IIML To Raise Up To $350M For New Fund - Private equity firm IL&FS Investment Managers Ltd (IIML), the listed subsidiary of Infrastructure Leasing & Financial Services Ltd (IL&FS), is planning to raise $300-350 million for a new fund. The company plans to approach the market at the end of 2010 to raise the capital. IIML’s last growth private equity fund was of $225 million size. The fund is planning to deploy $600-700 million over the next 12 months. It is currently investing from its growth equity fund, TARA India Fund III, of which about 75% has been committed so far. ()
Mahindra Retail To Raise PE - Mahindra Retail, the retail arm of tractor major Mahindra Group, is planning to raise private equity to fund the expansion of Mom & Me Stores. The company may look at raising up to Rs 443 crore in the second round of funding over the next quarter. The retailer, which currently runs 12 stores, plans to open 100 stores across India, apart from building IT infrastructure. The company plans to open 30 new stores this year. ICICI Venture has earlier invested in the company. (FC)
3i Sees High Asset Prices Hindering New Deals - Private equity firm 3i Group sees huge competition from its rival firms as the funds started to pursue new deals in recent months. It expects overhang of capital to be around for the next 18 months and the market will be pretty competitive. 3i has invested in two new portfolio companies over the course of the year. The group invested a total of 386 million pounds compared with 968 million the previous year as the industry's investments sunk to their lowest in a decade. (Reuters)
US Firm To Acquire Bangalore’s Mistral Solutions - Mistral Solutions, the Bangalore-based product realisation company in the embedded space, is understood to have been acquired by a US-based multinational which offers solutions to the global defence sector. The enterprise valuation of the deal is understood to be in the range of Rs 120 crore. Venture capital funds, Nexus India Ventures and JAFCO Asia, had invested around Rs 30 crore in Mistral Solutions in 2008. (BS)
GE Shipping Unit Files IPO Papers - Great Eastern Shipping Co, the shipping and offshore service provider, is planning to sell 22.05 million shares in unit, Greatship India Ltd, to raise funds via an initial public offering (IPO). The company has filed papers for approval with the market regulator Sebi for the IPO. Though the company did not divulge the amount of money it plans to raise, it mentioned a total expenditure of around Rs 325.65 crore in various projects. Kotak Investment Banking and Bank Of America-Merrill Lynch are the book running lead managers to the issue. (DNA)
Asim Ghosh In Talks To Sell Vodafone Stake - Asim Ghosh, the former managing director of Vodafone Essar, is planning to sell its 2.39% stake in the company. Ghosh is reportedly in talks with Max India founder and chairman Analjit Singh to sell his stake. In December last year, Ghosh had sold a 2.29% stake in the company to the UK firm for Rs 330 crore. Ghosh holds the stake in Vodafone Essar indirectly through various holding companies, while Analjit Singh was the original promoter of the firm. (BS)
XL Telecom In JV With Spanish Firm - XL Telecom & Energy, a manufacturer of telecom products, has entered into a joint venture with Spain's SDEM TEGA to bid and execute solar power projects globally. XL Telecom is a Hyderabad-based company and also has presence in solar energy space. SDEM TEGA is a solar engineering, procurement and construction company with experience in implementing solar power projects as EPC contractor in Europe. Following this JV, both the firms will initially explore the emerging India's solar initiative along with the growing Latin America, North of Africa and Australian markets. (BS)
StanChart To Raise Up To $750M Via IDRs - Standard Chartered Plc, an international banking group operating principally in Asia, Africa, and the Middle East, is planning to raise up to $750 million through the issue of Indian depository receipts (IDRs) that will open for bidding on May 25. The price band of the issue, which comprises 240 million depository receipts, has not been decided yet. The retail investors may be offered a discount of 5% to the issue price. The issue will close on May 28. (BS)
ONGC Videsh Consortium In $2.18B Deal For Venezuelan Project - The consortium of ONGC Videsh Ltd (OVL), Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) and Oil India Ltd (OIL) will invest $2.18 billion in a $15-20-billion Venezuelan project, which is expected to produce 3.6 million tonnes crude oil annually. This is India’s second-biggest overseas energy investment, after Sakhalin ($2.77 billion) and Imperial ($2.1 billion). The three companies have already signed an agreement with Venezuela’s state-owned Corporacion Venezolana Petroleo SA, a subsidiary of Petroleos de Venezuela SA on the same. (BS)
Govt Plans To Sell Around 10% Stake In SCI - The government of India is planning to sell at least a 10% stake in India’s biggest ocean carrier, Shipping Corporation of India Ltd (SCI). This is part of its plan to raise Rs 40,000 crore this fiscal through share sales in state-run firms. The government has initiated discussions with the disinvestment ministry on stake sale. It currently holds 80.12% in the shipping firm. (Mint)
Kingfisher Appoints SBI Caps To Restructure Debt - Vijay Mallya-led Kingfisher Airlines has appointed SBI Capital Markets to restructure part of the airline’s debt, which is currently at around Rs 7,000 crore . The development comes ahead of the carrier’s plans to raise $100 million through global depository receipts (GDR) issue. Earlier this year, Kingfisher hired management consultancy firm Seabury Aviation & Aerospace to help improve its financial and operational performance. (ET)
Magma Fincorp Raises Rs 122Cr Via QIP - Magma Fincorp Ltd, a retail asset finance company, has raised Rs 122 crore through qualified institutional placement (QIP) of shares. The company plans to utlise the proceeds for their capital requirements. Magma has issued 40,67,220 shares at Rs 301 each in the QIP, and over 90% of the subscription to the issue came from overseas investors.
Kiri Dyes To Raise Rs 500Cr Via QIP - Kiri Dyes and Chemicals Ltd, an Ahmedabad-based company engaged in the manufacturing of organic dyes for cotton fabrics, is planning to raise up to Rs 500 crore by way of QIPs, FCCB, GDR, or preferential allotment of shares. The company board will meet on May 22 to discuss on the same, it informed the BSE. The funds will be raised to expand its operations and diversification, apart from funding acquisitions. In December lat year, Kiri has executed a purchase agreement with DyStar Group, a Germany-based company for the buy. (Team VCC)
Coal India In Mine Talks With Massey, Sinar Mas - Coal India, the world's largest coal producer, is in talks with US-based Massey Energy and Indonesia's Sinar Mas to buy equity in coal mines or form joint ventures for mining. The company was earlier in talks with US firm Peabody Energy Corp to buy equity stakes or form mining joint ventures. Coal India is conducting due diligence of the proposals from the foreign mining companies, and the results are expected to come in a few months. (Reuters)
