Thursday, March 22, 2007

Merrill Lynch eyes stake in India Infoline distribution arm

US-based brokerage and investment bank Merrill Lynch has initiated talks with India Infoline for acquiring a significant stake in its distribution subsidiary, India Infoline Distribution Company Limited (IILD). Merrill had recently hiked its stake in India Infoline to 14.10%. It may pick up to 26% in IILD for over Rs. 150 crores. In December 2006, India Infoline sold its stake in the subsidiary Khambhat Investment & Trading Company Private Limited, a non-banking finance company, to Merrill Lynch.

Merrill Lynch plans to enter into the Indian mortgage business, and is accordingly planning a tie-up with India Infoline for the same. The company expects to create synergies with India Infoline as it has a wide retail network of over 200 branches. IILD, apart from the distribution of financial products such as mutual funds, IPOs and fixed deposits, also distributes mortgages and loan products.

Read more in the article in Business Standard.

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