Avendus Finance Launches $78.5 Mn Debt Fund; Prepares For First Close By August

Avendus Finance, the Avendus Capital-owned NBFC, has launched a $78.5 Mn (INR 500 Cr) debt fund. As per reports, the firm is looking to make its first close by the end of this month.

The fund will comprise a $39.25 Mn (INR 250 Cr) Avendus Structured Credit Fund-I as well as a greenshoe option of the same amount. The newly-launched fund, according to sources, will be used to invest in business across industrial and healthcare sectors.

Commenting on the development, CEO of Avendus Finance, Sandeep Thapliyal said, “The fund will supplement what is being done by the NBFC. It is largely going to ride on, participate and invest along with the NBFC. It improves our ability to write larger cheques, because you have NBFC capital along with this discretionary pool of capital.”

From the $39.25 Mn Avendus Structured Credit Fund-I, around $11.77 Mn (INR 75 Cr) will be allocated for a Limited Partnership (LP) profile, focussed on high net-worth individuals, family offices and institutional investors.

Thapliyal added, “Avendus’ core all these years has been in offering advisory services to high-quality mid-market businesses. As such, the launch of NBFC completes the bouquet of products and services to such businesses companies. The fact is that technology is a sector that we understand extremely well. Avendus, as a firm, has more than 50% market share when it comes to offering advisory services to that segment.”

Created in 2016, Avendus Finance is a non-banking finance company (NBFC) owned by Mumbai-headquartered Avendus Capital. With additional offices in Bengaluru and Gurugram, Avendus Capital operates as a financial services provider, whose clients include investors, corporates, and high net-worth individuals.

The firm currently offers a range of financial services such as wealth management, financial advisory, credit solutions and alternative asset management, among others. In November 2015, US-based PE fund Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co. (KKR) invested $105 Mn to acquire 70% stake in Avendus Capital.

Exploring India-Specific Startup Funds Launched Recently

In the month of July, several India-focussed funds were launched to facilitate credit availability for businesses and startups by the corporates, industry stalwarts as well as the government. In the beginning of July, PM Narendra Modi teamed up with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to launch the Israel India Innovation Initiative Fund (I4F).

Around the same time, Hemant Kanoria-founded Srei Infrastructure Finance Limited signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Russian Government-owned Vnesheconombank, as part of their initiative to launch a $200 Mn IT and innovation fund.

Former Infosys CEO, Nandan Nilekani and Helion Ventures founder Sanjeev Aggarwal joined forces to launch the Fundamentum Partnership with an initial corpus of $100 Mn. A week later, Mumbai-headquartered 35North Ventures received a nod from SEBI to launch a $20.8 Mn (INR 130 Cr) early stage fund.

Airbus Ventures also recently revealed plans to set up a fund for aerospace and non-aerospace tech startups in India, in collaboration with Bengaluru-based Airbus Bizlab. Bengaluru-based VC firm SAIF Partners raised a $350 Mn India-specific fund, with a focus on Internet, healthcare, education, technology, financial services, enterprise SaaS, retail, and consumer brands.

Most recently, Nepal-based conglomerate CG Corp Global launched Prestellar Ventures, an early-stage fund with a corpus of $100 Mn. The $10 Mn will be used to launch country-specific sub-funds for India, Sri Lanka, Nepal, and Bangladesh.

With the latest $78.5 Mn debt fund, Avendus Capital’s NBFC, Avendus Finance, looks to expand its client base by investing in companies across diverse verticals.

(The development was reported by TOI)