The Venture Intelligence Blog

The following companies are seeking capital for starting-up / expanding their operations: 07-06-27-1: Delhi-based NBFC with a networth of over Rs.280 million seeks $1-5 M for expanding its micro-finance lending business. 07-06-27-2: Mumbai-based fitout contracting company seeks >$5-M 07-06-27-3: Delhi-based manufacturer of carburetors and fuel management components, with supplier relationship with Maruti, Suzuki and Birla Yamaha, seeks >$5 M for tapping export opportunities. 07-06-27-4: Mumbai-based just-in-time manpower provider seeks $1-5 M. 07-05-27-5: Howrah-based company involved in provider of Sports Infrastructure for Corporates and Educational Institutions seeks For more information about any of these companies, investors - who are subscribers to the Venture Intelligence service - can email the company code to vcmarket@ventureintelligence.in . To learn about our subscription services for investors, please visit our web site . Are you an entrepreneur seeking capital? List ...

Economic Times has an interview with Subhiksha Retail’s managing director, R Subramanian. Today, we deal across four categories — mobile phones, fruit and vegetable, FMCG & groceries and medicines. ...The consumer is going to come to us because our prices are cheaper. In order to provide the best prices to our consumers, we have to set up a large number of stores. Cheapest price is our positioning plank and that’s how we are different from other players. Look at FMCG, for instance. In this space, 95% consumers do repetitive buying. So it makes sense to target these household essentials in our discounting scheme. On the other hand, mobile phones are not repeat purchases. So costlier the phones, better the deals at Subhiksha. ...Our mobile shops will be in the malls. Otherwise, we’re pretty much following the stand-alone format because malls are not ubiquitous, and stand-alone stores pretty much echo our value-for-money positioning. Arun Natarajan is the Founder & CEO of Venture...

The following companies are seeking capital for starting-up / expanding their operations: 07-06-20-1: Gurgaon-based anti-piracy software firm seeks $1-5 M. 07-06-20-2: US-based Online Service for Discount Shopping in India-based online and offline stores seeks $5-M to set up Packaging and Marketing facilities to Food Processing Enterprises in Northern Bihar. 07-06-20-4: Delhi-based chain of multi-speciality dental clinics seeks $1-5 M for expansion. 07-05-20-5: Pune-based entrepreneur seeks For more information about any of these companies, investors - who are subscribers to the Venture Intelligence service - can email the company code to vcmarket@ventureintelligence.in . To learn about our subscription services for investors, please visit our web site . Are you an entrepreneur seeking capital? List your company in the Venture Intelligence VC Market using the form here

The TieCon 2007 web site has an video interview with Sumir Chadha of Sequoia Capital India. Arun Natarajan is the Founder & CEO of Venture Intelligence, the leading provider of information and networking services to the private equity and venture capital ecosystem in India. View free samples of Venture Intelligence newsletters and reports.

Kamla Bhatt has a podcast interview with Kumar Subramanian, Founder & CEO of finanance-focused KPO firm Adventity which has raised $20 million in funding from Norwest VP. In the interview, Kumar speaks about how they met with over 25 PE/VC investors in the US and received eight term sheets before deciding to go with Norwest. Arun Natarajan is the Founder & CEO of Venture Intelligence, the leading provider of information and networking services to the private equity and venture capital ecosystem in India. View free samples of Venture Intelligence newsletters and reports.

Online tutoring service TutorVista has recently been featured in two US TV news shows - PBS Nightly business report and NBC's Today Show - which feature positive reviews of the "remote tutoring out of India" phenomenon. The parts I liked best were the segments in the NBC show which show a black parent and a school official explain that their alternative to using a tutor from India is not to hire one at all. The local tutors are simply way too expensive for them. Such good PR, that showcase actual end customers in the US saying positive things about the services they receive out of India, can go a long way in creating a buffer against local vested interests fanning anti-outsourcing "backlashes". UPDATE: Now, The Economist has a profile of TutorVista Founder & CEO K.Ganesh as the person "keep an eye on..if you want to see where Indian outsourcing is going". Arun Natarajan is the Founder & CEO of Venture Intelligence, the leading provider of i...

Even before the famed US buyout firm actually pulls off its IPO, breakingviews' Edward Chancellor has an imaginary 2012 letter by Blackstone's CEO offering to buyout its public shareholders! By early 2007, it was clear that the rapid growth of private equity was inciting a wave of public opposition in both the US and Europe. That is why our industry established the Private Equity Council in Washington to explain our case. At the time, I personally expended much time and effort educating the media on this subject. I wish our efforts had been more successful. Since 2007 two tax changes have hurt our industry's profitability. Several countries in Europe, including Germany, have followed Denmark's lead in removing the tax deductibility of interest payments for leveraged buyouts. Although the US did not follow, the Internal Revenue Service has succeeded in forcing a change in the tax treatment of private equity's performance fees (known as the "carried interest...

