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The private equity fund, ChrysCapital, has increased its equity exposure in the Amtek group, which has a major presence in the auto component industry. The PE fund has bought 7% in Amtek Auto, 4% additional stake in Amtek India and fresh equity of 7.6% in Ahmednagar Forgings. Confirming the fund’s acquisitions, Amtek group CFO S Singhi said, “ChrysCapital has been buying stake in our group companies from the long-term point of view, with a time horizon of about 2-3 years. The fund appears to be bullish on the auto sector.” The PE fund’s investments have come at a time when the auto and auto ancillary sectors are passing through a rough patch following the rising interest rates and a slowdown in demand. […]
Major financial institutions and private equity firms such as Cornell Capital and Actis are likely to join hands with leading domestic power sector financing company Power Finance Corporation (PFC) to set up an equity consortia for funding power projects in the country. The state-owned institution would identify power projects needing equity support and provide lucrative investment opportunity to consortia partners. The new initiative would be run by the newly set up arm of PFC, Power Equity Capital Advisors Pvt Ltd (PE-CAP). Other institutions and PE firms that may become part of the consortia include Sansar Capital Asia, Nexent Ventures, Capital Management Advisors and Highfield Capital Management. […]
The credit crunch in the wake of the global financial crisis has thrown up fresh opportunities for private equity (PE) players and sovereign wealth funds (SWF) to invest in India in a big way. With traditional sources of cheaper credit drying up, corporates are increasingly looking at raising funds from PEs and SWFs. Sources said that companies, like infrastructure, which are yet to tie up funds for their expansion plans, are in talks with PEs and SWFs to meet their requirements — be it long-term debt, working capital or equity infusions. One such company is JSW Energy, which is pursuing a major investment programme of Rs 11,000 crore for its power business. JSW Energy was earlier planning to raise up to $1 billion through an IPO, it did not materialize due to sluggish market conditions. […]
The collapse of the big guns of global financial services sector could well turn out to be a gain for the private equity (PE) industry in India. Thousands of professionals who were employed by these firms will now be chased by the PE firms, which are already facing an acute shortage of skilled professionals. At present there are over 366 PE firms in India while three years ago the number stood at around 100. The industry witnessed a robust growth in the last few years with investments going up from $2 billion in 2005 to close to $17 billion in 2008. […]
New York-based private equity fund WL Ross and Co. Llc., which in August agreed to invest $80 million (about Rs370 crore at the current exchange rate) in low-fare airline SpiceJet Ltd, has, on its own, started talks with Jet Airways India Ltd and Kingfisher Airlines Ltd for a possible merger with the Delhi-based carrier. Ross, part of investment management firm Invesco Ltd, has also started discussions with other low-fare carriers for a possible merger in an attempt to create a larger airline, said a person familiar with the development. “The idea is to increase the valuation of SpiceJet or the money invested by WL Ross before the firm exits,” this person added, asking not to be named. WL Ross has also suggested strict cost controls and tighter management to turn around SpiceJet, he added. […]
Media and entertainment company Mukta Arts has announced the acquisition of mobile content and application company, Coruscant Tec. The entertainment marque acquired a 51-per cent stake in Coruscant Tec in an all cash deal for an unspecified amount. Mukta Arts is promoted by filmmaker Subhash Ghai. Mukta Arts is a well known name in the Indian entertainment industry, and has outlined plans to further consolidate its position with the acquisition of Coruscant Tec by adding another dimension to its entertainment portfolio. […]
Trikona Capital Ltd., the leading fund management firm for institutional investment in Indian infrastructure and real estate, is continuing a standing relationship with SachsenFonds Holding GmbH. The German fund will look, along with its partner, to invest $70 million into Indian infrastructure, divesting the rest of the $156 million into asset portfolios of Trikona's. The German-based fund previously partnered with the firm for two other transactions, starting in December of 2007. Sachsen purchased assets from the Trikona Trinity Capital PLC portfolio for $65 million, as well as partnering again for a $150-million-deal in June of 2008. The June 2008 deal will partially fund a co-investment with Trikona of $40 million to Mumbai, India to refurbish four acres of middle-class housing and build high-end luxury homes as part of Trikona's urban rejuvenation platform. Sachsen is contributing 55% of the investment cost. […]
Nepal’s finance minister Baburam Bhattarai is expected to announce the launch of the Nepal Infrastructure Bank, or NIB, in his budget speech on Friday. The bank will be modelled on India’s Infrastructure Development Finance Co. Ltd, or IDFC. “We have got a go-ahead from the government to set up the NIB. This project is very critical for Nepal,” said Radhesh Pant, managing director of Bank of Kathmandu Ltd and president of bankers’ body Nepal Bankers Association. “We expect the finance minister to announce this in his budget speech.” FM Bhattarai is expected to announce launch of the bank today. The Bank of Kathmandu is a member of the consortium of banks that will hold a 20% stake in NIB. India’s IDFC will hold a 20% stake, while the government of Nepal will own around 11% and a Nepalese private equity firm, another 20%, Pant said. […]
The Rs 80-crore Nandan Biomatrix Ltd, which claims to become the largest biodiesel producer in the next five years with an annual capacity of 2.5 million tonnes, will soon be signing an agreement with an overseas private equity green fund for raising $30 million. With the biodiesel policy in place, the company is bullish on the expected increase in demand for biodiesel and hopes to increase its targets for producing the feed stock. While the company is on the verge of closing the deal, V Bhaskar Rao, MD, said that the fund infusion aims to fund its expansion pan India and overseas as well. Targeting a turnover of Rs 140 crore for this fiscal, the company is looking at a spread of 800,000 hectares in the next five years with 16,000 hectares in each state for producing 2.5 million metric tonnes. […]
The secular decline in stock prices for a good part of this year has prompted private equity funds to shun listed companies and opt for investment in unlisted firms. Of the 206 deals struck by private equity funds in the past eight months, 182 deals were in unlisted companies. Interestingly, India has been largely a PIPE (private investment in public equity) market but the pummelling of stocks over the last few months has influenced private equity funds to change track. After seeing a high of 21,000 early this year, the BSE Sensex, the benchmark index for the Indian stock markets has slid to below the 13,000 mark. The public markets have corrected by 30-40% across sectors this year. According to industry experts, there is always a difference in correction between stock market and private equity valuations. […]
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