Private Equity Fund
An AIF investing primarily in equity or equity-linked instruments or partnership interests, mostly at later stages in businesses with an established model needing scale — unlike venture capital, which is early stage.
This one is not written up yet
The definition above is the short version. A full explanation — how it works, a worked example and the exam traps — is still being written. In the meantime the chapter below covers it in context.
Written up from the same chapter
- Accredited InvestorAn investor certified by an accreditation agency as meeting SEBI's income or net-worth tests, and therefore allowed into products on relaxed terms — including below the Rs 1 crore AIF floor.
- AlphaThe return a fund earned above what its beta and the benchmark say it should have earned — the slice of performance left over once the market has been given credit for its share.
- Alternative Investment FundA privately pooled investment vehicle registered with SEBI that raises money from select Indian or foreign investors under a defined investment policy — never from the public at large.
- Angel FundA sub-category of Category I AIF, registered with SEBI specifically as an angel fund, which raises money from angel investors and invests it in start-ups deal by deal rather than through schemes.
- Angel InvestorAn accredited investor, or key management personnel of an angel fund or its manager, who puts capital into start-ups and early-stage ventures through an angel fund.
- Cash BurnThe rate at which a start-up spends its cash — set against the money in the bank, it says how many months of runway are left before the next round has to close.
Where this is taught
- Series XIX-B · Chapter 2: Growth of Alternative Investment Funds in India and Suitability of Category III AIFsintroduced here
- Series X-A · Chapter 13: Overview of Alternative Investment Funds (AIFs)introduced here
- Series XIX-C · Chapter 11: Investment Strategies, Investment Process and Governance of Fundsintroduced here
- Series XIX-A · Chapter 2: Alternative Investment Funds in Indiaintroduced here
Related terms
- Category II AIFThe residual AIF category: anything that is neither Category I nor Category III and takes no fund-level leverage beyond a narrow temporary carve-out — private equity, private debt and fund-of-funds.
- Management BuyoutA leveraged buyout in which the company's own management team borrows to buy a majority stake from existing shareholders and takes control of the business it already runs.
- Right of First RefusalA shareholder right to match the best outside quote a selling shareholder has obtained — the holder sees the price first and may buy at it, or refuse and let the sale proceed.
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