Reliance Industries Limited (RIL) informed the stock exchange that it sold 3.5 crore shares of Asian Paints on Wednesday, raising Rs 7,703.5 crore.
Reliance Industries had acquired a 4.9% stake in Asian Paints through its subsidiary for just Rs 500 crore in January 2008 during the global financial crisis and the collapse of Lehman Brothers, but 17 years later that investment has yielded an impressive return on its original investment.
After the sale of 3.5 crore shares of Asian Paints for Rs 7,703.5 crore, Reliance has earned an impressive 14.4x return, or a gain of approximately 1,440% on its original investment.
In a stock exchange filing, the company announced the block deal, which, at current prices, would be worth Rs 7,703.5 crore.
“Please note that 3.50 crore equity shares of Asian Paints held by Reliance Industries Limited through Siddhant Commercials Limited have been sold today at a price of Rs 2,201 per share, leaving a balance of 87 lakh equity shares of Asian Paints,” RIL stated in its regulatory filing.
Significantly, Reliance’s stake sale comes at a time when Asian Paints is facing intense competition, particularly with the entry of Birla Opus into the decorative paint market in India.
According to a report by Elara Securities, the market share of Asian Paints has declined from 59% to 52% in FY25.