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Blackstone sells MphasiS shares worth Rs.1,484-Cr
NSE
Blackstone, via Marble II Pte Ltd, has sold 1,54,60,815
shares (constituting an 8% stake) of publicly listed IT
Services firm MphasiS Ltd on May 14, 2018. The sale, at
INR 960.09 per share, aggregated to INR 1,484.38 crore.
Post the sale, the investor would retain an about 52.38%
stake in the company.
From the Venture Intelligence
PE/VC Deal Database: In Apr 2016,
Blackstone had invested INR 5,465.67 crore in MphasiS
(at INR 430 per share) for 60.46% stake. In June 2017,
Blackstone had sold shares worth INR 661.47 crore as
part of the MphasiS' buyback program at INR 635 per
share.
Private Equity Fund Investments
Ascendas to buy two
Navi Mumbai IT Park buildings for Rs.930-Cr
Economic Times
Ascendas India Trust has entered into a forward
purchase agreement with Aurum Platz IT Park to
acquire 1.4 million sq ft spread over two
buildings in Navi Mumbai for INR 930 crore.
Aurum Platz IT Park is a subsidiary of Aurum
Ventures that has interests in real estate and
mineral exploration. Ascendas India Trust will
acquire around 30% of the total development
potential in Q PARC on certain leasing
milestones, based on a purchase price to be
determined in accordance with a pre-agreed
formula that factors rent, occupancy and
capitalization rates.
Aurum Platz IT Park is an under construction
5-million-sq ft mixed-use development in Navi
Mumbai branded as Q PARC. The IT SEZ located on
Thane-Belapur Road is attracting monthly rentals
around INR 55 per sq ft.
Proprium to invest $100-M in MPL’s warehousing unit
Mint
Proprium Capital Partners, an independent asset manager
set up by former employees of Morgan Stanley’s real
estate private equity arm, is investing around USD 100
million in Hyderabad-based Musaddilal Projects Ltd (MPL)
to build a logistics/warehousing platform. MPL is
planning to set up 14 logistics centres, creating
warehouse space of over a million square feet each. The
firm has a long-term association with Hindustan Unilever
Ltd, which is occupying on an exclusive basis, two
facilities in Hyderabad and Bengaluru with warehousing
space of 250,000 sq.ft and 400,000 sq.ft each
respectively.
Indiabulls Fund
acquires commercial complex in Hyderabad for
Rs.470-Cr
Mint
Indiabulls Dual Advantage Commercial Assets Fund
has bought an office complex, Phoenix Trivium,
in suburban Hyderabad, marking the second
transaction from the fund. The transaction was
valued at around INR 470 crore. The commercial
office asset in Hafeezpet is being developed by
Hyderabad-based Phoenix Group and has 1 million
sq. ft of developable area. The first phase is
constructed and leased, which will be followed
by two more phases.
Indiabulls Dual Advantage Commercial Assets
Fund, an alternative investment fund, was
launched by Indiabulls Asset Management Co. Ltd
in 2017 targeting INR 1,500 crore, including INR
500 crore from co-investors. The fund will
invest in buying out office assets that generate
a regular stable rental income, with capital
appreciation on exits. In February 2018, the
fund bought a commercial office tower in
Gurugram from realty firm Hines India Ltd for
INR 200 crore, marking the first deal from the
new office fund. Indiabulls partnered with
co-investor InterGlobe Real Estate Ventures Pvt.
Ltd (IGR), the real estate arm of InterGlobe
Enterprises Pvt. Ltd, for the buyout.
Health-tech co mfine
raises $4.2 M from Prime Ventures, others
Economic Times
Bengaluru-based health-tech company mfine has
raised USD 4.2 million funding led by Prime
Venture Partners. Existing investors Stellaris
Venture Partners and Mayur Abhaya (CEO and MD of
LifeCell) also participated in the series A
round. Including the current round, the startup
has raised over USD 6 million.
mfine, which has 50 employees in Bengaluru, will
use the funds to expand the network of hospital
partners, the team and technology. It will also
expand services to Pune, Delhi-Gurugram,
Hyderabad and Chennai this year, taking the
number of hospital partners to 50-60. mfine was
founded in February 2017 by Ashutosh Lawania (Myntra
co-founder) and Prasad Kompalli, a former
business head at Myntra.
SIDBI VC to invest
Rs.20-Cr in amusement park firm Chiliad Procons
Fund Disclosure, Venture
Intelligence Research
SIDBI VC, via India Opportunities Fund, has
committed to invest INR 20 crore for a 30.77%
stake in
Chiliad Procons
Private Ltd (CPPL), a Mumbai-based company
engaged in setting up snow and adventure based
amusement themed centers. Currently it has two
“snow parks” in India under the brand names Snow
World and Ski India.
On Mar 31, 2018, SIDBI VC invested INR 10 crore
as part of the first tranche by subscribing to
1,444,444 equity shares at INR 34.61 per share
and 500,000 8% OCDs at INR 100 per debenture. As
part of the subsequent tranches, it will
subscribe to 1000,000 8% OCDs at INR 100 per
debenture in the future. SIDBI VC made the
investment at a pre-money valuation of INR 45
crore.
Federal Bank sells 26%
stake in NBFC subsidiary to True North
BSE,
Business Standard
The Federal Bank Ltd is to sell 26% of the
post-issue paid up share capital of Fedbank
Financial Services Ltd (Fedfina) to a fund
managed by True North Enterprise Pvt Ltd. The
investment will help Fedfina augment its capital
base primarily to support its asset business and
to grow its branch network. ICICI Securities
was the exclusive financial advisor to the
transaction.
Fintech firm Open
raises seed funding from Unicorn, Recruit,
others
Inc42
Bengaluru-based fintech startup Open Financial
Technologies has raised pre-series A funding led
by Unicorn India Ventures and Japan-based
Recruit Co. Ltd (through its investment
subsidiary RSP India Fund LLC). Existing
investors ISME-ACE and BetterCapital AngelList
syndicate also participated in the round. The
company will use the funds to accelerate
customer acquisition and growth and also to
enhance the core platform to launch new products
on lending and wealth management.
Earlier, Open had raised investments from Citrus
Pay founders Amrish Rau and Jitendra Gupta,
TaxiforSure founder Apremaya Radhakrishnan,
Chiranth Patil of BetaPlus Ventures and Archana
Priyadarshini of Unicorn India Ventures. Open
was founded in May 2017 by serial entrepreneurs
Anish Achuthan, Mabel Chacko and Ajeesh Achuthan
along with ex-TaxiforSure CFO Deena Jacob. The
startup offers a digital banking service for
small businesses. The team of 25 people has
garnered one thousand customers.
Social learning startup
Knudge.me raises funds from Axilor, IAN
Times of India
Bengaluru-based social learning platform
Kudge.me has raised funding from Axilor and Indian Angel
Network (IAN). Bikky Khosla was the lead IAN investor.
Knudge.me aims at creating a global edutainment platform from India and
is currently focusing on helping people improve their English skills. It
was part of Axilor’s Summer ’17 Accelerator batch. The startup is
currently working on a plug-and-play gamification model which will allow
its users to create, share, and play games on any topic they’re
interested in.
Angel Investments
Sotheby’s
Int’l Realty unit raises Rs.37-Cr from HNI
Economic Times
Sotheby’s International Realty, a luxury real estate advisory
service provider, has secured USD 5.5 million (INR 37.16 crore)
in Series-A funding from a Delhi-based ultra-high-networth
individual. The funding will be used for expansion of the art
auction company’s affiliate into Gurugram, Bengaluru, Kolkata,
Pune, Goa and Sri Lanka. These international offices will sell
India luxury properties and will be controlled by India
operations. The India franchise for Sotheby’s International
Realty is owned by Realpro Realty Solutions (RRSPL). PwC
acted as the exclusive financial advisor for the deal.
