Author Archives: Rachna Ranjan

Office space for IT industry doubles this year, a 25-year record

In an indication of the city’s growing clout as a major IT hotspot in the country, Hyderabad has seen a record absorption of 6 million square foot of office space by the IT industry alone in 2016, Telangana IT secretary Jayesh Ranjan said here on Wednesday.

“In terms of growth there is one indicator that we generally do not speak about, but it is worth mentioning that in this calendar year… from January till now, Hyderabad has seen a consumption of 6 million square foot of IT space. This is a record because never before in the last 25 years did we consume more than 3 million square foot in any given year,” Ranjan said while addressing IT honchos of the city during the Hyderabad Software Enterprises Association’s (HYSEA) silver jubilee celebrations here.

PE investments in real estate set to touch $7.2 billion in 2016

In the first nine months of 2016, private equity funds committed $4.2 billion to real estate, an increase of 20% from the same period last year. Private equity (PE) investment in real estate is estimated to touch $7.2 billion this year, up 53% from 2015, as both residential and office assets continue to generate interest among domestic and foreign investors, according to a report by global real estate consultancy firm Cushman & Wakefield and the Global Real Estate Institute.

Demand from commercial sector to drive turnkey solutions market

Companies are focussing on their workspace design to increase employee satisfaction, boost productivity and provide a comfortable working environment. With the steady growth in the demand from commercial real estate, the interior turnkey solution market has witnessed a progressive trend in their sector. As commercial space demand surges, the sector is expected to further witness a tremendous opportunity to leverage in coming years.

“Today, various start-ups, collaborative workspaces and other offices, be it an established business or a new company opt for complete fit-out services. As one-stop solution overcomes the hassle of limited time constraint, Turnkey is a perfect solution for all commercial interiors problems,” says Umesh Rao, Founder & CEO, Vector Projects (I) Pvt. Ltd.

Banks at Risk From Post-Brexit Property Turbulence, BOE Says

Falling commercial real estate prices after the U.K.’s vote to leave the European Union pose a threat to bank stability because of the market’s reliance on foreign capital, Bank of England said.

Values have declined 2.6 percent since the referendum and may drop further from their current high levels, according to the central bank’s twice-yearly assessment. Continuing declines would affect companies’ access to finance because many use commercial real estate as collateral.

Indians invested Rs. 13,600 crore (USD 2 billion) in Dubai Realty in HI 2016

Indians have by far remained the most prolific foreign investors into Dubai realty, outshining capital inputs from British, Russians and all others. As per the data from Government of Dubai’s Land Department, Indians have once again topped the charts as the number one investor in Dubai realty with a whopping investment of Rs. 13,600 Crores ($2 billion) into the sector in the first half of 2016 alone.

Where are Indians investing today?

Real estate is a good investment option, but not by taking leverage because returns will remain low when compared to cost of funding. Traditionally, there has been a high affinity among Indians for physical assets such as precious metals, jewellery and real estate. This trend has been changing over the past decade. The reasons are varied. One important factor playing a role here has been the increased penetration of financial instruments tapping populations living even in remote villages. The result has been that the ‘only store of value’ feature offered by physical assets is fast disappearing.

By 2020, Indian realty to provide $77 billion REIT investment opportunity: Report

Indian real estate is likely to provide investment opportunity worth up to $77 billion through Real Estate Investment Trust (REIT) – eligible commercial – office and retail, properties across the country’s top seven cities by 2020.
Across these cities, including Mumbai, Delhi-NCR, Bengaluru and Pune, ready commercial space eligible for REIT investments amounts to 277 million sq. ft, accounting for less than half (44 per cent) of total office stock in India, showed a property consultant report. In addition to completed stock, around 68 million sq. ft of additional REIT-eligible stock is expected to be completed by 2020 across these seven cities.

Piramal Fund invests Rs 10,000 crore in South India

The booming real estate market in Bangalore, Chennai and Hyderabad had been attractive for developers for quite some time and Khushru Jijina, MD, Piramal Fund Management tells us that home grown developers in Bangalore, Chennai and Hyderabad are their strongest partners.
Piramal Fund Management Pvt Ltd (PFM). funding arm of the Piramal Group on Tuesday increased its footprint in South India by crossing Rs 10,000 crores in consolidated investments. Jijina also tells us that their promise at the beginning of the year to cross Rs 5000 crores in the real estate commercial space has been crossed.

NASSCOM to open office in Bhubaneswar

National Association of Software and Services Companies (NASSCOM) today announced plans to set up an office in Bhubaneswar to boost IT and ITeS in eastern India.

The NASSCOM also reiterated its commitment to explore further opportunities to partner with the state government. The announcements were made at the end of the NASSCOMs three-day leadership meet here today. NASSCOM chairman C P Gurnani said, “We are very encouraged by the proactive support of the state government. They have created the right environment for the growth of the industry, with conducive policies aimed at ease of doing business and we hope this momentum can be sustained through our collaborative efforts in future.”

Uber makes India its base for South Asia foray

Uber is turning India into a regional hub of sorts, as the cab aggregator expands to other South Asian countries. After launching in Sri Lanka late last year, Uber started operations in Dhaka, Bangladesh, in mid-November. As it continues to scout for more markets, the expansion and the operations are being driven out of the India offices, with country head Amit Jain being elevated as the South Asia president of the San Francisco-headquartered company.
“We are expanding into multiple cities across the region and not just in India alone,” Jain said in an interview.