Yoga guru-turned entrepreneur Baba Ramdev's Patanjali Ayurved hired two investment banks to raise money worth Rs 1,000 crore.
"The discussions assume significance since this is for the first time since its founding in 2007 that Patanjali is exploring an equity-linked fund-raise option," Mint reported quoting sources.
The Mint report stated that one of the two investment banks is a Hyderabad-based boutique firm specializing in the consumer packaged goods segment.
Earlier in August, Patanjali expressed its intention to raise fund worth around Rs1,000 crore for its expansion plans. But the Haridwar-based group has rejected offers earlier, including from private equity funds, to sell equity stakes.
Recently, in an exclusive interview to news portal Moneycontrol, Patanjali's Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Acharya Balkrishna ruled out an initial public offering in the near future.
"If we go for an IPO, it is natural for an investor to expect returns on his investment. If we don't meet his expectations and sentiments, we would end up hurting them. And if we meet them, we may face difficulty in having the peace with which we are doing our work, the fun and the free spirit with which are carrying out our work. That's what we feel and hence there is no plan for an IPO," he told the news portal, while explaining the reason to keep the company private.
Currently, the company has 50 manufacturing units and it is planning to scale up production at its existing facilities in Maharashtra, Assam, Andhra Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand, a company spokesperson told BloombergQuint in August.
"The investment banks have also been asked to explore possible investment structures that suit long-term capital needs of the group. Discussions are at an exploratory stage presently, but the company wants to tie up the funding in the next few months," Mint quoted one of the sources as saying.
Boasting the "swadeshi" sentiment, the firm has became the country's one the fastest growing consumer goods company. Patanjali group announced a 111% rise in revenue, to Rs 10,561 crore in financial year 2016-17.
In the recent past, Patanjali announced selling of garments and jeans in an attempt to diversify the business. At the same time the firm has also tied up with social media giants like Google and Facebook to market the brand on a digital platform.
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