Lodha Developers Ltd., through its subsidiary Cowtown Land Development Ltd., has provided complete exit to Deutsche Bank for its investment made in 2007-2008.
Deutsche Bank has been paid a total of Rs. 25.42bn, following its investment of Rs. 16.40bn made in late 2007. The gain of over Rs. 9bn is one of the largest and most profitable investment for any FDI in Indian real estate.
Commenting on the transaction, Abhinandan Lodha, Deputy Managing Director of the company said “The completion of the milestone is a significant achievement for our organization. Our ability to generate positive cash flows from our business by focussing on execution and end user sales has enabled us to make such a large payment at a time when the general economic environment is quite tough. The capital from Deutsche Bank in 2007 has played an important role in our company’s growth and we appreciate our relationship with Deutsche Bank”.
With this exit, Lodha has significantly reduced its debt levels. Prior to the repayment of this investment, Lodha has also provided exits to JP Morgan and HDFC Venture Fund from their investments in its other projects. Currently, the company has other investments from HDFC Venture Fund, ICICI Ventures and Old Lane in its other projects.
The exit was financed by Rs. 1720 crores from internal accruals and Rs. 825 crores raised through fresh borrowing.
Trustcap, the Mumbai based Investment Bank, acted as the sole advisor to this transaction.