Ambani casts eye on financial services, new energy business

After creating India’s largest retailers and telecom operator in the shortest span of time, billionaire Mukesh Ambani has now set his sights on propelling the newly carved financial services business unit into the country’s largest non-banking lender while transitioning the conglomerate to net carbon zero by 2035.
The recently demerged Jio Financial Services Ltd. will leverage the prowess of digital and retail businesses, Ambani said in the latest annual report of Reliance Industries Ltd. The unit, which “will leverage the technological capabilities of Reliance and digitally deliver financial services, democratising access to financial services offerings for Indian citizens”, is expected to be listed soon, he said.
JFS’s digital-first approach will help deliver distinctively simple, affordable, innovative, and intuitive financial services products to all Indians, the annual report said without saying when the recently demerged firm would be listed. Guidance may be provided at the annual shareholders’ meeting of Reliance on August 28. The new firm, which has little revenue as of now but owns a 6.1 percent stake in Reliance, last month announced a partnership with BlackRock to set up a mutual fund business. “Jio Financial Services aims to provide simple, affordable, and innovative digital-first solutions,” Ambani said. “Jio Financial Services Limited is positioned uniquely to capture the growth opportunities in the financial services sector and play a crucial role in transforming the landscape of digital finance in India.”
“We, at Reliance, have a deep-rooted belief that sustainability is an integral part of enterprise growth,” Ambani said. “Our goal is to become net carbon neutral by 2035.” Reliance is investing Rs 75,000 crore spanning renewables, storage, and hydrogen, including what it claims will be the world’s largest green energy equipment ‘giga-complex’ and a 100-gigawatt capacity goal.
“The development of gigafactories at the Dhirubhai Ambani Green Energy Giga Complex at Jamnagar is progressing rapidly,” Ambani said. “The transition from traditional fossil fuels to renewable energy sources is going to be a crucial milestone in our history.” The company said its first ever green hydrogen production was achieved with the firing of torrefied biomass in gasifiers during the year ended March. It expects to start transitioning from grey to green hydrogen in 2025.
“Reliance, as a company, has grown multifold by delivering value to the citizens, the country, and the global community. Our products are ingrained in the lives of our citizens and are an integral part of their daily routines. Our various businesses have always identified the needs of society and worked towards devising and making available timely and affordable solutions,” Ambani said.