Reliance Industries Approves 1:1 Bonus Share Issue To Reward Shareholders

Reliance board also recommended increasing the company’s authorised share capital to Rs 50,000 crore ($5.96 billion) from the existing Rs 15,000 crore

Reliance Industries, India’s most valuable company, announced on Thursday the approval of a one-for-one bonus share issue, marking its first such initiative since 2017. The board also recommended increasing the company’s authorised share capital to Rs 50,000 crore ($5.96 billion) from the existing Rs 15,000 crore.

This marks the oil-to-chemicals conglomerate's fifth bonus issue since its listing, with previous issues occurring in 1983, 1997, 2009, and 2017. Back in 2017, Reliance shares traded around Rs 700 per share. Since then, the stock has more than quadrupled in value, delivering 15.3 per cent returns year-to-date and a 23.3 per cent increase in the past year.

The announcement comes in the wake of Reliance’s 47th Annual General Meeting (AGM), where Chairman Mukesh Ambani revealed a bold strategy to transform the conglomerate into a deep-tech and new energy powerhouse. Ambani also stated that the company aims to more than double in size, with its retail and telecom arms expected to drive significant sales and profit growth.

"At 1.45 pm today, Reliance Industries Limited has sent a notice to the stock exchanges that the Board of Directors will meet on September 5 to consider issuing bonus shares in the ratio of 1:1. When Reliance grows, we reward our shareholders handsomely. And when our shareholders are rewarded handsomely, Reliance grows faster and creates more value. This virtuous cycle has been the guarantor of your company’s perpetual progress," Ambani said while addressing the shareholders on August 29.

Despite the ambitious outlook, some analysts described the AGM as underwhelming due to the absence of details on the much-anticipated initial public offerings (IPOs) of its retail and telecom units.

"When Reliance grows, we reward our shareholders handsomely," Ambani declared at the meeting.

Following the bonus share announcement, Reliance shares saw gains earlier in the week, though they closed down 1.41 per cent at Rs 2,987.15 on Thursday.