KKR-owned Avendus buys India asset manager
Avendus Capital, an Indian financial services firm owned by KKR, has agreed to acquire Ocean Dial Asset Management, the UK-based investment manager of India Capital Growth Fund (ICGF).
Avendus will acquire 100% of Ocean Dial for an undisclosed amount, according to a filing. The deal is subject to regulatory approvals from the UK Financial Conduct Authority and the Securities and Exchange Board of India. Closing is expected by the fourth quarter of 2017.
Ocean Dial’s investment management team will remain in place following the acquisition. ICGF’s board has expressed its support for the deal, due to the benefit that Avendus’ network in India and the US is expected to bring to the firm.
“As the public markets are deepening, we are observing a switch from mutual funds to alternate investment funds,” said Avendus Managing Director and CEO Ranu Vohra in a separate statement. “The acquisition is synergistic, as we will work to make Ocean Dial a bigger play by bringing investors from other geographies into the fold.”
The deal is expected to strengthen the position of Avendus’ Absolute Return Fund, which launched in February and currently has INR10 billion ($156 million) in assets under management targeting investments in both public and private companies. Ocean Dial currently manages about GBP450 million ($585 million) across three funds focused on long-only Indian equities.
KKR acquired a 70% stake in Avendus in 2015 for an undisclosed sum, providing exits for former shareholders Eastgate Capital and Americorp Ventures. The acquisition was aimed at expanding Avendus into an integrated financial services platform from its previous focus on investment banking.
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