Enam group not to float Rs 3,500 crore infrastructure fund

Vallabh Bhanshali-led Enam group has scrapped its plans to raise a 3,500-crore infrastructure fund as the sale of its investment banking and brokerage businesses to Axis Bank last year left these plans orphaned , people familiar with the developments said.

Ajay Munot, head of the proposed Enam India Infrastructure Fund, has quit, said a person familiar with the development . Other senior staff at the fund-Jayesh Desai who came from consultants Ernst & Young and Pervez Umrigar, former chief executive at builders Gammon Infra-have also quit, the person said on condition of anonymity. Munot, a former executive director at Kalpataru Group, declined comment . Bhanshali did not respond to an email query about the developments.

An external consultant has been appointed to evaluate the opportunities for such a fund, said an Enam executive who chose to remain unidentified. Bhanshali and his partner Nimesh Shah in November agreed to sell their investment banking business to Axis for 2,000 crore in a stock swap deal that is pending regulatory approval.

Since Axis has a private fund, including a 600-crore Axis PE Fund, there could have been a conflict of interest if Enam had gone ahead with its fund, say analysts. With forecasts ranging from $500 billion to a trillion dollars to build Indian infrastructure, most finance companies are looking at ways to exploit the demand.

Source: EconomicTimes