Ajay Piramal is in talks with Anand Mahindra and others to sell his stake in the Chennai-based Shriram group of companies, according to a report by The Economic Times.
Piramal’s stake in three companies - Shriram Capital, Shriram Transport Finance, and Shriram City Union Finance - is valued at Rs 9,000 crore, analysts told the paper.
“With all the investments, he did not get the management width that he would have liked to have,” a source told the publication.
The Piramal Group chairman has a 10 percent stake each in public-listed units Shriram Transport Finance and Shriram City Union Finance, and owns 20 percent of Shriram Capital.
Moneycontrol could not independently verify the story.
Piramal and Mahindra did not respond to requests for comment by The Economic Times.
Piramal is also open to negotiations with private equity and buyout firms. There is no certainty that the transaction will take place, the report added.
This is the second time Piramal has tried reducing his holding in the Shriram Group. In 2017, a merger of IDFC and the Shriram Group failed due to regulatory hurdles and issues with the valuation.
Media reports suggest that R Thyagarajan, the founder of Shriram Group, is considering merging the two listed entities. The amalgamation would provide Piramal an opportunity to exit his investment.
Piramal began investing in Shriram Group in 2013 with an initial investment of Rs 4,600 crore.
Private equity firm TPG Capital is also looking at selling its 9 percent stake in the Shriram Group, according to a report by The Times of India.
KKR and global pension funds have expressed interest in TPG and Piramal’s combined 29 percent stake in Shriram Group, the report said.
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