UAE fund in talks to invest $200 million in Aadhar Housing: report

A fund supported by Abu Dhabi’s sovereign investor ADQ, with partial ownership by Sheikh Tahnoon bin Zayed al-Nahyan, is nearing a deal to acquire a minority stake in Aadhar Housing Finance, The Economic Times reported, citing people in the know.

Sheikh Tahnoon, who chairs ADQ and serves as the UAE’s national security adviser, is backing the transaction through a secondary share sale estimated between $200 million and $225 million for a 10–12% stake.

Aadhar, which was listed last year, has recently seen increased investor activity.

Over the weekend, entities managed by Blackstone, including BCP Asia II Holdco VII Pte, Blackstone Capital Partners (CYM) IX, and Blackstone Capital Partners (CYM) IX AIV-FLP, issued an open offer to public shareholders for a 25.82% stake at Rs469.97 per share, ET reported.

This comes after Blackstone planned to transfer a majority of its 75% holding into new continuation funds at Rs425 per share, a structure the firm previously used in a 2021 deal with Mphasis.

The internal transaction is reportedly valued at Rs12,000 crore. If the open offer is fully subscribed, Blackstone will make an additional payment of Rs5,335 crore in cash.

JM Financial is managing the process. In the event of full subscription, Blackstone may be required to divest part of its stake to adhere to the 75% limit on non-public shareholding, the report added.

The investment by the Abu Dhabi-linked vehicle is expected to take place at a valuation close to that of Blackstone’s internal restructuring. Aadhar’s shares closed at Rs496.90 on Friday, putting its market capitalization at Rs21,469 crore.