Red Fort Capital, a private equity fund focused on real estate development, is in advance stages of negotiations with six developers for an equal number of projects worth Rs 4,000 crore in the metros across India. The PE fund today joined hands with Godrej Properties to develop an IT park in Kolkata, where Red Fort Capital has picked up 49 per cent stake. The project, Godrej Genesis, is expected to generate sales of over Rs 750 crore. "We are in the process of closing a number of transactions in the NCR, Mumbai and Bangalore. We are currently talking to six different developers in these cities," Red Fort Capital Director Kuldip Chawlla told PTI. Without divulging names of the possible builders, he said three of them are 'big national developers', while the rest are local players.   more »

Jewellery maker Gitanjali Gems Ltd said its unit, Gitanjali Lifestyle Ltd, has acquired B Vijay Retail Ventures Pvt Ltd. Financial details of the deal were not disclosed. B Vijay, which owns the 'HooP' brand, retails gold, silver and other precious metals and diamond jewellery. (Reuters)   more »

Moser Baer Entertainment Ltd may raise up to $50 million in equity and debt to fund its expansion plans, the Economic Times reported on Wednesday, quoting industry sources. Moser Baer Entertainment is a unit of optical media maker Moser Baer India Ltd . Moser Baer officials could not be reached for comments. Moser Baer Entertainment is in talks with private equity firms including ChrysCapital and Warburg Pincus, the paper said. Moser Baer acquired entire shareholding of Moser Baer Entertainment from its wholly owned subsidiary Moser Baer SEZ Developer in February. (Reuters)   more »

Ajay Relan, for long the managing director and India head of Citi Venture Capital International (CVCI), the private equity business spun off from Citigroup Inc., has been bitten by the “entrepreneurial bug”. In his first media interview to Mint after stepping down from CVCI last fortnight, Relan discusses the new fund — of between $500-$750 million — that he is going to start, and why he is happy that it comes at a time when stocks at the Bombay Stock Exchange are not at near-25,000 levels.   more »