KKR has appointed Sumanth Cidambi and Vijay Padmanabhan as Directors for the firm’s credit business in India.
KKR operates in the credit space in India through an NBFC and Alternative Investment Funds, suitably complemented with global capital pools. Since 2009, the firm has executed on over 140 transactions in India, valued at close to USD6 billion.
Speaking on the appointments, BV Krishnan, Member, KKR, and CEO, KKR India Financial Services, says: “Both Sumanth and Vijay join our team at a very opportune time. Sumanth brings to us the much necessary owner-operator mindset and has a track record of delivering sustainable value. He will complement our focus on building capabilities in the operational turnaround and workout areas, which are becoming a critical differentiator in credit investing in India.
“Vijay brings on board deep credit underwriting experience. He has a unique risk-reward perspective, having worked in the UK and India. His skill sets and understanding of the domestic eco-system give him a wholesome understanding of what it takes to succeed in this space. His ability to underwrite across the capital structure will be a critical element in our plan to further scale our platform where we have been the market leader in private high-yield investing.”
With nearly two and a half decades of diversified industrial experience, Cidambi has worked extensively with corporate boards and senior management teams in Asia, Europe and the US, to create sustainable value. Leveraging his deep experience in operations restructuring and business turnarounds, he will work closely with KKR’s credit portfolio companies in India to deliver identified and specific value. Sumanth’s addition highlights the firm’s strong view that operational involvement in companies is a dimension that is critical to delivering value to stakeholders, and risk managing outcomes.
Padmanabhan has extensive experience in credit underwriting and distress investing, in the UK and India, including in Old Lane, Fidelity Investments, SBI Funds Management, PricewaterhouseCoopers, and Edelweiss Alternative Asset Advisors.
