JM Financial to pick up 60% in ASK Securities

Nimesh Kampani's JM Financial Services will buy a 60 per cent stake in domestic institutional brokerage & equity research firm ASK Securities for Rs 58.14 crore, barely four months after both the local companies separated from their long-time foreign partners.

JM Financial Services, which split from its seven-year partner Morgan Stanley in February, had given up two key businesses viz., institutional broking & sales & equity research, to the US bank for $425 million (Rs 1,912 crore).

"By buying a 60 per cent stake in ASK Securities, we don't have to build the two businesses from scratch," said Deepti Neelkantan, COO of JM Financial Group.

Commenting on the joint venture, Nimesh Kampani, chairman, JM Financial Group said, "This joint venture is yet another step towards our long-term growth strategy of building a financial institution with a global reach."

The deal came about on the same day that JM Financial's former partner, Morgan Stanley, received government clearance to invest Rs 1,894 crore to conduct securities sales, trading and broking, merchant banking and corporate advisory services and other NBFC activities.

Asit Koticha, chairman of ASK Securities, said a tie-up with JM Financial will help the company build on corporate relationships, besides gain from its strengths in investment banking and IPO placements.

ASK Group, which has three businesses "� institutional broking & equity research (ASK Securities), portfolio management services (ASK Investment Managers Ltd) and financial planning (ASK Wealth Advisors Pvt Ltd), separated from its foreign partner Raymond James by acquiring the 50 per cent held by the company in March.

"We are very happy to partner with the JM Financial Group. With our strong research and sales capabilities for servicing institutional clients, this joint venture will help scale up our Institutional Broking business substantially," Koticha said.

The transaction is expected to close by the second quarter of Financial Year 2007-08, subject to necessary regulatory approvals.