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Private equity (PE) investments in the country rose 80 per cent in the quarter ending June to $4,046 million (Rs 25,750 crore) as compared to $2,242 mn (Rs 14,250 crore) during the same quarter a year before.
The early data is from Venture Intelligence, a research service focused on private companies' financials, transactions and their valuations. The number of deals was 128 as compared to 115 in the quarter last year. The number excludes PE investments in real estate.
During the quarter ended March, there were 160 transactions and an investment of $2,825 mn. invested through 160 transactions.
In the June quarter, seven investments were worth over $200 mn (Rs 1,270 crore) each and another four worth $100-200 mn. In the same period last year, there were only four transactions worth $100 mn or above.
The largest investment reported in the quarter this year was Baring Asia's $440 mn buyout of Blackstone-backed ATM cash management services firm CMS Infosystems, followed by Ola Cabs' $400 mn fund raising from a group of existing and new investors (including GIC, DST Global, Falcon Edge Capital and Accel USA).
In a secondary sale, a little over 20 per cent stake in consumer lender Shriram City Union Finance was sold by TPG Capital to Apax Partners for $383 mn. The Advent International-led $315 mn buyout of a 34.4 per cent stake in Crompton Greaves Consumer Electricals from the latter's promoter, the Avantha Group, was the next largest.
Other companies that attracted over $200 mn rounds in the quarter include Sun Pharmaceutical Industries, where Temasek stepped in to acquire the stake of Japan's Daiichi for Rs 1,875 crore, Snapdeal's investment of Rs 1,563 crore to acquire mobile recharge and couponing firm Freecharge from Sequoia Capital India, Valiant Capital, Ru-Net Holdings, Tybourne Capital and others, and Capital International's acquisition of a 11 per cent stake in Mankind Pharma from ChrysCapital for Rs 1,300 crore.
Information technology & IT-enabled service companies saw 44 per cent of the investment by value, attracting $1,772 mn across 84 deals. Followed by health care and life sciences companies' witnessing a $737 mn infusion across 10 transactions. Energy companies attracted $309 mn across seven transactions.
Late stage companies, including mature ones like Mankind, thermal power firm OTPC India and TVS Logistics, as well as internet companies Snapdeal and Quikr that have graduated to raising their seventh or later rounds, accounted for 24 per cent of the investment pie in value.
Listed company deals, such as those of Shriram City Union and Sun Pharma, accounted for 23 per cent of the deals in value terms, while it was five per cent in volume terms. Led by the CMS and Crompton Greaves deals, buyouts accounted for as much as 20 per cent of the pie in value, said Venture Intelligence.
The venture capital (VC) segment, defined as investments of up to $20 mn (Rs 127 crore) in companies that have been active for less than 10 years, accounted for 89 transactions or 70 per cent of the volume pie (11 per cent by value).
The larger VC-type investments went into follow-on rounds in companies like local shopping app firm Zopper (reported $20 mn round, led by Tiger Global), handicrafts e-tailer Craftsvilla ($18 mn, led by Sequoia Capital India) and online food ordering entity Swiggy ($16.5 mn, round led by Norwest). Trendsetting investor Tiger Global made four new early stage bets in the quarter, in expense tracking app MoneyView, home services app LocalOye, online tutoring firm Vedantu and tea retail chain Chaayos.
