With Cyrus Mistry Ousted, Ratan Tata Is Said To Be Looking For A Partner To Buy Stake Held By Shapoorji Pallonji Group

As the battle between Tatas and former Chairman of Tata Sons, Cyrus Mistry continues, Ratan Tata is reportedly seeking a partner that could buy the stakes of Shapoorji Pallonji Group in the company.

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According to Bloomberg, the Tata family trusts have reached out to sovereign wealth funds and other long-term investors to gauge their interest in purchasing the Mistry family¡¯s stake if it became available.

The trusts held preliminary talks with potential buyers of the about 18 percent Tata Sons stake as they prepare for a number of possible scenarios. Mistry¡¯s family doesn¡¯t currently plan to sell its holdings, the people said, asking not to be identified because the information is private.

The family trusts wants to ensure that if Mistry¡¯s family later decides to sell its stake in the Tata Group holding company, the new investor will be a friendly party that shares their long-term vision, according to the people. Tata Sons owns more than $65 billion worth of listed company shares, data compiled by Bloomberg show.

"If the sale happens, a lot of the current uncertainty around Tata group companies will go away,¡± Paras Bothra, vice president of equity research in Mumbai at Ashika Stock Broking, said.

Also Read: Tata Vs Mistry Gets Nasty As Tata Sons Vows To Prove That Cyrus Is Lying

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On Monday, Tata Group¡¯s holding company abruptly ousted Mistry as chairman and replaced him with his 78-year-old predecessor Ratan Tata, a scion of the founding family. The rift, which had been brewing for months, signals an end to Mistry¡¯s push to bring more fiscal prudence to the coffee-to-cars conglomerate after a string of global acquisitions.

The Tata trusts, which currently own about 66 per cent of Tata Sons, have also been drafting plans for how to raise funds if they were to make an offer for the Mistry family stake themselves.

Mistry is still considering his next steps and plans to make a decision on his response to the ouster in the next couple of weeks, another person said.

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Tata Sons owns major stakes in Tata Consultancy Services Ltd., Asia¡¯s largest provider of software services, and Tata Motors Ltd., the producer of Jaguar and Land Rover vehicles. It also controls Indian Hotels Co., the luxury hospitality company that operates New York¡¯s Pierre hotel, as well as steel making operations, the Tetley tea brand and a power producer.

Also Read: Cyrus Mistry Tears Into Ratan Tata¡¯s Pet Project ¨C Tata Nano

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Also Read: In Letter To Board, Cyrus Mistry Reveals How TATA Will Lose Without Him

Tata Group on Thursday said it ousted Mistry because of a growing ¡°trust deficit¡± with its biggest shareholders after the former head accused directors of the conglomerate of wrongfully dismissing him in an e-mail Tuesday.

Mistry said he faced constant interference by his predecessor, Ratan Tata, to the point that he was pushed into becoming a "lame duck" chairman, according to the e-mail.