TVS eyes Avendus Capital to expand financial services

TVS Credit has joined the race for KKR-backed investment bank Avendus Capital as part of its strategy to expand the group's financial services business, three people with knowledge of the development said.

- Ranjani Raghavan, Sneha Shah & Satish John

The financial services arm of the Chennai-based conglomerate has held several rounds of discussions in the last six months ahead of a likely bid, the people cited above said on the condition of anonymity. US private equity firm KKR & Co. has been looking to find a buyer for Avendus Capital for over a year.

TVS Group may acquire Avendus and keep it as a standalone entity within the group, or make an acquisition through TVS Credit, one of the two people cited above said on the condition of anonymity.

"The group is well-funded and can pull this off through internal accruals, if need be. It does not need to partner with anyone," the person said. If needed, TVS may raise debt at a later stage.

Others expected to submit binding bids for Avendus include Nomura Holdings, Mizuho Financial Services and US buyout firm Carlyle, previous reports have said. KKR had appointed Nomura to find a buyer over a year ago, but the Japanese investment bank recused itself, given its own interest in Avendus. Later, KKR named Rothschild as investment banker.