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Yatra Capital Ltd, an India-focussed real estate investment company, has raised €105 million from the Euronext exchange in Amsterdam. Yatra would be the first Indian real estate company to list in Euronext.

Yatra Capital, founded by ex-HSBC executive Ajoy Veer Kapoor, has investors like Morley Fund Management, Fortis Investments and Standard Life. Yatra plans to own and develop residential, commercial and retail properties in India. Its primary focus will be on tier II and tier III cities. It will also consider select tier I opportunities.

Saffron Capital Advisors, an asset management advisory firm dedicated to Indian real estate, will act as fund and asset manager to the company. The law firm Simmons & Simmons team was an advisor to Yatra. ABN AMRO was involved as a listing agent and Fairfax IS Plc was a placing agent.

It's not Yatra alone, there were other companies like Ishaan Real Estate who have raised finance abroad. Ishaan, for instance, recently raised $340 million from London's Alternative Investment Market. Hiranandani Constructions is planning a $500-750 million float in AIM. Unitech also plans to raise about $700 million from AIM. Bangalore's Embassy group is looking to do a float in Singapore early next year.

Related:

Raheja's Ishaan Real Estate Raises $342 Million From London Stock Exchange

Hiranandani Constructions Too To Raise $750 Million From London's AIM

Unitech To Raise $700 Million From London's AIM

Bangalore's Embassy Group Plans Singapore IPO For Its Proposed REIT

What attracts global hedge funds to Nitesh Estates, a Bangalore-based real estate development company? Och-Ziff Capital Management Group, a leading global hedge fund, is believed to be picking up 25 per cent stake in Nitesh for $55-60 million, reports The Economic Times.

The deal may be closed in 10 days.

In January this year, Nitesh had secured $100 million in capital commitments from New York based Siachen Capital (by the way, does anyone more about this firm?). Siachen announced that it would invest $30 million initially and the rest in the next tranche.

Nitesh Estates was founded by Nitesh Shetty (right) in 2001. In just about five years the company is doing projects worth a few hundred crores of rupees like residential and commercial complexes, malls, special economic zones and five star hotels.

Real estate sector is hot in India with a large number of organised players getting into the business. Even those companies like Jayabharat Textiles and Shriram Mills - essentially textile players - are now spinning off separate real estate companies to cash in on the boom.

Another Bangalore-based real estate firm Mantri Developers had raised $68 million from Morgan Stanley. Embassy Group is another real estate firm in Bangalore looking to raise funds, but they are going to do a Singapore IPO in March 2007.

Related:

NY-based Siachen Capital Commits $100 Million In Bangalore's Nitesh Estates

Just saw it on CNBC TV18 channel. JP Morgan has invested $60 million in Mumbai-based real estate company Lodha Group. The funds will be used to develop its latest project - a high-end residential complex called Lodha Bellissimo. They are building a 50-storay tower in South Mumbai which is targeted at high networth individuals.

Established in 1980, the Lodha Group has developed several projects (a total of 5 million sq feet) across prime locations in Mumbai like Mahalakshmi, Prabhadevi, Worli Seaface and nearby Thane.

Mangal Prabhat Lodha is the chairman and managing director of the company.

In August this year, JP Morgan raised a $360 million real estate fund for India. Christened India Property Fund, it will invest across the office, residential, industrial/warehouse, retail and hospitality sectors. The fund will target locations like Mumbai, Bangalore, Chennai, Kolkata, Hyderabad, New Delhi, and Pune, besides selective investments in other B grade but fast growing cities like Surat, Vizag and Nagpur.

Now some M&A in retail. Mukesh Ambani's Reliance Retail has reportedly acquired 100 per cent stake in Gujarat-based Adani Retail for Rs 100-110 crore. The Economic Times reports that Reliance has pipped other contenders like Subhiksha, Trinethra and the Tatas to in clinching this deal.

The deal will give Reliance access to 54 retail locations (neighbourhood stores, supermarkets and hypermarkets) across nine cities in Gujarat, besides its infrastructure and sourcing facilities. That leaves Reliance in a god spot which is kicking off its retail operations nationwide.

