Malaysia’s Axiata exits Vodafone Idea, latest foreign investor to leave India

Kolkata: Axiata Group Berhad has sold its residual stake in Vodafone Idea (VIL) and exited India’s telecom sector, having taken a substantial hit on its investments after a high-profile entry more than a decade ago.

The Malaysian telco’s exit leaves only SingTel and Vodafone Group from among the old-time foreign investors in the debt-laden sector. Intense competition exacerbated by Reliance Jio’s entry in September 2016 with free voice calls and dirt-cheap data rates has already forced foreign carriers such as Norway’s Telenor, Russia’s Sistema JSFC, Japan’s NTT DoCoMo and Malaysia’s Maxis to exit the Indian telecom market.