DEC 13:  Hirco (Hiranandani Group) Plc raised about 383 million pounds ($754 million) in an initial public offering (IPO) in London to invest in Indian real estate projects controlled by the company that is building the world’s tallest residential property. Hirco sold 74 million shares to institutional investors at 500 pence each, the company said in a Regulatory News Service statement on Wednesday. HSBC Holdings Plc and Bear Stearns Cos, the banks that are managing the sale, may raise another 55.5 million pounds by selling additional shares to meet demand. Niranjan Hiranandani, Hirco’s chairman, also controls Hiranandani Constructions Pvt, which is building a 90-story tower in Dubai. The 380 metre (1,247 feet) tower is due to be completed in 2008.   The IPO will give overseas investors greater access to India’s real estate market, which has been growing as the economy expands about 8% a year and the government relaxes rules on overseas investment in Indian industries. The property developer will invest in five projects in the cities of Mumbai, Chennai and Jaipur. Hirco joins other Indian companies such as Unitech Ltd, K Raheja Corp and West Pioneer Properties Ltd that are turning to London’s Alternative Investment Market, where rules for selling shares are less stringent than other exchanges. Trinity Capital Plc raised 250 million pounds in an IPO in April to become the first publicly traded fund in the UK to target India’s $12 billion real estate market. —Bloomberg