eBay, Japanese internet major SoftBank and a clutch of private equity investors are looking to pump in $150-200 million of fresh funds into domestic online marketplace Snapdeal. The San Jose, CA-based eBay, which pioneered auction-styled online shopping, had picked up an under 10% stake in Snapdeal earlier this year and is now keen on increasing that stake in the company. SoftBank, on the other hand, has also been negotiating a deal to top up the $50 million Snapdeal raised from eBay and existing investors Bessemer Venture Partners and Nexus Ventures earlier this year. Other investors in the company include Intel Capital, Russian venture fund ru-Net and Saama Capital. eBay's last round of funding had valued Snapdeal at about $200 million but a deal for a larger stake now could see its valuation go up to $750 million. (Times of India)
EXL in talks to buy Chinese operations of multinational firm: Business process outsourcing firm EXL Services has readied a war-chest to make acquisitions in multiple locations, including the US, Columbia and China. The company is already in discussions to take over the operations of a multinational company in China. The company has $140 million in cash and also can borrow up to $200 million if required for acquisition. The company in China is owned by one of EXL’s existing clients. (Business Line)
R-Infra plans to sell road projects to pare debt: Reliance Infrastructure Ltd (R-Infra), a part of the Anil Ambani-led Reliance Group, plans to sell either all or most of its 11 road projects to pare debt. R-Infra has appointed consulting firm EY, formerly known as Ernst and Young, to oversee the sale, said the people. The aim is to reduce some of the Rs 21,976.18 crore of debt it had on its books at the end of the last fiscal year. In May, UK-based PE firm Actis ended its three-year old road joint venture with Tata Realty and Infrastructure Ltd. Actis held a 35% stake in the $2 billion venture. (Live Mint)
Tata Global Beverage plans to raise Rs 325 crore via 3-yr coupon bonds: Tata Global Beverages would raise Rs 325 crore ($52.5 million) selling a type of low-coupon bond, the first prominent issue of its kind since India's central bank asked lenders not to buy such bonds citing credit risk. The company is issuing a three-year bond with a 3% coupon and a redemption premium of 9.75%. Yes Bank and Deutsche Bank are the joint arrangers of the bond sale, the sources said. (Economic Times)
Embassy plans to Raise Rs 800 crore in debt: Bangalore-based real estate developer Embassy Property Developments is in talks to raise Rs 800 crore in debt to fund its planned acquisition of an IT park in the city. The builder is in talks with banks and financial services companies including HDFC Ltd and Indiabulls to raise the debt. Earlier, Embassy and Blackstone were jointly expected to buy the 2.1-million sq ft Vrindavan Tech Park, but now the PE fund would enter when 100% stake in the park is bought by Embassy. Embassy Property plans to fund the Rs 1,951 crore acquisition through Rs 900 debt and Rs 1,100 crore equity. (Economic Times)
Courtesy: VCCEdge