Prior to this, India Sotheby’s International Realty had raised
USD 8 million in two rounds, including USD 6 million last year
through a combination of investment from other Ultra HNIs and a
brand-for-equity partnership with Bennett, Coleman & Co. Ltd (BCCL).
Incubation/Acceleration
Seven Startups graduate from 2nd
cohort of Yes Fintech
Inc42
Yes Bank has announced the graduation of seven startups from the Autumn
cohort of its 15-week Global Fintech Accelerator program, The 5
India-based companies in the cohort include:
Pingal: Founded in 2017, Mumbai-based Pingal Technologies uses
data science and natural language search to provide data-driven decision
making and real-time reporting on business KPIs.
Karza: Headquartered in Mumbai, Karza assists in leveraging GST
returns to underwrite loans from SMEs and corporates along with
alternative credit scoring.
Balance Technology: Based in Bengaluru, Balance is a personal
savings app that allows users to save petty change and invest in FDs and
mutual funds. Balance enables financial education and product adoption
through adaptable goals.
Fyle: Specialising in intelligent employee reimbursement and
expense automation, Fyle is a Bengaluru-based startup that was founded
in 2016.
FinBit: Delhi-headquartered FinBit, which was launched in 2016,
offers loan decisioning through automated analysis of bank statements to
enable underwriters to understand a customer’s financial behaviour.
Liquidity Events
Hinduja National Power buys Kiran Energy Solar for
Rs.1,000-Cr
Mint
Hinduja National Power Corp., part of the Hinduja Group,
has acquired Kiran Energy Solar Power for around INR
1,000 crore. Kiran Energy is an integrated
developer-operator of grid connected solar power plants.
It has an operational portfolio of around 85 megawatts
(MW). The company is also engaged in building solar
clusters in Gujarat, Maharashtra, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu
and Rajasthan with capacities varying between 50MW and
100MW.
The acquisition provides an exit to Kiran’s PE investors
Argonaut Ventures, New Silk Route and Bessemer Venture
Partners India which collectively own an nearly 80%
stake in the company. The founders - Ardeshir Contractor
and Alan Rosling - and a few others own the rest.
From the Venture Intelligence
PE-VC Deal Database: Between 2010-2017,
New Silk Route, Argonaut and Bessemer had invested INR
282 Cr in Kiran Energy. (Subscribers to the database can
login to view the valuation, deal structuring and other
transaction details.)
WestBridge
sells addl Dr. Lal PathLabs shares worth Rs.36-Cr, registers
3.53x return
WestBridge Capital, via Sanjeevini Investment Holdings, has sold
422,494 shares (0.51% stake) of publicly listed Diagnostic
Services provider Dr. Lal PathLabs Ltd on May 16, 2018 through
the NSE. The sale, at INR 840 per share, aggregated to INR 35.49
Cr. Post-deal, the investor would hold a 9.47% stake (7,894,278
shares) in the company.
From the Venture Intelligence PE-VC Deal
Database: In Feb 2013, WestBridge had invested
INR 187.68 Cr ($35 mn). It further invested INR 123.03 Cr in Jul
2015. Dr. Lal PathLabs got listed in Dec 2015.
In Mar-17, WestBridge had sold 1,291,920 shares at INR 950.27
per share aggregating to INR 122.77 Cr.
Other PE Investors invested in the company includes TA
Associates (exited with 5.54x return in Oct 2017) and Sequoia
Capital India (exited with 8.47x return in Feb 2013).
Asha Impact exits school
financier Varthana
Economic Times
Asha Impact has exited its three year old investment in Bengaluru-based
NBFC Varthana as part of the company’s Series-C fund raise of INR 355
crore led by ChrysCapital. Asha Impact had held 5-6% stake in Varthana.
Set up in 2014 by Vikram Gandhi (who was previously with Credit Suisse
and Morgan Stanley) and former Genpact CEO Pramod Bhasin. Asha Impact
follows a multi family office structure and counts 9 investors in its
circle.
From the Venture Intelligence PE-VC Deal Database:
In Aug-15, Varthana had raised INR 4.70 Cr - as part of
which Vikram Gandhi had invested INR 1.90 Cr; while others - including
Pramod Bhasin, Bahram N Vakil, Rajesh Chandra Pathak and Merisis
Advisors Private Limited - had invested INR 2.80 Cr. (Subscribers to the
database can login to view the valuation, deal structuring and other
transaction details.)
Other
Private Equity/Strategic Investments
Online auto
marketplace Droom raises $30-M from Toyota, others
Times of India
Japanese auto giant Toyota has made its first investment in an
Indian startup by co-leading a USD 30 million funding round in
automobile marketplace Droom, along with Tokyo-based incubator
Digital Garage. Ellison Investments, an Asia-based investment
manager, as well as south east Asia-based family offices also
invested in this round.
Droom, the Gurugram-based company was founded in 2010 by Sandeep
Aggarwal, will use the funds to strengthen the its share on the
automobile marketplace and invest in machine learning and AI.
Droom will also expand into Southeast Asia through Toyota.
With a team size of over 300, the company has raised close to
USD 95 million in six rounds of funding from investors including
Lightbox, Beenext and Beenos.
Farming startup
Earthfood sells 30% stake to Rairah Corp for Rs.
6.4-Cr
Economic Times
Earthfood, a
Pune-based startup that farms and retails
residue-free fruits and vegetables, has raised
INR 6.4 crore in seed funding from Rairah
Corporation for a 30% stake for post-money
valuation of nearly INR 28 crore. The company
has nearly 200 acres under cultivation near Pune
and currently supplies 10 tonnes per month to
Pune retailers and individual buyers who can
order online.
Post-deal, Rairah's chairman Siddharth
Khinvasara has joined Earthfood as a cofounder,
where he will oversee sales and day to day
operations. The deal also includes usage of
Rairah Corporation’s 40 acres in Talegoan used
for fruit cultivation. 80% of the new funds are
being invested for cultivation of new land,
hydroponics, launching new products and
increasing production.
Deutsche Bank acquires fintech co Quantiguous
Economic Times
Deutsche Bank has acquired Mumbai-based fintech start up
Quantiguous Solutions which will enable it to
provide an open banking platform to corporate clients
across the world. The acquisition helps the bank connect
its interface directly with the clients without
additional costs to onboard new clients or incremental
efforts for automation. In FY 2018, Quantiguous made
around USD 0.5 million in revenue (INR 3.5 crore).
Nineteen Quantiguous employees including founder CEO
Akhilesh Kataria, will join Deutsche to work on a
programming interface in all of the German lender’s
businesses across the world.
Max Group founder
acquires 10% in European restaurant chain Alajmo
ITCM,
Press Release
Leeu Holdings Ltd (Leeu), the hospitality unit
of Max Group founder Analjit Singh, has acquired
a 10% stake in Italy-based restaurant chain
Alajmo SpA. The
target business, a family operated business,
operates four fine-dining restaurants and six
café-bistros, including Le Calandre and La
Montecchia restaurants in Padua, Caffè Stern in
Paris and Grancaffè & Ristorante Quadri in St.
Mark’s Square, Venice, as well as a line of food
products and a special events business. AZB &
Partners was the regal advisors to Leeu
Holdings on the deal.
IPOs
Indostar Capital
Finance IPO subscribed 6 times
Economic Times
The initial public offering of Indostar Capital
Finance has been subscribed over six times with
investors bidding for 151.9 million shares,
compared to the 22.6 million shares on offer.
The price band of the offer is INR 570–572 (face
value of INR 10) per share. At the upper band,
the issue will fetch INR 1,844 crore.
Indostar Capital Finance is a non-banking
finance company (NBFC) that is mainly into
offering structured term financing solutions to
corporates and loans to SME borrowers. The NBFC
recently expanded its portfolio to wade into
vehicle financing and housing finance products.
Post IPO, the promoters' stake will be down to
58.95% while that of public and others category
will go up to 41.05%.
