Qualcomm To Invest $97M In India's Jio Platforms, Joining Facebook, Intel As Stakeholders

QUALCOMM Inc. QCOM has committed to invest $97.1 million in Indian behemoth Reliance Industries Ltd.'s digital services arm Jio Platforms, the latter announced Sunday.

What Happened

The investment will give the San Diego, California-based chipmaker 0.15% stake in Jio.

The two companies noted the deal would "support [Jio] on its journey to rollout advanced 5G infrastructure and services for Indian customers."

"As an enabler and investor with a longstanding presence in India, we look forward to playing a role in Jio's vision to further revolutionize India's digital economy." Qualcomm Chief Executive Officer Steve Mollenkopf said in a statement.

Why It Matters

Qualcomm's funding follows a string of investments that have seen Asia's richest, and world's ninth richest, person Mukesh Ambani's company raise nearly $15.6 billion over the course of four months.

Facebook Inc. FB had acquired a 9.99% stake in India's top telecom operator for an investment of $5.7 billion in April. Intel Corporation INTC earlier this month joined Facebook and others as a shareholder with a $250 million investment.

The move comes as Jio looks to compete with established companies across digital services, including in e-commerce, streaming video and music on demand, and video conferencing.

Last week, the Mumbai-based company launched a competing app to that of Zoom Video Communications Inc. ZM.

Price Action

Qualcomm shares closed 0.8% lower at $92.51 on Friday and inched slightly higher in the after-hours session at $92.56.