The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA) has picked up a 20 per cent stake in IIFL Home Finance for Rs 2,200 crore, the PTI reported on Friday. IIFL Home Finance, which is among the largest affordable housing financiers with assets under management of Rs 23,617 crore, said that the sovereign wealth fund will make the investment through its wholly-owned subsidiary.
The Indian firm has entered into a definitive agreement for raising Rs 2,200 crore of primary capital for a 20 per cent stake from a wholly-owned subsidiary of ADIA. However, the completion of the agreement is subject to regulatory approvals, IIFL Home Finance said in a statement on Friday.
According to the report, on completion, this deal will be one of the largest equity investments in the affordable housing finance segment, by an external investor.
Nirmal Jain, IIFL group founder, said IIFL Home Finance will use the capital to continue its granular expansion strategy into new markets to address the significant and growing demand for housing loans.
Hamad Shahwan Aldhaheri, an executive director at the private equities department in ADIA, said that the this investment aims to support the company for its next phase of growth, as it meets the significant demand in the country’s large, under-served and fast-growing affordable housing finance market.
Established in 2006, IIFL Home Finance has an active customer base of 1,68,000 across 16 states and two Union Territories, with over 200 branches served by over 3,200 employees. It also offers small-ticket housing loans, loans against property and construction finance. It also actively supports construction of green affordable buildings in collaboration with housing developers.
Monu Ratra, chief executive at IIFL Home Finance, said the company is at an inflection point as it leverages new strategies like co-lending, and launching more granular products and expanding the reach across small towns. The domestic affordable housing finance market is $150 billion and is projected to grow rapidly, the company said.