Piramal Healthcare Ltd (PHL), owned by Ajay Piramal, has entered into the financial services sector by announcing plans to launch two non-banking finance companies (NBFCs). The company has also acquired two private equity (PE) businesses Indiareit Fund Advisors Pvt Ltd and Indiareit Investment Management Company for Rs 225 crore.
Indiareit Fund Advisors Pvt Ltd is advisor to the Indiareit Fund, a domestic real estate PE fund focused on the Indian markets. Indiareit Investment Management Company is manager to offshore real estate PE funds investing in India through the FDI route. Total cash under management for these funds is Rs 3,800 crore.
While Piramal Enterprises holds 52 per cent stake in the fund manager, Indiareit CEO Ramesh Jogani holds 15 per cent and the rest is held by other investors. PHL has acquired 100 per cent stake.
Announcing the plans, chairman Ajay Piramal said PHL would invest Rs 1,000 crore in both NBFCs and seek licences. The financial services sector in India is expected to grow to eight per cent of GDP in the next 7-10 years. The financial services market in India is 120,000 crore and has been growing at 15-17 per cent over the last five years.
Indiareit has presence through developmental projects in the five top tier cities through eight local partners. It is currently working on 23 projects and has 53.7 mn sq ft of saleable area currently under management, said a PHL statement.
Earlier, Ajay Piramal had plans to sell 85 per cent stake in Indiareit to Religare Enterprises, promoted by billionaires Malvinder and Shivinder Singh that got cancelled at the last moment.
In March, the private equity majors such as Goldman Sachs, UK-based Ashmore, Everstone, Baer Capital and a few other investors joined hands together to launch a wholesale credit and asset management-focused NBFC, named Indostar Capital Finance Limited, with commitment of approximately 900 crore ($200 million) in India.
