Jump to content

India tycoon has cash but nowhere to invest


shalab

Recommended Posts

I read a little bit more about this guy - looks like he wants more publicity for more deals.

 

Here is one of his plans to invest 1.5 billion in U.S/Europe.

 

http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/d8997a7c-cdaf-11e0-bb4f-00144feabdc0.html#axzz1ho22EfqJ

 

Also, the guy owns so many companies he looks like a mini berkshire. May be some of the folks who are familiar with Indian markets can comment - why are there so many conglomerates in India? Is this because a few businessmen/families control government policy and stifle external competition.

 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ajay_Piramal

 

I feel that is mainly because of the socialist past india had. Raising capital was tough for outsiders those days. Those who were already in the game where able to start new ventures, by getting capital from from their existing business .

If you look at  the indian conglomerates all of them were formed those days or before . After 1990 not many conglomerates were formed.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

 

I feel that is mainly because of the socialist past india had. Raising capital was tough for outsiders those days. Those who were already in the game where able to start new ventures, by getting capital from from their existing business .

If you look at  the indian conglomerates all of them were formed those days or before . After 1990 not many conglomerates were formed.

 

Also, as per an Economist article, it seems like infrastructure is so bad in India that many businesses are set up to do almost everything they need themselves rather than rely on the state. Businesses bigger than a certain size thus tend to sprawl and start to do a bit of everything..

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Piramal does seem like an Indian Buffett of sorts. And Piramal Healthcare looked cheap with all that cash last time I looked at it couple of months ago. I just wish I could trade in India.

 

The Economist article doesn't mention the fact that India restricts foreign investment by retail investors, as one of the possible reasons. They also basically compare figures before the financial crisis hit and after and are completely missing that elephant in the room.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

A few thoughts:

 

1.  Is it possible to do a retail transaction in India.  I had always thought it was next to impossible.

2,  Ajay Pirama has an alpha on par with Buffett, 11% greater return than the market--28% versus 17%.

 

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

A few thoughts:

 

1.  Is it possible to do a retail transaction in India.  I had always thought it was next to impossible.

2,  Ajay Pirama has an alpha on par with Buffett, 11% greater return than the market--28% versus 17%.

 

From what I read it's quite hard... too bad because the valuation is dirt cheap.

 

BeerBaron

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
×
×
  • Create New...