CCI approves Blackstone acquisition of Federal Bank warrants

Group 1 - The Competition Commission of India (CCI) has approved Blackstone's plan to acquire a 9.99% stake in Federal Bank through warrants [1] - Blackstone will invest approximately Rs61.9 billion (about $705 million) in Federal Bank, which is a private sector commercial bank in India [3] - The total investment in the Indian banking sector is valued at approximately Rs396.2 billion, pending regulatory clearance [5] Group 2 - Under the deal, Blackstone will have the right to nominate one director to Federal Bank's board as long as its shareholding remains at or above 5% [2] - Asia II Topco XIII, the entity through which Blackstone is investing, is controlled by funds managed by Blackstone affiliates [2] - Recent investments in India's private banking sector include Emirates NBD's agreement to buy a 60% stake in RBL Bank for close to $3 billion and Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation's acquisition of 20% in Yes Bank [3][4]