MUMBAI, INDIA and BOSTON, MA--(Marketwire - April 9, 2010) - Summit Partners, the growth equity investor with a 25-year track record, today announced the completion of its investment of $30 million in Krishidhan Seeds Limited ("KSL"), one of India's leading seed companies. The minority investment will be utilized for research and development, technology and product-related acquisitions, international expansion, and company infrastructure.
KSL develops, produces and distributes proprietary hybrid seeds and selections that offer prosperity to Indian farmers. The company has experienced significant sales growth of six times over the last five years. KSL reported consolidated revenues of Rs. 279 Crores (approximately US$61 million) for the year ended September 2009 and is on track to generate more than Rs 400 Crores (approximately US$88 million) for the current financial year. This is due to the company's well-diversified portfolio of more than 120 products in field crops, vegetable seeds and crop nutrition categories, combined with its strong pan-India presence.
Sushil Karwa, Managing Director of Krishidhan Seeds, said: "Summit Partners is a global growth equity firm with a successful history of partnering with family-owned businesses and helping them realize their full potential. The Summit team demonstrated a genuine understanding of our business dynamics, the marketplace, and opportunities for our ongoing success. The Krishidhan team is excited to partner with Summit to achieve the next phase of development for our company. We are committed to sustainable agriculture with the next generation in mind."
Amit Chaturvedy, Vice President of Summit Partners, said: "India is one of the major agrarian economies of the world, with a growing population and rising per capita income that have placed significant pressure on its agricultural productivity. Krishidhan's research-driven products increase farm productivity and offer Indian farmers a strong value proposition -- which will increase as KSL commercializes more than 125 hybrid seeds and selections from its product pipeline over the next three years. We are very impressed with Krishidhan's commitment to R&D, growth trajectory, dynamic management team, and well-controlled business operations through SAP. We look forward to a successful partnership."
Scott Collins, Managing Director of Summit Partners, added: "As a growth equity investor with 25 years of investment experience with rapidly growing, profitable businesses, Summit Partners sees a significant opportunity in the Indian market. India's strong entrepreneurial tradition, combined with a fast-growing economy, means there are many companies that can benefit from Summit's capital investment, strategic advice and industry expertise. Krishidhan Seeds is a great example of this. Building on our experience in the U.S. and Europe, we look forward to all of our future investments in India."
Summit's Amit Chaturvedy will become a Director on the company's Board effective immediately and Summit's Vinay Kashyap will become a Board Observer.
About Krishidhan Seeds Limited
Krishidhan Seeds was founded in the early 1980's as a seed trading company by Mr. Jainarayan Karwa and his late brother, Mr. Subhash Karwa. In 1996, Mr. Sushil Karwa took over as the Managing Director and, under his leadership, the company has achieved a prominent position among the top five Indian seed companies. KSL has a pan-India presence and offers a diversified portfolio of more than 120 products including field crops, vegetable seeds and crop nutrition.
The R&D work of KSL and its subsidiaries has been recognized by the Department of Scientific and Industrial Research (DSIR), Government of India. KSL organizes production through 30,000 seed growers throughout the country, and processes them in 16 well-equipped ultramodern processing units. Seed distribution is efficiently managed through a network of 1,600 distributors and 25,000 retailers to make seeds available at the doorstep of the Indian farmer. The KSL marketing team has an in-person reach to 6 lakh farmers in 30,000 villages across India. Some of KSL's popular products in the Bollgard II cotton segment are 'Pratik' with profuse rejuvenation characteristics, 'Pancham 541' with white fly tolerance, and 'Komal' in the rice segment with nationwide adaptability due to its high-yield characteristics.
For more information, visit www.krishidhanseeds.com.
About Summit Partners
Summit Partners is a growth equity investor that provides private equity and venture capital to rapidly growing companies. Founded in 1984, Summit has raised more than $11 billion in capital and has provided growth equity, recapitalization and management buyout financing to more than 300 growing companies across a range of industries and geographies. Summit Partners seeks outstanding management teams that have built their companies to profitability and market leadership. Notable investments include E-TEK Dynamics, FleetCor Technologies, Hittite Microwave Corporation, Jamba!, Keystone RV Company, Lincare, McAfee, NightHawk Radiology, optionsXpress, Pediatrix Medical Group, Physicians Formula, Vente-Privee.com, and Web Reservations International.
For more information, visit www.summitpartners.com.
Contact Information:
Inquiries:
Summit Partners:
Joan Miller, Summit Partners
+1 617-824-1047
Torque Communication for Krishidhan Seeds:
Hardik Desai
+91-9819562380
hardik@torquemail.com