BanyanTree Growth Capital, a private equity firm that focuses on the mid-market segment, has appointed Rakesh Bhutoria, a seasoned Corporate Banker and mid-market specialist with long stints in Standard Chartered Bank and IDFC First Bank, as Managing Director to lead its investments.
Rakesh started his career with CRISIL and has spent over 14 years with Standard Chartered in India and the Middle East running their Large Corporate and Mid Corporate Franchise. He was also a Steering Committee Member at IDFC First Bank and is credited with building their Commercial Banking Business across India. He joined BanyanTree recently to oversee the Mumbai-based PE firm’s existing and new investments. He will also be a member of the investment committee of BanyanTree.
The PE firm, which is investing out of its third fund, provides structured growth capital to small and medium enterprises (SMEs) with a sweet spot of around usd10 million. Together with their Co-Investors, the platform has done deals as large as USD 40 million.
The role sees Bhutoria commence his journey in the Private Equity space, focusing on investments in the mid-cap and small-cap segments. He also has a deep engagement with the Social Sector, including as Grants Committee Member with Social Venture Partners India, where he supports capacity building for NGOs in the healthcare and livelihood space. Rakesh also serves as a Member of the Dean’s Advisory Council at Mody University, a Leadership Mentor with the Fintech Accelerator at S P Jain Institute of Management & Research, and as an Executive Fellow with Woxsen University. A Fellow of the Institute of Directors, Rakesh also holds a Public Leadership Credential from Harvard Kennedy School.
BanyanTree has over the last decade and a half cumulatively made about 35 investments and together with its Co-Investors deployed and is in the process of deploying close to USD 400 million of capital. They seek out well-governed, privately held companies with growth potential to support with capital and strategic advice.
