Homegrown private equity firm Multiples Alternate Asset Management, or Multiples PE, has marked the first close of its fourth fund after collecting $640 million (over Rs 5,200 crore) from marquee anchor investors including Canada's largest pension fund.
The new fund’s limited partners include Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPPIB) and International Finance Corporation (IFC), the private-sector investment arm of the World Bank Group, Multiples PE said in a statement.
Local institutions like State Bank of India, private insurance companies, and domestic family offices also contributed, the PE firm said.
“This fundraise is yet another important milestone in the growth and evolution of Multiples as an institution providing wings to the dreams and aspirations of entrepreneurs,” said Sudhir Variyar, MD & Deputy CEO, Multiples Alternate Asset Management.
The latest fund is targeting total commitments of $800 million with a hard cap at $1 billion. Multiples PE aims to mark the final close of the fund before the end of this financial year, in March 2024.
The PE firm also said that it plans to pursue "big-ticket investments" via the co-investment model, with a cumulative investment target of over $1.5 billion in the coming three to four years through the new fund.
Multiples focuses on core sectors of financial services, pharmaceuticals and healthcare, consumer and technology. But in an interview with VCCircle last year, Multiples PE managing director Nithya Easwaran had said the PE firm aimed to double down on its fintech play from the new fund.
Floated by Renuka Ramnath in 2009, Multiples has so far deployed capital across 30 Indian companies from its first three funds. Its portfolio includes several unicorns such as Delhivery, Acko and Licious with a valuation of at least $1 billion.
The Mumbai-based PE firm manages around $3 billion and has also invested in many other companies including PVR Cinemas, Dream 11, Niyo, MoEngage, Encube, Zenex, Quantiphi, Vastu Housing Finance. Its most recent bet was on Murugappa group company TI Clean Mobility, its first in the electric vehicle space.
Multiples first raised $405 million in its debut fund in 2011 and about $690 million in its second outing in 2016. It completed fundraising for its third vehicle in 2021 after mobilizing $680 million, missing its target.
