India's Mahindra & Mahindra picks up 3.53% stake in RBL Bank for $51 million

BENGALURU, July 26 (Reuters) - Indian tech-to-tractor conglomerate Mahindra & Mahindra (MAHM.NS) on Wednesday said it bought a 3.53% stake in private lender RBL Bank (RATB.NS) for 4.17 billion rupees ($50.8 million).

The company might consider further investment in the lender subject to pricing, regulatory approvals and required procedures, Mahindra said, adding that the investment will not exceed a 9.9% stake.

Multiple block deals were seen in RBL Bank on Wednesday and the stock ended up 7.1%.

In a separate statement, RBL said it was not aware of any stock purchase by Mahindra.

Mahindra already owns non-banking financial company Mahindra and Mahindra Financial (MMFS.NS).

An approval from the Reserve Bank of India is needed to acquire a 5% stake in any Indian lender.

(This story has been corrected to add the dropped word bought in paragraph 1)

($1 = 82.0473 Indian rupees)