From the Venture
Intelligence PE-VC Deal Database:
Indostar was promoted in 2011 by PE investors
including Goldman Sachs, Everstone, Beacon
India, Ashmore, CDIB Capital and others with an
initial equity base of INR 900-Cr. (Subscribers
to the database can login to view the valuation,
deal structuring and other transaction details.)
M&A
Essel Group to acquire
62% in LKP Finance for Rs.153-Cr
BSE
Essel Group, via its unit Dakshin Mercantile
Pvt. Ltd, has agreed to acquire up to 62% in
publicly listed NBFC
LKP Finance for
about INR 153 crore and make an open offer to
LKP’s public shareholders for an additional 26%
at INR 198 per share. LKP shares had closed at
INR 164.65 per share on May 14 on the BSE and
has an market cap of INR 214.73 Cr. Amitabh
Chaturvedi of the Essel Group will join the
board of LKP Finance. Fortune Financial is the advisor to LKP Finance promoter Mahendra
Doshi, while ICICI Securities is managing
the open offer for the acquirer. LKP Finance had
reported a income from operations of INR 76.32
Cr and a Net Profit of INR 19.72 Cr for FY18 as
against INR 43.88 Cr and INR 10.07 Cr in FY17.
Japan's
Sompo to increase Universal Sompo General Insurance stake to
34.6%
To
acquire 6% addl stake for Rs.125-Cr
Economic Times
Japan-based Sompo Japan Nipponkoa Insurance is to buy an
additional 6% in its Indian JV, Universal Sompo General
Insurance, for INR 125 crore. Sompo is buy the stake from
Karnataka Bank, which currently holds 14.26% in the joint
venture. Another existing co-promoter, Dabur Investment
Corporation, is to buy an about 2% stake from Karnataka Bank for
INR 42 crore. Overall, Karnataka Bank will sell about 3.04 crore
shares for INR 55 a piece to Sompo and Dabur. While Sompo’s
stake would rise to 34.6% post the deal, Dabur’s would rise to
12.8%.
The deals, which are happening close on the heels of Universal
Sompo’s INR 100 crore rights issue, are awaiting approval of the
Insurance Regulatory & Development Authority (Irda). The rights
issue of shares was only subscribed by Sompo and Dabur while
Karnataka Bank and other promoters, Allahabad Bank and Indian
Overseas Bank, did not subscribe to it. Post the rights issue,
Sompo’s shareholding rose to 28.42% from 26%. Karnataka Bank’s
holding fell to 14.26% from 15%. Allahabad Bank’s holding is now
28.52%, down from 30%, and IOB’s is down to 18.06% from 19%.
Dabur’s interest rose to 10.74% from 10%. The general insurance
firm made a net profit of INR 296.6 crore in FY18 as against INR
49 crore in FY17. This has enabled the company to raise its net
worth to INR 750 crore from INR 354 crore in the preceding
fiscal, wiping out the carried forward losses of INR 82 crore.
The company has shown an underwriting profit of INR 289 crore in
FY18 as against a loss of INR 71 crore in FY17. It’s solvency
margin has improved to 2.30%. The company achieved gross written
premium of INR 2,313 crore, backed by crop insurance, motor and
individual health insurance.
Inditrade to sell
equity broking unit to Choice Intn’l for
Rs.32-Cr: report
Economic Times
Kochi-based, publicly listed Inditrade Capital
is set to sell its equity broking business to
Choice International, a Mumbai-based financial
services firm for INR 32 crore. Choice will
acquire Inditrade Capital’s 1.2 lakh customers
across 27 branches and its 320 employees. About
40% of Inditrade’s business comes from Kerala.
Inditrade is exiting equity broking and now
plans to focus solely on lending to small and
unbanked customers.
Crest ventures acquires
UK-based JV partner's 48% stake in Tullett
Prebon India for Rs.4.52 Cr
BSE
Listed NBFC Crest Ventures Ltd is to buy the 48%
stake (14,15,300 shares) in Tullett Prebon
(India) Ltd held by London-based intermediary
firm Tullett Prebon (via Prebon Holdings BV) for
INR 4.52 crore in cash. The target company,
which was incorporated in 1995, is an
intermediary in the wholesale debt market,
foreign exchange market and rupee options. It
reported a turnover of INR 18.32 Cr and Networth
of INR 18.38 Cr for FY18. The company’s revenues
were at INR 18.81 Cr in FY17 and INR 17.14 Cr in
FY16. The latest deal will hike Crest's stake in
Tullett Prebon (India) to 99.99% (from 51.99%).
NIIT to sell off stake in
Chinese JV for Rs.4-Cr
BSE
Listed education services firm NIIT Ltd is to sell its entire stake in
Wuxi NIIT Information Technology Consulting Ltd (Wuxi NIIT) for Chinese
Yuan (CNY) 3.75 million (around INR 4 crore) to its local JV partner,
Wuxi An Ai Ai Di Education and Training Co. Ltd (Wuxi). NIIT, via NIIT
China (Shanghai) Ltd, had held a 60% stake (4.8 Lakh shares) in Wuxi
NIIT. NIIT has already received 1 million Chinese yuan from Wuxi and
will receive the remaining amount by 31 July. Wuxi NIIT reported a
turnover of CY 10.31 million (around INR 10.7 crore) and a Net Worth of
CNY 4.35 million (INR 4.51 Cr) for FY18.
Cyient to acquire
residual 49% stake in data sciences unit
BSE
Publicly-listed Cyient Ltd is to acquire the
remaining 49% stake in Hyderabad-based Cyient
Insights Pvt Ltd (formerly Invati Insights) for
USD 515,777 (about INR 3.5 Cr) in cash to take
the overall stake holding to 100%. The target,
with a turnover of INR 133,527,668 for FY 17-18,
is engaged in business of analytics and loT
solutions across Cyient Ltd verticals primarily
in aerospace and industrial domains.
From the Venture
Intelligence M&A Deals Database:
Cyient had acquired the 51% stake in Invati in
Aug-14. (Subscribers to the database can login
to view the valuation, deal structuring and
other transaction details.)
Sanjiv Goenka buys
Atletico Madrid’s 25% stake in football team ATK
Mint
Sanjiv Goenka has bought out Atletico Madrid’s
stake in ATK, the team that was formerly known
as Atletico de Kolkata and was launched in 2014
to represent Kolkata in the annual Indian Super
League (ISL) football tournament. Atletico
Madrid had a 25% stake in Kolkata Games and
Sports Pvt. Ltd - the company behind ATK.
Vivimed
unit to acquire Hungary-based contract
manufacturing firm Soneas
BSE
Listed pharma firm Vivimed Labs, via its
Spain-based API unit Uquifa, is to acquire
Budapest, Hungary-headquartered Soneas, a
contract development and manufacturing
organisation (CDMO) focused on the innovator
pharmaceuticals and fine chemicals sectors. The
business is being acquired from Soneas'
Hungary-based owners, Lochlomond and
Euroventures. The target company reported
revenues of Euro 12.2 million for 2017. The deal
will help Vivimed would accelerate its expansion
into contract development and manufacturing,
where it already has a presence in the US,
Europe and Japan.
From the Venture
Intelligence M&A Deals Database:
Barcelona, Spain-based Uquifa was acquired by
Vivimed Labs for $55 million in Nov-11.
From the Venture
Intelligence PE-VC Deal Database:
Healthcare-focused PE firm OrbiMed has invested
$50 million in the Mauritius-based holding
company for Vivimed’s API business across two
tranches starting in Sep-17.
B2B payments plater PayMate
acquires digital lending platform Z2P Tech
Business World
Mumbai-based PayMate, a player in electronic Business-to-Business (B2B)
payments space, has acquired Bhopal-based Z2P (Zaitech Technology Pvt.
Ltd.), a digital lending platform which provides real-time credit using
social and banking data along with proprietary analytics and AI.
VC-backed PayMate plans to partner with banks and NBFCs to improve the
flow of credit to SMEs.
From the Venture Intelligence PE-VC Deal Database:
PE-VC investors in PayMate include Lightbox and Mayfield.
