Haldiram’s Snack Empire Draws PepsiCo and Alpha Wave for Minority Stake

PepsiCo and Alpha Wave Global have joined the race to buy a minority stake in the Indian snacks giant Haldiram, according to the Economic Times. PepsiCo officials initiated the stake sale bid and are currently holding advanced-level talks with the promoters of the snack company, the Aggarwal family. 

Additionally, Haldiram’s growing popularity, supported by its presence in nearly 100 countries has attracted several other foreign private equity companies, including Temasek, Bain Capital and Blackstone. Last week, Moneycontrol reported that the Singapore government-owned investment firm Temasek is likely to purchase a 10 per cent stake worth $10 billion in the snacks company. 

The company has plans to offload only a minority stake and doesn’t want to give away the controlling stake. Moreover, this is the first time in its nearly 87-year-long legacy business, that the snacks giant is considering a stake sale. 

Also Read: Haldiram-Temasek $10 Billion Deal: Singapore Firm to Bite 10% Stake in Snack Giant

However, this isn’t the first time that the international investors have tried their luck to buy a stake in Indian snacks giant. The demand to acquire a minority stake in Haldiram has been surfacing since 2016-17, with global private equity firms like General Atlantic, Bain Capital, Capital International, TA Associates, Warburg Pincus and Everstone eyeing a share of it, according to ET. Earlier the news surfaced that PepsiCo’s former CEO Indra Nooyi too had shown interest in buying stake. 

The demand for stake in Haldiram is also due to the projected growth of the overall Indian snack market, which is set to nearly double in size to touch Rs 95,521.8 crore by 2032. Haldiram, being a key player in the organised snack market has become a major attraction particularly for international players eyeing the Indian market.  

While Haldiram’s interest in selling stake now is reportedly due to the next generation’s lack of interest to take forward the legacy business. 

“The next generation is not keen to pursue the business with the same vigour and passion and that is another trigger, but the family is very finicky on premium valuation. Finally, valuing unlocking via listing the business is also an option as the public market will value the operations much more than private equity would,” according to a report by ET. 

Apart from the stake sale, the company is reportedly mulling over to launch its initial public offerings (IPO) this year. The snacks giant so far has made no official announcement regarding the listing. 

Also Read: Adani to Raise Rs 7,148 Crore from Adani Wilmar Stake Sale