The Hindu Business Line : Dewan Housing aims at 25 pc business growth

Dewan Housing Finance Corporation Ltd expects 25-30 per cent growth in its business, with around 25 per cent growth in disbursements in the current year.

In 2005-06, the company's disbursements stood at Rs 1,110.3 crore and gross income was Rs 226.80 crore.

The company has plans to convert 20 of the 66 service centres into branches this year. It also plans to make a foray into mortgage insurance.

"We are talking to several private insurance companies and plan to enter the field in a few months," said Mr Kapil Wadhawan, Managing Director.

The cost of funds would be a determining factor for a change in interest rates, he added. "Most likely the cost of funds may increase, thus leading to an interest rate hike."

He added: "The only challenge we face in raising funds is that we should be given access to international markets. According to the existing RBI norms, housing finance companies are not allowed to raise funds in international markets. We expect that in the future the rule would be amended."

Venture Capital Fund

The company's venture capital fund, DHFL Venture Capital India Pvt Ltd, has raised a corpus of around Rs 250 crore. It has invested one third of its amount in greenfield projects and the IT sector; the fund plans to invest the rest of the amount in a span of three months.

It has initiated investment in projects in Hyderabad. The close-ended fund has an outer limit of seven years.

Mr Arun V. Goel, CEO of DHFL Venture Capital India, said: "Mutual funds will have to reinvest their strategy and require a lot of expertise and capabilities to manage their real estate assets, and both these funds exist simultaneously worldwide. Hence, they cannot be considered as competitors to venture capital funds. Besides, the investment strategies of both the funds are quite different."