VENTURE CAPITAL POST

Burger King Worldwide Inc. formed a joint venture with Bertrand Holding Co. and Naxicap Partners to open new stores in France in the first half of next year. Burger King returned to the country last year, opening three stores with Italian restaurant operator Autogrill.

Indian e-commerce company Yebhi.com is looking to raise USD30 million to USD50 million from venture capital firms. If successful, Yebhi.com will follow leading online retailer Flipkart, which raised USD360 million.

US-based generic drug manufacturer Mylan and two Indian pharmaceutical firms are in talks to buy Chennai-based Bafna Pharmaceuticals for an undisclosed amount, according to two sources familiar with the transaction.

Ramot Tel Aviv University Ltd secured USD17 million in funding for its Technology Innovation Momentum Fund, which will invest in breakthrough technologies in various industries.

For Indian investors comfortable with the risks of investing in small and mid-cap stocks, a report from The Economic Times gives reasons why now would be a good time to invest in this segment.

Blackstone Group, the second biggest realty firm in India, may soon replace DLF as the top real estate developer with its series of acquisitions in the country.

Following a nuclear deal reached in Geneva, the European Union has removed the ban on insuring tankers transporting Iranian oil. The EU also agreed to release USD4.2 billion in frozen oil assets and permit Iranian crude exports to continue at its current levels.

A survey taken by professional services company Ernst & Young has shown that India has toppled China from the top spot as the world's most attractive destination for investments.

In a report, the Business Standard said private equity firms are a significant contribution to the consolidation of IT services and BPO sector in India. There were five private equity transactions closed this year that totaled USD1.13 billion in value.

Strategic investors were said to be in discussions to buy a majority stake in Vasan Healthcare, which operates eye care hospitals and dental centers in India.

A Business Standard report said impact investors and social entrepreneurs in India are now concentrating their investments on the urban poor market. These social ventures have been steadily gaining ground with investors providing seed and early stage capital.

Burger King Worldwide said that it has inked a joint venture partnership with South Asian private equity firm Everstone Group to bring the hamburger restaurant chain in India.

The Future Group was reportedly negotiating a takeover of the Bangalore-based supermarket chain Nilgiris. British private equity firm Actis Capital bought Nilgiris for USD65 million and currently owns 65% of the company.

Bank of America Merrill Lynch or BofAML has topped Citibank and Morgan Stanley in executing deals in India for the past 11 months, completing transactions worth USD 7.96 billion.

India's Department of Disinvestment, which oversees the divestment of ownership stakes of the state of India in several companies, were pushing for a float to happen to capitalize on the rally of stocks on the financial bourse.