Morgan Stanley Real Estate today announced that it has invested Rs. 300 Crores (around US$68MM) in Mantri Developers Private Limited ("MDPL"), a private Bangalore-based real estate developer.
Founded in 1999 by Mr. Sushil Mantri and headquartered in Bangalore, MDPL is in the real estate development business focusing on residential, office and retail projects.
"We are pleased to be announcing our first real estate investment in India," said Sonny Kalsi, Managing Director and Global Head of Morgan Stanley Real Estate Investing. "We believe India presents an extremely compelling investment story and expect to be a long term investor in the real estate sector. The residential market is attractive because of rapid urbanization, the availability of housing finance and the strong growth of the consumer segment."
"We are excited to be partnering with Morgan Stanley to grow our residential business," said Sushil Mantri, Managing Director and founder of MDPL. "The partnership will be integral to our ability to create value by expanding our presence in Bangalore and other key markets. This relationship is also an important step in the diversification of our business. We plan to utilize our partner's relationships and global platform to strategically expand our business by developing other real estate asset types."
"MDPL represents an opportunity to partner with an outstanding management team and in an organization with strong development capabilities and a recognized brand name to capitalize on this opportunity. We look forward to working with the MDPL management and in growing the MDPL franchise," said Zain Fancy, Executive Director and Head of Morgan Stanley Real Estate in Asia-Pacific.
The Government of India last year liberalized foreign investment in the development and construction of real estate projects subject to compliance with certain conditions. Morgan Stanley Real Estate's investment has been made in accordance with these regulations.
Kotak Investment Bank advised MDPL on the transaction. Amarchand & Mangaldas & Suresh A. Shroff & Co. acted as legal advisor to MDPL and Wadia Ghandy & Co. acted as legal advisor to Morgan Stanley Real Estate.
Morgan Stanley Real Estate is comprised of three major global businesses: Investing, Banking, and Lending. Since 1991, Morgan Stanley has acquired $73.1 billion of real estate assets worldwide and currently manages approximately $40 billion in real estate assets on behalf of its clients. In addition, Morgan Stanley Real Estate provides a complete range of market-leading investment banking services to its clients including advice on strategy, mergers, acquisitions and restructurings, as well as underwriting public and private debt and equity financings. Morgan Stanley is also a global leader in real estate lending and, using its own capital, originated upwards of $24 billion in commercial mortgages in 2005. For more information about Morgan Stanley Real Estate, go to www.morganstanley.com/realestate.
Morgan Stanley (NYSE: MS) is a global financial services firm and a market leader in securities, investment management, and credit services. With more than 600 offices in 28 countries, Morgan Stanley connects people, ideas and capital to help clients achieve their financial aspirations.