Knowlarity acquires
cloud telephony biz of Sunoray
Business World
Delhi-based, VC-backed cloud communications
services provider Knowlarity Communications has
acquired Mumbai headquartered Sunoray Solutions’
Cloud Telephony business. Sunoray Solutions,
founded by Rahul Arora and Sumontro Roy in 2014,
offers SMEs tech-based product offerings.
Earlier, in May 2016, Knowlarity had acquired
Delhi-based Smartwards, a customer engagement
platform.
Music Broadcast acquires Ananda
Offset's radio division
PTI
Music Broadcast, a Jagran group firm that runs Radio City FM, has
acquired the radio division of Ananda Offset which has been operating
the 'Friends 91.9 FM' channel in Kolkata since 2007. Music Broadcast has
had a sales alliance with Ananda Offset for the last five years and the
acquisition allows it to enter into the Kolkata market.
Khaitan & Co. acted as the legal advisor to Music Broadcast Limited on
the transaction.
Other Deals - Listed Firms
Reliance Power exits Tilaiya UMPP in Jharkhand; sells
stake for Rs.113-Cr
BSE,
Mint
Publicly listed Reliance Power has sold its entire
equity stake of 1,49,900 equity shares (of INR 10 each)
in Jharkhand Integrated Power Ltd (JIPL), which is
executing the Tilaiya Ultra Mega Power Project (UMPP),
for INR 112.64 crore to Jharkhand Urja Vikas Nigam Ltd..
It has also reportedly recovered its bank guarantee
amount of INR 600 crore.
Other Deals
Job listing startup
SpringRole raises $1.3-M
Inc42
Santa Monica, CA (USA)- and Bangalore-based
blockchain-based job-listing startup
SpringRole has
closed a USD 1.3 million funding from its early
investors – AlphaBlock Investments, Brock Pierce
and Scott Walker’s blockchain investment and
consulting firm DNA, Isaac Lee’s BlockWater and
Wavemaker Genesis. The company plans to utilise
the funds towards solving the problems of hiring
technical professionals for outsourcing through
blockchain technology.
The startup is said to be building an AI and
blockchain-based network that will have features
like directory listing, search, job board, work
attestation and reputation scoring, etc. on the
platform.
Debt
Financing
IFC to lend $150-M to
HDFC Bank’s NBFC unit
IFC
IFC proposes to invest up to INR 975 Cr
(approximately USD 150 million) in the form of
senior debt in Mumbai-based HDB Financial
Services Limited. HDB is a non-banking finance
company (NBFC) providing financing to
micro-small and medium enterprises (MSMEs)
across India. It is a subsidiary of HDFC Bank
and operates across India through over 1,160
branches across 831 cities.
HDB’s primary focus is on borrowers whose credit
requirements are less than USD10,000. The
proposed IFC debt facility will enable HDB to
expand its individual micro & small business
loan portfolio in the low-income states of
India.
SBI lends Rs.30-Cr to MSME-focused
Aye Finance
Business World
MSME lender Aye Finance has raised debt of INR 30 crore from State Bank
of India. The funding will be used to offer affordable line of credit to
micro enterprises. Aye is also in talks with investors to raise
additional USD 20-25 million by the end of the current quarter.
From the Venture Intelligence PE-VC Deal Database:
In Apr 2018, Aye Finance had received INR 30 crore in debt funding from
Switzerland-based impact investor BlueOrchard. In Jan 2017, it had
raised INR 44 crore debt from the Netherlands-based Triodos Investment
Management. Other PE-VC investors in Aye Finance include Accion, SAIF
Partners and LGT.
Real Estate
Transactions
Kanakia Group to buy India Tube
Mills land in Mumbai for Rs.363-Cr
Mint
Mumbai-based luxury residential developer Kanakia Group is to buy a
seven-acre plot in Mumbai's Vikhroli suburb, currently housing the
office and factory of India Tube Mills and Metal (ITM) Industries Ltd,
for INR 363 crore. With a development potential of around 10-15 lakh sq.
ft, the Kanakia Group is looking to utilize the land either for mixed
used development or building residential projects. As part of the deal,
the Kanakias will buy a 100% stake in ITM’s special purpose vehicle (SPV)
which holds the land.
Northern Arc
achieves Rs.110-Cr first close for new debt fund
Mint
Northern Arc Investments, a unit of Northern Arc
Capital (formerly IFMR Capital), has launched
IFMR Fimpact Income Builder Fund, its sixth debt
fund, targeting a corpus of INR 150 crore (USD
23 million) with a green shoe option of INR 100
crore. The fund will predominantly target
domestic institutional investors, high net worth
individuals (HNIs) and companies. It has already
achieved a first close of INR 110 crore.
Northern Arc aims to invest in sectors like
microfinance, small business loan finance,
affordable housing, commercial vehicle finance,
agri-business and corporate finance. The debt
fund has tenure of 3.5 years and aims to make
eight to 10 investments of INR 20 crore.
Sanjiv
Goenka sets up Rs.100-Cr fund to invest in FMCG startups
Business Standard
The RP-Sanjiv Goenka Group has created a INR 100 crore
venture capital fund to invest in fast-moving consumer goods
(FMCG) startups.
CIIE’s seed fund
attracts $12.5-M from US tech entrepreneurs
Economic Times
IIM-Ahmedabad’s Centre for Innovation, Incubation and
Entrepreneurship (CIIE) has launched the Bharat Inclusion
Initiative with an initial commitment of $12.5 million from
The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, Omidyar Network and
Michael and Susan Dell Foundation (MSDF). The initiative,
which is targeting to raise $25 million, will focus on
incubating and backing startups that work in areas such as
financial inclusion, livelihood, education and health. It
had received seed support from the Tata Trusts.
Cerestra to raise
$300-M offshore edu-infra fund
Mint
Private Equity firm Cerestra Advisors Ltd is
raising a USD 300 million offshore
education-infrastructure fund which it will
invest in school buildings. It also plans to
launch an infrastructure investment trust (InvIT).
Cerestra was acquired by London-based asset
manager The Capital Partnership (TCP) from
Religare Global Asset Management in August 2017.
Its first fund, Cerestra Edu-Infra Fund, was a
domestic alternate investment fund (AIF) that
raised around INR 1,000 crore and bought out
income-generating assets in the
education-infrastructure space. Apart from
education, Cerestra also invests in the life
sciences segment.
Avendus in talks
to raise $300-M consumer sector focused fund
Mint
Financial services firm Avendus Capital is in
talks with potential investors to raise a USD
300 million consumer sector-focused fund. The
fund will be housed under the Zodius platform,
which Avendus acquired last year. While Zodius
was previously focused on investing in
technology start-ups, the new fund has a broader
mandate. The fund will invest in traditional
brick-and-mortar consumer businesses as well as
consumer internet firms.
Apollo Global in
talks to buy out JP Morgan's India-focused real
estate fund
Business Standard
Apollo Global Management is in talks with JP
Morgan to acquire the latter’s India-focused
property fund. The fund has assets of around
$360 million (INR 2,412 Cr), which is also
likely to be the size of the deal.
Lightspeed India appoints Hemant Mohapatra as
partner
Mint
VC firm Lightspeed India Partners, which is
currently in talks to raise a new fund, has
appointed former Andreessen Horowitz executive
Hemant Mohapatra as a partner to make
investments in consumer internet and enterprise
software startups. Lightspeed will now have six
senior and junior partners in India.
Mohapatra, while he was partner at the
Andreessen Horowitz fund in Silicon Valley,
focused primarily on enterprise technology
investments and served as a board observer at
start-ups such as Cumulus Networks, Actifio and
DigitalOcean.
SC acquits Peepul
Capital co-founder Srinivasa Raju in Satyam Computer case
Indian Express
The Supreme Court has acquitted (Peepul Capital co-founder)
Chintalapati Srinivasa Raju, co-brother of Satyam Computer
Services Ltd chairman B Ramalinga Raju, from charges of
being a promoter in the firm and, along with 13 other
individuals, amassing nearly INR 2,000 crore illegal wealth.
