On Thursday, Singtel‘s entity Pastel Ltd sold a 1.59% stake in Bharti Airtel for Rs 7,261 crore in open market trading. According to block trade data with NSE, Bharti Telecom Ltd, the promoter of Bharti Airtel, has opted for a stake.

Data show that Pastel reduced its holdings by 9,40,00,000 shares, equivalent to 1.59% of the company’s shares. The shares were sold at an average price of Rs 772.5 per share, bringing the deal value to Rs 7,261.50 crore.

Pastel Ltd is a subsidiary of Singapore Telecommunications Limited (Singtel). After the transaction, Pastel’s stake in Bharti Airtel will be reduced from 12.21% to 10.62%.

As of the end of the June quarter, Pastel held a 13.84% stake in the company, according to exchange holdings data. The family of Bharti Group chairman Sunil Bharti Mittal and Singtel are co-investors in Bharti Telecom Ltd (BTL).
In early September, Singtel units combined had sold a 1.76% stake in Bharti Airtel for about Rs 7,128 crore, while its co-promoter Bharti Telecom Ltd bought a 1.63% stake from Pestel for Rs 6,602 crore.

Last month, Singtel announced that its affiliates had agreed to transfer approximately 3.33 per cent stake to BTL for a total amount of around Singapore Dollars 2.25 billion (SGD), giving Singtel and Bharti direct stake in Airtel around 10% and 6%, respectively.

Bharti Telecom currently holds a 35.85% stake in Bharti Airtel, the country’s second-largest telecom service provider. Shares of Bharti Airtel closed 0.56% higher at Rs 784.60 on the NSE.