Edelweiss' announces first close at US$ 205mn for its second fund

Edelweiss Alternative Asset Advisors Limited today announced the first closing of Singapore-based EW Special Opportunities Fund II (ESOF-II) at US$ 205 million. ESOF-II is the successor fund to the $230 million, ESOF I, 2010 vintage and is being advised by Edelweiss Alternative Asset Advisors Pte Limited Singapore. It will seek to invest in privately-negotiated collateralized credit transactions with a focus on earning strong risk-adjusted returns.

ESOF-II received good backing from a group of new and existing institutional investors, including public pensions, insurance companies, etc.

Ananth Shenoy, head of credit alternatives, Global Asset Management, Edelweiss Group, commented: "We are delighted with the response we have received to this fundraising, mostly from existing investors. The activity in the alternatives space in India has picked up significantly over the past year and we are seeing exciting opportunities, especially in the credit space."

According to Venkat Ramaswamy, executive director & co-head Global Asset Management, Edelweiss Group, "Credit is a scalable asset class in India and Edelweiss' investment strategy provides a good way to play the India growth story in a risk-adjusted manner. Acceleration of India's economic growth has led to an increasing requirement of capital by business owners in India and we are well-positioned to meet their needs and simultaneously providing the fund investors with an opportunity to participate in the company's growth while avoiding equity-like risk."

Edelweiss Alternative Asset Advisors platform advises global and domestic investors on investing in liquid, illiquid and hybrid investment strategies in India.

Edelweiss is a diversified financial services group. Edelweiss offers a large range of products and services spanning across asset classes and consumer segments. Its businesses are broadly divided into credit business (including mortgages, structured collateralised credit, retail finance, distressed assets credit and agri finance), agency business (including financial markets, asset management and commodity & agri services), life insurance and balance sheet management unit operations. Edelweiss revenue for FY15 stands at Rs 3,912 crore with an asset base of Rs 27,000 crore. Its net profit for FY15 is Rs 329 crore which has grown at a 37% cagr over last 3 years and 30% cagr over last 10 years