New Development Bank (NDB), the multilateral development bank established by the BRICS countries, has announced a commitment of $100 million into the NIIF Fund of Funds (FoF). With NDB’s investment, the FoF has secured $800 million in commitments. NDB joins the Government of India (GoI), Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) and Asian Development Bank (ADB) as an investor in the FoF.

This investment marks NDB’s first equity investment into India and its first-ever investment into a Fund of Funds.

The FoF was established in 2018 with the objective to provide homegrown Indian private equity fund managers access to an India-focussed institutional investor that operates at scale.

As of date, the FoF has made commitments to four funds aggregating over ₹2,750 crore (approx. $370 million equivalent).

Sujoy Bose, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of NIIF, said: “With the Indian economy well on the path to recovery from the Covid-19-induced slowdown, the Indian private equity sector is expected to be a major provider of equity capital for the continued long-term growth of businesses. The FoF provides global institutional investors with an opportunity to build a diversified portfolio of growth investments through experienced Indian fund managers.”

NDB Vice-President and Chief Operations Officer, Xian Zhu, said: “ NDB’s investment in the NIIF FoF will provide additional funds to Indian private sector businesses facing difficulties during this time of crisis. The partnership with NIIF allows NDB to access a diversified range of portfolio funds and support the Government of India’s ongoing effort to promote investment in infrastructure. NDB support will address investment gaps and the availability of institutional funding for domestic private equity funds in India, contributing overall to infrastructure development and economic growth.”

Related Topics
comment COMMENT NOW