BackKotak alternatives arm launches maiden data centre fund, aims to raise up to $1 bn
India is at the cusp of data explosion backed by digital economy, enterprise cloud, 5G and IoT. Over the next 5 years, the data centre industry is expected to grow from 650MW to 2.2GW requiring a cumulative investment of $7 billion
PremiumMUMBAI: Kotak Alternate Assets, managed by Kotak Investment Advisors Limited (KIAL), has announced Kotak Data Centre Fund to bet big on data-backed digital economy, enterprise cloud, 5G, and IoT (internet of things).
The Kotak group’s alternatives arm plans to raise anywhere between $500 million (around ₹4,000 crore) and $1 billion under its first data centre platform, a spokesperson said.
Former vice president at Nxtra Data Ltd Subhamkar Das has been appointed as Chief Operating Officer (COO) for managing and leading the data centre platform.
“Subhamkar will be a senior member of KIAL’s Alternate Asset Management team that will help build the data centre practice at KIAL," the company said in a statement.
With around 24 years of experience, Subhamkar has previously worked as country business manager at Hewlett Packard Enterprise and data centre head with construction engineering firm Sterling and Wilson. He has made contributions in designing data centres, physical infrastructure, green buildings, energy efficient & next generation Data Centres.
“India is at the cusp of data explosion backed by digital economy, enterprise cloud, 5G and IoT. Over the next 5 years we see the data centre industry growing from 650MW to 2.2GW requiring a cumulative investment of $7 billion. At Kotak we have always led the way identifying new Investment opportunities and invested in empowered teams to execute plans to meet our investors’ target expectations," said Srini Sriniwasan, managing director at KIAL.
Among the most active home-grown investors, KIAL is on a fundraising spree launching multiple funds across segments. Earlier this year, VCCircle had reported that the Kotak investment arm, in the process of raising multiple funds, is also set to foray into venture capital, venture debt and buyouts space.
Two weeks ago, KIAL received commitments from a subsidiary of Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA) for its 13th real estate fund sized $1 billion. Canada’s largest pension fund manager Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPP Investments) has also committed ₹1,850 crore to the first close of Kotak Infrastructure Investment Fund (KIIF).
In July, Kotak Pre-IPO Opportunities Fund had announced the first close at ₹1,386 crore, while KIAL is in the process of raising its second new fund.
Part of the Kotak Mahindra Group, KIAL was set up in 2005 to focus on the alternate assets business. It has raised/managed/advised in aggregate over $6.8 billion across different asset classes including real estate, private equity, infrastructure, special situations fund, and investment advisory, all led by independent investment teams.
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