Weaver Services, a platform backed by Indian private equity major Gaja Capital, is in the final stages of acquiring a majority stake in a mortgage lender owned by the Centrum Group for Rs 600 crore ($68.3 million), The Economic Times reported on Friday.
Weaver Services, founded by former HDFC executives including its M&A head Satrajit Bhattacharya, will acquire 75% of Centrum Housing Finance for Rs 600 crore, multiple people close to the discussions told ET. This puts the enterprise valuation of the mortgage lender at Rs 800 crore, about twice the company’s adjusted net worth.
Centrum Capital owns 56.39% in Centrum Housing Finance, while its associate companies and employees own another 18.62%. Morgan Stanley PE owns the balance 24.99%.
Weaver will acquire the stakes owned by the Jaspal Bindra-led Centrum group, whereas Morgan Stanley PE will retain its existing holding. Consequently, Weaver Services will become the largest shareholder in Centrum Housing Finance.
Centrum Housing Finance’s assets under management stood at around Rs 1,600 crore. It is present across 96 locations and has more than 10,000 customers. It operates in the affordable housing space in tier 2 and 3 cities, the report said.
ET in October last year wrote that Centrum was negotiating with five-six investors for the sale. That time, it was looking for a higher valuation for the company — at 3x multiples of its net worth of Rs 450 crore.
