In other news, Canada’s PSP Investments has tied up with Abu Dhabi Investment Authority-National Investment and Infrastructure Fund consortium to buy 49% of GVK Airport Holdings Ltd, through a combination of equity and debt, for about ₹6,000 crore
Mumbai: Mint brings you your dose of the top deals news, reported from newsrooms across the country.
Greenko Group in talks to raise up to $1 billion in dollar bond sale
Renewable energy firm Greenko Group is meeting investors to raise up to $1 billion in a dollar bond sale, Mint reported citing two people aware of the development. The company, that had already started investor road shows on Monday, may raise $750 million to $1 billion through bonds to refinance the project-level debt or acquisition borrowings of the operating subsidiaries. Credit rating agency, Fitch assigned a rating of ‘BB-(EXP)’ to the proposed US dollar notes of Greenko. The clean energy firm owns operating assets of 4.2 gigawatts (GW) and under-construction assets of 7 GW. In 2017, it had raised $1 billion through dollar denominated bonds. One of the largest renewable energy companies in India, Greenko is owned by sovereign wealth funds GIC of Singapore and Abu Dhabi’s Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA).
eBay buys 5.5% stake in Paytm Mall
eBay agreed to buy a 5.5% stake in e-commerce marketplace Paytm Mall in a renewed attempt by the San Jose, California-based company to grab a foothold in India’s fast-growing and intensely competitive online retail market, Mint reported citing a joint statement by companies. Besides not disclosing the transaction value, the statement also did not say whether the agreement contains any provision for eBay to enhance its shareholding in Paytm Mall in the future. A person with direct knowledge of the deal told Mint that eBay is investing $165 million in the Noida-based firm, raising the value of Paytm Mall to about $3 billion from $1.5-2 billion last year. As part of the agreement, some of eBay’s inventory will be made accessible on Paytm Mall, the companies said.
Ebix acquires Yatra for an enterprise value of $337.8 million
Ebix Inc., a supplier of on-demand software and e-commerce services, acquired online travel portal Yatra Online Inc., for an enterprise value of $337.8 million, in an all-stock transaction, Mint reported. Ebix, which makes software for the insurance, financial and healthcare industries, first offered to buy Yatra in March for $337 million, in cash or by stock. The deal marks Ebix’s biggest acquisition till date in India. Ebix had entered India with the purchase of an 80% stake in ItzCash for ₹800 crore from Essel Group and other shareholders in May 2017. Since then, the company has acquired a dozen companies across sectors, such as remittance, travel, foreign exchange and education. In August 2018, it spent ₹1,200 crore to acquire Centrum group’s forex business Centrum Direct Ltd. Its Indian subsidiary, EbixCash, bought Mumbai-based Mercury Travels and Delhi-based Leisure Corp. last year, with an aim to create a travel division focused on luxury-, events- and sports-related travellers.
Azim Premji helps create India’s newest tech unicorn, Icertis
Azim Premji has helped create India’s latest tech unicorn: Icertis, which competes with SAP SE and Oracle Corp. to help businesses manage contracts in the cloud, Mint reported citing Bloomberg News. The raised $115 million in its latest financing round, propelling it to unicorn status as investors flock to enterprise software makers. The advanced-stage funding round in Bellevue, Washington and Pune, India-based Icertis was co-led by Greycroft Partners LLC and PremjiInvest, the fund managed by the family office of Azim Premji. Existing investors including B Capital Group and Cross Creek Advisors participated. With this, Icertis has raised over $211 million. Icertis helps customers worldwide manage over 5.7 million contracts, from supply chain and procurement deals to employee agreements and nondisclosure pacts, that have a total value of more than $1 trillion. The company will use the additional funding to grow its business, including by expanding sales and marketing.
L&T Infotech to buy AI firm Lymbyc in 5th acquisition since IPO
Larsen & Toubro Infotech Ltd, the IT services arm of infrastructure major Larsen & Toubro Ltd, signed a definitive agreement to acquire the artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning and advanced analytics company Lymbyc, Mint reported citing company statement. This marks L&T’s fifth acquisition since its listing in 2016. In January, the firm acquired Ruletronics, which uses the Pega platform for business process management and customer relationship management solutions. A month later, it also acquired Germany-based Nielsen Partner, which specializes in Temenos WealthSuite, an integrated software solution for wealth managers. Across these five acquisitions, the company has committed over $50 million to date, according to the company's filings with stock exchanges. Founded in 2012, Lymbyc is a Bengaluru-based firm known for its capabilities in analytics and data-sciences space.
GIC eyes GVK Power’s stake in Indian Hotels joint venture
Singapore’s sovereign wealth fund, GIC has initiated talks with GVK Power and Infrastructure to acquire its stake in Taj-GVK Hotels and Resorts as it looks to consolidate its position in the Indian real estate and hospitality space, The Economic Times reported citing multiple sources with knowledge of the matter. GIC, which already has an investment platform with Indian Hotels, a Tata Group firm and owner of the Taj, is expected to mandate the Indian partner to run the operations. The Singaporean fund entered the fray after GVK’s negotiations with Fairfax for the stake sale didn’t gather pace. Both the promoters, GVK and Indian Hotels, presently hold 25.52% each in the company, with some individuals from GVK Group owning an additional 23.9%. The move would help pare GVK’s debt, GVK, which stood at ₹11,458 crore as on 31 March, and is therefore exploring ways to sell its non-core businesses.
Singapore based First Degree to buy two financial services firms owned by Essel Group
Singapore-based First Degree Global Asset Management has signed a binding agreement to buy two financial services firms owned by Essel Group promoter Subhash Chandra, The Economic Times reported citing two people with direct knowledge of the deal. The asset manager is likely to buy 100% equity in Essel Finance Business Loans Ltd and Essel Finance Home Loans Ltd. The deals are likely valued at ₹150 crore. After the acquisition, First Degree would be retaining the existing management in both companies. Essel Finance Business Loans has a loan book size of ₹350 crore versus borrowings of ₹260 crore. The housing finance company has a ₹41-crore loan book.