The following companies are seeking capital for starting-up / expanding their operations: 07-06-13-1 : UP-based Food & Beverage products manufacturer – which supplies to ITC as well as exports fresh fruits and vegetables- seeks >$5-M for expanding capacity. 07-06-13-2 : Bangalore-based Power Quality Audit & Solution provider to a wide range of industries seeks strategic investment - including via M&A/JV route - of $1-5 M. 07-06-13-3 : Bangalore-based IT company with Patented Solutions for Mobile Marketing – based on SMS - seeks 07-06-13-4 : Bangalore-based Retail Software firm - with product line covering solutions for hospitals, blood banks, pathology labs, asset management solutions and customized enterprise applications - seeks 07-05-13-5 : Mumbai-based company seeks $1-5 M for its one stop online shop for loyalty points exchange. For more information about any of these companies, investors - who are subscribers to the Venture Intelligence service - can email the comp...

IT Services and BPO companies have traditionally been a favorite among investors in India. However, with the rapid maturing and consolidation in these sectors, start-ups and mid-tier firms alike are facing significant challenges. In this context, leading investors and top executives from IT Services and BPO companies will come together at Venture Intelligence IT Services & BPO Connect to network, discuss and share best practices. Speakers at IB Connect include: Sashi Reddi, AppLabs Deepak Kamra and Alok Mittal, Canaan Partners Sunil Wadhwani, iGate Corporation Ravi Pandit, KPIT Cummins Pradip Kar, Microland N.Krishnakumar, MindTree Venkatesh Roddam, Nipuna Services Siraj Dhanani, PharmARC Rajiv Mody, Sasken Chandu Nair, Scope eKnowledge K. Ganesh, TutorVista.com Hiren Kulkarni, Zensar Raman Roy, Quatrro* Dr. Anand Deshpande, Persistent Systems* Rohit Kapoor, EXL Service* * To be confirmed The panels at IB Connect feature discussions between entrepreneurs, operating executives an...

Businessworld has a cover story on Future Capital - the financial services arm of the Kishore Biyani-promoted Future Group (formerly Pantaloon Group) - with a special focus on how it plans to provide loans to encourage consumers to buy more stuff from the group's retail stores. I was especially interested in the parts that addressed the risks associated with Future Capital's investing in projects and companies that are closely linked to the group's fortunes. In effect, Sain (Sameer Sain, CEO of Future Capital) and Biyani are building a web of intertwined companies. The Horizon International Fund is building several gigantic malls called Market Cities — many of which will be occupied by Pantaloon’s stores. The Hotel Fund will build a chain of four-star hotels — many of which will be set up in Pantaloon’s malls. Private equity fund Indivision has mostly invested in consumer product companies — many of which supply to Pantaloon’s stores. ...It is important that the two chall...

Business Today has a detailed article on the Indian healthcare scene. The market potential, to put it mildly, is mind-boggling. There are just 1.1 beds for every 1,000 Indians, compared to 4.3 in other Asian countries such as China, Korea and Thailand. As India's population ages and more people get afflicted with lifestyle-related diseases (such as heart and nervous problems, and diabetes), the demand for quality healthcare will explode. ...According to the FICCI-E&Y study, a middle-level manager with a family of four spent an average of Rs 1,935 on healthcare in the late 80s. At last count (2001-02), such a family spent between Rs 7,650 and Rs 11,475 on medical care. ...Until recently, corporate hospitals were also hamstrung by a lack of finance. But now global investors, in the form of private equity investors, are willing to put money behind them. George Soros' Quantum and Blue Ridge funds, for example, have invested in Fortis Healthcare, a chain set up by the promoters...

The TieCon 2007 web site has an ">video interview with Navin Chaddha of Mayfield. Arun Natarajan is the Founder & CEO of Venture Intelligence, the leading provider of information and networking services to the private equity and venture capital ecosystem in India. View free samples of Venture Intelligence newsletters and reports.

Dan Primack of PE Hub has posted an email (source unknown) describing the "hectic" day in the life of an US-based biotech VC. 5:45am - Alarm clock. Pick up Blackberry from nightstand, fire off an email to portfolio company CEO to demonstrate “round-the-clock” vigilance. Go back to sleep. 8:30am - Wake up. Decide whether to have breakfast in the kitchen, dining room, sunroom, veranda, or gazebo. Have “breakfast meeting” with Rex and Fido. 9:45am - Drop child off at nursery school. Banter with child’s teacher. Haha, that teacher doesn’t make in a year what I spent in Lanai over New Year’s. Wow. I haven’t been to Hawaii in three months. Call assistant, re: biotech conferences in Hawaii. 10:30am - Arrive at office, remark loudly that these breakfast meetings are killing you. It’s been ‘go, go, go’ all year. The pace is killing you. Makes you wish it was 2002 again. 10:45am - Call CEO of biotech portfolio company. Ask if he’s considered building a services component to add to his...

