Now iGATE joins L&T, Essar, in expressesing Interest in Satyam

There seems to be light at the end of the tunnel for the fraud-ridden Satyam Computer Services. After Larsen & Toubro and Essar showed interest in buying whole or part of the Hyderabad-based IT major earlier this week, now IT major iGATE has also joined in.

The Bangalore-based iGATE Corporation, an integrated technology and operations (iTOPS) company, on Friday expressed interest in Satyam and also the board of iGATE has been meeting officials from the newly-formed board of Satyam.

Talking to CXOtoday, Phaneesh Murthy, Chief Executive Officer of iGATE, said, "We are interested in a dialogue with Satyam and currently are quite keen and comfortable to acquire selective portions of the business."

Asked about how he plans to raise the "moolah", he said the company is in touch with PE players who are ready to bring in the money.

iGATE Corp. is a Nasdaq listed company while the other entity, iGATE Global, was listed in National Stock Exchange (NSE) in Mumbai until January 2008, but de-listed from the Indian stock exchanges since.

Recently, the company announced its financial results for the fourth quarter and year ended Dec 31, 2008. Revenue for the year was $218.8 million compared to $201.7 million recorded last year. Net profit for the year increased to $29.3 million compared to $10.5 million last year. The company also added 27 new customers in 2008 showing their might in India.

Tarun Das, CII mentor and director on the Satyam board, has been saying that there were buyout offers from domestic and foreign companies, but without identifying any buyers. "Satyam has enormous fixed assets, human resource and technology assets. So, it is a very strong company. The board has not yet discussed the issue of looking for a buyer... But I have to truthfully say we have been approached by potential buyers," Das said.

Both L&T and Essar already have interest in Satyam. While L&T recently bought a little over 4 percent stake in the company, the engineering major is also into IT business through L&T Infotech. The Ruias-promoted Essar is also into IT-related business through its outsourcing firm, Aegis.

However, it is still not known where iGATE interest is. "We have to wait for the new board at Satyam to evaluate all strategic options and based on that evaluation set the direction for the company," said Murthy.

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