Learning Objectives

The case is structured to achieve the following Learning Objectives:

• Identify the various sources of long-term financing available to Indian companies
• Understand how foreign currency bonds are different from other sources of international financing
• Learn why a company issues foreign currency bonds and how these bonds are useful for the issuer

Keywords

Depository Receipts; 144A/Regulation S bonds; International Financing; Debt Financing; Foreign Currency Bond