The International Finance Corporation (IFC), a member of the World Bank Group, has proposed an equity investment of up to $30 million along with a co-investment envelope of up to another $30 million in L Catterton’s debut India fund, according to a disclosure.
The LVMH-backed private equity (PE) major, considered the world’s largest consumer-focused investment platform, is currently on the road to raise about $600 million, the disclosure added.
Last year July, DealStreetAsia first reported that L Catterton is eyeing its first India-dedicated investment vehicle, looking to tap segments such as fashion, accessories, handbags, luggage, or cosmetics. Sources at that time had said the firm is also open to fine-dining and high-end consumer services like spas and travel, adding that it is looking at both ‘INR [rupee] and USD commitments’.
Prior to that, in March 2024, L Catterton Asia had announced the formation of a joint venture in India with former Hindustan Unilever (HUL) CEO Sanjiv Mehta to develop its India-focused fund, which going forward is expected to park capital in the range of $25-150 million in 7-9 companies.
So far, L Catterton has parked capital in India through its Asia fund and counts Sugar Cosmetics and PVR Cinemas among its portfolio companies. In the past, it had also invested in Fab India. It exited the ethnicwear retailer in 2016.
The firm is also understood to be looking to raise a separate investment vehicle for the Japan market for which it is targeting a corpus of 40 billion yen (around $255.65 million).
L Catterton is not the only investor carving out an India strategy for the first time. Others like Affirma Capital, a PE firm headquartered in Singapore, is also understood to be on the road to raise an India-dedicated fund with a target of about $350 million. This will be its first vehicle focused solely on the country since its inception in 2019.
LPs committed a record $10.9 billion to India-focused PE-VC firms in 2022, as they shifted their focus to the country amid global macroeconomic headwinds, keeping the long-term growth prospects in mind. Indian PE-VC firms raised $8.1 billion in funding in 2023 and $6.8 billion in 2024, show data available with research firm Venture Intelligence.
Recently, US-based venture capital firm Tribe Capital, which has a dedicated India investment vehicle, announced that it partnered with homegrown investment firm Oister Global to launch a new fund focused on secondary transactions in India. Together, they said they have plans to invest $500 million over the next two years in the country.
