Mid-market boutique investment banking firm o3 Capital Global Advisory Pvt. Ltd is looking to diversify its asset management business with the launch of a $150 million hospitality-focused fund.
The firm plans to raise between $120 million and $150 million through the new fund, the Mint newspaper reported, citing o3 Capital managing director Deepesh Garg.
Garg said in the report that the fund would invest in near-complete assets needing last-mile funding to become operational.
The fund is seeking regulatory approval and the first close is expected in four months. It has tied up with a hospitality firm which would be one of the anchor investors in the fund, he said.
The asset management fund would be in addition to the firm's advisory services business, which was launched by Shyam Shenthar, Garg, Shiraz Bugwadia and T.R. Srinivas in 2006.
CEO and managing director Shenthar previously worked with Avendus Capital, along with Garg and Bugwadia. Srinivas was previously associated with TAIB Bank.
Some of its recent advisory deals include fundraising for Cremica (Mrs. Bectors Food Specialities Ltd), Barbeque Nation Hospitality Ltd and the Hyderabad-based Asian Institute of Gastroenterology. o3 Capital has closed 103 transactions in the past eight years across verticals and product groups aggregating to $4.2 billion in value, according to its website.
The company entered the asset management space last year when it raised Uniqorn Venture Fund, an early-stage $10 million fund, the report said. This fund has invested in startups such as Chillr, Bewakoof and VelvetCase, it added.
The asset management business would be overseen by Shenthar and Bugwadia. Garg and Srinivas oversee the investment banking side.
The firm also runs o3 Securities, which offers broking services in equity, futures and options, and currency derivatives.
Other mid-market investment banking firms that have added asset management business and other businesses include Avendus, Equirus, Ambit and MAPE Advisory.
KKR-backed Avendus is one of the top mid-market investment bankers in the country and also has a separate alternative asset management unit. Another Mumbai-based mid-market boutique investment bank, Equirus Capital, plans to start portfolio management services and wealth management businesses.
Mumbai-based Ambit also offers structured finance along with advisory services in mergers, acquisitions and divestitures, public market fundraising, private equity, equities brokerage, principal investment and private wealth management.
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