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Tata Finance eyeing strategic partner

Tata Finance Ltd is considering offering stake to a strategic partner, a source close to the group confirmed on Thursday.

The financial services company is part of the Tata group -- one of India's largest conglomerates.

The Economic Times earlier quoted Ishaat Hussain, chairman of Tata Finance, as saying talks were on with two or three firms for a partnership.

The source told Reuters that the Tata group was pumping in cash to recapitalise Tata Finance and could offer a stake to a partner.

The newspaper said the Tata group planned to invest Rs 2.5 billion to shore up Tata Finance's capital adequacy ratio to 12 per cent from the current five per cent. This follows a Rs 2.6 billion investment already made in the company, it said.

It also said Tata Finance planned to restructure, which included selling its peripheral credit card and home finance businesses, and stick to its core truck and automobile financing activities.

Tata Finance had a net loss of Rs 3.95 billion for the year ended June 30, largely as a result of a provisioning of Rs 3.15 billion for loans and investments in affiliate companies, the paper said.

It said Rs 2.67 billion was provisioned for Tata Finance's exposure to stock market trading firm Niskalp Investment and Trading Company.

The company's board had also being restructured, installing Ishaat Hussain as chairman in place of Freddie Mehta, it said.

Shares of Tata Finance closed down 6.47 per cent at Rs 18.80 at the Bombay Stock Exchange on Thursday while the benchmark exchange index ended up 1.93 per cent.

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