John
Pattar joins KKR as Head
of Asia Pacific Real Estate
Press Release
Global investment firm KKR has appointed John Pattar as Head
of KKR's real estate business in Asia Pacific. Pattar will
also assist Asian clients in partnering with KKR to access
real estate opportunities globally. He joins KKR from CLSA
Capital Partners in Hong Kong, where he was the CEO of CLSA
Real Estate.
Avendus names Ritesh
Chandra to head new fund unit
DealStreetAsia
Financial services firm Avendus Capital has re-designated
Ritesh Chandra, former executive director for consumer,
financial and business services (CFB), as head of a new fund
which is expected to be launched post-regulatory approvals.
He has been with the firm for nearly 10 years.
VI
Updates
Spark Capital
is one of India’s leading mid-market,
full-service Investment Banks. Having our
genesis from the south in 2001 and now
having a pan-India presence, we offer
services encompassing Investment Banking,
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raising in private and public markets; M&A
advisory; research-led public-market stock
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Our commitment to staying the course with
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entrepreneurial culture; an ability to
attract and retain high quality talent; and
our gradual expansion of markets and
services has served as cornerstones of our
evolution. Over the past three years, we
have advised on over 30 deals aggregating to
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to over 200 listed stocks; and rapidly grown
assets-under-advice on the back of
above-market performance of client
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www.sparkcapital.in
SAR Group looking
to raise $100-M for battery business
Business Line
Rakesh Malhotra- and Navneet Kapoor-founded
SAR Group, makers of the Livpure brand water
purifiers and Livguard brand automotive
batteries and storage solutions, is looking
at raising between USD 50-100 million for
its battery business. Livguard, founded in
2014 with an overall investment of around
INR 200 crore, clocked about INR 950 crore
in revenues during FY18.
Logistics tech firm ElasticRun in talks to raise
$25-M from Sequoia, others
Economic Times
A clutch of investors, including Sequoia Capital
India, are in talks to invest in Pune-based
startup NTex Transportation Services, which owns
and operates logistics and distribution platform
ElasticRun. The company could potentially raise
USD 20-25 million. The company is targeting
revenue of INR 400-500 crore by the end of FY19,
a 3X jump from FY18.
IPOs
Auto comp firm
Sansera Engg looks to raise Rs.1,000-Cr via
IPO
Mint
Bengaluru-based auto-component maker Sansera
Engineering Pvt. Ltd is in the process of
appointing investment bankers for an IPO
that could raise INR 750-1,000 crore at a
valuation of around INR 3,000 crore. Founded
in 1987, Sansera’s product portfolio
encompasses components such as crankshaft
assemblies, rocker arms, gear shifter forks,
common rail, connecting rods and others. The
company is backed by US-based private
investment group The Rohatyn Group (TRG).
The IPO will be a mix of fresh issue of
shares and a secondary sale of shares,
especially by TRG which holds a 51% stake.
For FY17, Sansera had reported a
consolidated revenue of INR 1,034.2 crore, a
growth of 14.8% over the previous year’s
revenue of INR 901 crore. The company’s
Ebitda grew by 9.3% to INR 174.4 crore in
fiscal FY17. Its consolidated profit grew
2.4% to INR 68.8 crore in FY17.
Women’s wear maker Suumaya Lifestyle to raise
Rs.138-Cr
Press Release
Mumbai-based Suumaya Lifestyle Ltd plans to
enter the capital market by making a public
offer of 76.88 lakh equity shares of INR 10 each
fully paid up for cash at a price of INR 18 per
equity share, aggregating to INR 1383.84 lakh.
The IPO consists of fresh issue of 18.88 lakh
equity shares, aggregating to INR 339.84 lakh
and Offer for Sale of 58 lakh equity shares
aggregating to INR 1044.00 lakh. The public
Issue will open on 22nd May 2018 and shall close
on 25th May 2018. The lead manager to the offer
is Gretex Corporate Services Pvt Ltd and
registrar to the offer is Bigshare Services
Pvt Ltd.
Suumaya Lifestyle Ltd manufactures designer wear
for women like kurtis, ethnic tops and deals in
designer women fabrics.
Everstone mulls IPO for Burger King India
Mint
QSR chain Burger King India Pvt. Ltd, owned by
PE firm Everstone Capital, is evaluating a
potential initial public offering (IPO).
Everstone owns and operates Burger King’s
branded restaurants across India and Indonesia
as part of its F&B Asia Ventures platform. It
owns and operates several leading brands such as
Burger King (India and Indonesia) and Domino’s
(Indonesia). The platform also has other brands
such as Masala Library, Farzi Café, Pa Pa Ya,
Masala Bar, Harry’s, Pind Balluchi, and Duck &
Rice.
M&A
Malaysia’s IHH
and TPG-Manipal Health ups
offer price for Fortis Healthcare
Economic Times
,
Business Line
,
Business Line
Malaysian healthcare group IHH has extended
the validity of its offer to pick up stake
in Fortis Healthcare days after Manipal-TPG
had upped its offer to acquire the group's
hospital business to INR 180 a share. IHH's offer, which could
see it infusing up to INR 7,400 crore into
Fortis for over 50% stake in the company, is
now valid until May 29. The move comes even
as the Fortis board on May 10 picked a
proposal by Sunil Kant Munjal of Hero
Enterprises and the Burman family of Dabur
group. This deal was accepted despite
opposition by financial advisers Arpwood
Capital and Standard Charted, who favoured
offers made by IHH and Manipal-TPG.
IHH’s proposal includes an infusion of INR
650 crore into Fortis upfront at INR 175 per
share. The Malaysian firm has proposed to
inject an additional INR 3,350 crore at INR
175 per share if it is satisfied with its
findings.
East Bridge Capital and Jupiter Asset
Management, which together hold a 12.04%
stake in Fortis Healthcare Ltd (FHL) favour the offer
made by Malaysia’s IHH Healthcare. Provided IHH puts in all INR 4,000
crore, picking up around 30.6% stake in
Fortis, it would have to acquire 26% from
minority investors of the company as part of
a change-of-control open offer.
The investors wanted Brian Tempest, Tejinder Shergill, Sabina Vaisoha and Harpal Singh removed from the FHL board. FHL has called for a extraordinary general meeting (EGM) on May 22, when the matter is likely to be taken up.
Tea plantations co
McLeod Russel looks to sell five estates in
Assam
Mint
After years of chasing growth through
acquisitions across the world, tea
plantation firm McLeod Russel India Ltd
belonging to the Williamson Magor group, is
looking to sell five of its estates in Assam
in a bid to pay down its debts. The firm has
signed non-disclosure agreements with
potential buyers to explore the sale.
Mumbai-based MK Shah Exports Ltd is said to
be the frontrunner to snap up some of the
estates on the block.
In the nine months till the end of December,
the company’s finance cost had gone up to
INR 121.67 crore from INR 88.19 crore in the
same period a year earlier—a jump of 38%. At
the end of March 2017, McLeod Russel had INR
790 crore of loans on its books, of which
INR 695 crore was received against mortgage
of assets. Along with its overseas arms, the
company currently owns 63 estates, and in
fiscal 2016-17 produced 115 million kgs of
tea. It has 48 estates in Assam and four in
the Dooars region of West Bengal.
Hexaware, Mphasis,
L&T Infotech bid for Genpact’s IT consulting
biz Headstrong
Times of India
Hexaware Technologies, Mphasis and L&T
Infotech are among the potential suitors
evaluating a bid to acquire IT services and
consulting business Headstrong, put on the
block by the NYSE-listed BPO major Genpact.
Genpact had acquired Headstrong, a capital
markets domain specialist, in a USD 550
million deal seven years ago. Now Headstrong
may fetch around USD 200 million.The suitors
for Headstrong may consider offering
valuation between six to eight times its
ebitda, or operating profit, pegged at under
USD 30 million currently.
