Sebi offers a way over FPI tax rule hurdle
French beauty major L’Oréal on Thursday said it had signed an agreement to acquire a majority stake in personal care startup Innovist, best-known for brands such as Bare Anatomy, Vinci Botanicals, Sunscoop and Chemist at Play, strengthening its presence in India’s fast-growing beauty and personal care market. According to sources familiar with the matter, the transaction is valued at around Rs 4,000 crore, making it one of the largest acquisitions involving an Indian startup and the biggest deal in India’s beauty and personal care startup space, crossing Hindustan Unilever‘s purchase of Minimalist for nearly Rs 3,000 crore in early-2025. While HUL’s acquisition pertained to one brand only, Innovist has a portfolio of brands as part of the deal, experts said.
The early Chinese backers of AI startup Manus are planning to buy the company back from Meta at the $2 billion price that the Facebook parent paid, The Information reported on Thursday, citing two people with direct knowledge of the matter. The reported move comes months after China ordered Meta to unwind its acquisition of Manus, amid Beijing's tightening scrutiny of U.S. investment in Chinese startups developing advanced AI technologies. Early investors in Manus, including HSG, ZhenFund and Tencent are participating in the buyback, The Information said, adding that HSG and ZhenFund are considering using fresh capital to acquire Meta's position in the startup.
Goldman Sachs has managed more than $1 trillion worth of announced mergers and acquisitions so far in 2026, marking a record pace for any investment bank within a half-year period, the Wall Street giant said in a LinkedIn post citing Dealogic data. The figure comes on the back of the investment bank managing SpaceX's landmark initial public offering as lead left underwriter. The Elon Musk company went public in New York on Friday. The bank also acted as co-financial advisors to power company Dominion Energy in its sale to NextEra Energy in a $66.8 billion deal announced last month. In a separate post, CEO David Solomon said global M&A volumes have already exceeded $2.6 trillion this year as AI and strategic consolidation reshape industries, while trading volumes have reached all-time highs as clients navigate a range of risk events.
Honeywell on Thursday said it is targeting deals valued at $2 billion to $4 billion and sees scope for acquisitions in its industrial automation business. "There is a ton of opportunity for M&A,” said Peter Lau, president of Honeywell’s Industrial Automation unit during the company's investor day in New York, adding the business operates in a roughly $35 billion market. Lau cautioned that organic growth remains a priority, however, describing the business as “way underpenetrated” in solutions and software.
REC has secured the approval from the Ministry of Power to merge with Power Finance Corporation (PFC). This marks a significant step in the consolidation of the two state-owned power sector financiers. In a regulatory filing the company said, “The Ministry of Power, vide its letter dated June 10, 2026, has conveyed the approval of the Competent Authority in respect of the aforesaid proposal.” Earlier on May 16, the company informed exchanges that its Board of Directors had authorised the company’s Chairman and Managing Director (CMD) to seek approval from the President of India for the proposed merger under Sections 230-232 of the Companies Act, 2013.
Morgan Stanley is closely monitoring merger and acquisition opportunities as US regulators signal a more favourable stance toward bank deals, CEO Ted Pick said on Tuesday. Speaking at the bank’s annual US investor conference, Pick stressed that the Wall Street powerhouse is actively tracking sector developments and stands ready to move swiftly if the right opportunity arises. “M&A in the banking industry is challenging; we want to get it right,” Pick said, adding that Morgan Stanley wants to be “wide awake” to the M&A activity in the sector. A Reuters report said that several major banks have already expressed interest in strategic acquisitions aimed at strengthening their competitive edge, upgrading technology, and expanding into high-growth areas such as wealth management and payments.
Adani Energy Solutions on Tuesday signed a binding agreement to acquire 100% stake in IntelliSmart Infrastructure Pvt Ltd for ₹3,050 crore, a move that will create India’s largest smart metering platform with a combined portfolio of over 4.7 crore smart meters. The proposed transaction includes acquisition of IntelliSmart’s entire equity share capital and redemption of optionally convertible debentures held by the National Investment and Infrastructure Fund (NIIF). The deal is subject to regulatory and other customary approvals. The acquisition significantly strengthens AESL’s position in India’s fast-growing smart metering market, which is emerging as a key pillar of power distribution reforms and digitalisation of utilities.
India’s dealmaking activity moderated in May after an exceptionally strong April, even as investor appetite for large-ticket deals remained intact, according to Grant Thornton’s latest Dealtracker report. A total of 190 mergers and acquisitions (M&A) and private equity (PE) deals worth $10.2 billion were recorded in May, compared with 212 deals valued at $21.8 billion in April. The sharp decline in overall deal value was largely because April included Sun Pharma’s $11.8 billion acquisition of US-based Organon. Excluding this outlier, overall deal values remained largely stable on a month-on-month basis, indicating continued momentum in underlying deal activity despite lower reported volumes, says Shanthi Vijetha, Partner, Deals Lifecycle, Grant Thornton Bharat.
