Gaja Alternative Asset Management has submitted updated draft documents; eyes Rs 656-cr via IPO

Gaja Alternative Asset Management Ltd, which operates under the brand Gaja Capital, has filed updated draft documents with market regulator Sebi to raise a little over Rs 656 crore through an initial public offering (IPO).This IPO would mark the first public listing of a standalone Indian-origin private equity firm that manages alternative assets.

According to the updated draft red herring prospectus (UDRHP) filed on Thursday, the company’s initial public offer includes a fresh issue of shares aggregating Rs 549.2 crore and an offer for sale (OFS) of Rs 107 crore by promoters and shareholders.Funds raised through new issues would be used for debt payments, seeding of new funds and general corporate purposes.

Gaja Capital successfully raised Rs 125 crore in a pre-IPO funding round in June, valuing the company at Rs 1,625 crore.

Founded in 2004, Gaja Capital is one of India’s leading private equity and alternative asset management firms, focused on providing growth capital to entrepreneurs. The company has invested in key sectors such as education, consumer and financial services.

In January 2025, the company transitioned from a private company to a public limited company and was renamed Gaja Alternative Asset Management Ltd. Globally, major private equity firms such as Blackstone, KKR, Apollo Global Management, Carlyle Group and TPG have gone public and diversified into asset classes other than private equity.

In India, asset managers like HDFC, Nippon, UTI and Aditya Birla, which also manage alternative funds as part of their broader portfolios, are already listed on stock exchanges.

Gaja has built up a strong investment portfolio over the years, with investments in companies such as Teamlease, Lighthouse Learning, RBL Bank, John Distilleries, Xpressbees, Ei, Leadsquared and Signzy.

The alternative investment market in India is expanding rapidly. As of March 31, 2025, the assets under management (AUM) in this segment stood at Rs 13.5 lakh crore. Moreover, this figure will grow at a compound annual rate of 31-33 percent to reach Rs 53-56 lakh crore by March 2030, according to industry reports.

Gaja Capital filed draft papers with Sebi in June for an IPO through a confidential pre-filing route and had received market regulator approval in October. Following this, the company filed an updated DRHP before filing an RHP.

The company chose the confidential pre-filing route, which allowed it to delay the disclosure of IPO data until later stages.

JM Financial and IIFL Capital Services are the lead managers on this issue.