3i To Invest In INDIAREIT Fund

3i accesses Indian real estate market with a US$40 m 'cornerstone investment' in the Offshore Fund being launched by INDIAREIT - a real estate venture capital fund promoted by Ajay Piramal.

3i, Europe's leading private equity and venture capital company has committed to a US$40 million investment in the Indian real estate market. It will be participating as the "cornerstone investor" in the Offshore Fund being launched by INDIAREIT - the India focused real estate venture capital fund promoted by Ajay Piramal.

According to Mr. Ajay Piramal, Chairman of Piramal Enterprises: "This will be a symbiotic relationship where INDIAREIT will benefit from 3i's proprietary systems and procedures and its vast international exposure in the venture capital business, whereas 3i will be able to understand and appreciate the Indian realty market through the strong INDIAREIT management spearheaded by Mr. Ramesh Jogani."

Reiterating 3i's belief in the Indian markets, Chris Rowlands, 3i's Head of Group Markets, said, "The Indian real estate market is still young but very promising. INDIAREIT presents an attractive means for 3i to work with an experienced and reputable partner and gain access to the market at this early stage."

The Offshore Fund of INDIAREIT follows in the heels of its recently launched domestic venture capital fund, with a corpus of INR 350 Crores. With a proposed corpus of US$ 160 Million, the Offshore Fund would invest in projects governed by the Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) guidelines for Real Estate in India. The investment objective of INDIAREIT will continue to be long-term capital appreciation by means of equity participation in specific real estate projects based on clearly identified sectoral gaps across residential, commercial and retail segments in various geographical locations.

Mark Thornton, Managing Director and Co-head Asia of 3i will be appointed to the Investment Committee of INDIAREIT FUND by virtue of the cornerstone investor status accorded to 3i by INDIAREIT.

For further information contact: sanjay.kharat@edelman.com

About 3i

3i is a world leader in private equity and venture capital. We focus on Buyouts, Growth Capital and Venture Capital and invest across Europe, in the United States and in Asia. Our competitive advantage comes from our international network and the strength and breadth of our relationships in business. These underpin the value that we deliver to our portfolio and to our shareholders. www.3i.com.

About the INDIAREIT FUND

The INDIAREIT Fund is a boutique real estate venture capital fund, promoted by Piramal Enterprises. The fund is registered under the SEBI (venture Capital Funds) Regulations and has INDAIREIT Fund Advisors Pvt. Ltd., as its investment advisors. INDIAREIT will invest at enterprise levels of primarily real estate development companies.

About Piramal Enterprise

Piramal Enterprises is a diversified INR 3500 crore Group with global footprints. The Group companies like Nicholas Piramal India Ltd. & Gujarat Glass Ltd., are market leaders in their respective segments.