Author
Harsh Batra
Harsh Batra
This week brought good news for Indian M&A, although for some players it may come with a bitter aftertaste.
To begin with, the Reserve Bank of India recently allowed local banks to finance up to 75% of the transaction value in corporate takeovers.
On the one hand, this could give the country’s $40bn-plus deal market a further boost by widening access to financing. That is good news for those heading to the negotiating table. On the other hand, the new rules could make the landscape even more competitive for credit players.
In an analysis published by Bloomberg, Moody’s Ratings said the decision could hurt private credit funds by squeezing returns in one of their most lucrative business lines.
“While the new rules may benefit borrowers by lowering costs for financing and increasing its availability, they could compress yields and reduce deal flows for private credit providers for acquisition financing,” the credit assessor said in a report.
While it is still too early to assess the impact in the data, let’s take a look at this week’s deal flow. The deal highlights are:
- Power Finance Corporation and REC moved to create one of India’s largest power-sector financiers after both state-owned lenders approved a merger scheme, with REC shareholders set to receive 88 PFC shares for every 100 REC shares and the combined entity expected to hold a loan book of more than INR 11 lakh crore.
- Adani Ports signed a definitive agreement to sell a 49% stake in Adani Vizhinjam Port to MSC Group’s terminal arm TiL for USD 1.397bn, marking what the company described as the single largest foreign private investment in Indian port infrastructure.
- Persistent Systems launched a voluntary all-cash takeover offer for Germany-based Nagarro at EUR 81 per share, in a cross-border IT services deal backed by Nagarro’s boards and designed to create a USD 2.9bn AI-led digital engineering group.
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Enjoy the read.
Deals Tracker
Rumour mill
- Power Finance Corporation’s board approved its merger with REC Ltd. The merger will be implemented on a going-concern basis, with REC dissolved without being wound up
- Adani Ports emerged as the frontrunner to acquire the embattled Karanja Terminal after creditors backed its ₹625-crore recovery plan
- Zee Entertainment’s board approved a ₹3,143.5-crore fundraising proposal that could lift the promoters’ stake in the company to nearly 24%
Regulatory
- Commercial banks’ capital levels are expected to remain above the 8% regulatory minimum even under adverse stress scenarios, the RBI said in its biannual Financial Stability Report
- The CCI approved the acquisition of Royal Challengers Sports, owner and operator of IPL franchise RCB, by a consortium led by the Aditya Birla Group, Times Group entities, Blackstone and other investors. The deal was first announced in March
Job moves
- HDFC Bank is likely to reappoint Sashidhar Jagdishan as CEO for a third term
- Redcliffe Labs appointed Kshitiz Singh as Chief Business Officer – Inorganic Growth
- Bandhan Bank CFO Rajeev Mantri resigned and will step down on September 25, 2026, to pursue a new career opportunity
- JPMorgan named Rahul Badhwar as senior country officer for India
- Indian REITs Association appointed Shirish Godbole as chairperson
- SBICAP Securities appointed SBI executive Baldev Prakash as MD & CEO
- Noel Tata will step down as Voltas chairman at the end of his current term, days after announcing his exit from Trent
- IndiGo CHRO Pasricha resigned after more than eight years at the airline; Kanwal Jeet Singh Bakshi will replace her
- IAMAI named JioStar Sports CEO Ishan Chatterjee to succeed Kiran Mani as DEC chief
- HDFC Bank appointed former finance secretary Rajiv Kumar as part-time chairman for three years. He replaces Atanu Chakraborty, who quit citing practices he said were not aligned with his values and ethics
- Ashok Vaswani will step down as Kotak Mahindra Bank’s MD & CEO for personal reasons; the bank has begun searching for a successor
- Citigroup appointed veteran investment banker Raj Rathi as its new head of mergers and acquisitions in India, as the bank continues to add senior bankers across the region
IPOs
- SEBI cleared IPOs from Sathya Agencies, Kanohar Electricals and Torrent Gas
- Prism filed draft papers for a ₹6,650-crore IPO comprising only a fresh issue, with no offer for sale by existing shareholders
- Stalwart People Services India filed IPO papers for a ₹150-crore fresh issue
- CSM Technologies made a lacklustre market debut after raising ₹145.78 crore through its IPO
- TPG-backed digital lender Fibe filed draft papers for an Indian IPO, seeking to raise ₹750 crore in fresh capital
- Pristine Logistics took the confidential IPO route and filed papers with SEBI
- Turtlemint had a disappointing market debut, with shares closing at ₹135.40, down 10.9% from the IPO price after trading between ₹132.15 and ₹144.90
- Coimbatore-based Eswari Global Metal filed draft documents for an IPO
- Kratikal Tech’s IPO was subscribed 16.52 times, driven by strong demand from retail and non-institutional investors
Fundraising
- SMBC Asia Rising Fund made follow-on investments worth $12–15 million in fintech startups Easy Home Finance, Vayana and DPDzero
- Funds managed by Singularity Growth and Niveshaay Sambhav Fund invested in Steamhouse India through a pre-IPO placement
- Zee Entertainment received government approval for a ₹418-crore investment from an Invesco fund
- 3one4 Capital closed a $15 million BII-backed IIDEA Fund to support women-led ventures and founders outside India’s major cities
- The Indus Valley raised $17 million in a round led by Gaja Capital to expand its product range
- Incuspaze raised ₹150 crore in a funding round led by Bharat Value Fund
- Finnovate raised about $2 million in a pre-Series A round from angel investors
- Suryoday Small Finance Bank’s board approved plans to raise up to ₹300 crore through share sales and ₹200 crore via debt instruments
