Dubai's Abraaj Capital & India's Sabre Capital launch a new JV

Both Abraaj Capital and Sabre Capital will hold a 50:50 stake in Sabre Abraaj Capital. The newly formed entity will launch a US$250 million fund that will take majority or significant minority stakes in listed and unlisted Indian companies.

Mr. Rana Talwar, Chairman, Sabre Capital, will be the Chairman of the private equity fund. The Investment Committee will be chaired by Arif Naqvi, CEO & Executive Vice-Chairman, Abraaj Capital and Rajiv Maliwal, Managing Director, Sabre Capital will be a member of the Investment Committee.

Arif Naqvi, CEO & Executive Vice Chairman, Abraaj Capital said, "We are delighted to enter into this joint venture with Rana Talwar's hugely successful venture Sabre Capital as it plays a strategic role for both parties. UAE's non-oil trade with India has already touched $ 8 billion.

'This JV will further bond the special relationship between the Middle East and India, and create the next step in their mutual economic growth. And what better partner than Rana Talwar who has a solid track record of engineering success in that region. Through this JV, an India-specific fund has been launched that will invest in the growth story that is India."
Rana Talwar, Chairman, Sabre Capital said, "We are pleased to partner with Abraaj Capital which is the established leader in private equity. The tremendous track record of Arif Naqvi personified by Abraaj Capital's roaring business in the Middle East will complement our India connections and expertise perfectly. Abraaj Capital has the proven expertise in investing in buyouts and special situations in the Middle Eastern & North African markets and we look forward to complementing each others' capabilities."

The new Fund will close by the end of 2006, and investments will start from 2007. The funds will be raised through institutional investors from the Middle East, Europe and Asia. The Fund will invest in Indian companies that have strong growth prospects across different sectors including retail, BPO, IT, auto ancillaries, life sciences, leisure and travel, entertainment and healthcare.

Abraaj Capital has an extremely distinguished Board of Directors who oversee its business. Apart from Sheikh Abdulrahman Al Turki and Arif Naqvi, it includes regional business leaders such as Hussain Al Nowais (non executive Vice Chairman), Sheikh Sultan al Qassimi, Bassam Ghais and Hamid Jaffar from the UAE, Sheikh Nawaf Nasser bin Khalid al Thani from Qatar, Saud Kanoo from Bahrain, Fadi Ghandour from Jordan and Ashok Aram (representing Deutsche Bank). The Executive Director Team comprises of Shirish Saraf, Waqar Siddique, Simon Davies and Frederic Sicre, who leads a team of over 70 professionals.

Sabre Capital's Board is led by Rana Talwar, a former CEO of Standard Chartered Global, former Executive Vice President & Policy Committee member of Citicorp & Citibank and successful organizer of Diners Club consumer services worldwide.

Rajiv Maliwal, Co-founder and Managing Director, Sabre Capital, who has over two decades of banking experience in Asia - most recently as Global Head for Private Equity, Standard Chartered Bank; Nigel Kenny, Co-founder Sabre Capital, was formerly Group Finance Director at Standard Chartered Bank, and Harpal Randhawa, Co-founder Sabre Capital, who co-founded Antfactory as Chairman and CEO are the distinguished board members of Sabre Capital.