Creador set for $430m first close on Southeast Asia, India fund

The first close will take place on July 11, according to a source familiar with the situation. The fund launched in February with a target of $500 million. Its remit is similar to that of its predecessor with Malaysia, Indonesia, Singapore, and India as the core geographies. Creador positions itself as a flexible capital provider that typically makes minority growth investments, including PIPE deals. 

The firm added opportunistic coverage of the Philippines when it raised $415 million for Fund III in 2016, although the focus now is on helping portfolio companies expand into the country, notably Mr DIY, Malaysia’s largest home improvement retailer. Vietnam is the new geography for Fund IV and the private equity firm made its debut investment in that market in January, buying shares in mobile device and consumer electronics retailer Mobile World.

Creador raised $130 million for its first fund in 2013 and four of the seven portfolio companies have now been sold, with 150% of the corpus returned to LPs. Exits include Cholamandalam Investment & Finance, Somany Ceramics and Repco Home Finance. The returns on those deals were 3.7x, 5.3x, and 4x, respectively. It has also exited Indonesia-based BFI Finance.

Deployment of Fund I was rapid because the original target was not met. This resulted in Fund II launching just four months after the final close on its predecessor. The vehicle duly closed at $330 million in October 2014, with commitments from the likes of Hamilton Lane, Siguler Guff, and Quilvest. Five out of the 14 portfolio companies in Fund II have been exited, while a sixth – Vectus Industries, an Indian manufacturer of plastic water tanks and pipes – recently filed for an IPO.

A host of Southeast Asia-focused managers are in the market and Dymon Asia Private Equity is so far the only one to record a final close, collecting $450 million for its second fund. Southern Capital reached a first close of approximately $220 million on its fourth vehicle earlier this year, not long after completing a stapled secondary. The GP is targeting $500 million overall.

Other managers on the fundraising trail include Quadria Capital, KV Asia Capital, Navis Capital Partners, Novo Tellus Capital Partners, and Archipelago Capital Partners.

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• Topics
• Southeast Asia
• South Asia
• Fundraising
• Growth
• GPs
• Southeast Asia
• India
• Creador