Kotak

Kotak Investment Banking is a subsidiary of Kotak Mahindra Bank Limited, one of India’s leading banking and financial services organizations with a consolidated net worth of Rs 11,893 crore (approx US$ 2.4 billion) as on September 30, 2011.

Kotak Investment Banking offers the complete breadth and depth of high-quality financial advisory services and capital market solutions to domestic and multinational clients across sectors. Our services include Equity and Debt Capital Market issuances, M&A Advisory, Private Equity Advisory, Restructuring and Recapitalization services, and Infrastructure Advisory & Fund Mobilization. The firm has a deep understanding and strong domain knowledge of all major industry sectors through a team of dedicated sector experts.

Our key strengths include:

• A solid reputation for unmatched advisory services and deal execution skills, which is reflected in our continued leadership on the league tables for both Equity offerings and M&A transactions
• An in-depth understanding of the local market and intimate knowledge of industry verticals through dedicated sector experts
• Our values focused on maintaining the highest ethical standards and our approach in always keeping our clients’ interests first
• The ability to leverage the Group’s intellectual capital and wide-ranging experience to customize innovative solutions for our clients
• Strong relationships with all the leading business houses in India cultivated through several years of client servicing

Kotak Investment Banking affiliates in USA and UK were the first Indian owned companies to register with FINRA (formerly NASD) in the US and the Financial Services Authority (FSA) in the UK. The firm is also a member of the National Stock Exchange of India, wherein it executes, clears and settles cash, futures and options transactions for clients.

Leadership Team

Falguni Nayar
Managing Director

As the Managing Director of Kotak Investment Banking, Falguni oversees the firm’s activities in equity raising, private equity placements, M&A and corporate advisory. She also oversees the firm’s Institutional Equities business. Falguni joined the Kotak Mahindra Group in 1993 and was instrumental in setting up Kotak Mahindra (UK) Limited, followed by Kotak Mahindra Inc., US in 1997. Falguni holds a Masters degree in Management from the Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad where she majored in Finance. Falguni received the FICCI Ladies Organisation (FLO) award for top woman achiever in the field of banking. She is a founding member of the Asia Society in India.
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S Ramesh
Chief Operating Officer

Ramesh is the Chief Operating Officer and a board member of Kotak Investment Banking. He joined the Kotak Mahindra Group in 1995 and currently heads the financing business at the investment bank. Ramesh has extensive experience in handling capital market transactions and has been closely involved in a number of landmark initiatives in the capital markets business. He has an in-depth understanding of the regulatory framework for capital markets designed by the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) and the stock exchanges. Ramesh is a chartered accountant (ACA, ACS, Grad CWA).
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Sourav Mallik
Senior Executive Director – M&A

Sourav Mallik is a specialist in M&A advisory, deal structuring, restructuring, valuations, JVs and India entry services. With over 16 years’ experience, Sourav has advised a range of clients on their growth strategies, M&A and restructuring plans. He is also very familiar with the regulatory framework for M&A (including cross-border M&A). Sourav’s outbound M&A expertise has been built by liaising with international investment banks across Japan, Western Europe and UK, and he is currently working on many initiatives covering these geographies. Sourav was a member of the SEBI’s Takeover Regulations Advisory Committee, which recommended a new set of Takeover Regulations for Indian listed companies in 2010. He is an Engineer (IIT, Delhi) and MBA (IIM, Ahmedabad).
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Chetan Savla
Senior Executive Director & Head of Corporate Advisory Group

Chetan Savla is part of the leadership team with oversight responsibility for origination and execution of all Investment Banking products across sectors. He additionally spearheads a number of large client relationships. Chetan joined the Kotak Mahindra Group in 1994 and during this time has worked extensively on equity capital market and advisory services. Chetan has worked on the development of some of the most path breaking innovations in the Indian capital markets including the introduction of book building in public offers and the introduction of Qualified Institutional Placements in India. He also has in-depth healthcare sector experience. Chetan is a post graduate from the Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad.
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V Jayasankar
Senior Executive Director & Head of Equity Capital Markets

Jayasankar has been with the Kotak Mahindra Group for 15 years and has worked in diverse areas within the investment bank encompassing Private Equity, Capital Markets and M&A. He set up the technology sector practice at Kotak between the years 2000 and 2005, during which period he helped to establish Kotak as the dominant player. Subsequently, he was responsible for setting up the Financial Sponsors Group in 2006 and has since played an instrumental role in Kotak emerging as a leading player in the private equity business. In 2010, Jayasankar was appointed to lead the Equity Capital Markets team. Jayasankar is an Engineer (IIT, Madras) and MBA (IIM, Bangalore) with a total work experience of over 19 years in financial advisory.
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Sanjay Sethi
Senior Executive Director & Head of Infrastructure Group

Sanjay joined Kotak Investment Banking in 2007 to set-up the firm’s infrastructure practice and now leads a team of experienced infrastructure investment banking professionals. The team provides the entire gamut of equity, debt, M&A and advisory solutions to public and private sector corporates engaged in infrastructure development across the country. Sanjay has over 23 years of experience in Corporate and Project Finance, Project Development, Project Advisory and Resource Raising across infrastructure sectors like power, telecommunications, highways, seaports, airports, railways and SEZs. He is a member of CII’s National Committee on Transport Infrastructure, CII’s Core Group on Roads and Highways and the Indo-UK Core Group on PPP in Infrastructure.
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Shefali Shah
Senior Executive Director & Head of Financial Sponsors Group

Shefali joined Kotak Investment Banking in 2011. She heads the Financial Sponsors Group (FSG) where she spearheads transactions involving leading private equity and hedge funds. Shefali also oversees a number of large client relationships in the Automobiles & Auto Components, Engineering and Industrials sectors. Shefali has over 23 years of experience in investment banking and management consulting. Prior to joining Kotak, Shefali was with Rabo India Finance Limited, where she headed the M&A division. She has also previously worked with BNP Paribas as Country Head – Investment Banking and Ernst & Young in their Corporate Advisory Services team. She started her career with DSP Merrill Lynch.

Devyani Khanvilkar
Executive Director

Devyani Khanvilkar is based out of Bangalore and is responsible for the entire South India region. She also closely covers the Construction, Logistics, Transportation, Consumer and Retail sectors. With over 17 years of experience in investment banking, Devyani has advised a wide range of clients on their growth & funding strategies and M&A plans. Devyani is focused on both financing and M&A advisory and her strength lies in the diverse experience she brings across products for clients. Prior to joining Kotak Investment Banking in 2005, she had a long stint with DSP Merrill Lynch. Devyani has completed her MBA and has a background in commerce and taxation.