TCI exploring financing options for Rs 450 cr expansion

Transport Corporation of India (TCI), an integrated supply chain and logistics solutions provider, is considering a private equity placement to fund its Rs 450 crore expansion plans, reports Business Standard.

The company is also exploring qualified institutional placement (QIP) mechanism and foreign currency convertible bonds (FCCBs), besides private equity placement.

The company will raise Rs 125 crore through equity, Rs 129 crore through debt and the balance via internal accruals.

The funds will be utilized for expanding the capacity of its various divisions in the next four years. The company plans to invest Rs 150 million for expanding its warehousing capacity, Rs 100 crore for acquiring one ship and Rs 500 million in wind power generation.

As part of future plans, it is also looking to diversify its business into running container trains, following the relaxation of container rail operations by the railways.

Read article from Business Standard

UB builds war chest of $500 mn-$1 bn for overseas acquisitions

United Breweries (UB) has allocated $500 mn to $1 bn for overseas acquisitions, an important part of its growth strategy, said UB Group President & CFO Mr. Ravi Nedungadi. Mr. Nedungadi said so in the post-meeting address to the media, on the occasion of group company Shaw Wallace’s 60th AGM.

Mr. Nedungadi’s remark is to be seen in the light of reports of UB trying to acquire Scottish firm Whyte & Mackay. Mr. Nedungadi neither confirmed nor denied developments with regards to this issue.


Read The Economic Times article for more details.

OnMobile buys out ITFinity

OnMobile, a provider of ring tones and mobile-commerce services, has made a 100% buyout of ITFinity, reports The Economic Times. ITFinity is a specialist software company. The transaction value is around $15-20 mn.

The investors of ITFinity represent a who’s who of the private equity world. These include Rajat Gupta of McKinsey & Co, Ashish Dhawan of ChrysCapital, Luis Miranda of IDFC, Mumbai-based Edelweiss Capital and Rajesh TS Reddy, former founder of Unimobile.

OnMobile has the backing of IT giant Infosys. In October 2006, Deutsche Bank, Goldman Sachs and Polygon Investment Partners acquired a 10% stake in OnMobile for about $27.8 mn, valuing the company at $270 mn.