Ashok Leyland has sold 32 per cent stake in its IT arm Hinduja Tech Ltd. (formerly Defiance Technologies Limited) to Nissan International Holdings BV, an investment arm of Japan-based Nissan Group. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.
The development comes as the Chennai-based Ashok Leyland, the flagship company of the Hinduja Group, is looking to sell its stakes in subsidiaries in a bid to cut debt.
Ashok Leyland has informed the stock exchanges that Hinduja Tech had roped in a strategic investor. Consequent to allotment of equity shares to the strategic investor, its holding in the company stood reduced at 68 per cent. However it did not disclose the name of the investor. According to Ashok Leyland’s latest annual report, erstwhile Defiance had 8 crore equity shares of Rs. 10 each.
Subu D Subramanian, managing director and chief executive officer of Hinduja Tech Ltd., confirmed that Nissan’s arm Nissan International Holdings BV was the investor.
Nissan is already a client of Hinduja Tech.