Reliance Cap gets RBI nod for stake sale to Nippon

Mumbai: Reliance Capital on Friday said it hoped to conclude shortly a stake sale in its life insurance arm to Japan's Nippon Life for $680 million following a nod from the central bank, valuing the enterprise at $2.6 billion.

"The transaction is expected to close shortly," the company said in a regulatory filing with the Bombay Stock Exchange, which was secured less than a month after a similar nod from the Insurance Development and Regulatory Authority of India.

"Nippon's valuable experience of over 122 years will now help strengthen Reliance Life Insurance's position as a leading and world-class insurance company in India," said Sam Ghosh, chief executive of Reliance Capital.

Earlier this month, Reliance Capital, part of the Anil Ambani-led Reliance Group, had also signed a pact with Nippon Life Insurance to pursue partnerships beyond the insurance space to provide a host of financial services in India.

Nippon Life, company officials said, was now evaluating opportunities - including strategic partnership - across all Reliance Capital-promoted financial businesses including asset management.

Reliance Capital Asset Management is the largest asset management company in India and manages over Rs.104,136 crore ($23 billion) across mutual funds, pension funds, managed accounts and hedge funds and has over 7 million investors.

Reliance Capital is among the top four private financial services firm with interests in areas such as mutual funds, insurance, commercial finance, broking, investment banking, private equity, wealth management and financial products distribution.

2G scam scare: Shares of Reliance Group firms witness sharp fall

New Delhi: Shares of Anil Ambani-led Reliance Group companies fell by nearly 10 per cent on the bourses on Friday, even as the group asserted that it was not a beneficiary of any telecom licence issued in January, 2008.

The group's telecom arm, RCom, saw its shares plunge by 8.11 per cent to a low of Rs 71.35 in morning trade, while Reliance Capital tumbled by 9.91 per cent to a 52-week low of Rs 323.55 on the BSE.

Shares of other group firms, RPower, Reliance Infra, Reliance Mediaworks and Reliance Broadcast, also fell sharply.

The group's telecom arm, RCom, saw its shares plunge by 8.11 per cent to a low of Rs 71.35 in morning trade.

The decline in these shares followed reports that the CBI told the Supreme Court on Thursday that three Reliance Group executives, Gautam Doshi, Surendra Pipara and Hari Nair, may turn approvers in the case.

However, a Reliance Group spokesperson said in a statement that none of its charge-sheeted executive has expressed any intention to become ‘approver’ in the ongoing 2G case and the CBI had already stated before the trial court that Reliance was not a part of the main 2G conspiracy.

The spokesperson added that the CBI's inference that there might be undisclosed beneficiaries “is unsupported by any evidence”.

The group further said that there was “no change in stand by any of the Reliance executives”.

It further said that “neither Reliance Telecom nor the promoter group are beneficiaries of any telecom licence issued in January, 2008”.

“CBI counsel clearly stated before the trial court that Reliance (was) not part of the main 2G conspiracy. CBI (is) now raising new issues to oppose bail to three Reliance executives,” the statement said.