In a landmark move for India's financial sector, Gaja Alternative Asset Management Ltd has officially filed its updated draft red herring prospectus (DRHP) with market regulators for an initial public offering (IPO) worth ₹656 crore. This strategic step makes it the first homegrown private equity firm in India to seek a public market listing, setting a precedent in the country's rapidly maturing alternative investment landscape.
Breaking New Ground: Details of the IPO
The proposed public offering comprises two key components. A fresh issue of equity shares aggregating to ₹549 crore will be launched alongside an offer for sale (OFS) worth ₹107 crore by the company's promoters and early shareholders. The IPO is being managed by leading investment banks JM Financial Ltd and IIFL Capital Services Ltd.
Gaja Capital had initially taken the confidential pre-filing route for its IPO documents in June this year. According to the freshly updated DRHP, the primary proceeds from the fresh issue will be utilized to strengthen the firm's overall platform and for general corporate purposes. These include covering sponsor contributions to specific existing funds—Gaja Capital India Fund 2020 LLP and Gaja Capital India Fund 2020—as well as repaying a bridge loan.
A person familiar with the firm's strategy highlighted that the IPO aims to make the platform more attractive to institutional investors and enable broader access to alternative assets as domestic capital pools deepen. "This is largely a primary IPO… it doubles the net worth of the business," the person stated, requesting anonymity. The move is expected to substantially bolster the firm's balance sheet.
Expanding the Fund Ecosystem and Shareholder Details
Concurrently with its IPO plans, Gaja Capital is aggressively scaling its fund platforms. The filing reveals plans for a massive fifth fund targeting ₹2,500 crore, which would be its largest to date. This compares to its earlier flagship funds: Fund II at ₹902.4 crore, Fund III at ₹1,598 crore, and Fund IV at ₹1,775 crore. Additionally, the firm is raising a ₹1,250-crore secondaries vehicle. The source indicated the firm is close to hitting the investment threshold required from its fourth fund to formally begin the fifth, while the secondaries fund is a work in progress.
The offer for sale will see several promoters and early investors dilute part of their holdings. Key selling shareholders include promoters Ranjit Jayant Shah and Imran Jafar, each offloading shares worth ₹20 crore. Early investor Sanjay Hiralal Patel is also selling ₹20 crore worth of shares. Other sellers include Anshuman Goyal (₹10 crore), promoter Gopal Jain (₹5 crore), and a group including Manish Sabharwal, Abhinav Jain, Sushane Chopra, and Saurabh Sood, each selling shares worth ₹5 crore.
Ahead of the draft prospectus, Gaja Capital secured ₹125 crore in a pre-IPO funding round from institutional investors like HDFC Life, SBI Life, Volrado, and One Up, which pegged the firm's valuation at ₹1,625 crore. The company may also consider a pre-IPO placement of up to ₹109.8 crore, which would correspondingly reduce the fresh issue size.
A Milestone for Indian Private Capital
Founded in 2004, Gaja Capital is a respected mid-market investor with a thematic focus on sectors like education, consumer services, and financial services. Its notable portfolio companies include Teamlease, Lighthouse Learning, RBL Bank, Xpressbees, LeadSquared, and Signzy. For the first half of the fiscal year 2026, the firm reported a robust net worth of ₹575 crore and a profit of ₹62 crore, with profit margins expanding impressively to 56%.
Gaja's journey to the public markets signals a significant shift in India's financial ecosystem. While publicly-listed private equity firms like Blackstone, KKR, Apollo, and Carlyle are commonplace in the US, this is an unprecedented development locally. It underscores the rapid scaling of India's domestic alternatives industry, where the total commitments raised by Alternative Investment Funds (AIFs) had reached a staggering ₹15.05 lakh crore (approx. $180 billion) as of September 2025.
This IPO is not just a capital-raising exercise for Gaja Capital; it represents a strategic evolution for the firm and a vote of confidence in the maturity of India's private capital markets. It paves the way for other asset managers to consider similar paths, potentially deepening the market and offering Indian investors new avenues to participate in the growth of alternative assets.