Aditya Birla Capital's 2 firms apply to NCLT
for merger
Economic Times
Aditya Birla Capital’s (ABCL) two units - Aditya
Birla Commodities Broking Ltd (ABCBL) and Aditya
Birla Money Ltd (ABML) - will file application
before the Ahmedabad bench of NCLT for approval
of a Scheme of Amalgamation for the merger of
the two firms. The authorised share capital of
ABCBL was at INR 7 crore as on December 2017
while that of ABML was at INR 25 crore.
Godrej Agrovet bids
to acquire Ruchi Soya’s oil palm business
Mint
Godrej Agrovet is bidding to acquire the oil
palm business of Ruchi Soya Industries. In
December 2017, Ruchi Soya Industries Ltd,
which has debt of INR 10,000 crore, had
entered the corporate insolvency resolution
process. Patanjali Ayurved and Adani Wilmar
are among the other bidders.
Lender Edelweiss
turns bidder for shipbuilder Bharati Defence
Business Line
Edelweiss Asset Reconstruction Co Ltd, which
holds close to 80% of the debt of Bharati
Defence and Infrastructure, has submitted a
bid to buy the ailing shipbuilder under the
Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC). The
bid, including the resolution plan submitted
by Edelweiss ARC, was approved by the
Committee of Creditors, which mainly
comprises Edelweiss. The financial bid of
Edelweiss was higher than the liquidation
value, which, in effect, was also set by
Edelweiss.
New Ventures
US hospitality consulting co HVS in JV with
Anarock
Economic Times
Marking its second innings in India, the
US-based hospitality consulting firm HVS has
entered into a joint venture with Anuj Puri’s
Anarock Property Consultants to focus on South
Asia operations from Indian shores. Indian
market will be a key geography for the newly
formed joint entity. HVS Anarock will focus on
brokerage, feasibility studies, operator
searches, appraisals, executive search and other
hospitality sector consulting and advisory
services throughout South Asia.
Last year, HVS and its joint venture partner in
India mutually terminated their partnership
after being together for over 20 years.
Jindal Mectec, Kinspan form JV
Business Line
Jindal Mectec, a provider of insulated
panels, has entered into a JV with Kingspan,
an Ireland-based leader in insulated panels
and building envelope solutions. The JV,
targeting the Indian market, will accelerate
the development of Jindal Mectec’s existing
product portfolio, leveraging Kingspan’s
proprietary insulation core technologies and
building technology know-how. In addition,
the JV will offer infrastructure solutions
portfolio leveraging Kingspan’s KingZip
standing seam roofing system, available as a
package with the Group’s skylight and
architectural façade system, especially
suitable for airport and rail infrastructure
projects.
Mahindra’s EPC Industries inks JV with
Israel’s Top Greenhouses
Business Standard
Mahindra Group firm EPC Industrie Ltd has
formed a joint venture with Israeli
greenhouse company, Top Greenhouses Ltd, to
work in protected cultivation industry and
provide specialised and relevant
technologies to Indian market. EPC will hold
60% stake in the JV.
Expansion/Diversification
Responsive Industries to invest $100-M in vinyl
flooring plant abroad
Business Line
Responsive Industries, a vinyl flooring and
cloth rexine manufacturing company, plans to
invest about USD 100 million (INR 670 crore) in
setting up a vinyl floor manufacturing unit
abroad to serve the US and European markets. The
almost zero-debt company, which is scouting for
suitable location in West Asia, Europe and the
US, plans to raise 50% for the project through a
new subsidiary to be floated abroad and use
internal accrual for the rest.
OYO
Rooms begins ops in China with listings in
Shenzhen
Medianama
Budget hotel aggregator OYO Rooms has begun
operations in China. OYO’s website for China
is currently showing seven hotel options in
Shenzhen, with price ranging around 100
Chinese Yuan (about INR 1000). OYO is also
looking for properties in cities like
Beijing and Shanghai. Apart from China,
OYO’s foreign market presence includes
Dubai, Malaysia and Nepal.
In September 2017, OYO had signed a
Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with
multi-brand hotel group China Lodging Group
Ltd. China Lodging also invested USD 10
million in OYO.
Hyperlocal deliverer Dunzo to foray into
bike-sharing services
Economic Times
Bengaluru-headquartered hyperlocal concierge and
delivery player Dunzo is looking to diversify
its offerings apart from running tasks like
fetching passports for customers or watering
their plants. It is looking to foray into
bike-sharing services to optimise its already
existing fleet of bikers.
From the Venture
Intelligence PE-VC Deal Database:
In Nov 2017, Google picked up a minority stake
in Rajan Anandan-backed Dunzo. Other PE/VC
investors in Dunzo include Aspada Investments
and Blume Ventures.
People
Zomato hires GE executive Sameer Maheshwary
as CFO
Times of India
Online restaurant discovery and
food-delivery platform Zomato has appointed
Sameer Maheshwary as its chief financial
officer (CFO). He will be joining the
Gurgaon-based company in July from General
Electric (GE) India — where he is currently
the CFO for South Asia.
Lingerie retailer Zivame names Amisha Jain as
CEO
Press Release
Bengaluru-based online lingerie retailer Zivame
has appointed Amisha Jain as the Chief Executive
Officer (CEO). Prior to Zivame, She was heading
the Arvind Sports Lifestyle business and the
Digital Center of Excellence for the Arvind
Group.
Zivame, founded in 2011, has now extended into
multiple categories and channels with presence
in about 26 retail stores about 600 trade
(multi-brand outlets).
From the Venture
Intelligence PE-VC Deal Database:
PE-VC investors in Zivame include Khazanah,
Ratan Tata, Kalaari Capital, IDG Ventures India,
Zodius Capital, and Unilazer Ventures.
(Subscribers to the database can login to view
the valuation, deal structuring and other
transaction details.)
Shardul Amarchand Mumbai partner Jay Parikh
resigns
Legally India
Shardul Amarchand Mumbai partner Jay Parikh has
resigned from the firm. He joined the firm in
2015 from Verus Advocates and specialises in
corporate finance and M&A.
Piyush Goyal named temporary FM
Financial Chronicle
In a significant cabinet reshuffle by prime
minister Narendra Modi, railway minister
Piyush Goyal, who is also a former party
treasurer, has been given the additional
charge of the finance ministry. Goyal will
“temporarily” handle the finance and
corporate affairs ministries till Arun
Jaitley, who underwent a kidney transplant
at the All India Institute of Medical
Sciences.
Ravi Venkatesan steps down from Infosys board as
independent director
Business Standard
Infosys independent director Ravi Venkatesan has
resigned from the Board with immediate effect.
This is the first board level exit in the
company after co-founder Nandan Nilekani
returned to the company as the Chairman of the
Board of Directors in August last year.
Venkatesan, a former Microsoft India chairman,
had joined Infosys Board in April 2011 as an
additional director and even had served as the
co-chairman for a brief period last year when
the company’s board then led by R Seshasayee was
at the receiving end over the allegations of
corporate governance issue, raised by founder N
R Narayana Murthy.
Quick Heal appoints Nitin Kulkarni as CFO
Business Line
IT security vendor Quick Heal Technologies Ltd
has appointed Nitin Kulkarni for the position of
Chief Financial Officer (CFO). Nitin Kulkarni is
a qualified Chartered Accountant with more than
25 years of experience of managing different
aspects of finance function in Information
Technology and Manufacturing industry. He has
previously worked in Tech Mahindra, KPIT and
Persistent Systems.
Real Estate News
MahaRERA issues recovery warrants against 12
builders
Economic Times
The Maharashtra Real Estate Regulatory Authority
(MahaRERA) has issued recovery warrants against
12 real estate developers. These warrants have
been issued by the authority after the
complainant home buyers approached MahaRERA on
several occasions asking for execution of
earlier orders against these builders directing
refund of money. Of the total 12 warrants, five
have been issued against Pune-based realty
developer Darode-Jog Properties, while rest
cases are from Mumbai and Thane jurisdiction.
