Buenos Aires — Aarna Holdings, an Abu Dhabi-based company with US$2 billion in liquidity as of April last year, has joined forces with Grupo Werthein to invest in Argentina, Brazil and Colombia, among other countries in Latin America.
The UAE-based holding and investment company, which manages India-focused funds out of India and advises on investments out of Singapore, entered into an alliance with Argentina’s Grupo Werthein to deploy capital in sectors including telecommunications, insurance and agribusiness, the companies stated in a joint release.
The partnership was confirmed to Bloomberg Línea by the Argentine holding company, while the liquidity held by Aarna was informed by sources with direct knowledge of the matter, who requested anonymity.
“Aarna is excited to tie up with Grupo Werthein and looks forward to the partnership with such an illustrious group”, Aarna Holdings commented in an e-mail sent to Bloomberg Línea. “We expect collaboration and investments in agribusiness, mobility, telecommunications, chemicals and infrastructure”, and for “Fernweh portfolio companies to enter Latin America in partnership with the Werthein Group”, the company added.
These investments are expected to be in the range of US$2 billion in the next few years.
With over 100 years of experience in the Latin American market, Grupo Werthein group is currently led by Darío, Adrián, Daniel, and Lucas Werthein. Sources with knowledge of the agreement confirmed that Prabhu selected the Wertheins as partners in the region due to their extensive portfolio in telecommunications, banking, agribusiness, food and beverages, and technology.
Grupo Werthein is primarily known for managing the satellite television brands DirecTV and Sky in the main markets of the region, through its subsidiary Vrio. Additionally, the group has companies specialising in food and beverages, such as Cachamai and Frutty; agribusiness, such as GNNW Agro and Livestock; and insurance, with Experta.
Aarna currently has investments in India, the United States, Europe, and Asia. Its president, Ameya Prabhu, also presides over the India Chamber of Commerce (ICC).
The UAE-based fund is particularly interested in the markets of Brazil, Argentina, and Colombia. The agreement could result in the first major investments in the first quarter of 2025, with an estimated value of between US$300 and US$500 million.
Aarna has also expressed interest in the Chilean, Ecuadorian, and Uruguayan.
Aarna’s track record
The Asian holding and investment company has made significant investments in a number of leading Indian companies, including Infosys, Reliance Industries, Sun Pharma, Tata Consultancy Services, and Adani Group.
Through its Singaporean and Indian subsidiaries NAFA Global and NAFA Capital, respectively, Aarna manages and advises approximately US$250 million’s worth of assets in India, while the group’s lending business oversees approximately US$200 million in assets in the same country.
The group’s other businesses include sustainable agriculture inputs, investment banking, mobility in Africa and other portfolio investments in chemicals, ayurveda and healthcare.
Aarna is also a General Partner in Fernweh Group, a US focussed industrial investment platform that manages US$1.2 billion in US industrial companies.
In 2022, Indian investments abroad reached a total of US$21.9 billion, a 37% increase from the previous year.
In August 2023, India’s Foreign Minister, Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, stated that the Asian country has a concrete objective of increasing its presence in Latin America and the Caribbean, in an attempt to expand its sphere of influence in areas already explored by China.
-This article was updated on May 25 at 22:00hs Buenos Aires time to include information sent to Bloomberg Línea by Aarna Holdings.
