No plans to monetise stake in Shriram Group, says Ajay Piramal

All non-banking finance companies (NBFCs) are growing fast and no plans of monetising the investment in Shriram Group, said Ajay Piramal, Chairman, Piramal Group.

Piramal Enterprises owns 20% stake in Shriram Capital and 10% each in Shriram Transport and Shriram City Union.

We are always open to look at different opportunities in the Shriram Group as to what makes sense for the group, said Piramal to CNBC-TV18.

In 2017, merger talks between infrastructure lender IDFC Group and Shriram Group were called off as the two were unable to reach a common ground on the share swap ratio.

"Because of the regulatory changes, Shriram Group had some challenges in the last few years. There was change of 180 provisioning for non-performing assets (NPAs) to 90 days, which mean increase in provisioning but all that is behind us," Piramal said.

"Moreover, the economy is growing. In most spaces, like commercial vehicles, small and medium scale sectors, which are areas Shriram caters to, there is a good robust underlying growth and it will help the business to grow," he added.

Piramal also clarified that there are no plans to merge Piramal's Financial Services business with that of Shriram Group. He said for the next few years, it's going to be a great opportunity for all NBFCs.

If we talk about a merger now, then two years will get wasted and there will be a lot of distraction. Both the groups are growing well and so each should concentrate on growing for now.

Shriram Transport Finance is the largest financier of commercial vehicles in the country, while Shriram City Union Finance is a leader in home, auto and personal loans.