Kotak Data Centre Fund invests Rs 600 crore in Sify’s data centre business

The funds would be used to expand SISL’s Data Center capacity across India and invest in renewable energy

Kotak Data Centre Fund (KDCF), managed by Kotak Alternate Asset Managers Limited (KotakAlt), on September 21 announced an investment of Rs 600 crore in Sify Infinit Spaces Limited (SISL), a wholly-owned subsidiary of Sify Technologies Limited.

With this transaction, KotakAlt managed funds' total equity commitment to SISL is Rs 1,600 crore, of which Rs 1,000 crore has been invested to date, including the current investment of Rs 600 crore.

The KDCF investment is in the form of compulsory convertible debentures, which will be converted into equity based on the operational performance of SISL over a specified reference period. The funds would be used to expand SISL’s Data Center capacity across India and invest in renewable energy.

“Kotak Alternate Asset Managers’ continuing investment in Sify Data Centers is an endorsement of our roadmap for Sify’s Data Center business and the larger potential within the Indian geography,” said MP Vijay Kumar, Executive Director and Group CFO, Sify. “This partnership gives us the needful equity to scale up our Data Center footprint and realize our opportunities faster. Our intent is to build capacity in sync with customer demand, in the most modular design and by deploying the latest and most cost-effective technologies.”

Srini Sriniwasan, Managing Director, Kotak Alternate Asset Managers, underlined that data centres are at the core of the country’s Digital India ambition. "We believe that with vibrant entrepreneurship in the digital space, rich media consumption by an exploding well-connected population and increasing requirements for local storage of data, India’s Data Center sector is a long-term secular opportunity," he added.

Kotak Alternate Asset Managers Limited is a part of Kotak Mahindra Group (Kotak) and focuses on alternate assets management and investment advisory businesses. Set up in early 2005, it has raised, managed or advised over $18 billion across different asset classes, including private equity, real estate, infrastructure, special situations, data centre and private credit.