BACK PAGE | PAGE 20 COMPANIES | PAGE 4 IMF bailout to Pak ‘nothing less than terror funding’: Rajnath INTERNATIONAL | PAGE 7 ReNew starts work on mega `22,000-cr project inAndhra CHENNAI/KOCHI, SATURDAY, MAY 17, 2025 Russia, Ukraine hold first talks in 3 years inTurkey FOLLOW US ON TWITTER & FACEBOOK. APP AVAILABLE ON APP STORE & PLAYSTORE WWW.FINANCIALEXPRESS.COM READ TO LEAD VOL NO. XLVI 9, 30 PAGES, `12 P U B L I S H E D F R O M : A H M E D A B A D , B E N G A L U R U , C H A N D I G A R H , C H E N N A I , H Y D E R A B A D , K O C H I , K O L K ATA , L U C K N O W, M U M B A I , N E W D E L H I , P U N E SENSEX: 82,330.59 ▼ 200.15 NIFTY: 25,019.80 ▼ 42.30 NIKKEI 225: 37,753.72 ▼ 1.79 HANG SENG: 23,345.05 ▼ 108.11 `/$: 85.52 ▲ 0.03 `/€: 95.74 ▲ 0.10 BRENT: $64.72 ▲ $0.19 GOLD: `92,708 ▲ `688 its partnership 'provides multiple benefits to Indian travellers' Continued on Page 10 ● PREMIERS OFALBANIA, ITALYMEETATEUROPEAN SECURITYSUMMIT Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama welcomes his Italian counterpart Giorgia Meloni to Tirana, Albania, on Friday, ahead of a summit where the leaders of 47 European countries and organisations discussed security and defence against the backdrop of Russia's war on Ukraine. The leaders agreed with Ukraine’s president that Russia's position in peace talks was ‘unacceptable’ AP Driving new Kia Carens Clavis to some unexplored places north of Bengaluru. ■ MOTOBAHN, P9 FY25 tax returns: Split capital gains based on date of sale Bifurcate sale before and after July 23, 2024 ■ PERSONAL FINANCE, P9 Search funds adopt model that offers low-risk path to owning & scaling existing businesses Entrepreneurshipthroughacquisitiontakesroot S SHANTHI Bengaluru, May 16 A NEW BUSINESS model — entrepreneurship through acquisition — is beginning to gain traction in the Indian startup landscape.Known as search funds, they are popular in countriessuchastheUS,Spain,Brazil and Japan, but are now drawing the attention of Indian professionals. Instead of building a company from scratch, search funds are in the business of buying existing profitable companies. While the model is still nascent in India,early signs point to a growing movement. According to industry sources,there are currentlyaround 10 search funds in India,with three actively searching, three raising capital,and fourpreparing to begin their capital raise soon. Anurag Sinha, founder and managing partner, Milestone Search Capital, who has served as the CEO of a profitable mid-sized company and previously led the READYMADE OPPORTUNITY ■ Search funds buy existing profitable companies instead of building one from scratch ■ Entrepreneurs first raise funds to support the search process. Once a business is acquired, the entrepreneur usually becomes the CEO & investors co-owners ■ India currently has around 10 search funds, according to industry sources banquets and weddings vertical at hospitalitymajorOyo,is among the early adopters of the search fund model in the country. His firm, Milestone Search Capital, is currentlyintheprocessofidentifyinga suitable companyto acquire.Under this model, entrepreneurs, known as‘searchers’, first raise funds from high-networth individuals,institu- ■ Globally, search funds have seen rising adoption over the past few years. ■ As per IESE’s 2024 study, 121 of 320 international search funds were either actively seeking an acquisition or raising capital at the end of 2023 tional investors,orventure capitalists to support the search process. Once a suitable business is found, theentrepreneuracquiresit,usually becoming the CEO and taking full charge of operations.The investors thenco-ownthebusinessalongside thesearcher,hopingtobenefitfrom its scaled-up success. Search funds typically aim to acquire businesses that are already stable,withrecurringrevenue,strong customerloyalty,and limited capital requirements for growth.According to Vikram Gupta,founder and managing partner at IvyCap Ventures, theseparametersmakesearchfunds particularly attractive to investors. “VCs prefer models where risks are mitigated.Inthiscase,thebusinessis already at a certain maturity level, with a customer base and functioning team.So,the early-stage risks are largelyavoided,” he said. The model is also drawing interest from seasoned operators like Rehan Netarwala, founder of Okintek Capital. Having built Savage & Palmer, an outsourced accounting firm serving over 500 Indian SMEs, Netarwala was looking for his next move and found search funds to be an ideal convergence of investing and operating. Okintek Capital has raised a `200crore fund to acquire a high-quality SME and counts among its investors institutional backers, seasoned CEOs,family offices,and global search fund leaders. For investors,search funds offer aflexibleapproach.Thereisnoneed to commit a fixed cheque from the outset.Instead,theypledge a range, and capital is drawn only once a suitable acquisition is found. Continued on Page 10 26.4 22.1 14.3 18.0 bestweeklygainintwomonths,while