To strengthen its presence in the Indian market, Facebook invests $5.7 billion to acquire India's largest telecommunications company.

Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg announced yesterday on his personal Facebook account that the company will acquire a 9.99% stake in India's largest telecommunications company, Reliance Jio, for about $5.7 billion. Additionally, Whatsapp will establish strategic partnerships with the company and its subsidiary, Reliance Retail.

• Jio stock price surged 10% on the news
• Optimism in the Indian cryptocurrency community

Largest Foreign Direct Investment Case in India's Tech Sector

Facebook announced on Wednesday that it is investing 43,574 crore Indian Rupees (approximately $5.7 billion) in Jio Platforms, valuing Jio at around $65.95 billion. This deal also boosted the stock price of its parent company, Reliance Industries. Following the news of Facebook's investment, its stock price rose by approximately 10.30% to reach 1,363.35 Rupees.

Reliance Jio is a subsidiary of Reliance Industries and is the largest telecom operator in India with around 388 million users. India is also the largest market for Facebook and its messaging app WhatsApp. Facebook has approximately 328 million users in India monthly, while WhatsApp has over 400 million users.

Facebook's founder Mark Zuckerberg expressed about the investment on his personal page:

Small businesses are at the core of every economy, and they need our support. With over 60 million small businesses, India is home to millions of jobs that rely on these businesses. The country is in the midst of a major digital transformation, and Jio has played a crucial role in providing networks for the people of India and small businesses.

Strategic Collaboration with Whatsapp

Aside from the telecom operator deal, Jio Platforms, Reliance Retail, and WhatsApp have entered into a commercial partnership agreement to further accelerate Reliance Retail's new retail business. Mukesh Ambani, Chairman of Reliance Industries, stated:

In the near future, Jiomart (Jio's new digital commerce platform) and WhatsApp will enable nearly 30 million small merchants in India to conduct digital transactions with every user nearby. This means everyone can order from local stores nearby and transact daily essentials more efficiently.

Impact on India's Cryptocurrency Sector

The Indian crypto community views this deal optimistically. Indian media outlet Crypto Kanoon pointed out that as more users in India start exploring digital assets, the partnership between Reliance Jio and Facebook will have a spill-over effect on the cryptocurrency market, further driving economic development in various aspects.

Facebook recently released the Libra whitepaper 2.0 version and has been taking frequent actions, demonstrating its determination to fully develop the Libra payment system.