Barring PE sells 3.77% stake in Manappuram

MUMBAI: Baring Private Equity Partners India (Baring PE India) has sold 3.77% stake in Kerala-based gold loan company Manappuram Finance for about Rs 300 crore, according to an Exchange filing.

Baring PE India held 12.57% stake in the listed gold loan firm through two entities, Baring India Private Equity Fund II and Baring India Private Equity Fund III (Fund 3). Barring PE bought this stake between 2011 and 2013.

Shares of Manappuram Finance rose 2.35% to Rs 99.55 on Wednesday. Post sale, Baring PE India holds 8.8% stake in the company. WF Asian Reconnaissance Fund (4.99%), Morgan Stanley (1.15%), DSP Blackrock (3.01%) and L&T Mutual Fund (1.85%) are some of the major institutional investors in the company as on December 31, 2016. Domestic individual investors Dolly Khanna and Ashish Dhawan held 1.13% and 2% stake in the gold firm.

With the regulatory environment turning favourable and gold prices stable, Manappuram has shown strong growth in the last few quarters. De-risking strategy has helped it in keeping credit costs at a low level. Manappuram stock has surged nearly 215% in the last one year.