Adia ups India investment
new delhi/mumbai — Economic relations between the UAE and India, which entered a new, dynamic phase with two recent visits to New Delhi within one year by His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces, is picking up steam.
A new business partnership between the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (Adia) and KKR India Financial Services (KIFS) has been announced in Mumbai with the Adia’s decision to become a “significant minority shareholder” in KIFS, which offers an alternative credit business in India.
Hamad Shahwan Al Dhaheri, executive director of the Private Equities Department at Adia, said in a statement released in Mumbai through Kohlberg Kravis Roberts (KKR), the global investment firm which is the parent company of KIFS, that “becoming a shareholder in the Indian venture is consistent with the Adia’s approach of seeking principal investments in market-leading businesses alongside strong and high-quality partners.”
He added: “India is one of the world’s fastest-growing and most dynamic markets, and Indian businesses are increasingly seeking alternative credit solutions. KIFS has played an integral role in the development of this important form of financing in India and, through our investment in the company, we look forward to supporting the continued growth of the market.”
B. V. Krishnan, chief executive officer of KIFS, said: “The Adia’s investment in KIFS gives us a high-calibre partner to work alongside as we further scale our platform and deliver creative solutions in the Indian market. India continues to be an under-served financial services market, with shallow capital markets and an over-reliance on banks for wholesale financing.”
The extent of the Adia’s investment in the Indian entity has not been revealed. Meanwhile, with the support of the Adia, India’s HDFC Capital Advisors, a wholly-owned subsidiary of HDFC, has achieved the initial closing of its second affordable housing fund, the HDFC Capital Affordable Real Estate Fund – 2, it has been announced.
This will be combined with the HDFC Capital Affordable Real Estate Fund – 1 (H-Care-1), which was raised last year, to create a $1 billion platform targeting affordable and mid-income residential projects in India’s leading 15 cities.
The Adia is the primary investor, through a wholly-owned subsidiary, in both H-Care-1 and HCare-2. — Wam