Private Equity (PE) firms invested about $1,848 million ($1.84 billion) across 102 deals during the quarter ended June 30, 2012. The investment was 34% less than the amount invested in the same period last year ($2,798 million across 126 transactions) and 10% less than the preceding quarter (which witnessed $2,050 million investment across 103 transactions), excluding PE investments in real estate sector, according to a study by Venture Intelligence, a research service focused on Private Equity and M&A transaction activity in India.
There were only four PE investments worth over $100 million (with one above $200 million) during the June quarter compared with 10 such transactions in the same period last year, the Venture Intelligence analysis showed.
The largest PE investment in the period was Morgan Stanley Infrastructure Partners? investment of R1,200 crore in Continuum Wind Energy, a Singapore-headquartered developer of wind assets in India. The second largest investment during the period was Fairbridge Capital, acquiring a 77% stake in Thomas Cook (India) for R817.4 crore. Warburg Pincus? acquisition of a 53.67% stake in Future Capital Holdings for R563 crore was the third largest.
IT & ITES companies attracted $379 million (21% of the value pie) across 42 reported investments during Q2, snatching the lead from healthcare & life sciences industry that topped the immediate previous quarter as the favourite sector for PE investments in Q2. Powered by five renewable power project deals that attracted about $299 million between them, the energy industry claimed the second spot. HLS companies came in third, attracting $243 million across 12 investments. It was followed by BFSI firms with $232 million across 10 investments.
The IT & ITES investments were dominated by follow-on rounds at various VC-backed online services companies ? including local listings firm JustDial ($60-M from existing investors Sequoia Capital and SAP Ventures); advertising focused Pubmatic ($45-M led by new investor August Capital) and classifieds focused Quikr ($32 million round led by new investor, Warburg Pincus).
In energy, the Continuum deal was followed by IFC?s investment of $40 million in equity (apart from $90 million in debt) in wind energy firm Inox Renewables. The third largest investment in the sector was AMP Capital?s $29 million investment in Shalivahana Green Energy which operates a portfolio of power generation assets across the agri-waste, hydro and wind sectors.
VC-type deals (in volume terms) accounted for 54% of the investments during Q2 compared with 44% in the corresponding period a year ago. The share of late stage deals, at 23% of the PE investments during Q2, was slightly lower compared with the same period a year ago (at 25%). The share of listed company investments was flat at 9%.
In the real estate front, PE-real estate firms made seven investments (amounting to $162 million across six deals with disclosed values) during the quarter. The volume of investments was less than half the 18 investments in the same period in the previous year (which witnessed $553 million being invested across 14 transactions with disclosed values) and also the 17 investments ($573 million across 15 deals) during the Jan-Mar 2012 quarter.
Morgan Stanley Real Estate Investment’s R500 crore commitment to Supertech?s township project in Noida, Cape Town, was the largest during the latest quarter. Supertech also attracted a R100 crore commitment from US-based Walton Street Capital towards the residential towers that will come up at its mixed-use project Supernova at Noida. The government of Singapore Investment Corporation invested R100 crore to enable listed real estate developer Brigade Group to buy land in Bangalore?s Whitefield to develop a residential project, the study said.
