January 29, 2000
The Economic Times

IMO to invest $10 m for Service Network

IMO Communications Pvt. Ltd., which has just launched its business-to-business (B2B) infomediary, www.indiamarkets.com, plans to invest $10 million over the next one year. These funds will be used for setting up a nation-wide sales and customer service network, brand building and business development in the short term, according to Mr. Rohan Ajila, Managing Director, IMO Communications.

The website's main investment partner is EM Warburg, Pincus & Co. LLC (Warburg), which has made investments of $ 7 billion globally and has investible funds of $ 5 billion said Mr. Ajila. But, he refused to reveal Warburg's stake in the company as well as how the $10 million will be raised due to NDA (non-disclosure agreement) clause between shareholders.

Warburg, a major international private fund has investments in companies like Rediff.com, Bharti Televentures, HDFC, Nicholas Piramal and UTV.

Indiamarkets has tied up with bplnet.com to be an integral part of BPL's strategic initiatives. It has also jointly developed the industry specific content hosted on the website with the market research and industrial consultancy firm, Feedback Marketing Services, said Mr. Ajila. More such strategic tie-ups will be made by the company in future he added. indiamarkets offers a range of services, especially for the SMEs (small & medium enterprises) like supplier listings, auctions for surplus inventory, used machinery and industrial assets. The site will provide a comprehensive range of web-enabled business solutions to promote business between potential trading partners.