Debt-focused asset management company Vivriti Asset Management (VAM) on Wednesday said it has marked the final close of its second debt fund at Rs 350 crore (around $46 million).
The VAM’s Vivriti Short Term Bond Fund (VSTBF), an SEBI-registered category II alternative investment fund, aims to return investors’ capital on an annual basis and will be investing in debt issued by retail platforms providing small and mid-size enterprises (SME) loans, microfinance and consumer finance, the company said in a statement.
The fund has raised commitments from marquee investors, including banks, insurance companies, leading corporates, family offices and high net-worth individuals. Notably, it had already deployed 70 percent of its commitment across eight investments.
"Vivriti’s Short Term Bond Fund has invested in A or better-rated papers issued by operating companies with strong financial and market positions. The fund set a new industry standard by offering quarterly coupon payouts and returning capital annually.
The overwhelming response to the fund led us to exercise the green-shoe option and additionally increase the fund size from the original Rs 300 crore to Rs 350 crore," said Vineet Sukumar, Founder and CEO, Vivriti Asset Management.
The fund seeks to achieve a hurdle rate which is 350 bps higher than the last reported inflation when traditional fixed-income investments are mired with below-inflation yields”, he added.
Backed by US-based impact investor Creation Investments and European investor LGT Lightstone Aspada or Lightrock, VAM is a private investment firm sponsored by the non-banking financial company (NBFC) Vivriti Capital Pvt Ltd and is part of Vivriti Group, which runs CredAvenue - India’s largest online enterprise debt marketplace.
According to the firm's statement, Vivriti’s funds offer 8-16 percent yields with predictability and capital protection built-in. VAM raised commitments of over Rs 2,000 crore across its funds and provides tailored debt of Rs 25-75 crore to emerging and mid-sized operating companies for a tenor of two to four years.
It had launched two alternative investment funds (AIFs) – Alpha Debt Fund and Alpha Debt - Enhanced Fund in July last year.
In November 2021, the firm said it was set to raise four funds to raise a total of around Rs 4,700 crore ($635 million), of which two are expected to be set up in Gujarat’s GIFT City.