10% stake in Haldiram for USD 10 billion, Singapore firm seeks CCI nod – The Tribune-OxBig News Network

Singapore’s sovereign wealth fund Temasek Holdings has begun process to acquire about 10 per cent stake in India’s largest packed snack and sweets company and restaurant operator Haldiram Snacks Food through its arm Jongsong Investments Pte at a valuation of USD 10 billion, for which it has sought approval from the Competition Commission of India (CCI).

The agreement between Temasek and Haldiram came after months of negotiations as several PE firms, including Blackstone, Alpha Wave Global and Bain Capital-led consortiums, were in the race to pick up a stake in the Indian snack and sweets giant.

Besides, the Agarwal family, promoters of Haldiram Snacks Food, it is learnt, is also looking for another investor for selling some more stake in the company which had a revenue of over Rs 12,500 crore in last fiscal.

In a notice submitted to the CCI, both the parties said the proposed transaction entails the acquisition of less than 10 per cent of the issued and paid-up equity share capital of the target (Haldiram Snacks Food Pvt Ltd) and the transaction is in the nature of an acquisition of shares, voting rights and falls under section 5 of the Competition Act, 2002.

Asserting that the proposed transaction does not give rise to any competition law concerns irrespective of the manner in which the markets are defined, the parties — Jongsong Investments and Haldiram Snacks Foods – suggested to consider the relevant markets as the broader market for the manufacturing and the sale of packaged food products in India to assist the CCI in its assessment.