Rakesh Gangwal may have exited IndiGo via Rs 11,000 crore block deal, stock cracks 3%

As the billionaire owned about 5.89% stake in IndiGo at the end of the June quarter, Gangwal may have completed his exit the airline he co-founded along with Rahul Bhatia in 2006.

Today’s block deal took place at an average price of Rs 4,760 per share. The official sellers of the transaction have not yet been disclosed.

Earlier reports indicated that Gangwal was aiming to sell a stake valued at Rs 6,750 crore; however, this amount was increased to Rs 11,000 crore.

Gangwal, the co-founder of India’s largest carrier, had stated his intention to gradually reduce his holdings after stepping down from the board in February 2022. Shobha Gangwal has since completely exited the airline.For the quarter ended June 2024, Rakesh Gangwal held approximately 6% of the company’s equity, while his family trust, The Chinkerpoo Family Trust, held a 13.49% stake.In August 2023, Shobha Gangwal sold a 4% stake in the company through the open market for about Rs 2,944 crore.Gangwal is likely capitalizing on the stock’s near-record highs, driven by a rapidly growing retail investor base and strong corporate earnings that are boosting demand for Indian equities.

In the past two years, the co-founder has tapped investors through a block sale of IndiGo shares more than five times. Over the last year, IndiGo shares have surged about 95%.

In the past year, the shares have nearly doubled, and so far this calendar year, the stock has gained 63.30%. On Wednesday, the stock reached a new all-time high of Rs 4,944.60 before closing 2.4% higher at Rs 4,859.20.

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