Big money wants a seat in deals, not just funds—and it’s reshaping India’s private markets
Subscribe to enjoy similar stories.MUMBAI: Big investors are no longer content to just back funds, they increasingly want to invest directly in the deals those funds pursue.In India’s private markets, this push for co-investment rights is giving limited partners (LPs) more control over where their money goes and better economics, while encouraging fund managers to offer such access to secure commitments and execute larger deals. What was once optional is quickly becoming standard in fund negotiations.“Co-investment has become almost a common ask by investors in any new fund raise.
The LP while negotiating commitments, also insists on a meaningful co-investment right and makes adequate provision for the same,” said Siddharth Shah, senior partner at law firm Khaitan & Co.Shah, who leads the firm's funds practice, explained that general partners (GPs)—who manage these funds—are at times able to get co-investment interest ranging from 25% to 50% of their fund size and in some cases almost 100% of the fund size. “This has indeed become a strong pull from a fundraise perspective.”The shift is visible in recent trends.
India’s overall fundraising activity hit an all-time high of $23.2 billion across 123 funds, according to an EY report, underscoring sustained confidence among LPs in Indian funds. The renewed appetite also reflects India’s rising allocation among global LPs amid China’s slowdown.Fund managers are increasingly using co-investment access as a lever to attract capital.“This is how it is pitched to LPs at the time of fundraising—the co-investment right is equal to the amount invested by a LP.
Read on livemint.com