PE firm TA Associates lines up a unicorn housing finance bet

livemint.com:

MUMBAI : PE firm TA Associates lines up a unicorn housing finance bet Private equity firm TA Associates is set to pick up a significant stake in Multiples PE-backed Vastu Housing Finance Corp. Ltd, in another sign of increasing investor interest in the housing finance sector. The deal size will likely be about $400 million, with Vastu Housing Finance valued upwards of $1.4 billion, said one of three people with knowledge of the deal.

Vastu Housing was valued at about $1.2 billion in February, according to market research firm Tracxn. Some existing investors in the Mumbai-based housing finance company including Norwest Venture Partners, 360 One Asset Management, and Creation Investments India are also increasing their stake in Vastu through this transaction, said another person familiar with the development. Multiples PE, which owns a majority stake in Vastu from an earlier fund, will sell stake in this investment round.

TA Associates, Multiples PE, Vastu Housing Finance and the other shareholders did not respond to a request for comment. The latest transaction involving Vastu Housing will be a mix of secondary and primary fundraises. The primary capital infusion was largely completed in March after International Finance Corporation invested about $75 million in Vastu Housing, according to a reguolatory disclosure.

Multiples has been booking profits gradually since the time it first invested seed capital in the housing finance platform in 2015. Last year, Faering Capital also acquired some stake in Vastu Housing from Multiples PE for $30 million. “VHFCL has been maintaining comfortable capitalisation levels as it has raised equity capital in the initial stages of operations to support growth in the loan portfolio," rating