Retail is getting hotter in India with Wal-Mart signing up with Bharti group for a joint foray while A V Birla group is also readying a $2 billion warchest to enter the sector. There are existing players like Pantaloon group and Subiksha expanding their territories.

In retail, real estate and supply chain are the most important factors. The total retail space which will be available by 2010 is only about 150-million sq ft, while Reliance alone require about 100 million square feet.

Some interesting statistics on private equity funding in the real estate sector in India. Some 60 funds together are expected to invest about $12 billion in Indian property market, reports The Economic Times. All this money will go into FDI-compliant projects. About $1.5 billion of the investment will go into nine domestic private equity funds, while around $10.5 billion from 53 funds will go directly into projects, says the report.

The local funds are in various stages of raising the investments.

What is interesting is India's central bank Reserve Bank Of India is not favourable to foreign funds putting in money in Indian real estate. So most of the funds are coming as direct FDI via the Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB) and the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA).

ET report says that RBI hasn’t cleared the applications of even those foreign VC funds looking to invest in FDI-compliant projects.

Foreign funds like Farallon Capital (in Indiabulls) and Emaar Group (in Emaar MGF) are big investors in India real estate. Goldman Sachs is another major fund which is looking to invest in Indian real estate. It's planning to put in some Rs 200 crore in Ashok Piramal Group's Peninsula Realty Fund. FDI is allowed in projects which are in excess of 25 acres.

Check our Real Estate category for keeping track of funding in that sector.

L N Miital is entering the red hot Indian infrastructure and real estate sector. Mittal and US hedge fund Farallon Capital have picked up 13.3 per cent in Indiabulls Infrastructure Development for Rs 447 crore or $100 million. Mittal's share is smaller with 3.3 per cent of the company which it's buying for 111.75 crore (about $25 million). Farallon Capital has invested Rs 335.25 crore ($75 million) to pick up a 10 per cent stake in the company.

Mittal’s investment vehicle Karrick will buy 2.5 million shares at Rs 447 per share, while FIM Holding, a vehicle of Farallon, will purchase 7.5 million shares at the same price.

This transaction values Indiabulls Infrastructure, which is setting up a 6,000-acre special economic zone (SEZ) in Maharashtra, at Rs 3,360 crore or about $750 million. Post-transaction, the stake of Indiabulls Financial Services in Indiabulls Infrastructure has come down to 86.7 per cent.

What are the major plans of Indiabulls Infrastructure? It is setting up a multi-product SEZ near the Rewas port in Maharashtra. It recently received the permissions and land acquisition has begun.

Mittal has been associated with Indiabulls earlier too. LN Mittal Internet Ventures had picked up 7.52 per cent in the flagship company Indiabulls Financial Services in 2000. He bought this stake at a very stage - 6.13 million shares at Rs 6 apiece totalling an investment of Rs 3.67 crore. Now that stake is worth 90 times of its original investment. Mittal also bought 8.4 per cent stake in Indiabulls Credit Services, an unlisted company that gives consumer loans.

Farallon has also been a long time investor in Indiabulls.

Indiabulls was a company that started with a small funding from Infinity Ventures. It now dabbles in stock broking (its original business), consumer credit, and real estate. Way to go.

Mukesh Ambani's Reliance Retail is close to buying a Ruby Mills estate in Mumbai for Rs 400 crore ($90 million), reports The Economic Times. The mills is located in Dadar, an important commercial centre in the city. This could be the location for Ambani's retail initiative, and they may set up the biggest hypermarket here.

Reliance officials are believed to have had several parleys with Ruby Mills executive chairman Manharlal Chunnilal Shah. It's reported that they have managed to get the estate at Rs 18,000 per square feet. The deal is not done yet, but according to the ET report, they are close to clinching it.

Reliance was also in negotiations with Matoshri Realtors to buy Kohinoor Mills (located close to Ruby). But they reportedly demanded Rs 30,000 per square feet, a deal which the Ambani rejected.

