Page - 1

Every morning across all business newspapers, across different business channels, you see the words 'Private Equity (PE)' & 'Venture Capital' being mentioned in every other sentence, you read about new investments by the different PE firms from $ 25 million to $ 500 million, and you wonder till what point in time can this possibly go on?

The answer lies there; right in front of you as you read the news. Private Equity and Venture Capital in India are moving into the big leagues. Fund sizes have increased dramatically over the years. With the strong global interest in the Indian economy continuing, new avenues have opened up, infrastructure, media and retail to name a few, and the existing ones continue to flourish at a feverish pace. Investors are looking to capitalize on this strong growth and everyone wants to be a part of the Indian growth story.

The phenomenal rise of PE in India is reflected in the numbers. Whereas in all of 2006, total value of announced PE deals was $ 7.86 billion, it has already crossed the $ 10 billion* mark this year with three months left to go. The Y-o-Y growth in the investments by the different PE funds reflects the optimism inside the industry and perception of the Indian marketplace around the world. Over the last one and a half years, leading PE funds from all over the globe have set up shop in India. These include Blackstone, 3i, Carlyle, Temasek.

The major deals announced recently include: -