Kishore Biyani's Future Consumer to raise Rs 280 cr from IFC, Verlinvest

Kishore Biyani’s Future Consumer (FCL) plans to raise Rs 280 crore from the International Finance Corporation (IFC) and Verlinvest SA, a private equity and venture capital entity. 

The proposed fund raising will support the company’s Rs 350-crore investment plan and to repay debt.

IFC, the World Bank’s investment arm, said it would invest up to Rs 210 crore in FCL in the form of Compulsorily Convertible Debentures. Verlinvest will invest up to Rs 70 crore. Biyani and his various intermediate investment entities will contribute Rs 70 crore. The money would go for development and expansion of manufacturing and processing operations for food and home & personal care products, expansion of its rural distribution network, working capital requirement and to meet coming debt repayments.

The investment will be at the company’s existing facilities, including at the integrated food park in Karnataka’s Tumakuru region.

IFC expects the project to raise the procurement of produce  from local farmers. Beside benefits to small retailers through introduction of technology and infrastructure. Consumers and market competitiveness would also gain. FCL is listed on the BSE exchange and the National Stock Exchange. Kishore Biyani and his various intermediate investment entities have 46.3 per cent in FCL. Other institutional investors include Arisaig Partners Asia (seven per cent), Verlinvest SA (7.3 per cent) and Proterra Investment Partners (7.6 per cent).