Funding growth

The private equity (PE) space in India continues to exude confidence with FY17 (April 2016–March 2017) recording 25 billion USD worth of investments, a visible uptrend over the last few years. In the last five fiscals, both global and domestic PE investors backed over 3,500 businesses and aided entrepreneurs in fuelling India’s growth trajectory.

With the government taking up structural reforms such as the Bankruptcy Code and the Goods and Services Tax (GST) and with the dismantling of the Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB), global investors continue to demonstrate optimism around India’s growth story.

The first quarter of FY18 emphasises the positive investor sentiment, with PE investments worth 6.7 billion USD—a nearly 50% increase over the same period last year. Latestage investments alone accounted for over 50% of the investment value this quarter. In addition to capital, foreign investors have played a vital role in ushering in global expertise in optimising the way businesses are run.

In addition to capital, foreign investors have played a vital role in ushering in global expertise in optimising the way businesses are run.

The enactment of the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code is also expected to result in the swifter sale of distressed assets. This will also create incremental opportunities for financial investors in India, and a number of distressed asset funds (DAFs) are already looking at India.