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Edelweiss buys out hedge fund manager Forefront Capital

By Anuradha Verma

  • 02 May 2014
Edelweiss buys out hedge fund manager Forefront Capital

Diversified financial services company Edelweiss Financial Services Limited has acquired Mumbai-based high net- worth individuals-focused asset management company Forefront Capital Management Private Limited for an undisclosed amount, according to a press release.

“With this, we will widen and deepen our presence in the asset management space and provide additional innovative investment solutions to our clients,” Edelweiss Group executive director Rujan Panjwani said in the statement.

Co-founded by Radhika Gupta and Nalin Moniz, Forefront currently manages a range of investments focused on the absolute return space, from value oriented equity strategies to multi-asset allocation strategies.

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Radhika and Moniz are alumni of University of Pennsylvania/The Wharton School. While Radhika worked as portfolio manager with Goldman Sachs Asset Management, Moniz was with AQR Capital Management (an $80 billion hedge fund) as a portfolio manager prior to founding Forefront in 2009.

Moniz and Radhika will continue to lead and manage the business, and Anant Jatia, co-founder of Forefront and a fellow alumnus, has opted to pursue the opportunities in his family business.

Forefront caters to around 200 clients that include corporate treasuries, promoters, top corporate executives and single family offices across 12 cities in India.

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It had received India's first domestic hedge fund licence in 2012, under the new SEBI Alternative Investment Fund (Category III) regulations.

“In Edelweiss we believe we have found a terrific partner who will provide a larger platform to launch innovative ideas for domestic and international investors across the asset management space. With our combined market knowledge and expertise and Edelweiss’s institutionalised risk management, corporate governance, technology and full complement of financial services, our clients will be provided world class asset management products as well as holistic investment solutions,” Radhika Gupta, co-founder, Forefront Capital Management, said in the statement. 

This is the second such acquisition in the alternative asset management side in almost as many months. Recently, Edelweiss’ rival India Infoline’s wealth management unit acquired a majority stake in India Alternatives, a small private equity firm.

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Both Edelweiss and India Infoline count private equity giant Carlyle as a shareholder among other PE investors.

(Edited by Joby Puthuparampil Johnson)

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