Friday, May 25, 2007

RSM Equico on the prowl for acquirers

RSM Equico, an investment banking arm of US-based H&R Block, a $7 billion, Fortune 500 financial services company, is seeking local participants to join its “buyers’ pool”. A buyers pool refers to the collection of potential acquirers.

Hector J Cuellar, president, RSM Equico, is now making pitches to five dozen local industrialists in five days in a bid to enlist them into the buyers pool for close to 200 mergers & acquisition proposals from US medium-sized companies they have in the pipeline.

So far, RSM Equico has never had an Indian in its buyers pool till one of its accounting and consulting units operating in India informed that Batlilboi Ltd, the machine-tool maker and engineering services firm, was on the lookout. RSM Equico steered Batliboi’s acquisition of Quickmill Inc, a Canadian CNC lathe machine maker, for Rs 22 crore on March 27.

Source: DNA Money

IFC to invest US $500 million in India by June

World Bank's private equity arm, International Finance Corporation, aims to cross 500-million-dollar mark in new investments by June 07. IFC's currently-held portfolio is 1.3 billion dollar (as of June 2006) making India its fourth-largest country of operations.

During the last year, IFC invested over Rs 91.71 crore in a subsidiary of Moser Baer and infused about Rs 82 crore for assisting Kanoria Chemicals in its expansion plan. It has also picked up 11.48 percent stake in Granules India for around Rs 26 crore and has committed a 50-million- dollar loan to Orissa-based cement manufacturer OCL India Ltd. IFC would also invest over Rs 101.37 crore (25 million dollars) to help expansion of the production capacity of electronic bikes marker Electrotherm India in Gujarat.

IFC focuses on supporting companies that do not have easy access to long term funding. In the past, IFC had invested in companies such as Bharat Forge and Titan Watches, which later grew into global brands, in their early stages. The list also includes industrial giants like Tata Steel, Larsen and Toubro, Bajaj Scooters and Arvind Mills. In the financial sector, IFC played an institution- building role and was a founding investor in key financial institutions such as HDFC and IDFC and continues to be their partner.

As of financial year 2006, IFC has the largest exposure in the manufacturing sector, followed by financial sector. Pulp and paper, steel products and chemicals formed a large part of the manufacturing portfolio of the institution.

Source: Hindustan Times
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