India-focused private equity firm One Planet Partners has secured a partnership with Japan’s Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Bank to launch a maiden fund with a target of ₹3,000 crore. The firm plans to invest in mid-sized Indian companies across energy, manufacturing, and mobility. Investors will monitor the firm's execution speed and its ability to fill the funding gap for firms with revenue between ₹200 crore and ₹2,000 crore.
One Planet Partners, a private equity firm established in 2024, has secured Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Bank (SMTB) as an anchor investor for its debut fund. The partnership aims to deploy ₹3,000 crore into the Indian market, focusing on mid-market growth opportunities. The inclusion of SMTB, a Japanese institution with significant global assets, adds institutional backing to the firm's entry strategy.
The firm intends to address a specific segment of the Indian capital structure often underserved by early-stage venture capital and massive buyout funds. The target investment pool consists of companies with annual revenues between ₹200 crore and ₹2,000 crore, with individual growth capital investments expected in the range of $25 million to $75 million. This mid-market positioning is designed to support scaling companies that are past their initial startup phase but not yet at the massive scale required by large global funds.
Investment efforts are categorized by structural shifts in the domestic economy, particularly in energy transition, industrial manufacturing, and urban mobility. The firm has already identified a potential pipeline of over 3,000 companies that demonstrate consistent annual growth rates exceeding 20%. As part of its strategy, the firm previously invested in the Bengaluru-based mobility startup Yulu Bikes, signaling its interest in sustainable urban transport.
The deployment strategy includes a fast-tracked approach for approximately 15% to 20% of the fund, with exit horizons planned within two to three years. For the remainder of the portfolio, the firm targets traditional private equity exit timelines of five to seven years through mechanisms such as public listings, strategic sales to larger entities, or secondary exits to other sponsors. The firm has been preparing for its formal launch by warehousing assets to facilitate immediate net asset value growth for its investors.
For investors and market participants, the key monitorable will be the firm's execution capability. As a relatively new entity, the fund will need to prove its ability to select sustainable growth companies and manage exits within its proposed timeframe. The success of this fund will depend on whether its portfolio companies can maintain high growth rates and achieve profitable exits amid the broader economic environment. Future updates will likely center on the firm's pace of capital deployment and the performance of its initial investments as it moves to scale its presence in the mid-market segment.