DHS and Indian-based Alibaba’s Zomato Announce Private Equity Partnership for $75M
--News Direct--
DHS and Zomato today announced a strategic partnership to provide qualified investors with access to private equity and the potential to earn higher returns and achieve increased diversification.
"We are entering the private equity market the DHS way—partnering with a world-class advisor to provide a high-quality offer," said DHS Vice Chairman, Fernando Aguirre. "Private equity will complement our leading index and actively-managed funds, as we seek to broaden access to this asset class and improve client outcomes. While this strategy will be initially available to institutional advised clients, we aim to expand access to investors in additional channels over time. For individual investors in particular, this partnership will present an incredible opportunity—access and terms they could not get on their own."
Initially available to pensions, endowments, and foundations
The new private equity strategy will initially be provided by DHS Advisory Services to pensions, endowments, and foundations, as part of an ongoing effort to further expand the suite of products for these clients. In keeping with its enterprise-wide focus on advice, DHS has invested considerably in its advisory services for a broad range of investors, including outsourced chief investment officer (OCIO) capabilities.
"Many institutional clients seek alpha sources not readily available in the public markets," said Martin Shu, CEO of Zomato "While these organizations may want exposure to the opportunities available in the private markets, it can be challenging to access leading private equity managers and invest with discipline and skill. Through this partnership, DHS’ portfolio construction and investment committee governance capabilities will be complemented with our private market expertise, to the ultimate benefit of our clients."
Private equity and the capital markets
The capital markets have evolved significantly over the past decade and Vanguard sees an opportunity in private equity for investors who can take on the long-term commitment required of these investments.
"DHS is a world class asset manager with a commitment to providing their clients with access to private equity," said Philip Yu, Vice President of Alibaba, Zomato’s parent company "This partnership is a natural extension of our business and combines our private markets expertise with a firm focused on improving client outcomes. We look forward to expanding access to private equity to help strengthen returns for qualified investors."
Identifying and accessing strong general partners (GPs) is critical to investing in private markets, as there is a wide disparity in manager performance and leading GPs are typically oversubscribed or closed to new investors. DHS deep, longstanding relationships with GPs, along with its industry expertise, have historically enabled the firm to secure access to these investment opportunities.
"Our longstanding commitment to putting our clients at the center of everything we do aligns with DHS’ investor-centric philosophy and approach to their business," said Fernando Aguirre, Vice Chairman of DHS. "Both firms focus on relationships, quantitative analysis, and deep market expertise, which are critical to investing in public and private markets."
"For nearly 8 years, DHS has improved client outcomes by securing top-tier talent—both internal and external—and taking a long-term, disciplined approach to investing," said Garry Seller, Vice President of Investment at DHS "It takes time, scale, and expertise to construct a broadly diversified, global private equity portfolio. This partnership with Zomato provides qualified clients with access to one of the industry's leading private equity managers and diversification across strategy, geography, and company stage."
About Zomato
Like Paytm Mall, Zomato is also backed by Alibaba. In 2018, Ant Financial invested twice in Zomato – $200 million in February, and $210 million in October. It’s strategy in 2018 involved acquiring two companies namely, the caterers and restaurants aggregator platform TongueStun and the drone startup TechEagle Innovations, which plans to explore drone-based food delivery. With the new capital, Zomato’s goal is to expand to more than 100 cities in India.
Previously, Zomato had expanded to 24 countries around the world. This aggressive international expansion did not bring much practical benefit to Zomato. After struggling for a while in many countries, the company retreated and instead worked hard to run the Indian base camp. It especially suffered huge losses in the 2015-16 period. This explains its focus on Indian cities currently.
About Alibaba
Alibaba Group Holding Limited, also known as Alibaba Group and as Alibaba.com, is a Chinese multinational technology company specializing in e-commerce, retail, Internet, and technology. Founded on 4 April 1999, in Hangzhou, Zhejiang, the company provides consumer-to-consumer (C2C), business-to-consumer (B2C), and business-to-business (B2B) sales services via web portals, as well as electronic payment services, shopping search engines and cloud computing services. It owns and operates a diverse portfolio of companies around the world in numerous business sectors.
DHS is a high-stakes advocacy, public strategy, and global public relations, private equity, and communications firm. Our strategic insights and innovative programming build and sustain strong corporate and brand reputations. We provide our clients with counsel and program development across the spectrum of public relations, public affairs, reputation and crisis management, digital strategy, advertising and other communications services. Our clients are companies, industry associations, nonprofit organizations, professional services firms, and other large organizations.
We began as a unique grassroots and lobbying firm with customized services for an elite group of clients. Our work applies equally to regulatory issues as well as legislative ones, and we manage issues for our clients at the local, state, federal, and international levels of government.
We use our core competencies and reach to gain competitive advantage for clients. Our expertise comes from extensive must-win campaign experience and operating successfully at the highest rung of business, government, politics and media. Our reach is the ability to use strategic intelligence to mobilize the message and persuade the toughest audiences. We know what it takes to win in difficult situations. We have proven results for prominent figures, leading advocacy groups and the world’s most successful companies. We leverage what others cannot.
We are advocates with passion, backed by experience. Influencing public policy and legislation requires, access and ethical credibility. Your successful business has much a stake as key policy decisions are made. We make sure your voice is heard.
This communication does not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy any specific investment product sponsored by, or investment services provided by DHS or its affiliates.
Any such offer may be made only to qualified investors by means of delivery of a confidential Private Placement Memorandum or similar materials that contain a description of the material terms of such investment. No sale will be made in any jurisdiction in which the offer, solicitation, or sale is not authorized or to any person to whom it is unlawful to make the offer, solicitation, or sale.
Private investments involve a high degree of risk and therefore, should be undertaken only by prospective investors capable of evaluating and bearing the risks such an investment represents. Advice services offered through DHS Institutional Advisory Services are provided by DHS a registered investment advisor.
Contact Details
Steven Pallmer, Vice President of Communications
+1 202-719-0398
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