Singapore-based RV Capital Management’s India arm on Thursday announced the first close of its maiden performing credit fund, raising about a quarter of the target corpus for achieving the fundraising milestone.
The Singapore-based alternative asset manager launched the private credit alternative investment fund, India Credit “Plus” fund, in June this year with a target corpus of Rs 400 crore and a green shoe option of a similar amount.
For the first close milestone, the asset manager has raised about Rs 100 crore in commitments from a mix of domestic and offshore investors including high net-worth individuals, UHNIs and family offices.
Separately, it aims to mark another fund close by next month, even though it did not disclose the figure at which it hit the milestone. By year-end, it is targeting to raise about half of the target corpus, RV Capital said.
“As a global entity, we have observed a clear upward trend in the market's appetite for alternative financing options and an increasing number of private credit deals that are more attractively priced in terms of risk-adjusted returns,” said Shyamal Karmakar, India head and chief investment officer, RV Capital India.
“The genesis of “Plus” in the Fund’s name is from the listed bonds which have the potential to generate similar returns as private credit and help to optimize risk-adjusted returns,” he added.
So far, it has made two investments out of the fund. While it did not disclose the names of these investments, the asset manager said that one of its investments was made in a holding company of a large Indian conglomerate, and the second in a solar renewable energy solutions platform with marque investors holding a majority stake.
Its investment ticket sizes range between Rs 20-50 crore and may even be larger in case of co-investment bets with other investors or through offshore participation. Largely sector-agnostic in its approach, the India Credit “Plus” fund focuses on performing private credit opportunities across manufacturing, industrial, and services sectors, including holding companies and special purpose vehicles subject to robust, marketable collateral structure, strong visibility on exit, or backed by marquee promoter groups/investors.
It may also opportunistically invest a part of the portfolio in price-dislocated listed bonds and high-grade bonds. Currently, the fund is currently generating gross returns higher than its target of 14-16%.
Private credit is a rapidly growing asset class with a slew of asset managers, across India and abroad raising their product offerings in this segment. In August, Mumbai-based ASK Private Wealth, the wealth advisory and family office arm of ASK Group, floated its maiden private credit fund with a target corpus of Rs 1000 crore to invest in the performing credit segment.
Other domestic asset managers who have ventured into this space include Kotak Mahindra, JM Financial, Piramal Group, Centrum Group, asset managers like 360 One, Vivriti, InCred, Xander Group-backed Sanctum Wealth and private equity firm PAG-backed Nuvama in floating a private credit fund.
Among foreign-based investors London-headquartered Apax raised about $750 million for the first generation of its dedicated credit funds as of late September. Its co-CEO said that Apax sees private credit "as an important extra arrow in (its) quiver”.
