Goldman Sachs hikes stake in Country Club to 8.3%

Foreign fund house Goldman Sachs Investments (Mauritius) has raised its stake in the leisure infrastructure firm Country Club India to 8.3 per cent through conversion of global depositary receipts (GDRs) into shares of the company. In a disclosure to the Bombay Stock Exchange, Country Club India said Goldman Sachs Investments (Mauritius) has received 51 lakh shares, representing 6.59 per cent stake in the company, through conversion of GDRs.
Prior to this transaction, Goldman Sachs Investments had a 1.71 per cent stake in the company. Post conversion, the Mauritius-based firm now holds 8.3 per cent stake in Country Club India.
On Monday, shares of Country Club closed at Rs 12.88, up 4.97 per cent on the BSE.

Goldman Seeks New Stock Sale

Goldman Sachs Group Inc., riding a rising market, is considering making a multibillion-dollar offering of its shares to investors as part of an effort to repay a $10 billion government loan, according to people familiar with the matter.
The move, which could be announced as early as next week, comes as the firm prepares to report solid first-quarter earnings Tuesday. Goldman executives haven't determined the exact size of the offering, but it is expected to be at least several billion dollars, these people say. They caution a final decision isn't made, and will be based partly on market conditions

In October, the Treasury Department forced the nation's largest banks, including those that didn't need additional capital, to take government funds. Goldman received $10 billion. The view was that infusing all banks with capital would help shore up the financial sector more quickly and avoid tarring some banks as weak.
But stock markets now have risen for five consecutive weeks, and shares of financial firms have helped lead the rally. Thursday, Goldman's shares rose $9.58 a share, or 8%, to $124.33 on the New York Stock Exchange, and are trading at their highest level since October.
Repaying the government is favored by Goldman's employees, eager for the paydays of the past; by investors, who applauded the firm's finance chief when he made the suggestion; and its executives, who believe the government's role will make it harder for the firm to compete.
Goldman has weathered the mortgage meltdown better than many rivals; it holds about $111 billion in cash and cash-equivalent securities. Goldman executives privately say the firm doesn't need new capital to pay back the loan but doing so would signal its financial health.

Goldman snaps up 5% in IL&FS arm

Goldman Sachs will pick up a 5 per cent stake in IL&FS Transportation Networks Ltd, a subsidiary of Infrastructure Leasing & Financial Services Ltd. Sources said Goldman Sachs would route the investment through its Mauritius-based wholly owned subsidiary — GS Strategic Investment Ltd. GS Strategic Investment will acquire 83.30 lakh shares of IL&FS Transportation, comprising 5.13 per cent of the equity, for Rs 83 crore.

(Source: indiape.com)