|
|
ING Investment Management India has launched a global real estate fund that will invest in REITs and real estate operating companies abroad. It is an open-ended feeder fund that will primarily invest in Cayman Islands and is registered as ING Global Real Estate Securities Fund. The fund will invest in global property markets. ING Clarion Real Estate Securities will be sub-advisor to the fund. The fund will have a large allocation to Asia-Pacific followed by North America and Europe. In selecting investments for the fund, the investment manager seeks out companies that derive at least 50 per cent of their total revenues or earnings from owning, operating, developing and/or managing real estate. […]
E-governance services firm Comat Technologies has raised about $8-10 million from Avigo Capital in its second round of funding. Earlier this year, the firm had raised around $4 million from Intel Capital in what was the chipmaker’s first strategic investment in the e-governance space. Mauritius-based Avigo Capital Partners (Avigo) is an independent private equity firm with a focus on investments in the SME sector in India. Its earlier investments have been primarily in traditional sectors and portfolio companies including Tecpro Systems, Privi Organics, Get Engineering & Construction and Spykar Lifestyles. Comat Technologies president Sriram Raghavan told ET: “The money will be used mainly for setting up of e-governance kiosks and platform innovation.” Investment bank 03 Capital advised Comat in sealing up the transaction. It is learnt that the latest fund raising values Comat at $70-80 million. Comat is believed to have a turnover of around $10-15 million. […]
Over the last year or two, they have been the target of policy change agents in the West. With their investment numbers swelling by the day, private equity, which has been dubbed by some of its adversaries as the new barbarians, is set to come under greater scrutiny in the markets here just as it is in the UK and Europe. India’s financial regulators — RBI and SEBI — and the government are expected to sit together to consider the approach to adopt towards this asset class. The banking regulator has already indicated to the government its uneasiness about PE in certain segments. Like in the US and some other markets, regulation is yet to embrace buyout funds or PE as they are popularly known here. But with the growth in their size and the perception of such funds operating in a twilight zone away from regulatory glare (considering that requirements of registration with regulators are not mandated), policymakers appear to be on course to take a close look at their operations. It sounds strange, but it is a fact that policy managers in India are yet to collate the figures of PE funds in India to ascertain in which sectors and firms the buyout funds are pouring money into. They appear to be in good company. In many other jurisdictions, too, the availability of quantitative data is limited. Policy prescriptions need to wait until then, those associated with the exercise say. […]
DLF, India's largest real estate developer by market cap, on Monday said it has sold 49 per cent stake in some of its residential projects to private equity investors for a total consideration of Rs 1,675 crore. Merrill Lynch & Co has bought 49 per cent equity in seven residential projects in Chennai, Bangalore, Kochi and Indore for Rs 1,481 crore, DLF said in a communique to the Bombay Stock Exchange. The mid-income housing projects would get fully developed in about 7-8 years, it added. […]
Jewellery maker and retailer Gitanjali Gems Ltd has bought US-based jewellery chain Rogers for $18.5 million, its top official said on Monday. “A further investment of $20 million will be made,” Chairman Mehul Choksi said. The Indian firm bought the entire stake in Rogers, which operates 46 stores and had revenue of about $80 million, it said in a statement. In December 2006, Gitanjali had bought a 97 per cent stake in another US-based retailer, Samuels Jewelers Inc. (ET) […]
WPP Digital on Monday announced that it has acquired a 75% stake in the share capital of Quasar Media Private Limited, one of Indias's leading independent digital marketing and web solutions agencies. Founded in 2005, Quasar offers clients a fully comprehensive range of specialist digital skills including digital media, creative, ebusiness solutions, search marketing and optimization, mobile marketing, ecommerce, social media and eCRM among others. Based in New Delhi, with offices in Mumbai and Bangalore, Quasar employs 73 people. Clients include LG Electronics, MakeMyTrip.com, Microsoft, Monster.com, VISA, Motorola, Zapak and Airtel. Quasar will continue to be managed by its founding team, led by CEO Harish Bahl and Manish Vij, Chief Business Officer. Revenues for the year ended 31 March 2007 were INR 103.6 million with gross assets at the same date of Rs149.5mn. […]
