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Although the Indian deals market has been abuzz with large acquisitions, both national and cross-border, what is notable is the growing trend among Indian corporate of acquiring companies far larger than themselves in offshore jurisdictions. The acquisition of Corus, a company with a capacity of 18.3 million tonnes a year, by Tata Steel, whose capacity at the time of acquisition was a mere 5.93 million tonnes a year, for $12.9 billion in January 2007 is a case in point. Also notable is the acquisition of Novellis by Hindalco Industries for $6 billion in May 2007. While Indian corporates are aggressively expanding their horizons, their counterparts offshore are similarly targeting and acquiring or setting up operations within India. Vodafone’s long-drawn-out acquisition of a 67 per cent stake in Hutchison Essar at $11.1 billion was one of the largest foreign investment transaction in India to date. While availability of funds is a favourable driver for investments, mergers and acquisitions, it has been the structuring options devised for Indian acquirers which have enabled them to make acquisitions offshore as, unlike their offshore counterparts, Indian corporates are faced with hurdles in the form of domestic legal and regulatory restrictions when embarking on any acquisition strategy. Issues generally arise depending on the nature of the company being acquired, as well as  whether the acquisition and the funding are on a cross-border basis or on a purely onshore basis. In addition, there are restrictions depending on the type of financier, as well as the options available to secure the financier’s interests, whether by way of collateral or debt servicing....