New York bets on mid-market, India with PE commitments

  • New York re-ups with Insight Venture, ICV
  • Kedaara, Indian PE fund, backed for more than $9 mln
  • $192.4 bln pension holds 7.8 pct of assets in PE

New York State Common Retirement Fundsecured commitments to three new private equity funds in September and October.

The fund, whose sole trustee is State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli, on Oct. 11 committed $250 million to Insight Venture Partners’ 10th flagship fund, according to public investment disclosures released by the $192.4 billion pension system. Fund X will invest in revenue-generating technology companies and had already raised $3.6 billion through mid-July.

Insight Venture’s previous fund, which raised $3.3 billion in 2015, was netting a 7 percent internal rate of return through Dec. 31, 2016, Colorado Public Employees’ Retirement Association documents show.

New York State also committed $75 million to ICV Partners’ fourth fund, whichBuyouts earlier this year reported was raising $500 million. ICV’s new fund will acquire stakes in family-and-founder-owned businesses, corporate carveouts and private-equity-backed “orphans,” New York’s investment disclosure says.

The commitment closed Oct. 4. New York has existing relationships with both ICV and Insight Venture Partners.

New York’s third commitment, for just $9.4 million, went to an Indian private equity fund managed by Kedaara Capital. The allocation to Kedaara, a new relationship for New York, was made through an existing fund-of-funds commitment to Asia Alternatives.

Kedaara is led by Sunish Sharma and Manish Kejriwal, a former senior managing director at Temasek Holdings Pvt Ltd who founded the Singapore sovereign-wealth fund’s Indian office in 2004, according to a biography on the firm’s website. Sharma previously worked on tech, financial-services, pharmaceutical and consumer deals for the Indian investment team at General Atlantic.

The firm is looking to raise $600 million to $650 million for Kedaara Capital II, according to reports. Its first fund, which closed on $540 million in 2013, was reportedly the largest ever India-focused PE fund.

NYS Common Retirement Fund held 7.8 percent of its assets in PE as of Sept. 30.

Action Item: For more on New York State Common: www.osc.state.ny.us/pension/