Vi may lose up to 70 million subscribers in next one year, says Fitch

NEW DELHI: Vodafone Idea Ltd (Vi) could lose 50-70 million subscribers in the next one year, after shedding 155 million customers in the past nine quarters, Fitch Ratings said on Monday. Meanwhile, rival Reliance Jio Infocomm Ltd is expected to gain more than half of Vi’s user losses and the remaining could be bagged by Bharti Airtel Ltd, the rating agency added.

The global credit rating agency said Vi’s plan to raise ₹25,000 crore, in a combination of equity and debt, may not restore the cash-strapped telco’s competitive position and reverse the subscriber losses as the amount would be insufficient for its capital requirements.

Analysts believe that the proposed amount would enable Vodafone Idea, which owes hundreds of billions of rupees to the government in back fees, sustain operations for a maximum of two years. Vi has so far paid ₹7,854 in adjusted gross revenue (AGR) dues, but still owes more than ₹50,000 crore to the department of telecommunications.