Obscure US-based firm wants to invest $500m, appeals to Modi in ads

An obscure US-based firm with just 19 employees, USD 15 million in revenue and hosting just a one-page website, wants to invest USD 500 billion in equity into India's National Infrastructure Pipeline (NIP).

Landomus Realty Ventures released statements via advertisements and on its website, stating it wants to "invest USD 500 billion in equity as the first phase of the USD 2 trillion investment under Build India into the National Infrastructure Pipeline (NIP) and non-NIP projects listed by the government of India".

In the advertisement issued in leading newspapers, Landomous group chairman Pradeep Kumar Satyaprakash said his group "aims to assist the government in its endeavour to rebuild India and achieve the USD 5 trillion GDP target".

"Landomus Group requests you to provide us an opportunity to contribute to your vision of a New India," he said in the advertisement titled "Humble Appeal to our Beloved and Hon'ble Prime Minister Shri. Narendra Modi Ji".

Little is known about the company. It has a one-page website that does not give out much details.

As per Zoominfo, the company has 19 employees and a revenue of USD 5 million. A Whois lookup, however, revealed that the company website was registered in 2015 by United Land Bank, headquartered at Sivan Chetty Gardens in Karnataka.

The website gave the address of Landomus Realty Ventures Inc as Secaucus, New Jersey, USA.

Zoominfo, which provides a database of companies, said, "Landomus Realty Ventures Inc was formed for the purpose of acquiring land parcels and creating land banks in India".

An email sent to the email address listed on the company website remained unanswered. The email sought information about the firm, its source of funding, information on promoters and its backers, revenues and purpose of issuing the advertisement remained answered.

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman had announced the NIP in December 2019. Under the NIP, the government has projected a total infrastructure investment worth Rs 111 lakh crore during FY20-25.