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Non-Tech : ICICI Ltd - (Nyse: IC) -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Mohan Marette who wrote (258)	2/27/2000 6:50:00 PM
From: Mohan Marette	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 494

ICICI's stake in PlanetAsia = 12% Planetasia pens global thrust, plans IPO (Monday, February 28, 2000) K Giriprakash in Banglore Planetasia.com has announced plans to become an international player by forging alliances with global players even as its valuation has touched $100 million within three years of its inception. The company is also set to wrap up its third round of funding worth around $6 million. Also on the horizon is an IPO which is expected to be floated in the next few quarters. "The plans (for an IPO) are not frozen yet but an IPO will help us access funds abroad and our valuation will certainly go up," Planetasia.com Ltd president Anand Sudarshan told Business Standard. Planetasia, a group company of Microland, is one of the leading IPS (Internet professional services) providers in the world. Sudarshan said once the third round of funding is tied up, two more equity partners will come on board which would lead to changes in the equity pattern. While the main promoters, Microland will hold around 33 per cent, other partners will hold around 50 per cent, while the rest will be with employees. During round 1, ICICI Venture came on board by picking up around 12 per cent stake in the company for around $750,000. In the second round, Chase Capital Partners picked up around 34 per cent stake in the company for around $2 million while two new unnamed equity partners are picking up around 5 per cent for around $6 million. Sudarshan said as and when an IPO is floated, the company's valuation will automatically go up. According to independent analysts, the company's current valuation is around $100 million. Sudarshan said even the stocks allotted will have real value and the company will be able to access funds abroad. Unveiling IPS (Internet professional services) major's plans, Sudarshan said the company hopes to earn $ 50 million revenue in three years and in another five years, between $120 million and $150 million. During the current financial year, Planetasia is expected to end the year with $2.2 million in revenue. He said since September, 1999, the company has been posting profits on a month-to-month basis. Sudarshan said the company plans to set up another office in the US which would most probably be in the west coast and two more offices either in Hong Kong, Singapore or London. He said by March 2000, Planetasia will enter into strategic alliances with two more global giants. It already has alliances with Intel, Microsoft and IBM. It already has 11 international clients. He said the company was strong in five segments which include, business-to-business e-commerce solutions, business-to consumer e-commerce solutions, portals, brands on the web, application service provider solutions, knowledge management solutions and after market services. After-market services consists of strategic advice services and search engine optimization which enhances the value of their web solutions. Sudarshan said in the high value segment, the company was hired for strategy consulting for one of India's largest supermarket chains and in the financial services, it has worked with online brokerage houses to develop solutions for online trading. In the media segment, Planetasia has carried out strategy consulting projects for five leading publication houses and is currently developing portals for three other clients. -Business Standard