Private equity fund IL&FS Investments Ltd has acquired an 82 per cent stake in Tiruchirappalli-based GK Industrial Park Pvt for around Rs 70 crore. The park, coming up on 600 acres on the outskirts of the city, is being being funded through debt and equity. “IL&FS Investment Managers has taken 82 per cent equity and invested around Rs 70 crore in the project,” GK Industrial Park director KG Muralidharan. The debt portion of Rs 77 crore will be funded by Punjab National Bank. Muralidharan said the company had invested around Rs 75 crore to acquire land and plans to invest Rs 150 crore to create infrastructure in the park. […]

IFC, a member of the World Bank Group, will invest 350 million Indian rupees in AU Financiers, a local nonbanking finance corporation, to serve the financial needs of low-income, self-employed, first-venture, and small transport entrepreneurs in semi-urban and rural Rajasthan and other Indian states. AU Financiers expects to reach more than 180,000 small borrowers in five years. The India Business Excellence Fund, or IBEF, a private equity fund managed by Motilal Oswal Private Equity Advisors Private Ltd., also known as MOPE, will invest 200 million Indian rupees in the project. MOPE has invested in the company since 2008. AU Financiers plans to build on its presence in remote areas and grow from a small base to meet the needs of those who find it challenging to access credit for business activities. […]

US-based venture fund Sequoia Capital said Wednesday it has invested Rs.50 crore in Stovekraft, a leading manufacturer of kitchen appliances, to fund its growth plan. 'Stovekraft has consistently outperformed the market and demonstrated over 50 percent compounded growth annually. We are backing the company in building a high-quality consumer franchise,' Sequoia managing director Sandeep Singhal said in a statement here. The Bangalore-based Stovekraft's flagship brands, Pigeon and Gilma, address the needs of consumers through an array of products complementing their lifestyle. Gilma branded products are targeted at the premium segment. […]

On the back of SKS Micro Finance filing red herring prospectus for a possible IPO, another MFI — Equitas — has managed to attract $24 million from CLSA Capital. While the exact stake picked up by CLSA Capital Partners is not known, sources said it was a minority stake for $24 million. With this, the net worth of the MFI stands at Rs 270 crore, said P N Vasudevan, MD of Equitas. CLSA has made the investment through one of its funds, Aria Investment Partners III, which raised $333 million last month. This is the third investment by the fund and Aria’s ninth investment in India. CLSA Capital Partners is the alternative asset management arm of CLSA Asia-Pacific Markets. It has about $2.6 billion in assets under management. […]

Reliance Venture Asset Management, an Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group (ADAG) enterprise, said it has successfully completed the first round of venture funding in Reverse Logistics, a technology enabled end-to-end reverse supply-chain solutions company. This is in line with Reliance Venture’s recent rebranding and widening focus on investing in disruptive and sustainable business models with a sector-agnostic philosophy, the company said in a press release issued here today. Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers and Sherpalo are co-investors in this round of funding in Reverse Logistics along with Reliance Venture Asset Management. […]