the BSE Smallcap soared 9.21%, markingitsbiggestweeklyriseinfive years (since April 12, 2020). Both May 16, 2025 ■ IndiGo says Top 10 - weekly investors wealth gain (in ` lakh crore) Mar 21, 2025 has codeshare deal for crossairline ticket booking with Turkish Airlines IT WAS A week equity investors wouldnotforgetinahurry.Investor wealth shot up `26.4 lakh crore — the highest ever weekly rise — with as much as 60% of the gains coming on Monday alone. Thiswasonthebackofasharprise in benchmark and broader indices. TheSensexjumped2,876.12points, or3.62%,tocloseat82,330.59,while the Nifty surged 1,011.80 points,or 4.21%, to end above the 25,000 mark at 25,019.80 — marking their bestweeklyperformanceinamonth. Broader markets significantly outperformedthebenchmarks.TheBSE Midcapindexrose6.87%,postingits Apr 17, 2025 ■ IndiGo also RIDING THE BULL WAVE Mar 07, 2025 two planes with pilots, crew to IndiGo to operate to Istanbul KISHOR KADAM Mumbai, May 16 14.2 ■ Turkish Airlines has provided At `26.48 lakh crore,biggest weeklygain in investorwealth Feb 05, 2021 BUSINESS BATTLE Continued on Page 6 14.0 “Mere rhetoric of national security without elaborating upon in what manner is an entity a threat to national security is unsustainable in law,” the company has said. It also pointed out that while its shareholders are based in Turkey, the controlling interests lie with entities that are not of Turkish origin. It pointed out that 65% of the company is owned by international institutional investors from regions including Canada, the US, the UK, Singapore, the UAE, and Western Europe. Continued on Page 10 countries that want to make a deal.” He didn’t say how many, or which, nationswould receive letters. Nov 29, 2024 ■ Since 2009, the company said, it has provided employment to over 10,000 Indians and invested over $250 mn here »INSIDE« In show of strong Trump-era ties, UAE to invest $1.4 trillion in US over 10 years Page 7 indicesrecordedgainsinallfivetrading sessions of theweek. Continued on Page 6 JSWPaints clinches AkzoNobel deal; stock rises over 3% VIVEAT SUSAN PINTO Mumbai, May 16 JSW PAINTS HAS sealed the deal to acquire a 75% stake in AkzoNobel India, the country’s fourth-largest paintsmaker,for`12,000crore($1.4 billion), informed sources have told FE.Anofficialannouncementislikely tobemadeasearlyasnextweek,with JSW Paints, an unlisted company, looking at a mix of internal accruals, debt and equity to fund the acquisition,persons in the knowsaid. AkzoNobelNV,theDutch parent ofAkzoNobelIndia, hadputits75% shareholding in the firm on the block, following a strategic review thatbeganinOctoberlastyear.Both AkzoNobel India and JSW Paints declinedcommentwhencontacted. However, in an exchange filing on Friday,AkzoNobel India said that it had not received any information from its parent firm about the portfolio review by it.Shares ofAkzoNobel India closed at `3,596.95, up 3.35% versus previous day’s close, on the BSE. Based on Friday’s close, the firm’s market capitalisation stood at `16,380.62 crore.“We do not have any information or announcement,which,in our opinioncouldexplainsuchmovementin tradinginthescripofthecompany,” the firm said in its exchange filing. Itsparent,AkzoNobelNV,issaidto have made up its mind aftermonths ofreview,whichsawmultipleplayers in the fray. In the end, only two bidderswereleftintherace—JSWPaints and Indigo-Advent — sources said. Valuations, which were initially pitched at `20,000-24,000 crore, have been halved in a rapidly evolving paints market,sources added. The Jindal family may bring in `2,000-3,000 crore to fund the deal after a proposed stake sale of 2% in JSWInfrastructure,sources said.The dealisexpectedtotriggerthemandatoryopenofferfortheremainingportion (25%) of the company. JSW CHENNAI/KOCHI ADDING COLOUR 3,596 May 16 (close) 3,480 May 15 (close) Akzo Nobel India 3.35% Akzo Nobel India consolidated financials Q4 FY24 (` crore) Revenue Ebitda Q4 FY25 y-o-y % chng 973 1,022 5.0 Net profit 107 112 -1.5 162 159 Aqueen’s temple and a rebel’s fort Istanbul-based company's consolidated revenue in 2024 came from its five Indian subsidiaries COMMERCE AND INDUSTRY MinisterPiyushGoyalwillkickstarthisUSvisitwithaseriesof meetings with the country’s political leadership dealing with trade-related matters, beginning Saturday. Detailed negotiations for the proposed bilateraltradeagreement(BTA) will start in a couple of days, reports Mukesh Jagota. Accordingtosources,Goyal will first meet US commerce secretaryHoward Lutnick and then US trade representative Jamieson Greer to take stock of the progress made in the BTA negotiations after the terms of reference were agreed to in March. ■ PAGE 2 13.7 FE S P E C I A L S ■ A third of the US PRESIDENT DONALD Trump said he would set tariff rates for US tradingpartners“overthenexttwoto three weeks,” saying his administration lacks the capacity to negotiate dealswith all of its trading partners. Trump said on Friday that treasury secretary Scott Bessent and commercesecretaryHowardLutnick “will be sending letters out essentially telling people”what“they’ll be paying to do business in the United States.”