Nita Ambani likely to be chair of Reliance-Disney’s merged media biz: Report

Nita Ambani, founder and chair of Reliance Foundation, is likely to be chair of the Reliance Industries-Walt Disney merged entity, as per reports.

According to a report in Reuters that quoted sources, Nita Ambani, Mukesh Ambani’s wife is likely to be appointed chair of the board of the entity that will be formed by merging the India media assets of Reliance Industries and Walt Disney. 

Reliance and Disney are close to signing the India media merger deal that has been in the works for months. An announcement is expected this week. 

Earlier this week, a report by Bloomberg stated that the binding pact to merge the media operations has been signed by Disney and Reliance. It stated that Ambani-led Reliance is expected to hold 61 per cent in the merged entity, while the rest will be held by Disney.

However, as per Reuters, Reliance is expected to hold 51-54 per cent stake in the merged entity, Bodhi Tree, a joint venture between James Murdoch and Uday Shankar is set to take a stake of 9 per cent, while Disney will hold 40 per cent. 

As per the Reuters report, the plans could change ahead of the official announcement. Neither Reliance, nor Disney commented on the report.

Nita Ambani had recently stepped down from the board of Reliance Industries to focus more on the foundation. She is also the founder of the Nita Mukesh Ambani Cultural Centre in Mumbai, which has become a key venue for music and theatre.