Canadian billionaire Prem Watsa-owned Fairfax India Holdings has entered into an agreement to acquire a 51% stake in Kerala-based Catholic Syrian Bank for an estimated Rs 1,200 crores ($186m) through a full equity infusion, as reported by The Economic Times and Mint. The deal, subject to shareholder and regulatory approvals, is expected to close in the first half of 2018, paving way for the first acquisition of an Indian bank by a foreign non-banking financial entity.

AZB & Partners advised the wholly-owned subsidiary of Fairfax India Holdings, FIH Mauritius Investments in the transaction, led by partners Ashwin Ramanathan and Roxanne Anderson.

One of the oldest private sector banks in India, the Thissur-headquartered Catholic Syrian Bank was established in the year 1920 and has a significant presence in Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, and Maharashtra, serving over 1.5 million customers ranging from small and medium enterprises to retail clients, and non-resident Indians. It was also reported that the current investment from Fairfax will help in giving a substantial boost to the various initiatives the bank had taken in the past few years to reinvent itself in the highly competitive banking space.

2018-02-21

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