I just finished reading “The Dhandho Investor” by Mohnish Pabrai ( the man behind Dakshana). I enjoyed it and it stimulated some new thinking.
I also looked at my investing in India over the last two years. On a portfolio with 85% exposure to equities I managed a 45% CAGR(cumulative annual growth rate). I guess that may be just about okay. ( this is all in just a few boring stocks)
Will my angel investing give me anywhere close to that. I doubt it. This is what makes angel/seed investing tough in India. I hope to by investing both time and money improve my odds. I have abandoned the “spray and pray” approach where you put small amounts if you like the idea or team and trust the entrepreneur. This approach also relies on if xyz and pqr are also investing then I feel good about investing.
An excerpt from a quote from Kahlil Gibran ( full quote in book)… “You give little when you give of your possessions. It is when you give of yourself you truly give”
The full quote is more about giving selflessly to the needy ( I am atleast ten years away from that phase if I ever get there) but the first few lines lead me to think more of a heavy involvement model and not a “spray and pray” model.
- Community Platform For Ward 103 - November 22, 2012
- Municipal Elections New Delhi-16 days for rolls to close - October 15, 2011
- The next Facebook ? - September 17, 2011
right now inflation is going up and also crude price is going topper side. but the main thing is; is it india’s economy going fast or booming? ya behind such a big bear r watching this kind of play and wait for a right time to crash this economy.
I don’t know where to begin to add to all of these great posts. Yes, India is booming. Yes, India will continue to grow and capture market share from other countries through its exports and imports. And Yes, YOU should invest in India indefinitely.
I am only one of many that has my own reasons for thinking so. SO instead of reading what opinions i have. Take a look at a site I found about Investing in India that really opened my eyes
http://www.pennysleuth.com/rpt/InvestingInIndia.html
Enjoy…Cheers!
United Spirits and UB Holdings are also very interesting in alcohol and airways. Reliance (MDA) is not as aggressive as ADA, but has substantial interests in gas, retail, distribution and refining.
Bharti used to be interesting until Sunil Mittal went around saying his Walmart alliance will be through a non-Airtel vehicle, meaning it’s his own pocket or something unlisted.
ITC is a multi-business thing rather than a holding company, but of course it’s interesting. The new Bingo ads you see on TV are also ITC (I found out yesterday!); FMCG as a whole has now gone under the media radar so the sector may perhaps need a closer look-see.
Bajaj: The cash is not all that great, given auto is capital intensive and insurance is as well. M&M is a better bet IMHO – they have gone bonkers in the M&A space recently.
IDBI, IFCI also have a phenomenal holding in either exchanges or large corporations that will probably yield value as they get corporatised/listed/sold.
Old Hand,
You make a good point. Out of your list Reliance ADA and ITC intrigue me the most.
Somone mentioned wanting to invest in Buffet like funds in India.
Such a things may not exist as yet, but the following come close :
* Reliance Capital : Don’t know if all the new and interesting investments are happening via RC or by ADA directly.
* Bajaj : Don’t know if they are making a lot of new investments with all the cash thats sitting there. Also the demerger clouds the vision a bit. Or maybe it doesnt’ 🙂
* IDFC : Watch this one. They are agressive on PE so you are practically investing in a piece of a listed PE fund as well (who does NOT charge the 2 and 20 that PE normally do)
* Tata Investment Corp : Interesting, but generally not undervalued.
* Tata Sons and LIC, if they were ever to list, would also be interesting. One has lots of investment fantasies on these two 🙂
* Another very diversified player is Balmer Lawrie. Less of a Buffett and more of a conglomerate, but performing well. Seems perennially undervalued.
* And you can’t forget ITC, which may remain a gold-plated investment for years to come.