The whiff of global private equity is percolating to each and every sector and corner in India. Argonaut Partners, the Massachusetts-based private equity firm with $2 billion under management, is investing Rs 30 crore in Kochi-based Vallabhdas Kanji Ltd, one of the largest spices exporters in Asia. Both companies could not be reached for their comments. VKL is the Rs 150-crore flagship company of the $100 million Kanji Moorarji Group, which includes Kancor Flavours and Extracts and Autohangar Indi. Kanji Moorarji is a well-established name known for its quality in the spice trade. This is the second round of investment the firm is securing after the $6 million it received from UTI Ventures during November 2006. VKL has significant interests in flavours and extracts, and exports to over 40 countries. VKL is a key supply-chain and ingredient-solutions partner to fast food, snack-food, processed food, ready-to-eat meal and other food companies in India and abroad. Its clients include McDonald’s, Pizza Hut, KFC and Domino’s in India. […]
Private equity (PE) fund Capital Partners and a prominent Delhi-based industrialist are planning to pick up 5-7% stake in Acme Telepower. The deal size is estimated to be around Rs 600-800 crore, pegging the valuation of the company at around Rs 11,200 crore ($2.8 billion). When contacted, the company management refused to comment on the development. It is also learnt that Acme Telepower is planning an IPO in the immediate future. The company is set to submit its Draft Red Herring prospectus with the markets regulator Sebi, sources said. The Delhi-based industrialist who is interested in Acme runs companies associated with chemicals and pharmaceuticals, sources added. Acme Telepower’s revenues have grown from Rs 30 lakh in 2003 to over Rs 200 crore in 2005-06 and Rs 650 crore in 2006-07. As per industry estimates, Acme is on track to post revenues of Rs 1,200 crore in 2007-08. Acme is in talks to buy a Ghana-based telecom shelter company and had recently acquired a Czech-based fuel-cell company for about $50 million, sources added. […]
ICICI Venture Funds Management Co. Ltd, the private equity arm of ICICI Bank Ltd, India’s second biggest lender, is planning to invest about $800 million (Rs3,148 crore) to pick up a stake in Jaypee Infratech Ltd, a unit of the cement-to-construction conglomerate Jaypee Group, said a person familiar with the matter. Mint couldn’t ascertain the size of the proposed stake. Jaiprakash Associates and ICICI Venture declined to comment. Jaypee Infratech is a fully-owned unit of the Jaypee Group and was floated to implement the Taj Expressway project, a 165km highway connecting the cities of Noida and Agra in Uttar Pradesh along the banks of the Yamuna river. The company has also got the right to develop 25 million sq. m of land along the expressway, according to annual report of group company Jaiprakash Associates Ltd, which won the rights to build the road. The rights will be transferred to Jaypee Infra-tech, the report said. […]
Plethico Pharmaceuticals Ltd said on Monday that on November 18, 2007 it has agreed to acquire Natrol, Inc., a leading manufacturer and marketer of nationally branded nutritional products in the USA. Under the terms of the effective merger agreement, all outstanding Natrol shares will be acquired for a cash purchase price of US$4.40 per share, for an expected aggregate purchase price of approximately $80.7mn. The acquisition will be effected by an initial general tender offer by a wholly owned subsidiary of Plethico for all of the outstanding shares of Natrol's common stock, at $4.40 net per share in cash, followed by a second-step, cash-out merger in which all remaining untendered Natrol shares will be acquired at the same net cash price per share. All Natrol stock options will receive cash equal to the excess, if any, of $4.40 over their exercise price. The tender offer is subject to certain conditions, including the valid tender in the offer of a majority of the fully diluted Natrol common stock, and other customary conditions. Certain stockholders of Natrol, owning in the aggregate approximately 42.3% of Natrol's outstanding common stock, have committed to tender their shares in the offer. […]
|
Post your messages.Please refrain from posting offensive messages. IndiaPE accepts no liability for the consequences of your reliance on these postings and messages.
|