Travel services provider Thomas Cook (India) Ltd (TCIL) is acquiring 74 per cent stake in HR solutions company IKYA Human Capital Solutions for Rs 256 crore (approximately $47 million).

The company expects the acquisition to add to its existing bouquet of services.

In a statement to the stock exchanges, TCIL said IKYA offered specialised HR services that included search, recruitment, project-based hiring and skill development to more than 500 corporate clients in India. The move would enable TCIL to expand its portfolio of service related businesses by making a foray into "one of the world's largest human resource markets".

Madhavan Menon, MD, TCIL, said his company was keen to invest in partnerships that expanded its business services platform to enhance shareholder value and the acquisition provided it with an opportunity to "extend the bouquet of travel, financial and HR services" that it offered to corporates in the country.

He said after the acquisition IKYA would continue to be a standalone independently run entity supervised by TCIL, which would remain focused on the growth of the travel related businesses.

Prem Watsa, Chairman & CEO of Fairfax Financial Holdings Ltd, Toronto, Canada,which has a controlling stake in TCIL, said that in TCIL's travel services business, "we will continue to allocate capital towards organic or inorganic growth opportunities as they arise".

IKYA's CEO Ajit Isaac said since the company's launch in 2007, it had emerged as the "fastest growing HR solutions company" in India with over 500 clients and the partnership offered IKYA a platform to realise its vision sooner.

Shares of TCIL were trading up by Rs 2.50 at Rs 56.35 with a trading volume of about 74,250 shares in the NSE an hour into trading today.

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