‘Mint’ brings you the top deals news reported from newsrooms across the country
Sachin Bansal may invest $100 million in Ola
Flipkart co-founder Sachin Bansal is finalising what would be the largest personal investment in the Indian Internet space as he closes a funding of up to $100 million, or Rs 740 crore, in ride hailing company Ola, The Economic Times reported. Bansal’s outsized bet assumes significance as his total capital commitment for the transportation app will constitute more than 10 of his personal wealth garnered from the Flipkart-Walmart deal this year. The 37-year-old exited the company he co-founded with Binny Bansal (not related) and sold his entire shareholding of 5.5% in Flipkart to Walmart. The US retail giant picked up a controlling stake of 77% in the e-commerce retailer, with Sachin Bansal pocketing around $1 billion from the share sale .Read more
Zydus leads race for Complan with Rs 4500 crore bid
Zydus Cadila Group has mounted an aggressive Rs 4,500 crore offer for the Kraft Heinz Company’s consumer brand business in India, outbidding the Coca-Cola Company for a portfolio that includes children’s milk drink Complan, The Economic Times reported. Mint had reported on August 13 that ITC Ltd, Wipro Consumer Care & Lighting Ltd and Cadila Healthcare Ltd are readying to submit binding offers to buy Complan, with bids expected to be around $700-800 million. The Cadila Group’s bid is conditional. Coca-Cola, the world’s largest beverage company, is now also actively pursuing GSK Consumer’s Horlicks in a potential $4 billion transaction and has been shortlisted with Nestle and Unilever for the second round of negotiations. The Kraft Heinz deal is expected to close within a month, the report added.. Ahmedabad-based Cadila Group is working with investment bank Avendus. Read more
P&G India fund to invest in India start-ups
Procter & Gamble India (P&G India) said Wednesday it has established a multimillion-dollar fund to invest in Indian start-ups and pursue a collaborative growth strategy. P&G has also launched a first-of-its-kind programme, vGrow, which will identify and collaborate with small businesses, individuals and large organizations, and offer innovative industry-leading solutions. In the past couple of years P&G’s global peers, including Unilever Plc, Colgate-Palmolive (India) Ltd, Diageo Plc and Coca-Cola Co. have also set up their own venture funds. P&G is also launching an online platform, P&G Hackathon, to enable start-ups, small businesses and large organizations offer innovative solutions and secure business opportunities with the company. Read more
Future Enterprises acquire 55% in fintech start-up Livquik
Kishore Biyani-led Future Enterprises Ltd on Wednesday acquired a 55% stake in Mumbai-based fintech startup LivQuik Technology (India) Pvt. Ltd, which operates the QuikWallet mobile app. The Future Group subsidiary said that it intends to pick up the remaining stake in the company over the next two years to set up its own payment gateway for digital transactions. LivQuik is an RBI-approved prepaid payment issuer, which also offers payment gateway and enterprise fintech software development services. Read more
Fosun leads $12 million round in LetsTransport, closes deals across sectors
Fosun International has closed a clutch of investments in India across the personal finance, logistics, technology and content segments, marking the Chinese diversified conglomerate’s first set of fresh transactions in the country this year, The Economic Times reported. The Shanghai-headquartered company, which has a market capitalisation of $14 billion and has primarily invested in India through its venture capital arm Fosun RZ Capital, has led a $12 million investment round in intracity logistics venture LetsTransport. Fosun RZ Capital, which manages assets of about $1 billion globally, has invested about $5 million in the Bengaluru-based company, which is believed to be in late-stage discussions also with two other investors of Japanese origin. Read more
PE, VC investments fell 23% in September quarter, signalling investor caution
Private equity (PE) and venture capital (VC) investments in the third quarter of 2018 fell 23%, compared with a year ago to $6.6 billion, according to consultancy EY’s Private Equity Deal Tracker, Mint reported. This is despite a 29% increase in the number of deals, from 138 to 178. The decline in investments was primarily on account of fewer large deals valued greater than $100 million. The third quarter was also the most underperforming three-month period so far this calendar year, both in terms of investment and exits, said EY. Read more