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Chennai-based real estate player Casagrand has announced plans to go public. JM Financial and Motilal Oswal have together been elected as bankers for the IPO. Recently, Casagrand obtained Rs 1,200 crore project-specific funding from marquee investors like Apollo Global and KKR. Arun Mn, founder and MD, speaking about the aggressive plans of the firm, said the motive behind the IPO is to build confidence in the market as going public requires adherence to stringent statutory norms. Additionally, it will facilitate quick access to capital for development. That it intends to reduce 15% stake for use as stock options to its staff will be a promoting feature to bring in talent, he added. Real estate being a capital-intensive business, Casagrand is confident in entering the market. If the value maximisation and symbiotic ties are in sync, the firm may look at clubbing its other ventures like SpaceIntell, PropCare and Bizpark in the IPO phase. Though there is a sizeable expense for going public and real estate is not a quarter on quarter kind of business, the entrepreneur considers the pros surpass the cons of listing in the bourses. Arun said that they are eager to develop as the largest player in the nation, noting that it will increase its business in Bengaluru and enter Hyderabad with an initial investment of Rs 1,500 crore, from where it is assured of earning a sizable part of its earnings. Chennai and Coimbatore contribute more than 60% of its Rs 10,000 crore turnover. He added that Casagrand is not looking at becoming a pan-India player. Instead, it will proceed to become a predominant player in the south by concentrating on three or four good markets. It is also assessing the option of drawing private equity at an enterprise level. According to Arun, post the first lockdown, the firm had seen an uptick in house acquisitions, allowing it to post a good performance. Image SourceAlso read: Nuvoco Vistas’s Rs 5,000 cr IPO to open on August 9