New Delhi, Nov. 13 -- German lender Deutsche Bank's unit DWS Group plans to pick up a 40% stake in a subsidiary of Nippon Life India Asset Management Ltd to jointly develop and build an alternative investment fund (AIF) franchise in India.
DWS will buy the stake in Nippon Life India AIF Management Ltd by subscribing to fresh shares, Mumbai-listed Nippon Life said in a stock-exchange filing. It didn't disclose financial terms of the transaction.
Nippon Life India, the company behind Nippon India Mutual Fund, is the fourth-largest asset manager and second-largest passive asset manager in India. It manages $85 billion of assets under management. DWS was spun off from Deutsche Bank as a separate unit in 2018 via a public offering. The bank retains a majority stake in the asset manager.
Nippon Life the two partners will jointly launch passive products for the Indian and global markets. They also aim to set up a global arrangement to develop and distribute actively managed mutual funds with India-focused strategies.
"The envisaged agreements tackle three of our priorities: drive growth in alternatives and passive, deliver on our promise to leverage our strong partnerships in Asia, and pursue our ambition to become 'top 5 in Top 5'," Stefan Hoops, chief executive officer of DWS, said in a press note.
Nippon Life India AIF Management has raised nearly $1 billion commitments over a decade of operations. The alternative asset manager has built an alternatives product suite across private credit, listed equities, real estate and venture capital. With the proposed joint venture, the company plans to further expand its product suite and expand its coverage to offshore investors through DWS's global reach.
"Our partnership in passive strategies and global distribution will allow us to deliver world-class investment access to global and Indian investors," said Sundeep Sikka, executive director and CEO of Nippon Life India.
Published by HT Digital Content Services with permission from VC Circle.