Foreign Funds in our Share Market

One address, 38 investors, all via Mauritius
Monday, December 28, 2009

J Gopikrishnan | New Delhi

The daily updated list of Foreign Venture Capital Investors (FVCI) registered with the Stock Exchange Board of India (SEBI) shows that out of the total 135 foreign companies, as many as 38 are Mauritius-based having same address, phone and fax numbers.

It is strange to note that these companies, which pump billions of dollars into Indian market, do not either need or cannot afford separate offices and business infrastructure.

The daily updated list, which exhibits the registered foreign investors from 2001, shows that these 38 companies address as: IFS Court, Twenty Eight Cybercity, Ebene, Mauritius. Tel: (230) 467 3000 Fax: (230) 467 4000. In fact, 2i Capital PCC is the first firm which was registered with the SEBI in 2001 on the above-mentioned address.

The scrutiny of the addresses leads to one International Financial Services in Mauritius. Apart from these 38 firms, another set of five FVCIs has also shown their address to ‘care of’ this Mauritian company, though the street is different.

According to the details provided by the website of International Financial Services, the company was founded in 1993 by one Kapil Dev Joory and Couldip Basanta Lala. The company also claims that they are administering the funds of financial majors like Lehman Bros, AIG, Citi Group, Merrill Lynch, New York Life, AMP etc.

The Mauritian firm also claims it is administering the funds of Indian companies like ICICI, HDFC, Tata Group, IL&FS and UTI. The company also claims it is a member-firm of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales.

The Pioneer had sent a set of questions on December 23 to SEBI Chairman CB Bhave to know how these companies were registered with the SEBI. But there has not been any response from him so far.

As per the claims of SEBI guidelines and circulars, a FVCI has to undergo a series of scrutiny under several committees, including the Reserve Bank of India, to get it registered. But the question remains how the SEBI approved 38 companies from Mauritius with the same address, phone, fax numbers.

The scrutiny of the SEBI's list gives some more interesting information. Out of the 135 registered FVCIs, pouring billions of dollars into India, barring two each from Singapore and Cyprus, rest are from Mauritius.

Following is the list of the 38 companies with same address:

2i Capital PCC, Aditi Investment Holdings Limited, Advantage Fund S3 DIF II, AIF III Sub Pvt. Ltd, AMIF II Ltd, AOF HS Mauritius Ltd, Aquarius Capital (Mauritius) Limited, Ares Investments, Ashoka Investment Holdings Ltd, Battery Venture VII Mauritius, Battery Ventures VIII FVCI (Mauritius), Canaan VII Mauritius, Canaan VIII Mauritius, Citigroup Venture Capital International Mauritius Ltd, CV Global Holdings Inc, CVCIGP II Client Ebene Limited, CVCIGP II Employee Ebene Limited, DFJ Mauritius Inc, Dynamic India Fund V, Greylock (Mauritius) Inc, Hema CGPE Ltd, Hema CiPEF Ltd, IDFC Private Equity (Mauritius) Fund III, Jafco Asia Technology Investments IV (Mauritius) Limited, JAFCO Asia Technology Investments III (Mauritius), LB Ventures (Mauritius) Ltd, Monet Limited, Nea FVCI Ltd, Nea Indo US Venture Capital, Norwest Venture Partners X - Mauritius, NYLIM Jacob Ballas India (FVCI) III LLC, Renoir Limited, Sandstone Private Investments, Sequoia Capital GF IV Mauritius, Sequoia Capital India Growth Investment Holdings II, Tano Mauritius, Walden Investments VI, Zephyr - Peacock India-I.

The above article was published in the Pioneer of 28th December, 2009.
Almost 75 days have passed but we see no reaction from either the government of the opposition.
The government we understand for they are steeped in corruption and would do anything to raise the Sensex so that they can brag about it.
But the opposition, ie the BJP and CPM keeping quiet surprises me.
Are they the owners of the money which comes in through the fund.
Thay would explain it.
The congress keeps quiet as they want the Sensex to rise.
The others keep mum because it is their money.
Of course, it does not preclude the possibility of the congress too owning part of the money.
As I have been saying, the whole lot of then are corrupt, irrespective of the party.
They shoull all be swept aside and swami Ramdeo should be handed the reins.