Barclays Bets Big on India's Growing Private Credit Market

The UK-based bank says 50% of its private credit transactions in India are now over $100 mn

- Gopika Gopakumar

Private credit funding, in which lenders and borrowers directly negotiate financing without engaging an intermediary, is increasing in size and complexity, as companies look to diversify their source of funding. Pramod Kumar, chief executive officer and head of investment banking - India at Barclays Plc, explains the trend.

Barclays, which has been quite active in the private credit space over the past few years, is looking at big-ticket transactions. The UK-based bank recently closed a funding deal for Hinduja Group's acquisition of the bankrupt Reliance Capital.

"In the private credit space, we do see that the share of larger deals, that is, $100 million-plus, is now close to 50%. It is evident that there is an increasing trend of larger and more complex transactions. As you see more competition coming in smaller transactions, we obviously graduate ourselves to focus more on larger transactions, handle more complexity, and therefore make better returns for us," he said.