Multiples raises $690m for second India fund

The vehicle, which completed fundraising in May, comprises two vehicles: a core fund of $550 million and a co-investment pool of $135 million. A first close of $325 million came in early 2015. Multiples was founded in 2009 by Renuka Ramnath, former CEO of ICICI Venture, and raised $450 million for its debut fund in 2011. The final close on Fund II was first reported by VCCircle and has since been confirmed by AVCJ.

The International Finance Corporation (IFC) said in April that it had proposed an investment of up to $40.6 million in Fund II. IFC Asset Management - which deploys capital raised from third parties rather than IFC's balance sheet money - was also considering a commitment of undisclosed size. International investors are said to account for 90% of the corpus.

LPs in Fund I include UK development finance institution CDC Group, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board, Kuwait's Public Institution for Social Security and Dutch pension fund PGGM. That vehicle is now fully invested across 11 companies, spanning financial services, consumer, healthcare, media and entertainment, and manufacturing.

Fund II will follow the sector-agnostic strategy of its predecessor, making growth capital commitments to mid-tier Indian companies with a view to helping them scale into national or regional leaders. While minority deals are expected to account for the bulk of the portfolio, the team does have experience of control transactions.

Whereas Fund I targeted commitments of $20-25 million per transaction, its successor will operate in the $50-100 million band. There have already been three deals: contract manufacturer Encube Ethicals, housing finance provider Vastu Housing Finance Corp, and a follow-on investment in cinema chain operator PVR.

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• Topics
• South Asia
• Fundraising
• GPs
• LPs
• Growth
• Multiples Alternative Asset Management
• India