Niten Malhan, managing director and co-head of private equity giant Warburg Pincus in India, has resigned, ending his 16-year-long association with the PE firm.
“We are grateful to Niten Malhan’s valuable contributions to the firm over the past 16 years and wish him continued success in his new entrepreneurial venture,†Warburg Pincus said in an email response.
“Vishal Mahadevia will continue in his role leading our India business. 2017 was a strong year in India for Warburg Pincus, and with a robust pipeline of opportunities ahead, we look forward to further increasing our activity in India in the coming years,†it said.
Malhan is likely to set up his own fund, said separate media reports, citing unnamed persons.
Before joining Warburg Pincus in 2001, Malhan was engagement manager with McKinsey & Company. He is also director on the boards of CleanMax Solar, Diliigent Power, Embassy Industrial Parks, Lemon Tree Hotels and Piramal Realty, according to Warburg Pincus’ website.
Malhan holds a degree in computer science and engineering from IIT Delhi and a master’s in business administration from Indian Institute of Management Ahmedabad.
This month, Nitin Nayar, managing director of Warburg Pincus India, resigned to set up his own technology fund.
Nayar, who is an alumnus of Harvard Business School, plans to raise a corpus of Rs 950 crore to Rs 1,270 crore ($150 million to $200 million) to make mid- and growth-stage investments in technology, with a focus on enterprise technology solutions.
Warburg Pincus was one of the most active PE firms the Indian deal landscape last year.
The PE firm had put in close to $1.5 billion in India in 2017. It made six investments, including a $350-million investment in Bharti Airtel’s DTH affiliate, $360 million in Tata Technologies Ltd, $283 million in ICICI Lombard General Insurance, $109 million in Clean Max Solar, $77 million in Kalyan Jewellers India Ltd and about $120 million in multiplex chain PVR Ltd.
“Year 2017 has been an exceptionally active year as we found opportunities to partner with outstanding entrepreneurs across various sectors,†Malhan and Vishal Mahadevia who is also managing director and co-head at Warburg Pincus India, previously told VCCircle.