NBK Capital Partners closes its third private credit fund at more than $215m
NBK Capital Partners announced the final close of the NBK Capital Partners Shari’ah Credit Opportunities Fund, the firm’s third-generation private credit focused strategy. The fund closed on 29 November 2022 with about $215 million of available capital, consisting of investor capital commitments and co-investment vehicles.
The fund was supported by institutional limited partners from Saudi Arabia, the UAE and the United States, including cornerstone commitments from the Public Investment Fund of Saudi Arabia and Abu Dhabi Catalyst Partners, an independent third-party investor backed by Mubadala Investment Company and Alpha Wave Global. Other investors include insurance companies, financial institutions and family offices.
“We are pleased to mark the close of our latest credit fund and are grateful for the strong support of our limited partners,” said Yaser Moustafa, CEO at NBK Capital Partners. “The top-tier investors we have attracted provide a strong endorsement to the institutional quality of our credit platform – one that has capital and an experienced team to maintain our leadership position. We are better positioned than ever to tap into attractive investment opportunities across the region.”
Similar to its predecessor funds, the fund’s investment strategy is to provide flexible structured capital to middle market companies in Saudi Arabia, the UAE and the broader MENA region through a direct origination strategy. The fund primarily targets investments in the business services, healthcare, education, technology-enabled and consumer sectors with the investment size ranging from $10 million to $30 million. With co-investment vehicles, the fund can underwrite larger transactions.
Since 2009, the NBK Capital Partners private credit team has completed 15 investments across three fund vehicles. Earlier in September, the firm has announced the exit from Energia, a Saudi-based temporary power solutions business, its 10th consecutive profitable exit for its private credit portfolio.
The Shari’ah Fund, currently about 15% deployed, is expected to complete several investments in the next few months and to be 50% invested by first quarter of 2023 with a strong forward-looking pipeline. The fund’s first investment was $20 million growth capital financing to UAE-based Reach Group to expand in Saudi Arabia. The company is one of the largest temporary staffing providers in the UAE with over 6,700 outsourced full-time employees.
Sikander Ahmed, managing director and head of private credit said, “We are very pleased to have worked with our investors to achieve this milestone of closing this third-generation private credit fund. Our ability to deliver consistent, above-market returns in volatile macro environments, resonated well with investors looking to hedge their portfolios. As a leading player in a nascent market, we are well positioned to continue delivering on our strategy.”