Birla holding company Pilani to raise Rs 1,000 crore

Kolkata/Mumbai: Pilani Investment & Industries, the holding company of some of the Birla group of companies, is raising Rs 1,000 crore by issuing commercial papers (CPs), a type of short-term corporate bonds, the company told the exchanges on Tuesday.

According to company sources, Pilani Investment, controlled by Kumar Mangalam Birla with a 59% shareholding, the fund-raising is aimed at investing in group companies, including to increase stakes in those entities.

The shareholding of Pilani Investment has been a matter of litigation for about two decades as Birlas are at loggerheads with Harsh Lodha, whose father was bequeathed a substantial stake by a Birla family heir.