20/2/2018 – Creador, a private equity firm with investments in the South and Southeast Asia region is looking to invest up to 20 percent of its upcoming fund in Vietnam over the next 3 years, in addition to opening its first office in the country by June this year.
“We are impressed by the strong, sustained high growth levels and the entrepreneurial spirit of the Vietnamese people,” explained Brahmal Vasudevan, the founder and CEO of Creador. “We see similarities with the success of China and India which makes us believe that Vietnam will be the next BRIC nation.”
The PE firm made its first investment in Vietnam this year by injecting US$43.8 million into the country’s largest mobile device and consumer electronics retailer, Mobile World (MWG). It also expects to secure another deal in Vietnam later this year.
At present, Creador has exhausted 85 percent of its Creador III fund raised in 2017, having made investments in India’s Paras Healthcare and Ujjivan Financial Services Ltd as well as Malaysia’s Bake with Yen.
Creador is currently in works of raising Creador IV, a US$500 million fund and expects its first close by June this year. Limited partners in the latest vehicle include family offices, pension funds, endowments, and fund of funds.
“Although we are raising slightly more capital this time, US$500 million versus US$415 million in Creador III, the size is not substantially larger in dollar amounts and will still allow us to focus on deals in our sweet spot,” Vasudevan added.
Launched in 2011 by Vasudevan, Creador is headquartered in Kuala Lumpur. The PE firm focuses on long-term investments for growth-oriented businesses in India, Malaysia, Sri Lanka, Singapore, Indonesia, Vietnam, and the Philippines.
Since its inception, the private equity firm has raised close to US$900 million in investor commitments across three PE funds. So far, the firm has investments in various industries including financial services, consumer durables, retail, F&B, pharmaceutical, healthcare, media, and business services.
