Nimesh Kampani: India Inc's favourite rainmaker retires

 Nimesh Kampani, the merchant banker to the mighty, has decided to stop being the rainmaker. The man who took TCS and Bharti public, helped the government raise $2.4 billion by part selling crown jewel ONGC, got Ratan Tata, Kumar Birla and US giant AT&T into a room to stitch up a mega telecom alliance besides helping Mukesh Ambani demerge Reliance post the split with brother Anil before negotiating a deal between drinks major Diageo and Vijay Mallya said a report in The Economic Times. is stepping down as the chairman and MD of JM Financial on September 30th, 43 years after setting up shop and almost a decade after branching out on his own following a split with Wall Street partner Morgan Stanley.

The company on Tuesday said Kampani's son Vishal, currently the head of the firm's institutional securities business, will take charge of all the businesses as its MD. Kampani Senior will pursue social work, JM said. "I believe that it is important for businesses to implement a proper succession plan and I am committed to follow the same. I would, at this juncture in my life, like to spend more time and efforts on socially relevant activities.," the elder Kampani, who is turning 70 this year, was quoted as saying.

His retirement will formally mark the exit of a generation of old school investment bankers known for their old world courtesy, humility, trust, a sharp mind and street smartness. With peers like Hemendra Kothari of DSP Merrill Lynch, Vallabh Bhansali of Enam, Nimesh bhai, as he is popularly known, was part of a tribe of deal-makers who had unfettered access to India Inc's promoters and were their closest confidantes on all matters business and sometimes beyond the balance sheet.

But Kothari decided to focus on tiger conservation after stepping down from the chairmanship of DSP Merrill Lynch in 2009. Enam was sold to Axis Bank and Bhansali is now more focussed on his family office. Uday Kotak, sometimes considered part of this tribe, of course has gone on to script a sepectacular sucess story with Kotak Mahindra Bank.