VCCIRCLE INDIA INVEST 2010: THE LP-GP ROUND TABLE
The fund raising environment has been dismal globally ever since the credit crisis blew over. Should Indian private equity funds worry? Not when India is one of the few economies in the world which have weathered the world’s worst slowdown and have quickly regained their growth momentum. India’s macro-economic indicators, be it GDP, exports and factory output, have bounced back faster than expected.
Predictably, the crisis has put the spotlight on India and its domestic consumption story as one of the most attractive themes for global investors.
But there isn't easy capital available. The global economic meltdown has resulted in drying up of traditional liquidity channels. Those who have capital are extremely cautious in disbursing them now than ever before. Not just fund of funds, but long term limited partners like pension funds, university endowment funds and even family offices are more discerning in choosing their GPs.
In a reversal of sorts of power equation, LPs now want more bang for their buck, greater alignment of interest, a minimum investment commitment from GPs themselves, and, in some instances, they are even questioning the traditional management equation.
The good news is emerging markets like India is among the front-runner destinations in terms of the allocation priority of global LPs. Add to that the recent trend of a surge in a new class of investors in Indian private equity firms. Domestic LPs—banks, institutions and rich individuals—are making allocations far more willingly now than before. Half a dozen funds have raised more than Rs 3,000 crore rupee capital from local LPs. While there is local money available for fund managers with either a strong backing or track record and there is also global capital available for funds selectively.
In this context, VCCircle is organising its first ever LP-GP Round Table in Mumbai on April 28, 2010, which will assess India's private equity and venture capital theses, the opportunities, the investment enablers and the ecosystem challenges. The forum would be attended by a select group of international and domestic limited partners and general partners.
7:45 am to 8:45 am
Breakfast & Registration
9:00 am to 9:15 am
Opening Remarks
9:15 am to 10:00 am
Keynote Session - Indian PE/Venture Investments & Exit Scenario - Proof Points
Sudhir Sethi - Founder & CMD, IDG Ventures India
10:00 am to 11:00 am
Panel I - Destination India: Macro Vs Micro
Private equity in India is relatively young although it has seen as many shocks as the mature markets have in several decades. The post-2000 phase was dominated by PE funds which produced stellar returns by investing in pre-IPO and public market companies. But, the last two years have been a victim of a slowdown in the economy and a tougher exit environment. Today, super returns are hard to come by and India may not be an easy market to make money. But, India is a market none wants to stay out of.
- Do upsides of investing In India outweigh downsides?
- Managing spiraling valuations and dwindling returns
- Investment enablers and challenges
- The view from the international community
- The domestic view
Sumir Chadha - MD, Sequoia Capital India (Chair)
Luis Miranda - President, IDFC Private Equity
Shankar Narayanan - Managing Director, Carlyle Group
Amit Chandra - MD, Bain Capital India
11:00 am to 11:30 am
Tea & Interaction
11:30 am to 12:30 pm
Panel II - Private Equity’s Growth Pangs
Private equity firms did extremely well during 2003-2007. The growth capital deals ruled the roost, while many firms made quick money by investing in public market companies and late stage / pre-IPO deals. The general partners became stars and LPs vied to make allocations to their second and third funds. The party did not continue though, as post-2008, the situation changed with the economy slowing, and the funds getting stuck with laggards in their portfolios. Now, exits have just started clawing back, and IPO markets are showing some promise. Is the worst over for PE?
- Analysis of growth, late stage and buyout
- Analysis of PE exits and returns
- Sector focused or sector agnostic funds
- Strictly Private, PIPE or secondary markets
- LP and GP views
Deepak Shahdadpuri - MD, BCP Advisors (Chair)
Archana Hingorani - CEO & Executive Director, IL&FS Investment Managers Ltd.
Sebastiaan Van den Berg - Principal, Harbourvest Partners
Praneet Singh - Managing Director, Siguler Guff
Ved Prakash Arya - MD, Milestone Capital Advisors
T S Kandhari - Executive Director, PricewaterhouseCoopers
12:30 pm to 1:00 pm
Fund Structuring : What LPs & GPs Need To Know
Gautam Mehra - Executive Director, PricewaterhouseCoopers
1:00 pm to 2:00 pm
Lunch
2:00 pm to 3:00 pm
Panel III - Venture Funding In India: The Myth & Reality
The first phase of PE activity in India was dominated by venture capital funds, most of whom had burnt their fingers during the dotcom crash of 2000. Post crash, many funds shifted gears to late stage or growth investing. However, a set of venture capital funds stuck to their knitting and remain focused on venture investing. It’s not just bravado, but it made business sense too.
- The experience of investing in venture capital funds
- The GP view of venture investing
- The LP view of venture investing
- Analysis of VC exits and returns
T C Meenakshisundaram - Founder & MD, IDG Ventures (Chair)
Sandeep Singhal - MD, Nexus India Capital
Bala Deshpande - Senior MD, New Enterprise Associates India
Pravin Gandhi - Managing Partner, Seed Fund
3:00 pm to 3:15 pm
Tea & Interaction
3:15 pm to 4:15 pm
Panel IV - The Rise of Domestic LPs
There is a new class of investors in Indian private equity firms. Domestic LPs—banks, institutions and rich individuals—are making allocations far more willingly now than before. Half a dozen funds have raised about Rs 3,000 crore rupee capital from local LPs. So there is local money available for fund managers with either a strong backing or track record.
