The Carlyle group is leading a Rs 4,000-crore capital infusion in PNB Housing Finance Ltd along with other investors that include Aditya Puri, the former MD and CEO of HDFC Bank.
Pluto Investments S.a.r.l, an affiliated entity of Carlyle Asia Partners IV, LP and Carlyle Asia Partners V, LP, will invest up to Rs 3,185 crore through a a preferential allotment of equity shares and warrants at a price of Rs 390 per share in the housing finance company.
This represents a premium of 12 per cent to the closing price of the PNB Housing Finance share last Friday. The PNB Housing Finance stock leapt 20 per cent to settle at Rs 525.20 on the BSE on Monday.
Existing shareholders of the company, the funds managed by Ares SSG and General Atlantic are also participating in the capital raise.
As part of the transaction, Salisbury Investments Pvt Ltd, the family investment vehicle of Aditya Puri, a senior adviser for Carlyle in Asia and the former CEO & managing director of HDFC Bank, will also invest in the fund raise.
Puri, who led HDFC Bank since its inception to make it the country’s largest private sector lender, will be nominated to the PNB Housing Finance board as a Carlyle nominee director in due course.
Stock market circles are of the view that his strong experience will help the housing finance firm gain more market share in a highly competitive segment.
A regulatory filing made by PNB Housing Finance said that Salisbury will have a 0.2 per cent stake in the company after the issuance of equity shares and warrants.
The board of PNB Housing Finance approved a preferential allotment on a private placement basis, an aggregate of 8,20,51,281 equity shares and 2,05,12,820 warrants exchangeable into equity shares to Pluto Investments, Salisbury Investments, General Atlantic Singapore Fund FII and Alpha Investments V Pte Ltd in specified proportions for a cash consideration aggregating to Rs 4,000 crore.
The transaction will trigger a mandatory open offer by Pluto Investments to purchase up to 26 per cent equity shares of PNB Housing Finance from public shareholders. This is because after the allotment of equity shares and warrants, Pluto Investment’s stake will stand at 30.2 per cent. The open offer will be made at a price of Rs 403.22 per share and it will be for over 7 crore shares.