Mumbai, Aug. 31: The New York-headquartered investment and technology development firm DE Shaw Group may pick up a 14.99 per cent stake in the Mumbai-based Crest Animation Studios and up to 26 per cent in Crest’s subsidiary Rich Crest Holdings Inc for an investment of $40 million.
A Crest statement said, “Subject to shareholder approval, DE Shaw will hold a 14.99 per cent stake in the company. In addition, the agreement sanctions 0 per cent coupon finance for production of animated feature films.”
The investment in Crest is proposed to fund the ongoing expansion and upgradation of Crest’s 3-D animation facilities and to meet the long-term working capital requirements of the business. The investment in the subsidiary will fund the requirements of RichCrest Animation Inc, which is involved in the 3D animated movies business.
“This is basically a preferential allotment. We will present this proposal to the shareholders in our AGM soon. This should be seen more as an announcement,” A.K. Madhavan, CEO of Crest Animation, told The Telegraph.
“DE Shaw has understood the potential of 3-D animation in India and the significant global opportunities for Crest. The proposed investment is tailored to enable Crest and its subsidiaries to build a powerful presence in the 3-D animation business worldwide, across the formats of television, DVD and feature films,” said Seemha Ramanna, MD of Crest Animation Studios. Crest has garnered revenues of Rs 5.1 crore for the quarter ended June 30 against Rs 7.2 crore in the year-ago period.