- Who are the major domestic LPs?
- The rise of retail money
- The family offices
- The experiences of fund managers who successfully raised domestic money
Gopal Srinivasan - Chairman, TVS Capital Funds (Chair)
Vishakha Mulye - MD & CEO, ICICI Venture
A K Purwar - Chairman, India Venture Advisors
Sachin Khandelwal - Senior Genral Manager,ICICI Bank
Pankaj Sehgal - Managing Director , SUN Group
4:15 pm to 4:45 pm
Special Address - How Not To Regulate Private Equity Flows Into India?
- Why routing of investments to India through Mauritius?
- Is there a Private Equity Regulatory Muddle?
- Is there need for Coordinated Regulation ?
- Should there be a Private Equity Regulatory Authority (PERA) to regulate Private Equity?
- What measures to encourage direct PE flows into India?
Dr TC Nair - Ex-member, Securities Exchange Board of India
4:45 pm to 5:00 pm
Tea & Interaction
5:00 pm to 6:20 pm
Panel V – The LP-GP Relationship: A tough balancing act
The relationship between limited partners and general partners is at a cross roads. Earlier, while everything was going well, there were few questions asked of GPs. Now everything from management fee and management company to the investment team are scrutinised.
- What LPs want to hear from their GPs
- What do GPs want to hear from their LPs
- Aligning GP and LP expectations
- Fund terms: who has the say?
- Fund raising outlook for 2010
Plus: Breakout Session
Anand Sunderji - Formerly principal with a leading fund of funds (Chair)
Renuka Ramnath - Founder & MD, Multiples Alternate Asset Management
Pratima Divgi - Investment Associate, Squadron Capital
Manik Arora - Founder & MD, IDG Ventures India
Hetal Gandhi - MD, Tano Capital Advisors
Olivia Ouyang - Investment Officer, International Finance Corporation
Bryan Stewart - Director, Liberty Global Partners
6:20 pm to 6:30 pm
Concluding Remarks
6:30 pm to 8:30 pm
VCCircle Unwind (Cocktails & dinner)
VCCircle presents Unwind, the zone that allows informal networking, a key takeaway for a business conference.
IDG Ventures India is a US$150 Million early-stage venture capital fund investing in technology-related product and services companies. The fund is part of IDG Ventures, a global network of technology venture funds with over $3.7 billion under management, over 220 investee companies and 10 offices across Asia and North America. IDG Ventures makes investments on behalf of its Limited Partners, including its principal investor and sponsor, International Data Group (IDG), the world's largest IT media company. By combining the IDG platform - an unparalleled combination of global publishing, market research (IDC), and conferences and exhibition resources - with years of hands-on experience in early-stage company building, IDG Ventures helps its investee companies understand their markets better and penetrate them faster than their competition.
Leading technology companies that IDG Ventures has invested in include BabyCenter, F5 Networks, Netscape, Service Metrics and VA Linux in North America and Baidu, Ctrip, Sohu, Tencent and VinaGame in Asia.
Our India portfolio consists of 3D Solid Compression, Agile, Apalya, Aujas Networks, ConnectM, iCreate, iProf, iViZ, Kreeda, Manthan Systems, Myntra, Ozone Media, Perfint, Sourcebits and Vserv.
For more information, please visit www.idgvcindia.com
PwC helps organisations and individuals create the value they’re looking for, in a changing world. We’re a network of firms in 157 countries with more than 195,000 people who are committed to delivering quality in assurance, tax and advisory services. Tell us what matters to you and find out more by visiting us at www.pwc.com.
PwC India’s dedicated private equity practice, led by Sanjeev Krishan, comprises of over 20 partners and directors across service lines, supported by Gautam Mehra (Tax) and Dinesh Anand (Forensics). This practice provides services to cover every aspect of the private equity investment cycle and acts as a single point for services including background checks, financial and tax due diligence, transaction structuring, getting regulatory approvals and dispute resolution. What differentiates PwC's PE team is the core regulatory expertise, in-depth forensic capabilities intertwined with dedicated diligence practice with sector knowledge, for the PE life cycle.
In India, PwC has offices in Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Chennai, Delhi NCR, Hyderabad, Kolkata, Mumbai and Pune. For more information about PwC India's service offerings, please visit www.pwc.in.
Contacts:
Sanjeev Krishan
Leader, Private Equity & Transaction Services
sanjeev.krishan@in.pwc.com
Mobile: +91 98100 70689 / +91 98202 79123
Gautam Mehra
Leader, Financial Services - Tax & Regulatory Services
Gautam.mehra@in.pwc.com
Mobile: +91 9867033822, Land line: +91 22 66891155
Dinesh Anand
Leader, Forensic Services
dinesh.anand@in.pwc.com
Mobile: +91 9818267114
VCC Events opens up the avenues for participation. Join hands to be a part of India’s largest gathering of alternative investments leaders, industry stakeholders and Asia’s influential limited partners, general partners and marquee advisors. Your chance to actively participate and augment yourself as thought leaders.
Grand Hyatt Mumbai
Grand Hyatt Mumbai
Email: mumbai.grand@hyatt.com
Distance: Off Western Express Highway, Santacruz (East), Mum
Drop us a line and we will call you.