Bankruptcy
Numetal doubles bid for Essar Steel to
Rs.37,000-Cr in second round
Times of India
Numetal, majority owned by Russia’s VTB
Bank, has offered INR 37,000 crore for the
debt-laden Essar Steel in the second round
of bidding, which is more than double of
what it had proposed in the first round.The
Mauritius-based company also urged the
appellate tribunal to direct the creditors
to open the second round of bids as they had
rejected the earlier offers due to
eligibility issues.
However, ArcelorMittal, the other prominent
bidder for Essar Steel, has opposed
Numetal’s proposal at NCLAT, arguing that
the first round of offers should be
considered. In the first round,
ArcelorMittal had offered INR 32,000 crore.
NCLAT to hear Bhushan Steel promoter's plea
against Tata Steel takeover
Economic Times
The National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT)
will next week hear Bhushan Steel promoter
Neeraj Singal's plea against acquisition of the
company by Tata Steel. Singal has sought a stay
on the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT)
order approving Tata Steel's bid for the
debt-ridden Bhushan Steel under corporate
insolvency resolution process. Singal has also
requested the appellate tribunal to maintain
status quo over the company's shareholding.
SC
stays Jaypee Infra liquidation
Economic Times
The Supreme Court has stayed the liquidation
process of Jaypee Infratech subject to
Jaiprakash Associate (JAL), its parent
company, depositing INR 1,000 crore by June
15 with court's registry. (In September
2017, the apex court had ordered JAL to
deposit INR 2,000 crore out of which the
company has deposited a total of INR 750
crore till date.) During the proceedings,
Amicus Curiae Pawan Shree Agarwal submitted
a proposal for disbursal of money to those
home buyers seeking refunds. The court asked
Agarwal to see if any of those seeking
refunds want to change their stand and seek
possession instead.SC also asked the Amicus
Curiae to meet with the lenders of Jaypee
Infratech and submit details of the amount
they seek.
Binani Industries offers to clear claims of
debtors in two weeks
Business Line
Binani Industries, which holds 98.4% share in
debt ridden Binani Cement has offered to clear
the 100% claims of creditors within two weeks at
the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal. The
NCLAT has asked the Committee of Creditors (CoC),
Resolution Professional to file their replies
within five days.
Viceroy Hotels: IRP invites EoI for
resolution plan
Business Line
The Insolvency Resolution Professional (IRP)
has invited an expression of interest (EoI)
to submit resolution plan for
Hyderabad-based hospitality chain Viceroy
Hotels Ltd. The company was brought under
the Corporate Insolvency Resolution Process
by the NCLT, Hyderabad, on March 12. The IRP
has set May 29 as the last date for
receiving the expression of interest for the
resolution plan. The hotel company had
borrowed INR 321 crore from lenders,
including SBI, Axis Bank, IDFC, Canara Bank
among others during 2007-2011. The loan book
was acquired by ARCIL.
NCLT
approves Tatas’ bid for Bhushan Steel
Economic Times
The National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) has
approved Tata Steel’s bid for Bhushan Steel
Ltd (BSL), clearing the deck for the
bankrupt mill’s acquisition. The NCLT
dismissed a plea filed by the employees of
Bhushan Steel opposing Tata Steel's bid. It
also rejected another petition by
engineering and construction major L&T, an
operational creditor to Bhushan Steel. L&T
had sought priority in repayment of debt in
the resolution process.
Tata Steel will initially subscribe to
72.65% equity share capital of BSL at face
value i.e. at INR 2 per share, for an
aggregate amount of INR 158.89 crore. The
financial creditors shall receive a total
consideration of INR 35,200 crore for the
settlement of the existing financial debt of
BSL.
NCLAT directs Binani Cement RP to give comments
on revised bids
Business Line
The NCLAT has directed the resolution
professional (RP) of Binani Cement not to decide
over the eligibility of the revised bids but
only submit comments to the lenders. The
National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT)
made the remarks while hearing an application
filed by UltraTech in the Binani Cement
insolvency matter.
Homestay startup Stayzilla put up for
sale
Times of India
The Resolution Professional (RP) has sought
expression of interest (EOI) or initial
plans from bidders to revive the beleaguered
homestay startup Stayzilla. The company is
estimated to have debt of INR 13 crore,
including money owed to financial creditors.
The RP has specified that the bidder should
have a minimum net worth of INR 50 crore and
have the ability to infuse cash of INR 20
crore.
Started in 2006 by Yogendra Vasupal, Sachit
Sanghi and Rupal Yogendra, Stayzilla, backed
by VC investors Matrix Partners India and
Nexus Ventures Partners, folded up in
February 2017. A spat followed between its
founder Yogendra Vasupal and vendor, JigSaw
Solutions, an advertisement agency over
unpaid dues of INR 1.72 crore for which
Jigsaw initiated criminal proceedings. The
vendor then dragged Stayzilla to the NCLT
seeking its liquidation. The RP has now
started process to find a bidder.
Majority lenders back Maharashtra
Seamless bid for United Tubulaar; NCLT
reserves order
Business Line
The bid of Area Projects filed after the
scheduled deadline by the Insolvency
Resolution Professional and allegations of
financial wrongdoings, have delayed in
finalisation of award of bid to Maharashtra
Seamless Ltd (MSL) for the debt-laden United
Seamless Tubulaar (UST). The IRP had chosen
the bid of MSL for UST, a joint venture
between the Kamineni Group and UMW of
Malaysia.
The National Company Law Tribunal,
Hyderabad, heard the matter, including
petitions regarding financial wrongdoings,
and posted the case for orders on May 15.
After the bid of Maharashtra Seamless, a DP
Jindal Group company, was finalised for INR
477 crore, by the IRP, which was assisted by
the auditing firm Brahmayya & Co, Area
Projects, which had been part of the earlier
bid process came up with a bid of INR 490
crore, INR 13 crore more than the initial
approved bid. International lenders, who
constitute the majority, put forth to NCLT,
that they have exercised due diligence in
approving the bid submitted by Maharashtra
Seamless.The IRP had contended that this
could have facilitated repayment of Indian
Bank's debt, which is a common lender across
both entities.
Jaiprakash Associates moves SC seeking approval
of its resolution plan for Jaypee
Economic Times
Realty firm Jaiprakash Associates Limited (JAL),
which is facing bankruptcy proceedings has moved
the Supreme Court seeking approval of its
resolution plan for revival. The top court had
asked the real estate firm to deposit money for
repaying those who have opted for refund instead
of possession of flats. Jaypee group has
deposited a total of INR 750 crore with the
Registry of the Supreme Court.
Others
Foxconn unit writes off another $40-M in
Snapdeal investment
Economic Times
FIH Mobile, the investment subsidiary of
Foxconn Technology Group, has written off an
additional USD 40 million of its USD 200
million bet on Gurgaon-based online
marketplace Snapdeal. The latest write down
comes about nine months after the Hong
Kong-listed unit of the Apple iPhone
manufacturer announced that it had
undertaken an impairment loss of USD 160
million.
Parsi Dairy dispute ends as partner Urvaksh
Hoyvoy retires with Rs.14-Cr share
Economic Times
A festering family dispute among the eight
partners of Parsi Dairy Farm has finally been
resolved with one of the partners, Urvaksh Naval
Hoyvoy, who was jailed last month, retiring.
Hoyvoy, who was held for fraud and fabricating a
power of attorney, will walk away with INR 14
crore as his share as part of the agreement.
Seven women of the family, in the age-group of
53 to 85 years, had dragged their cousin and
nephew Hoyvoy to court. They also filed a police
complaint against him for cheating, forgery,
breach of trust, criminal intimidation and
conspiracy. The dispute mainly revolved around
the 300-acre land, which the family has been
trying to dispose of for some years and divide
the money equally among partners.
