Mittal’s son-in-law steps into nursery school

NEW DELHI: What do the world’s largest steel empire and nursery schools in UK have in common? You could say they’re all in the family — considering that Arcelor Mittal CEO LN Mittal’s son-in-law Amit Bhatia has acquired Asquith Day Nurseries, the leading nursery and day care business in the UK, from Lyceum Capital.

The deal, which was struck at £95 million ($190.2 million or Rs 780 crore) by Mr Bhatia’s investment vehicle, Swordfish Investments LLP, and Dawnay, Day Principal Investments, is obviously very low profile when compared with Mr Mittal’s $38 billion acquisition of Arcelor.

However, Mr Bhatia feels that the demographic trends that shape the day care and nurseries business in UK are strong and will continue to remain so going forward. “There are both a growing number of single mothers in today’s workforce who have demanding commitments, as well as dual income families where both parents have professional careers. Asquith is primarily geared towards the middle and upper middle income segments in the UK.

These demographics and this demand is strongly exhibited by NRIs and Indians in the UK as well,” Mr Bhatia, managing partner of Swordfish Investments, told ET from London.

His private investment focused company has done deals in real estate, hospitality, entertainment, telecom and funds management and is on the prowl for opportunities in India too. “The real estate sector, and India specifically, continue to rank high in terms of areas that we focus on. But the Indian market has seen substantial price rises over the last couple of years that is making us move with caution,” Mr Bhatia added.

Future M&A opportunities for him will come from businesses that have a strong asset base and balance sheets and are rich in cash flows. “Education is such an important sector globally and whilst the nursery sector is relatively untapped at the moment, I feel there will be enormous interest in its consolidation,” Mr Bhatia said.

As for his wife Vanisha Mittal Bhatia, her main focus continues to be her involvement with Arcelor Mittal, where she’s on the board of directors. “She also plays an invaluable role in my firm,” Mr Bhatia said.