India, company's best market for investment in the world, says chief of Blackstone Group

Washington: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday met chairman and CEO of the Blackstone Group Stephen Schwarzman and discussed promising investment opportunities in India, including those under National Infrastructure Pipeline and National Monetisation Pipeline. Schwarzman briefed the prime minister about the New York-based alternative investment management company’s ongoing projects in India, and their interest in further investments in the infrastructure and real estate sectors. “It was a delight to meet Mr. Stephen Schwarzman, the CEO of @blackstone. His commercial success and intellectual prowess are admirable. We talked about India’s investment potential and why our country is one of the world’s most attractive destination for investment, Modi tweeted. Promising investment opportunities in India including those under National Infrastructure Pipeline and National Monetisation Pipeline were discussed, the External Affairs Ministry said in a statement. Modi, who arrived here on Wednesday on an official visit to the US during which he will hold the first face-to-face meeting with President Joe Biden and his deputy Kamala Harris, held one-on-one meetings with CEOs of Qualcomm, Adobe, First Solar, General Atomics and Blackstone here. During the meeting, the prime minister said that there is huge scope for further expansion of Blackstone’s partnership in India and elaborated on the reforms done in India. He specifically spoke about Asset Monetisation and Bad Bank, sources said. In March this year, Blackstone announced that funds managed by Blackstone Real Estate have acquired Embassy Industrial Parks from Warburg Pincus and Embassy Group, in one of India’s largest logistics transactions. Schwarzman — the chairman, CEO and co-founder of the Blackstone Group, one of the world’s leading investment firms investing capital on behalf of pension funds, large institutions and individuals — said India has been the company’s best market for investment in the world. Appreciating reforms undertaken by India, Schwarzman said he is very optimistic about India’s potential and added that it is one of the fastest growing countries in the world. Follow more LIVE updates on Prime Minister Narendra Modi at 76th session of the UN General Assembly