Everstone AMC raises $179.3 million at first close of PE fund

By Amara Osei

Everstone AMC raised Rs 1,700 crore ($179.3 million) in the first close of its private equity fund, three months after its launch. DealStreetAsia reported that the domestic mid-market vehicle will seek growth investments giving Everstone control or a significant say. Its total target size could not be ascertained.

The Rs 1,700 crore is therefore a first-close amount, not a stated fundraising ceiling. Everstone AMC launched the fund three months before the close, and DealStreetAsia reported no final-close timetable or ultimate target size.

What is the fund targeting?

Everstone AMC will invest in mid-market Indian companies across healthcare and pharmaceuticals, technology, and industrials. According to the AMC, the fund plans to back 7-10 companies and expects to deploy its capital over the next four years.

Everstone AMC said it had identified several investment opportunities. Some are at an advanced stage of due diligence, and no target companies were disclosed. The combination of a control-or-influence mandate, a three-sector focus and a four-year deployment schedule defines the fund’s initial strategy.

Who is backing the domestic fund?

Everstone AMC secured commitments from domestic investors and NRIs, family offices, and high-net-worth individuals in India. The AMC did not disclose how much came from each investor category. Its fundraising disclosures therefore show the breadth of the domestic investor base but not its rupee composition.

Vibhor Gujarati, CEO at Everstone AMC, said: “As we build out our AMC, our focus is on establishing a differentiated platform of choice for domestic investors”. The CEO’s statement frames the first close as part of a broader plan to develop the asset manager for domestic investors. Everstone AMC did not identify a fundraising deadline or a final-close target.

How does the fund fit Everstone Group?

Everstone AMC is part of Everstone Group, an alternative investment group founded in 2006. DealStreetAsia described Everstone Group as one of India’s leading alternative groups. The group manages Rs 1 lakh crore in assets across private equity, infrastructure, credit and venture capital.

That figure is groupwide and does not represent the size of the new fund, whose ultimate target remains unknown. It does, however, place the first close inside an established multi-strategy investment platform. The new fund is domestic, while Everstone Capital’s other investment vehicles are all domiciled in Singapore.

Everstone Capital is also on the road to raise its fifth flagship fund, targeting an $800 million corpus. That target belongs to the flagship fundraising effort and should not be confused with the Rs 1,700 crore first close achieved by Everstone AMC.

Everstone Capital’s existing portfolio includes SaaS company Wingify, Calibre Chemicals, Innoveo, and Sula Vineyards, according to DealStreetAsia. Those names sit at the Everstone Capital level and do not identify investments made by the new Everstone AMC fund.

What comes next?

Everstone AMC now has committed capital, a defined investment range and a pipeline with several opportunities at advanced due-diligence stages. Its next test is converting that pipeline into 7-10 investments across its three target sectors. With deployment scheduled over four years, the AMC’s first close will be judged by the pace and quality of investments it closes from here.

The immediate focus is completing due diligence and closing investments while preserving the fund’s 7-10 company and three-sector parameters. The next four years will show whether Everstone AMC can turn the Rs 1,700 crore first close into 7-10 investments while meeting its stated deployment schedule.