International Herald Tribune – While driving from the main airport in Mumbai to the city center, one can’t help but notice that most billboards that dot the skyline aren’t advertising soap, clothes or washing machines. They are hawking investments.
Gitanjali Gems, for one, is advertising its $75 million initial public offering. The diamond retailer wants to expand its sales network in India and open a jewelry design center in China.
Union Bank of India, a state-run lender that needs capital from local investors to meet increasing demand in loan growth, might as well take down its advertisements: Its $112 million initialpublic offering was sold out on day one of the offer last week.
A number of mutual funds, too, are clamoring for attention. Standard Chartered is raising money for its Imperial Equity Fund, which will invest in India’s “outstanding companies.” KotakLifestyle Fund promises to invest in companies that are likely to benefit from “changing lifestyles and rising consumerism in India.”
Mumbai, India’s financial capital formerly known as Bombay, appears to have plenty of room for anyone who has a hope or hype to sell. Never mind if the Mumbai Sensex, the benchmark of 30 bluestof blue chips, is as expensive now as the Dow Jones industrial average on the basis of price-earnings multiples.
