Bahrain's Investcorp sells entire stake in Indian retailer Citykart
It represents the fifth full exit from the firm's India Consumer Growth Portfolio (ICGP) and the sixth liquidity event for the India franchise in the past 32 months.
Gaurav Sharma, Partner & Head of India Investments at Investcorp, said Citykart was the very first deal the firm executed after formally entering India in 2019.
Investcorp exits Citykart stake
'It epitomised our strategy of backing category-defining, founder-led businesses in high-growth segments.
'Today's outcome underscores our ability to generate attractive risk-adjusted returns, while supporting India's consumption story,' he said.
The operating scale-up has seen Citykart's store network expand dramatically from 37 to 137 stores, leading to an estimated revenue of $102 million (INR 8.8 billion) for FY 2025.
Investcorp said it has been instrumental in fostering a strategic partnership with Citykart founder Sudhanshu Agarwal, focusing on building a professional second line, integrating the W-Mart acquisition, revitalising underperforming stores, and optimising sourcing and inventory processes.
Yusef al Yusef, Global Head of Distribution at Investcorp, said partnering with the Citykart team to triple the store base, steer the business through the pandemic and still outperform the fund's underwriting is immensely satisfying.
'We thank all stakeholders and are confident that TPG NewQuest and A91 will help Citykart accelerate its next growth phase,' he said.
Besides Citykart, Investcorp's other recent realisations include the sale of its stake in luggage maker Safari Industries, a profitable exit from eyecare specialist ASG Eye Hospital, a planned IPO-led exit from health-benefits administrator Medi Assist Healthcare, and a partial exit from dialysis network NephroPlus.
Investcorp's India private equity strategy targets asset-light opportunities across consumer and retail, healthcare, financial services, B2B and technology.
Its active Indian holdings include Global Dental, Wakefit, Canpac, Xpressbees, Zolo, Freshtohome, Intergrow Brands, Unilog, V-Ensure, and the buy-out of NSE IT, rechristened NuSummit.
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