In India, the hottest sector right now is real estate. Sobha Developers IPO closed yesterday with an oversubscription of 104 times. It's almost like a lottery now. There are two real estate barons (KP Singh of DLF and Ramesh Chandra of Unitech) in the Forbes' top 10 richest Indians. The current real estate boom is likened to the IT boom of the 1990s.

Indian real estate group Unitech plans to raise $700 million from London Stock Exchange's Alternative Investment Market. It will list a newly created entity called Unitech Corporate Parks Plc, which in turn will hold stakes in six special purpose vehicles that own IT park/IT SEZ projects. They include one IT Park in the National Capital Region, and an IT SEZ project in Kolkata.

Unitech Corporate Park is incorporated in the Isle of Man. Its ordinary shares will be listed on the LSE's Alternative Investment Market. Deutsche Bank AG and Morgan Stanley are advising Unitech on the IPO. A Unitech subsidiary, Nectrus Ltd, will provide investment advisory services and the parent company Unitech will provide project management services to the AIM-listed entity.

This will be the third real estate listing by Indian companies in London Stock Exchange. K Raheja Group's Ishaan Real Estate Plc had recently raised $340 million via an IPO which had received an excellent response from institutional investors. Hiranandani Constructions is also planning a $750 million IPO in London's Alternative Investment Market.

Related:

Raheja's Ishaan Real Estate Raises $342 Million From London Stock Exchange

Hiranandani Constructions Too To Raise $750 Million From London's AIM

It's tie-up time for the hospitality sector in India. Soon after Emaar MGF signed up with France's Accor Group for budget hotels in the country, Delhi-based real estate group DLF Ltd and Hilton Hotels Corp have formed a joint venture for the hotel business.

The JV will develop and own 75 hotels and serviced apartments over the next seven years, beginning with 20 hotels in Chandigarh, Chennai and Kolkata. The hotels will cover several Hilton brands, including Hilton Hotels, Hilton Garden Inn, Homewood Suites by Hilton and Hilton Residences. DLF will hold 74 percent and Hilton will hold the remaining stake. The JV plans to invest up to $143 million.

With international majors coming to India, the hospitality sector is getting hotter.

Related:

Emaar MGF Forms JV With France's Accor For Budget Hotels; IPO In 2007

Here is a big move in the hospitality sector. Emaar MGF Land Pvt Ltd has formed a joint venture with French hospitality group Accor to build 100 hotels in India over the next ten years, reports Reuters. The joint venture with Accor - christened as Budget Hotels India Pvt Ltd - plans to invest $300 million.

The JV would create a supply of at least 10,000 rooms. The brand will be called "Formule 1" hotels.

India is a key market for Emaar (Gulf's largest real estate player in value) which plans to invest $1 billion in India. The JV is also looking at an IPO next year which will dilute some 5-10 per cent of the equity. Evolvence India Fund had recently invested $41 million in Emaar MGF.

Indian hospitality sector is witnessing a lot of investment - foreign as well as domestic. In August, Warburg Pincus invested Rs 280 crore in Lemon Tree Hotels and its budget hotel division Redfox Hotels. In April, a Dubai private equity fund Istithmar joined hands with Europe's easyGroup to start a chain of budget (non-frills) hotels in India. easyGroup is the owner of Europe's leading budget airline easyJet and hotel chain easyHotel.

UK private equity fund Trikona Capital and US fund Starwood Capital Group are some of the other groups planning investments in the Indian hospitality sector.

Other Emaar MGF stories:

Emaar-MGF To Invest $1.5-2 Billion In Punjab Over 5 Years

Evolvence India Invests In Six Funds And Four Companies

Related hospitality stories:

Europe's easyGroup, Dubai's Istithmar Join Hands To Launch Budget Hotels In India

Trikona Capital Too Want A Slice Of Hospitality Pie

Starwood Capital Plans To Enter Hospitality Business In India

DLF Group To Invest $800 Million In Hospitality Foray

Lemon Tree And Red Fox Hotels Announce Rs 280 Crore Investment From Warburg Pincus