Coca-Cola plans US$1B HCCB IPO as Indian bottling arm prepares for market listing
Coca-Cola is lining up a public listing for HCCB as part of its asset-light strategy in India.
INDIA – Coca-Cola is preparing to list its Indian bottling business, Hindustan Coca-Cola Beverages (HCCB), through an initial public offering later this year, marking one of the largest potential consumer-sector debuts in the country.
According to a report by The Economic Times, the global beverage giant has appointed investment banks including Kotak, HDFC Group and Citibank to manage the proposed IPO. The issue is expected to raise around US$1 billion, equivalent to approximately Rs 9,000 crore.
If completed, the HCCB listing would add to a wave of high-profile market debuts by multinational consumer companies in India. Hyundai Motor India raised a record US$3.3 billion, while LG Electronics followed with a US$1.3 billion IPO, with both companies listing locally during 2024 and 2025.
Coca-Cola is a leading player in India’s soft drinks market, estimated at about ₹60,000 crore (US$7.2 billion). Through HCCB, the company manufactures and distributes brands including Coca-Cola, Thums Up, Sprite, Maaza, Kinley, Dasani, Georgia coffee and Schweppes mixers.
Momentum for the IPO began more than a year ago, when Coca-Cola sold a 40% stake in Hindustan Coca-Cola Holdings Pvt Ltd, HCCB’s parent company, to the Jubilant Bhartia Group for about ₹12,500 crore, or roughly US$1.5 billion.
The deal aligned with Coca-Cola’s global asset-light strategy, which focuses on reducing ownership of capital-intensive bottling operations while prioritising brand building, innovation and digitisation.
Jubilant FoodWorks, part of the Jubilant Bhartia Group, operates Domino’s Pizza, Popeyes and Dunkin’ Donuts in India. The partnership with HCCB has been positioned as a way to explore long-term synergies between beverages and quick-service restaurant brands.
Responding to queries from The Economic Times, an HCCB spokesperson said: “With a realigned leadership team in place, we remain focused on driving operational excellence,” without directly commenting on the IPO plans.
The spokesperson added: “We have been passing on the benefits of the new GST-led pricing to ensure better value and more affordable choices to consumers. Any other news is speculative.”
In July last year, HCCB appointed Hemant Rupani, formerly president for Southeast Asia at Mondelez, as chief executive, succeeding Juan Pablo Rodriguez.
HCCB operates 15 manufacturing plants alongside several independent bottlers across India. According to filings sourced from business intelligence platform Tofler, the company reported revenue of Rs 12,751.29 crore (US$1.53 billion) in FY25, representing a 9% year-on-year decline.
The company said performance was affected by the sale of manufacturing plants in regions including Rajasthan, Bihar, the North East and parts of West Bengal to franchise bottlers such as Moon Beverages, Kandhari Global Beverages and SLMG Beverages.
For the nine months ended September 2025, Coca-Cola disclosed transaction costs of US$7 million and a net gain of US$102 million from refranchising certain bottling operations in India.
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