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UAE-based Emirates Telecommunications Corp (Etisalat) has signed an agreement to acquire 45 per cent stake in India's Swan Telecom for around $900 million.The deal puts the value of the Indian GSM service provider at around $2 billion. Etisalat has operations in 16 countries, including Saudi Arabia, Pakistan and Egypt, and was looking at entering the Indian market, which is the second largest in terms of subscribers in the world. (BS) […] Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group-promoted Reliance Tech Ventures, venture capitalist Artiman and Cisco Ventures are in talks to invest Rs 30-35 crore in SureWaves, the Bangalore-headquartered startup engaged in providing media convergence technology solutions and funded by the former Broadcom India honcho Rajendra Khare. Reliance Tech Ventures, which provides early-stage capital for scaling up businesses linked to the group companies, is in the fray as multiplex chain and distribution entity Adlabs is reportedly a client of SureWaves, sources said. The startup plans to dilute a stake of 20-26% for a capital infusion of $7-8 million. Mr Rajendra Khare, CMD, SureWaves could not be reached despite several reminders. […] 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. […] |