NDR Group, a warehousing company based in Chennai, which oversees NDR InvIT Trust, the country’s first privately placed infrastructure investment trust (InvIT) in the warehousing sector, says it intends to transfer about 4-5 million square feet (sq ft) of additional group-level assets to the InvIT soon.
The purchase of the ROFO assets is anticipated to be financed by the InvIT’s most recent two significant debt raises, from the World Bank Group-backed International Finance Corporation (IFC) for Rs 630 crore and the National Bank for Financing Infrastructure and Development (NaBFID) for Rs 745 crore. InvIT is looking at more equity fundraises in the future, in order to keep debt below 25 percent of the enterprise value (EV), while aiming to grow the AUM by around 20 percent annually.
The company is increasingly open to smaller investments from HNIs (high net worth individuals) and retail investors, rather than relying solely on large funds, to encourage broader market participation. Unlike most large warehousing firms in India that are led by prominent private equity firms, such as CPPIB, Hillhouse, and Blackstone, NDR is a family-led enterprise, having been in the warehousing and related businesses for more than four decades.