Grapevine: Ontario fund, Capital International to buy into NSE; Prestige may sell assets

By Ankit Agarwal

  • 29 Jan 2020
Credit: Reuters

Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan and Capital International Group are in separate talks to buy up to 5% stake in the National Stock Exchange (NSE) from foreign stockholders including Goldman Sachs Inc., and investment firms Tiger Global Management and General Atlantic, The Economic Times said.

However, a person close to Tiger Global told The Economic Times that it is likely to continue as a shareholder in India’s largest stock exchange.

NSE, recently crowned the biggest in the world by derivative trading volumes, plans to go for a public offering later this year.

Meanwhile, Prestige Group is in talks with two to three large investors to raise up to $400 million (Rs 2,850 crore at current exchange rate), by monetising some of its retail mall and office assets, the management said in a post-earnings call.

The fundraising will help Prestige to reduce its debt levels from Rs 8,674 crore before executing its plan to list its real estate investment trust (REIT) within a year or so.

 “We need to look at unlocking value from the yielding projects, so that it can be redeployed into under-construction and upcoming projects,” chief executive Venkat K Narayana said.

Separately, in December, VCCircle reported that Prestige will raise Rs 430 crore through a preferential issue of equity shares to Singapore-based GIC, which the company confirmed last Friday.

Meanwhile, app-based electric rickshaw hailing service Oye! Rickshaw has raised $10 million (approximately Rs 71.24 crore at current exchange rates) in funding from at least three investors.

Chiratae Ventures has led the round along with the participation of Chinese technology giant Xiaomi and Pawan Munjal, the managing director and CEO of Hero MotoCorp Ltd, Entrackr reported.

Existing investor Matrix Partners also participated in the round, the report said, citing people familiar with the development. The capital infusion has valued Oye! Rickshaw between $30-35 million, it added.