M&A
Dabur Closes In On Femcare - Dabur India is close to acquiring Fem Care Pharma for nearly Rs 300 crore and the deal is expected to be signed next week. Others in the race are Godrej Group and Marico. This is Daburs first acquisition sine 2005 and will help it expand in the
consumer care business.
Asianet To Buy English News Channel - The South-based regional news channel is set to acquire an English general news channel and a vernacular newspaper in South India. The comined deal size for both the deals is expected to be Rs 200 crore and funded mostly through debt. Asianet News is owned by Rajeev Chandrasekhar.
US Co To uy Diwan Chand- Radiology company Diwan Chand is in talks to sellout to US-based Allied Medical Services. Diwan Chand Imaging Services, a Delhi-based radiology and has centres in the NCR region with sales of around Rs 40 crore last year. The deal size is expected to be $25-30 million.
Zydus Cadilla Buys Italian Co - Zydus has acquired Etna Biotech, the wholly-owned subsidiary of Dutch biopharma company Crucell. Crucell is focused on biologicals, and has also entered the vaccine space. This is Zydus Cadilla's first acquisition in the research space.
Private Equity
Jet May Sell 10% To Temasek - India's largest airlines Jet Airways may sell 10% stake to the Singapore government-owned Temasek Holdings. Jet is expecting to raise Rs 250 crore from the stake sale, with valuation of Rs 2,500 crore. The stake sale is likely to take place through
issue of fresh shares. Another report has said that Jet may raise Rs 1,000 crore debt from Abu Dhabi-based Mubadala Development Co.
Fidelity Ups Stake In EXL Services - The asset management firm has picked up an additional 6.77% stake in Nasdaq-listed BPO firm ExlService Holdings. upping its sake to 21.77%. Private Equity firm Oak Hill holds a 36.5% stake in the firm. The deal size for stake acquisition is expected to be $10-14 million.
Bloom In Gloom
Metlife To Hire 33,000 - US-based Metlife Insurance is planning to hire 30,000 agents and 3,000 managers in the next two months in India. It is also planning to take advantage of the slump in the real estate market and double its branches from 191.
StanC Buys Mumbai Property For Rs 750 Cr - Multinational bank Standard Chartered has bought close to 2.5 lakh sq ft of office space in Mumbai's Bandra-Kurla Complex (BKC) for Rs 750 crore. The propertyhas been bought from PD Developers at around Rs 30,000 a sq ft. One of the largest deals in the presently weak real estate markets, it is more than 33% less than the previous deals in the same area.