Activist hedge fund Elliott exits Cognizant with
50% gains
Economic Times
Elliott Management, the activist hedge fund that
pushed Cognizant to shift its business and
return billions of dollars to shareholders, has
exited the IT services company, profiting from
the nearly 50% gain in the stock price in the
last 18 months.
SC attaches all properties of ponzi schemes
RTSCL, CCIL with 18 lakh investors
Bar & Bench
The Supreme Court has passed an order attaching
the properties of two companies, operating
collective investment schemes (CIS), and their
sister concerns. The case pertains to CIS of the
two companies, Royal Twinkle Star Club Ltd (RTSCL)
and Citrus Check In Ltd (CCIL). The SC has
ordered the setting up of a Sale-Cum-Monitoring
Committee which will appoint Registered Valuers
to value the properties that have been unearthed
during the insolvency process, which will
include assets of their associates/sister
concerns. The sale proceedings will take place
under the aegis of the NCLT.
Maharashtra govt to seize realtor DS Kulkarni’s
properties
Economic Times
The state government has a notification giving
approval to the revenue department and police to
impound the properties of builder D S Kulkarni,
aka DSK, and his wife, Hemanti, arrested in a
cheating case. Following the notification, the
authorities will be seizing 276 bank accounts of
DSK, his wife and son. A total of 124 land
parcels, 46 vehicles, including imported cars,
and two other properties would also be seized.
The seizure would be executed in the next few
days. The claimants in the cheating case will
receive their share from the sale of the
properties to be seized.
Three cos linked to bank fraud, bad debts face
SFIO probe
Times of India
The government has ordered an enquiry by the
Serious Frauds Investigation Office (SFIO)
against Ruchi Soya, Sterling Biotech and
Chennai-based jewellery chain Kanishk Gold as
part of its latest crackdown against companies
that have impacted banks.
Ruchi Soya is facing insolvency proceedings,
with Ramdev's Patanjali seen to be the
front-runner to take over the ailing company
with a bid of INR 4,000-4,500 crore. Sterling
Biotech and Kanishk Gold have been named by the
Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in two
cases.
ICAI sends notices to Big 4
Economic Times
The Institute of Chartered Accountants of
India has issued notices to Indian arms of
multinational auditing firms including
Deloitte, PricewaterhouseCoopers, EY, KPMG,
Grant Thornton and BDO, seeking details of
corporate structures, investments and
revenue. The body is investigating whether
these multinationals, their Indian arms and
domestic affiliates are flouting foreign
direct investment norms and other
guidelines. A separate set of notices was
issued to some Indian firms that are part of
foreign networks such as Nexia, Kreston,
Mazars, Baker Tilly and RMS.
The Big 4 – Deloitte, PwC, EY and KPMG - got
notices asking questions on total revenue,
profitability, equity structure and even
revenue per partner. ICAI also sought
information from firms operating under
international brand names, investments made
by multinationals over the years and holding
structures. Foreign firms are not allowed to
take auditing work in India directly. They
typically have an affiliate firm for such
purposes, which, domestic players alleges,
is part of the foreign firm for all
practical purposes. The government’s
proposed National Financial Reporting
Authority would overlook and penalise CAs, a
move some say would cut the Institute of
Chartered Accountants down to size after not
apparently being able to rein in CAs.
Eight major
airports likely to be privatised
Rediff
The government’s attempt at privatising
maintenance of airport terminals has drawn a
blank from investors. This has forced the
government to mull complete privatisation of
eight government-owned airports - Chennai,
Kolkata, Kochi, Pune, Ahmedabad, Jaipur, Lucknow
and Guwahati. It is likely the airports will be
bid out for 30 years and the tariffs will be
fixed upfront.
Under the two models being examined, one is a
forward bidding process based on tariff per
passenger. Under this, players will bid on fee
per passenger it will share with the Airports
Authority of India (AAI). The other model being
considered is a reverse bidding model -
essentially a tariff-based bidding.
Economic Laws Practice
("ELP") is a leading full-service Indian law
firm established in the year 2001 by eminent
lawyers from diverse fields. The firm’s
Private Equity & Venture Capital practice
brings onboard a unique understanding of
commercial matters and legalese to be able
to provide effective solutions to all
stakeholders in a transaction. The team
looks at providing a bespoke legal service
experience, which is sector agnostic in
nature and driven towards successful
consummation of the relevant transactions.
ELP advises clients on all aspects of
private equity and venture capital
transactions, whether from a fund formation
perspective or a potential portfolio
investment or a relevant exit transaction.
Our services include right from
conceptualising a structure, to conducting
the legal due diligence exercise, to the
preparation of the relevant documentation,
to providing assistance to the final closure
including negotiations and corporate
secretarial assistance.
ELP is the firm of choice for clients
because of its in-depth expertise,
continuous availability, geographic reach,
transparent approach, competitive pricing
and most importantly the involvement of
partners in every assignment.
“Avalon Consulting, among Asia’s top-rated consulting firms, is proud to announce a partnership with Cordence Worldwide. With this partnership, Avalon becomes the 11th member firm of the partnership, which now has 3000+ professionals, a presence in 23 countries through 70+ network offices around the world. For more details click here”
Founded in 1989, Avalon Consulting is an international management consulting firm that offers services in growth strategy, business transformation and transaction support to clients across a wide range of sectors including Agribusiness, Automotive, Chemicals, Construction, Education, Engineering, FMCG, Healthcare, Pharmaceuticals and Retail. It has offices in Mumbai, Delhi, Chennai, Bangalore and Singapore serving clients across India, Middle East, South East Asia, China, Europe and the US. Avalon Consulting is a member firm of Cordence Worldwide, a global management consulting partnership.
Connect with Avalon Consulting on Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn to receive interesting insights and updates.
Basiz is a high end and
specialized fund accounting service provider
with international footprints, with offices
in Mumbai, Chennai and Coimbatore in India,
besides Singapore, London and New York.
Basiz primarily focuses on servicing Fund
administrators, Hedge Funds, Mutual Funds,
Private Equity / Venture Capital Funds,
Family Offices, REIT Funds, Insurance
Portfolios and Managed Accounts.
Contact Information
Sesh A.V ACA, Managing Director
Basiz Fund Services Pvt. Ltd
M: +918286008554, E:
sesha@basizfa.com
http://www.basizfa.com
Spark Capital
is one of India’s leading mid-market,
full-service Investment Banks. Having our
genesis from the south in 2001 and now
having a pan-India presence, we offer
services encompassing Investment Banking,
Institutional Equities, Fixed Income
Advisory and Wealth Advisory. Our key
differentiator is the ability to offer
services that benefit from an amalgam of the
experience of our founding members and the
contemporary thinking of our young
leadership team. Our core values of
integrity; putting customers first; and
seeking partnerships that are mutually
beneficial, help us build sustainable,
long-term relationships with clients. Our
services include equity and debt capital
raising in private and public markets; M&A
advisory; research-led public-market stock
ideation; and customised wealth advisory
solutions. Sectors where we have built
considerable domain strength and transaction
experiences are BFSI, Healthcare, Consumer,
Technology, Infrastructure and Industrials.
Our commitment to staying the course with
respect to our core values; our strong
entrepreneurial culture; an ability to
attract and retain high quality talent; and
our gradual expansion of markets and
services has served as cornerstones of our
evolution. Over the past three years, we
have advised on over 30 deals aggregating to
USD 1.8 billion; scaled up research coverage
to over 200 listed stocks; and rapidly grown
assets-under-advice on the back of
above-market performance of client
portfolios.
For more details please visit
www.sparkcapital.in
Technology Holdings is an M&A and strategic advisory group that assists companies and private equity funds globally with their acquisition, growth and exit strategies. We are exclusively focused on creating strategic transactions for IT Services & BPO, Technology & SaaS, Analytics, Digital Transformation, Healthcare IT/BPO and Engineering Services companies. Technology Holdings has offices across India, USA and the UK.
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For more information, please visit:
http://www.technology-holdings.com/
Write to us at:
anurag@technology-holdings.com
or call us at +91-9108671235
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