The government is also taking initiatives to improve demand, reduce customer woes and moderate prices – Deep Kantawala, Group CFO and Head, ICS Real Estate Partners Private Limited

New Delhi, October 26, 2016: Deep Kantawala is a Chartered Accountant and holds a Bachelor’s degree in Commerce. He also has a professional diploma from the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors, United Kingdom (RICS). He has been with the ICS Group for the past 17 years and specializes in structuring cross-border transactions and risk management. In addition to his responsibilities as the Group CFO, he heads the Group’s asset management business. He is a member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India, Bombay Chartered Accountants Society and is an eminent member of RICS.

Abstract of an interview with Mr. Deep Kantawala

What is the core competence of ICSRE?

ICS Real Estate Partners Pvt. Ltd. (‘ICSRE’) is part of the ICS Group, a diversified business group with interests in real estate, hospitality, asset management and financial services. In partnership with International domain leaders, ICS has been operating complementing businesses of architectural designing, property development and management, asset management and parking management for over a decade. Recently, the group has also forayed in the hospitality sector.

At ICSRE, we leverage on the ICS group’s relationships with developers, land owners and institutional investors and develop optimum solutions to meet their needs- capital for growth, structured debt solutions, identifying investment opportunities or to assist in optimally monetizing assets.

• According to you what are the latest developments on Real Estate industry and- challenges and opportunities?

The Indian real estate sector has endured some rough waters over the past few years which have led to build-up in inventory levels particularly in the top 5-6 cities. However, I believe end-user interest is slowly creeping into the market on the back of stagnant prices, lower ticket size due to more mid-segment apartments and consistent fall in interest rates over the past 12-18 months. Preference, though, is still towards ready-to-move in projects which is also evident by a decline in the number of new launches in the top metros.

On the policy front, the government is also taking initiatives to improve demand, reduce customer woes and moderate prices. Prominent amongst these, are:-

– ‘Smart Cities Mission’ wherein the government’s decision to allot 48,000 Crores will give a much needed thrust to the urban development program of India. The list of first 20 cities identified under this mission includes a number of Tier II and III cities such as Bhubaneshwar, Jaipur, Ahmedabad, Kochi, Indore, amongst others.

– Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana which aims to provide affordable housing to the urban poor by 2022. The government has identified 2500+ cities and towns in 26 states to address the estimated housing shortage of over 20 million units.

– Union Budget 2016 announced 100% deduction on profits for housing projects building homes upto 60 sq. mtrs. (Outside metro cities) which is likely to spur the development of affordable housing.

– Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Act 2016 which is expected to make the sector more mature, accountable and transparent.

– The approval of the India BPO Promotion Scheme (IBPS) under the Digital India Programme will create employment opportunities and promotion of BPO/ITES operations across the country which will give a further boost to the real estate sector.

– The Make in India initiative has helped to accelerate leasing of commercial property by the manufacturing sector – two-fold increase in office transacted space registered in the first six months of 2016.

– Relaxation in FDI norms wherein, amongst other things, the requirements of a minimum project size have been waived, both in terms of area and capital. These relaxations make the entire real estate stock now accessible to foreign investors.

– GST bill is expected to give a further boost to the warehousing and logistics sector.

The developers on their part are also shifting gears and putting their house in order. The most marked change has been the shift from family owned businesses to that of professionally managed ones. They are also investing in centralized processes to source material and organize manpower, revamping their management reporting systems and hiring qualified professionals in areas like project management, architecture and engineering.

• In terms of positioning how is ICSRE different than other players in this segment?

Conventional investment bankers help in raising funds as per the requirements of the developer. However, we at ICSRE firstly get a better understanding of the project and the needs of the developer and thereafter devise an optimum solution by leveraging on the ICS Group’s in-depth understanding of the real estate sector. The investor also draws comfort from the fact that as a group we will continue to be involved in the project, which may not be the case with most other investment bankers.

• Tell us something about New deals/assignments?

Most recently, ICS Real Estate Partners Private Ltd (ICSRE), has acted as the sole advisor to Oorjita Projects Pvt Ltd, Hyderabad based real estate & construction group for its issue of INR 450 million of Secured Optionally Convertible Debentures (SOCDs) to ICICI Prudential Venture Capital Fund.

ICS Real Estate Partners (ICSRE) played an integral role in the entire transaction, right from conceptualizing the investment thesis, developing the detailed business plan, identifying and marketing to potential investors, transaction structuring and eventually, hand-holding the due diligence and documentation process. The funds raised will be utilized by Oorjita for completion of its shopping centre at Bhubaneshwar and a villa project at Hyderabad. Apart from this the company is currently involved in closing the legal documentation for transactions of approx. INR 3 billion in the Indian real estate space.

Corporate Comm India(CCI Newswire)