SEAF India fund sees strong US and SE Asia interest

SEAF India Investment Advisors (SIIA) is seeing strong interest from investors in the US, Japan, Singapore and China as it seeks to raise its second agri-business fund, SIIA managing director Hemendra Mathur told Private Equity International.

The firm is receiving enquiries from both financial and strategic investors who wish to co-invest.

In September 2015, the firm began marketing its SEAF India Agribusiness International Fund II targeting $150 million, as reported by PEI.

The fund will invest between $20 million to $25 million in small and medium enterprises, including food supply and other agribusinesses.

Mathur said they are looking to get investors in their previous fund on board before speaking to new investors.

Some of the investors for Fund I include Canada’s Sarona Asset Management, US family office Midland Capital, the Omindyer Network, New Ireland Capital, Proparco and Unigrains in France, the Small Industries Development Bank of India, Life Insurance Corporation of India, the National Bank of Agriculture & Rural Development and India’s Technology Development Board, as reported by PEI.

Mathur revealed that the first fund, a 2011-vintage vehicle that closed at $45 million, is about 85 percent invested in eight companies across India. They are still currently working on a couple of exits and expect some positive activity in the next three to six months.

“It’s a lot of good consolidation potential that we see in the agribusiness sector in the near future, especially with food demand in India growing 7 to 8 percent per month. The supply chain in the country has long-been fragmented but it’s gradually aligning itself to the food sector”, said Mathur.

Washington-based SEAF, which stands for small enterprise assistance funds, has a large and diverse portfolio with over $180 million invested in SMEs in Europe, Latin America, and Asia, according to PEI Research & Analytics.