Julius Baer India, the local wealth management arm of the Swiss private banking group, said Thursday it has raised total commitments of more than Rs 300 crore ($36 million) for its maiden India-domiciled alternative investment fund that will invest in local equities.
The close-ended, category-III alternative investment fund is separate from an open-ended, Ireland-domiciled fund that the company has been raising from offshore investors to invest in Indian equities. That fund had mopped up $183 million by October-end last year, VCCircle reported at the time.
Category-III AIFs include hedge funds and PIPE funds, or those that make private investments in public equitie, according to the Securities and Exchange Board of India’s AIF norms. Julius Baer India received its Category-III AIF licence in 2023.
The company said last year it raised capital for the offshore fund from its clients in based in Hong Kong, Singapore, Dubai, Switzerland, London, Europe and Latin America, along with its non-resident Indian clients. The fund’s portfolio will comprise about 20-30 stocks from the top 250 companies based on their market capitalization. It will have an average holding period of three to five years.
The new India-domiciled fund primarily invests in companies experiencing strategic transformation due to overarching macro shifts such as favourable demographics, regulatory framework changes, and increasing digitalisation, Julius Baer said in a statement.
Additionally, the fund invests in companies undergoing tactical transformation triggered by company-specific events, such as corporate restructuring through mergers and acquisitions. Julius Baer said it believes these transformations will drive accelerated growth and improved profitability in these companies within a three-year period.
“Over the past few years, AIFs have grown ten-fold and have evolved as a popular investment vehicle for clients in India,” said Umang Papneja, CEO at Julius Baer India.
“As market needs evolve, we will continue to evolve our produce suite, offering distinctive and diversified investment solutions to meet the changing needs of our UHNI (ultra-high-net-worth) clients in India,” Papneja said.
