New Delhi, July 22 -- Private equity firm Affirma Capital, which invests in emerging markets including South Korea, India, Southeast Asia, China, Africa and the Middle East, has scored multi-bagger returns on an investment it made in an Indian company nearly eight years ago.

The Singapore-headquartered firm, which was created in December 2018 when Standard Chartered Bank spun out its PE business, has divested a little more than a third of its remaining stake in travel-tech company TBO Tek Ltd across multiple tranches since last October, according to VCCircle's estimates based on stock-exchange data.

The PE firm has sold a total of nearly 2.2 million shares, representing a 2.04% stake, through open market transactions, according to a disclosure. It is likely to have pocketed Rs 330 crore from the share sales that brought down its stake from 5.45% at the end of September 2025 to 3.44% currently.

For the PE firm, its investment in TBO Tek is like a gift that keeps on giving. It has so far harvested Rs 3,720 crore from a bet that it made in September 2018.

The latest tranche is the seventh time it has sold shares of TBO Tek.

In December 2021, Affirma transferred some shares to the company's promoters and its ESOP pool, pocketing Rs 16 crore. In October 2023, it sold a 7.5% stake in TBO Tek to US-based PE firm General Atlantic for about Rs 450 crore ($55 million then). VCCircle previously reported that General Atlantic had the option to acquire an additional 7.5% stake in TBO Tek from Affirma. General Atlantic exercised its option to buy additional shares of TBO Tek in late 2024.

TBO Tek went public in May 2024. At the time, Affirma made a partial exit and sold shares worth Rs 670 crore. It held about a 21% stake in the company after the IPO. In December 2024, the PE firm sold about a quarter of its stake, pocketing about Rs 935 crore ($110 million). In another open market transaction in March last year, it divested a 6.67% stake and encashed nearly Rs 870 crore ($101 million).

The latest tranche generated an internal rate of return (IRR) of 48-50% in rupee terms and a multiple of 21-22x on its invested capital, according to VCCircle estimates. That's more than double the minimum 20% IRR that PE investors typically chase in rupee terms at the fund level.

Affirma's IRR would be lower in dollar terms as the rupee has lost more than half its value since 2018, but it will still beat the 15% benchmark that PE firms chase in the greenback.

Affirma had invested a little over Rs 300 crore ($42 million) in Gurugram-based TBO Tek through a secondary , buying shares from South African tech investor Naspers and other shareholders. This means it has already realized 12x of its investment and still holds a stake worth Rs 536 crore.

The PE firm, which manages more than $4 billion in assets under management, is operated by Standard Chartered PE's former senior leadership, including founding partner and India head Udai Dhawan. It invests in mid- and late-stage companies across a range of industries including pharmaceuticals, infrastructure and banking. The firm has offices in Singapore, Seoul, Shanghai, Mumbai, Dubai, and Johannesburg.

Apart from TBO Tek, its India portfolio includes Prime Focus Ltd, IT services company Prodapt, Belstar Microfinance, non-bank lender Northern Arc, geospatial and engineering services provider RMSI Ltd, and contract appliances maker Epack Durable.

Published by HT Digital Content Services with permission from VC Circle.