1. Radiant Life To Merge With Max Healthcare
Radiant Life Care Ltd, backed by private equity firm KKR, agreed to merge with Max Healthcare Ltd in a complex deal that, it said, will make the combined entity India’s third-largest hospital and diagnostics company.
The merged entity will operate over 3,200 beds through 16 hospitals across India and will be among the top three by revenue and the fourth-largest by beds, according to a company statement. The combined entity will be valued at Rs 7,242 crore.
The merger offers significant growth potential with revenue and cost efficiencies to be extracted, said Max Group Founder Analjit Singh. “Both Max and Radiant possess complementary sets of capabilities in running healthcare establishments and KKR brings with it extensive global experience and expertise in healthcare investments as well as capabilities in prudent financial management and efficient capital allocation.”
(Source: BloombergQuint)
2. India Will Move to Single Standard GST Rate Between 12% and 18%
Finance minister Arun Jaitley on Monday, 24 December, said the Centre and states were close to completing the first stage of GST rationalisation by removing most items from the 28 percent slab with a convergence of the 12 percent and 18 percent bracket being the next step in the process.
He said the next priority was to lower the levy on cement from 28 percent to 18 percent and added that “the sun is setting on the 28 percent slab”. Although the minister, who heads the GST Council, did not elaborate on what the converged “standard rate” would be, he said it could be some mid-point between the two.
The GST Council went by this recommendation while deciding the slabs. Once a decision is taken, officers will have to make a tough choice of finalising the rate as there will be a lot of heartburn for goods and services where the levy will be increased from the current 12 percent.
(Source: The Times of India)
3. Hindustan Unilever Fined Rs 535 Crore for GST Profiteering
One of India’s leading FMCG firm, Hindustan Unilever, has been fined whopping Rs 535 crore in a Goods and Services Tax (GST) profiteering case. The National Anti-Profiteering Authority (NAA) has been probing HUL among other firms for allegedly not passing the GST rate cut benefit to consumers.
According to the news channel, the NAA report concluded that HUL profiteered Rs 495 crore by not passing the benefit of the rate cut to consumers. The company said that it is yet to receive NAA order but maintained that it has passed the rate cut benefit either through discounts, price cuts or through the increase in grammage, the channel reported.
The company also said that it has deposited sou moto Rs 160 crore to government’s Consumer Welfare Fund. Earlier, Directorate General of Anti-Profiteering (DGAP) had found Nestle profiteering Rs 100 crore by not passing GST cut benefits.
(Source: The Financial Express)
4. Facebook India’s Net Profit Rises 40% in FY 2017-18
Facebook India’s profit jumped about 40 percent to Rs 57 crore in the year ended March 2018, reflecting the increasing adoption of social media in a country where data costs have reduced drastically.
The company’s total revenue in India surged 53 percent. The social media major in a financial statement said that the services it provided to the US parent company helped drive growth. Revenues also represent the money Facebook earned from WhatsApp, the messaging application.
The company’s total revenues stood at Rs 521 crore for FY18, compared with Rs 407 crore in the corresponding period a year before.
The financial statement said the company faces several tax issues in India. The company has pending disputes related to income tax, VAT, sales tax, customs and excise and service tax, as per the financial statement.
(Source: The Economic Times)
5. Shriram Properties Files IPO Papers with Sebi; Plans to Raise Rs 2.5 Bn
Shriram Properties (SPL), the real estate arm of the Shriram Group, has filed an offer document with market regulator Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi). The company is looking to raise Rs 2.5 billion through initial public offering (IPO). The offering will also comprise secondary share sale by private equity players such as Omega TC Sabre Holdings, Tata Capital and TPG Asia.
Industry players peg the IPO size at around Rs 15 billion.
Shriram Properties also plans to make a pre-IPO placement worth Rs 1 billion. If the pre-IPO placement is undertaken, the number of equity shares issued will be reduced from the fresh issue, the firm said in a release.
Shriram Properties is a residential property developer focused on the mid-market and affordable housing segment. It is among the five largest residential real estate companies in South India.
(Source: Business Standard)
6. Magenta Power Joins Hands with HPCL for E-Vehicle Charging
Magenta Power, a rooftop solar developer that earlier this year ventured into electric vehicles charging space, has announced installing an EV charging station under its brand “ChargeGrid” at the HPCL staff colony in Chembur, Mumbai.
The charger installed by Magenta Power shall have the ability to charge up to three vehicles at a time, the company said.
The operations of the EV charging station would be carried out by Magenta Power via its ‘ChargeGrid App’, which provides an integrated platform for viewing network of charging stations. The app also allows cashless transactions and remote monitoring for the EV users.
Charge Grid shall be open to all HPCL colony residents, who can charge their electric cars anytime safely and conveniently using the ChargeGrid chargers. The chargers shall also be used in the colony for charging the Mahindra e-supro passenger vehicles which the colony recently acquired a shuttle service for the residents.
(Source: The Hindu BusinessLine)
7. Mahindra MSTC Recycling Bets on Upcoming Clunker Policy
Mahindra MSTC Recycling Private Ltd (MMRPL) plans to set up three collection and dismantling (C&D) centres in Kolkata, Chennai and Mumbai in addition to its existing facility at Noida.
MMRPL, which is a joint venture between Mahindra and MSTC, also expects to commission a shredding plant at Dahej in Gujarat by early next fiscal.
According to BB Singh, Chairman and Managing Director, MSTC, the three C&D units would together entail an investment of Rs 120-130 crore, and the shredding unit close to Rs 120 crore.
“At the C&D units, the end of life vehicles are de-polluted and dismantled by taking out the burnt oil, air bags, tyres and batteries which are considered to be hazardous. It is then sold to authorised recyclers approved by the Central Pollution Control Board through our own e-commerce portal,” Singh said.
(Source: The Hindu BusinessLine)
8. Private Banks Lead in Highway Funding
Private sector lenders such as HDFC Bank, Axis Bank, ICICI Bank, IndusInd, L&T Finance, Kotak Mahindra, RBL and Standard Chartered have come forward to fund highway projects in a major way as stressed public sector banks remain shy of providing finance to the sector.
Data collated by government showed private sector players have stepped in to provide loan for over half of the 59 projects where construction companies have tied up funds. Similarly, they have committed to provide funds for 17 out of the 20 projects where the process of financial closure is under way.
"One of the reasons behind the interest of private banks in the sector is the RBI imposing prompt corrective action (PCA) on 11 banks. Public sector banks have also been facing the problem of excess credit exposure,” an NHAI official said.
(Source: The Times of India)
9. PV Bharathi Appointed MD & CEO of Corporation Bank
PV Bharathi has been appointed as managing director and chief executive officer of the Corporation Bank, according to an order issued by the Personnel Ministry on Monday. Bharathi is at present Executive Director, Canara Bank.
She will take over the charge on or after 1 February 2019, and remain in the post till 31 March 2020, - the date of her superannuation, the order said.
In another order, the ministry said Birupaksha Mishra and Balakrishna Alse S has been appointed as executive director in the Corporation Bank and the Oriental Bank of Commerce, respectively.
Mishra is General Manager, Central Bank of India. Balakrishna is GM, Corporation Bank.
K Ramachandran has been appointed as executive director of the Allahabad Bank. He is at present General Manager, Corporation Bank.
Ramachandaran will hold the office up to the date of his superannuation which is 30 June 2021.
(Source: PTI)
(At The Quint, we are answerable only to our audience. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member. Because the truth is worth it.)