Manappuram Jewellery To Raise PE Funding - Manappuram Jewellery Ltd, a retail chain promoted by the founders of Manappuram Finance Ltd, is seeking to raise more than Rs.100 crore from private equity (PE) investors to fund its growth plans. In the next two years, the family-owned business plans to expand its number of stores to 100 from 18. Around Rs.350 crore has already been invested in the retailer. While the founders have contributed Rs.125 crore equity, the rest has been raised via bank loans.
Antwerp Port To Acquire Stake In Essar Ports - Port of Antwerp International (PAI), a subsidiary of Belgium-based Port of Antwerp, the second largest in Europe, is planning to acquire stakes in ports developed by Essar Ports. The stakes will picked up in different projects over the next six months. Ruias, the promoters of the diversified conglomerate, own an 83.71% stake in Essar Ports, while rest 16.2% is held by the public. (Financial Express)
Reliance In Talks For Selling General Insurance Arm Stake - Reliance Capital Ltd (R-Cap), the financial services firm of the Anil Ambani-led Reliance Group?, is in talks with at least three international firms to sell a 26% stake in its general insurance arm. These include US-based insurer Travelers Companies Inc. and Samsung Fire? and Marine Insurance Co. Ltd, the general insurance arm of South Korean electronics-to-financial services conglomerate Samsung Group?, and a Japanese insurer. Japanese firm is not an affiliate of Nippon Life Insurance Co., which picked up a 26% stake in R-Cap’s life insurance business in September.
Hitachi Eyes India JV For Rail Cars - Hitachi Ltd plans to sign a joint venture agreement with an Indian firm early next year to assemble rail cars, Japanese business daily Nikkei reported. The conglomerate plans to export India-made rail cars to Southeast Asian nations, such as Thailand and Vietnam, where it now sells cars made at its Yamaguchi plant. To bank on opportunities in India, which is aggressively investing in railway infrastructure, Hitachi wants to wrap up partnership talks early next year and start building a factory as soon as possible.
DISH TV To Raise Rs 1,000Cr - Dish TV, the country’s largest direct-to-home television company, is reaching out to private equity and institutional investors for a fresh round of fund raising, which could turn out to be the highest in the sector. Dish is believed to have appointed investment banks UBS and Macquarie to help raise around Rs 1,000 crore ($200 million) of equity to fund expansion and investment in upgrading technology. The company is backed by PE major Apollo Management. (Business Standard)
DLF Eyes Big Ticket Sales In India - India’s largest developer by market capitalisation, DLF Ltd, is banking on at least two to three big-ticket sales in early 2012, to keep to its debt reduction target for the current financial year. The developer needs to realise Rs 3,000 crore to Rs 3,500 crore from non-core asset sales, to reach its 2011-12 goal.Besides the much-talked Aman Resorts deal, DLF is looking at a transaction to offload stake in its Pune IT Special Economic Zone (SEZ), sometime early next calendar year. (Business Standard)
Britannia To Unlock Value Of HQ - Britannia Industries, India’s largest biscuits and bakery company, is understood to have finally decided to unlock value at its sprawling headquarters property in this city. The corporate headquarters, christened Britannia Gardens, sprawls over nearly seven acres on the Old Airport Road, leading on to Whitefield, one of the major technology hubs towards the east of Bangalore.The going rate for properties at that stretch averages Rs 20 crore per acre, thus valuing the property at Rs 150 crore. (Business Standard)
IL&FS PE Eyes Exit From DB Hospitality - IL&FS Investment Managers is re-evaluating its stake in DB Hospitality. IL&FS Investment Manager, is reviewing value of its stake in DB Hospitality, after investing nearly Rs 100 crore in 2006 and picking up 10 per cent stake in the hotels segment. But now they are assessing their entire value and could look for an exit at Rs 200 crore. (NDTV)