Mumbai-based private equity firm Multiples Alternate Asset Management, led by Renuka Ramnath, has become the newest entrants to the private credit market as the Vastu Housing Finance-backer Tuesday said it has roped in a former Deutsche Bank executive to lead the new strategy.
Multiples PE has onboarded Rahul Chawla as the managing director of its credit strategy. Chawla, with over twenty-five years of experience under his hat, earlier led financing for financial sponsors in the Asia-Pacific region at Deutsche Bank. He joined Deutsche Bank about a decade ago.
In his previous stint, Chawla was the managing director of Credit Suisse investment banking division and was leading its global market solutions.
The development comes soon after media reports suggested that the PE firm was mulling a continuation fund of about $300 million in a bid to retain its stake Vastu Housing Finance and APAC Financial Services Ltd.
The firm counts companies such as Moengage, Licious, Acko, Niyo, Veritas Finance among its active PE portfolio companies.
In its last fundraise, the Mumbai-based investor mopped up about $640 million (about Rs 5200 crore then) for its fourth fund. For the fundraise, it onboarded foreign institutional limited partners including Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPPIB) and International Finance Corporation (IFC), the private-sector investment arm of the World Bank Group, among others. Local institutions like State Bank of India, private insurance companies, and domestic family offices also contributed.
Last month, another homegrown PE, True North, which launched its private credit strategy about three years ago, roped in a former Investec executive, Rikhil Wadhwa, as the managing director of its private credit strategy. He was appointed after True North wrapped up fundraising for its latest credit vehicle at about Rs 1300 crore in May.