Indian conglomerate Larsen & Toubro (L&T) is buying a 20.32 percent stake in IT services company Mindtree for 32.69 billion rupees ($476.57 million), it said on Monday.

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L&T, which is acquiring the shares from Indian coffee baron V.G. Siddhartha and companies related to him, said it had also placed an order with its broker for an on-market purchase of up to 15 percent of Mindtree`s shares at 980 rupees apiece.

It is also looking to buy an additional 31 percent from Mindtree`s public shareholders at the same price.

Siddhartha, who is a promoter of Coffee Day Enterprises and Coffee Day Trading, held a 3.33 percent stake in Mindtree at the end of December, stock exchange data showed. Coffee Day Enterprises and Coffee Day Trading hold a combined 17.08 percent stake in Mindtree.

The L&T group, which also comprises software services business L&T Infotech, said it would extend business support to Mindtree, which will remain an independent listed entity.

"Mindtree will benefit from access to larger client base and wider product offerings under a common parentage, giving higher returns to shareholders of Mindtree," L&T said in its statement.

Mindtree`s board is set to meet on Wednesday.

($1 = 68.5940 Indian rupees)

(This article has not been edited by Zeebiz editorial team and is auto-generated from an agency feed.)