Kamla Bhatt has an podcast interview with Luis Miranda, CEO of IDFC Private Equity. Arun Natarajan is the Founder & CEO of Venture Intelligence, the leading provider of information and networking services to the private equity and venture capital ecosystem in India. View free samples of Venture Intelligence newsletters and reports.

Google has put up the video of an hour-long presentation by Vinod Kholsa on his (now) favorite topic - Ethanol - delivered at the company's campus. (Larry Page does a short intro before Kholsa's presentation.) Hat tip: VentureBeat Arun Natarajan is the Founder & CEO of Venture Intelligence, the leading provider of information and networking services to the private equity and venture capital ecosystem in India. View free samples of Venture Intelligence newsletters and reports.

The following companies are seeking capital for starting-up / expanding their operations: 07-06-06-1: Faridabad-based manufacturer of Healthcare Consumables seeks 07-06-06-2: Secunderabad-based firm seeks 07-06-06-3: Bangalore-based placement consulting firm seeks 07-06-06-4: Gurgaon-based IT Services firm offering web-based and mobility solutions seeks 07-05-30-5: Delhi-based auto components company that has developed world's first teeth Interlocked IVT (Infinitely Variable Transmission) seeks >$5-M to further research and manufacturing for the export market. For more information about any of these companies, investors - who are subscribers to the Venture Intelligence service - can email the company code to vcmarket@ventureintelligence.in . To learn about our subscription services for investors, please visit our web site . Are you an entrepreneur seeking capital? List your company in the Venture Intelligence VC Market using the form here

Businessworld has a short article about Indian restaurant chains planning to expand their overseas footprints and cater to a clientele beyond the NRIs. The growing appetite for Indian “curry” will certainly attract entrepreneurs, says Rajesh Mishra, president, Federation of Hotel and Restaurant Association of India, in Delhi. “Some Nepali food chain selling Indian food in the US earns about $50,000 per month per restaurant,” he says. “This is a huge market. Clearly, the numbers are driving these chains.” Indeed, new players, such as Mumbai-based restaurateur Sanjeev Kapoor, who opened 17 Khana Khazhana restaurants in New York, are growing. And there is room for more, as “increased competition will only help growth”, says P.R. Shiva Kumar, a partner with Saravana Bhavan, a Chennai-based food chain with 18 overseas eateries. ...But the complexity and costs of carrying out such moves are well worth it. “The business is highly profitable,” says Shiva Kumar, whose company has 27 restaurant...

As part of its cover story on Real Estate scene in India - titled "Reality Check" - Businessworld featured a forthright column by Chetan Dave, CEO & MD of SUN-Apollo Real Estate , which recently closed a $630 million Indian Real Estate Fund and has made significant investments in the Shriram Group's ambitious project in Chennai. India had a minuscule amount of ‘institutional quality’ in existing real estate, and FDI was only permitted in development projects (except hotels). The result: all the FDI went to developers with FDI-compliant projects on the drawing board. Public markets also got into the act in 2006. Sensing the availability of capital, some large and sophisticated developers went directly to loosely regulated markets such as London’s Alternative Investment Market (AIM) and raised capital. The Indian real estate story was heard around the globe. The money raised transformed the Indian developers’ caution into over-confidence. The resulting rise in prices...

Business Today article on Moser Baer's new moved - including its highly visible entry into selling Indian movie titles. Moser Baer reported a net loss of Rs 11.15 crore in the April-June quarter of 2005-06 (it showed a profit for the full year, though). Severe global pricing pressures coupled with competition from other low-cost producers and rising raw material prices eroded the exceptional returns that the industry was known for. Though the downturn was not unexpected, its duration and severity came as a rude shock. Ashish Dhawan, Senior Managing Director of private equity firm ChrysCapital, which invested in Moser Baer during this downturn, says: "The downturn lasted longer than any of us had anticipated." Cost efficiencies helped sustain Moser Baer during this phase. It was also a period of learning, and the lessons were immediately implemented. Ratul recounts that despite the downturn, the company continued pumping funds into the business. Over the last four years, ...

NYTimes DealBook provides extracts from Absolute Return magazine's profile of the hedge fund which is run by a group of ex-Goldman Sachs exectuives including Dinakar Singh and Hari Kumar. “Most long/short hedge funds say that they’re alpha-driven,” Eric Dillon, chief investment officer of Silver Creek Capital Management, told the magazine. “But I think that there’s a lot of intellectual dishonesty out there. In our view, Dinakar has built a firm that will deliver over a long period. Private equity firm Texas Pacific Group owns a stake in TPG-Axon, which Mr. Singh runs with former Goldman colleagues Taizo Hasebe, Hari Kumar and Eric Mandelblatt. The fund launched in 2005 with $5 billion in capital and and now manages $8.3 billion. From inception through March, the firm’s two-year annualized return stands at 19.3 percent, Ms. Wood wrote. While those returns aren’t the best in the business, Ms. Wood suggests that the funds’ investors take additional satisfaction from the fact that TP...