Kotak bets big on M&A deals, ties up with Russian bank

Betting big on the growing India-related M&A deals, private-sector lender Kotak Mahindra Bank today entered into a pact with Russian investment bank, Renaissance capital, to advise cross-border transactions.

Kotak, which has already built up a strong financial services platform over the past few years, said the tie-up will facilitate the M&A deals between India and Commonwealth of Independent states and Africa.

"We have built an integrated platform for financial services. I believe that financial services would provide a quantum of opportunities for the bank, moving ahead," Kotak Mahindra Bank's Executive Vice-Chairman and Managing Director Uday Kotak told PTI.

In line with recovery in the domestic and global markets, India-related inbound and outbound M&A deals are poised to increase in 2010, Kotak said.

Founded in 1995, Renaissance Capital is part of Renaissance Group that has operations into investment banking, asset management, merchant banking and consumer finance.

Renaissance Group Chief Executive Officer Stephen Jennings said the firm expects deals between Indian companies and those in Russia and Africa are likely to increase significantly in the next year.

"In 2010 and beyond, we anticipate unprecedented cross-border deal flow among the emerging markets and this prominently includes transactions between the Indian and Russian companies as well as between India and African companies," Jennings said.