“Ithinkwe’regoingtobevery fair.But it’s not possible to meet the number of people that want to see us,”thepresidentsaidduringameeting with business executives in the UnitedArab Emirates. Trump asserted there are “150 I think we’re going to be very fair. But it’s not possible to meet...150 countries that want to make a deal May 17, 2024 AWAVE OF secondary share sales in India, driven by a rebound in local equities, is pushing the deal volume to the highest level in nearly nine months. Block deals this week exceeded $1.6 billion, the biggest amount since late August, reports Bloomberg. ■ PAGE 6 TURKEY-BASED AVIATION GROUND handling company Celebi on Friday moved the Delhi High Court against the government’s decision to revoke its security clearance, calling it vague and legally unsustainable. The move comesamidrisingpoliticaltensions between India and Turkey over the latter’s vocal support for Pakistan since Operation Sindoor. TheBureauofCivilAviationSecurity(BCAS)hadonThursdayrevoked the security clearance of Celebi Airport Services India, citing national security concerns. The action followedincreasingpublicandpolitical pressure,with several voices calling for the company to be barred from operating in India due to Turkey’s perceived anti-India stance in the latest India-Pakistan conflict. Meanwhile,the Mumbai airport operator on Friday said IndoThai Airport Serviceswill be carrying out the ground handling works at the airport for three months. Celebi which operated at nine Indian airports including Mumbai, in its petition filed on Friday,stated that the government order was issued without warning or detailed reasoning. The company said the revocation directly affects nearly 3,800 jobs and could seriouslydent investor confidence in India’s aviation sector. It termed the government’sreasoningvagueandlacking anysubstantiveorspecificgrounds. ■ Celebi operated at nine Indian airports: Mumbai, Delhi, Kochi, Kannur, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Ahmedabad, Chennai, and Goa JENNIFER A DLOUHY May 16 Goyal in US for BTAtalks from today DONALD TRUMP, US PRESIDENT 13.4 Block trades hit nine-month high as stocks bounce back NITIN KUMAR New Delhi, May 16 IN THE CROSSFIRE rateswill be fixed in two-threeweeks May 20, 2022 URBAN COMPANY IS revising its approach to international growth by moving away from its earlier strategy of building operations independently in foreign markets, reports Anees Hussain. Its is now focusing on partnerships and platform integrations to sustain its presence outside India. ■ PAGE 4 security clearance is vague,mere rhetoric AIR INDIA HAS lobbied Indian officialstohaltrivalIndiGo’sleasingtieupwithTurkishAirlines,citing business impact as well as security concernssparkedbyTurkey’ssupport forPakistanduringthelatestconflict withIndia,accordingtoasourceand a document seen byReuters. Amid growing public anger in IndiaagainstTurkey’sstanceonPakistan, the government on Thursday revokedsecurityclearanceofTurkish groundhandlingservicefirm,Celebi, citing national security.Since 2023, IndiGo has had a leasing arrangementwith state-backedTurkishAirlines,which has provided two planes with pilots and some crew to IndiGo to operate on New Delhi- and Mumbai-to-Istanbul routes. Air India has asked the civil aviation ministry to disallow repeated extensions of the leasing deal,which must be renewed every six months, arguing it is benefiting Turkey and hurting India’s aviation sector, according to the source and a document Air India submitted to some Indian government departments. ● Trump says tax 12.6 Urban Company scales back direct global expansion ● Says order revoking ADITYA KALRA & ABHIJITH GANAPAVARAM New Delhi, May 16 Not possible to meet all: US to send tariff‘letters’to some Dec 6, 2024 HYUNDAI MOTOR INDIA on Friday reported a 3.7% yearon-year decline in its consolidated net profit for the January-March quarter at `1,614 crore, reports Nitin Kumar. Despite the dip, the automaker surpassed Bloomberg’s consensus profit estimate of `1,332 crore. ■ PAGE 4 Grounded by govt, Celebi moves court Air India up in arms over IndiGo’s Turkey ties 12.4 Hyundai posts 4% drop in profit, beats estimates INDOTHAIREPLACESTURKISHFIRMATMUMBAIAIRPORT Apr 10, 2020 IN THE NEWS 4.8 Ebitda margin (%) 16.6 15.6 Paints may use the reverse merger routetoacquireAkzoNobelIndia,the maker of Dulux brand. JSW Paints mayalsoacquiretheSriLankanoperationsofAkzoNobelinthefuture.The Dutch major operates its Sri Lankan unit via a joint venture with a local partner,sources said. TheAkzoNobeldeal willcatapult JSW Paints to the fourth position afterAsianPaints,BergerandKansai Nerolac, making it a formidable playerinthedomesticpaintsmarket valued at around `65,000 crore. Paintswillalsobecomethethirdpillar for the JSW Group after steel and cement,helping it to leverage dealer and distribution synergies.