India's ace deal maker Nimesh Kampani passes baton to son

Will continue to be non-executive Chairman and director of few JM group firms; son to take over as MD of JM Financial

Ace deal maker Nimesh Kampani, also founder-chairman of the JM Financial Group, announced his retirement with effect from September. Kampani’s son, Vishal, will be managing director of JM Financial with effect from October 1.

Nimeshbhai, as he is known in corporate circles here, will continue to be a non-executive chairman and director on the board of some JM group companies.



“It is important for all businesses to implement a proper succession plan. With this in mind, I have decided to retire when I turn 70. While I will continue to remain an integral part of the group, it will be in a purely non-executive position, as the chairman,” he said on Tuesday.

Talking to this newspaper, Vishal Kampani said one of the important lessons he learnt from his father was to be humble. “I plan to build on the strength of my father and that is to remain truthful and honest with our business partners. The idea now is to take JM to the next level,” he said.



Kampani had brokered the Ambani brothers’ settlement in 2005 and is considered close to almost all top business people of his generation. He is on the board of Britannia, a Nusli Wadia company, and was on the board of Essar Shipping, owned by the Ruia brothers. Old-timers recall it was Kampani who helped London-based billionaire L N Mittal raise funds for his first venture. Deepak Parekh, chairman of Housing Development Finance Corpor-ation, is a close friend. In an earlier interview with this newspaper, Kampani said his formula to win friends is to always remain neutral.

“It's nothing but the credibility and trust nurtured over decades.” Some of his business acquaintances became friends only after he’d passed the test of keeping things confidential. “They have often tested me by asking me what's going on in other camps. My lips have always been sealed on such occasions,” Kampani, a former cricketer, had said. Which is why, old-timers, Kampani remains the first port of call for people from vastly different and often opposing camps.

In 2007, Kampani ended a seven-year relationship with Morgan Stanley, as the American bank wanted full control of the investment banking venture. Kampani set up JM Financial in 1973 with Rs 5,000 of capital and did not want to give up the control of the venture. Both parted amicably, with Kampani richer by Rs 1,900 crore. He used the cash to grow the business of JM Financial, by offering almost all financial products to customers.

Kampani’s journey faced troubled times when, in 2009, the Andhra Pradesh police shocked Corporate India by issuing a lookout notice against him in a case involving Nagarjuna Finance, a non-banking finance company (NBFC, which had defaulted on repayment of deposits worth Rs 100 crore. Kampani had been on the board of Nagarjuna and the lookout notice was issued when he was travelling abroad. After the Andhra high court stayed the proceedings, he returned to India in October 2009, after 10 months, even as heads of corporate India came out in his support.

In the past few years, Kampani managed to grow JM Financial’s market value, currently at Rs 5,300 crorey. He also got Vikram Pandit, former global chief executive of CitiBank, to join hands with him in an NBFC venture called JM Financial Credit Solutions, engaged in real estate financing.