Investments In Indian Companies Soar 487% in Q3 2005
By Dilip Thomas
Indian investments increased 487% to USD 528 mln in Q3 2005, up from USD 90 mln in Q3 2004, according to Venture Intelligence India. Venture capitalists and private equity investors invested in 28 companies in Q3 2005, up from the 8 firms in Q3 2004.
"Private equity investment in India jumped almost six-fold in the third quarter from last year’s level, propelled in part by several high-profile acquisitions and IPOs, according to a study released Friday. Investment increased 487 percent to USD 528 million during the third quarter, up from USD 90 million during the same period last year, according to the report by Venture Intelligence India."
"Venture capitalists and private equity investors invested in 28 companies between the beginning of July and the end of September, up from the eight companies that were funded during the third quarter of 2004. The biggest private equity investments were Newbridge Capital’s USD 100-million investment in truck-financing company Shriram Holdings and ICICI Ventures’ USD 59.8-million buyout of Associated Cement Companies’ refractory business."
"The biggest tech deals were 3i’s USD 45-million investment in Nimbus Communications and Dr. Reddy’s Labs spin-off of Perlecan Pharma (see Perlecan Pharma Raises USD 52.5M). Other tech firms that saw cash were Nevis Networks, July Systems, VisualSoft Technologies, and Four Soft."
"Investors put more money into fewer companies in the third quarter than in the second quarter. Investors put USD 395 million into 36 companies between the beginning of April and the end of June. The increased investment comes as several investment firms closed successful exit transactions. Three Indian companies went public during the quarter, including publishing company HT Media, which raised USD 86 million. Another eight companies were acquired. The biggest deals were Essar Group’s USD 1.56-billion acquisition of telecom company BPL Communications and Oracle’s buyout of Citigroup Venture Capital’s stake in i-flex Solutions, a banking software company, for USD 593 million."
"Several investment firms have recently raised India-focused funds. WestBridge closed a USD 200-million second fund for investing in the subcontinent at the end of August (see WestBridge Raises USD 200M) and Draper Fisher Jurvetson announced a new USD 200-million fund for India Thursday (see DFJ sets up USD 200M India Fund)."
