Suits & Sayings: Biz house throws googly on PE's IDBI Bank dream; Govt official eyes C-Suite options; CFOs & CEOs band together to help their ailing guru

ET’s weekly roundup of the wackiest whispers and murmurs in corporate corridors & policy parlours

Cheque Bounce
Executives at this private equity firm are irked at the indecisiveness of this south-based business house. They had decided to team up and spent serious man-hours and money to form a consortium and bid for IDBI Bank. All through Christmas and New Year they burnt the midnight oil, cancelling year-end leave and what not. But at the 11th hour, the Chennai-headquartered organisation developed cold feet, bowling a googly at them. Unlike the IPL, the PE firm could not hit this ball out of the park and was stumped clean. For years, it has aspired to own a bank and thrives on complicated transactions as an organisation, so this one was right up its alley. This could still happen — the PE firm can team up with another partner who is as serious.

New Beginnings

Here’s some good news: Just before hitting the equity markets, the tycoon much in news these days became a grandpa once again, much like his fellow businessman friend, with whom he inevitably gets compared. The youngest daughter of his eldest son was born late last month. The other set of grandparents, heavyweights of India’s legal fraternity, are also over the moon. And if that’s not enough, we hear from family friends, there is a double dhamaka on the way—the magnate’s youngest son is getting hitched soon. His fiancé hails from a family of diamantaires. As we have seen before, our patriarchs do not mix business with family.

Dance of Joy
Guess which business family is dancing to the tunes of RRR the most these days. Here’s a clue: They are also from Hyderabad and love the movies as much as they love to take care of people. Well, who isn’t starstruck, especially when it comes to any of SS Rajamouli’s epics? But the recent success at the box office and the international accolade for one of its hit songs is not the sole reason for jubilation in this household, otherwise known for its women power. A member of the third generation is none other than the wife of one of the leading men of the film. She’s also active in the family business and its various philanthropic initiatives. More importantly, the cult status of the blockbuster could not have come at a better time — she and hubby are expecting their first child as well after a decade of togetherness. Naatu Naatu to that!

Skidding in the Green Corridor?
It’s not often that a government official yearns to get back to his earlier corporate life. A senior director of a capital-based think tank, one who is deeply involved in the green vehicle policy, is on his way out and is exploring a clutch of C-Suite options. We gather leadership changes in the current setup, the subsequent sharp-elbowed manoeuvres, along with the slow movement of electric mobility schemes, has spurred this move, even though he was a key member of the government’s green mission over the past few years. Clearly, navigating Delhi’s sarkari bhavans can be a challenge.

The Colour Purple
During his recent trip to the country, the legend of buyouts — an Indophile since the 80s, he visits the country almost every year —had a funny story to share. Once he and his wife were travelling through India and after retiring to their lavish hotel suite, she came running to him, aghast at the breaking news on the telly. KKR, the network was flashing, had been crushed that evening. She wanted to know if her husband was aware of this. Obviously he wasn’t, since he was on holiday. But the news was such that he had to call up colleagues to figure out if there was indeed something that had gone horribly wrong. Nobody had a clue. It then became clear that the KKR in question was not his firm but the IPL franchise, which incidentally also has the same colours as his firm — aubergine. Who knows, maybe that is a good enough reason to put money to work. Howzzat?

Standing By the Team
Even as Gujarat Inc came out in full support to help their billionaire friend’s mega public issue, nudging family offices to put money into it, a little bird tells us one of their brethren is watching all the action from the sidelines. The said gent’s organisation was among those that took one of the group companies public last year. However, sources say, the two organisations did not entirely have a smooth relationship during the process. Ahead of the recent mega issue, phone calls had been made, urging the same institution to join the list of book runners and arrangers. It said no after the big boss, a financial sector wiz, declined the offer. Known for taking a firm position on matters, even at the cost of business, the decision to stand by his team is something no fee can ever match, winning him many fans on the street as well.

To Sir With Love
From the CFO of this leading business group who decided to run a marathon well after 50, to the CEO of this housing finance company, to this shipping magnate, to a banker of repute, south Mumbai’s avid runners owe their blood, sweat and triumph to this genteel Goan gentleman who is arguably the most loved trainer one can ever have. Sadly, he’s rather unwell. But, as expected, the entire brotherhood of men, women and CXOs have banded together to help him during this difficult period. An industrialist is taking care of his medical expenses, while another has lent a luxury sedan to take him to the hospital and another generous soul has provided a spare apartment for him to live in for the time being. This group will leave no stone unturned for their guru and we learn that, just weeks before he fell ill, they had all gone to Goa to attend his daughter’s wedding. Godspeed we say on behalf of all.