Processing .....please wait.. 
The article has been forwarded.... 
Comat Technologies to raise $15 Mn
By siliconindia
|
Wednesday, 10 October 2007, 19:30 IST
Bangalore: Comat Technologies, a Bangalore-based e-governance solutions provider, is looking to raise $15 million as part of its second round funding over the next two years. Initially, only $5 million is being raised, reported Business Standard.
In the first round, the 10-year-old company divested 10.5 percent stake to raise $5.5 million from Hughes and Intel Capital.
Sriram Raghavan, President, Comat Technologies said, "We have initiated talks with three domestic private equity funds to raise the money. The details of how much equity stake will be offloaded are being finalized and we wish to close the deal by mid-November."
The company has chalked out Rs 200-crore plans to expand the business all across the country. While Rs 60 crore is being raised through PE funds, the balance will be debt from banks and financial institutions.
The company is executing e-governance projects in Karnataka, Haryana, Sikkim, Tripura and Uttarakhand. Comat has also bid for projects in Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Rajasthan and Tamil Nadu.
In the next two years, the company intends to open 10,000 kiosks across the country. Each kiosk will see an investment of Rs 1.5 lakh to Rs 1.8 lakh.
In association with the government of Karnataka, the company has implemented projects like the Bhoomi project (digitisation of land records) and the Nemmadi project (setting up of tele-centre to provide government services to the rural folk).
Till now, the company has operated 800 kiosks under the Nemmadi project in the state. The urban kiosks for Bangalore Urban district are being set up. The kiosks provide services like land records, issue of certificates, employment exchange services, ration cards, electoral services, birth and death certificates, pension schemes, among many others.
Recently, Comat acquired contracts to set up 1,200 kiosks in Haryana, Uttaranchal, Sikkim and Tripura. Comat charges Rs 15 per transaction, of which 25 percent goes to the state government.
The company serves 40,000 users everyday and collects revenue of Rs 2.5 crore per month in Karnataka alone.