Parthenon Capital in London has pledged $88 million of seed capital to Askil India Integrated Infrastructure, an entity promoted by Mumbai based infrastructure-investment outfit Skil Infrastructure and investment banking shop Askar Capital in Iceland. Askar and Skil expect to start a broader capital raising for the fund in the coming months and have already identified four investments, says a report in the private equity Insider.
Askar focuses on emerging markets. The firm has deployed $100 million of its own capital to infrastructure deals in India, where its investment team is led by Bear Stearns alumnus Pavan Bakshi in Mumbai.
Skil, headed by Nikhil Gandhi has been investing in infrastructure projects in India for 20 years. The outfit which has raised $1 billion of equity amd debt in the past year, counts Apollo Management, Blackstone Group, Citadel Investment, Merrill Lynch, New York Life and Trikona Capital among its investors.
Nikhil Gandhi's SKIL Group, better known for its Pipavav Port, joined hands with the Iceland-based investment bank, Askar Capital, for a $500 million private equity fund. Both Askar Capital and SKIL will hold 50 per cent stake each in the fund. Askar Capital CEO, Tryggvi Herbertsson, said the fund would look at a diverse range of investment opportunities in India and the larger South-East Asian Region. It will have a multi-sector focus and will aggressively look at small-and medium-sized enterprises. Both Askar Capital and SKIL will manage the private equity investments.
