According to a top executive on Monday, Singapore’s state investor Temasek intends to spend up to $10 billion in India over the course of three years in industries including financial services and healthcare, showing support for the South Asian country as it becomes more circumspect towards China.

Amidst an IPO and dealmaking boom, India’s stock markets are trading close to all-time highs and the country’s economy is expanding rapidly. According to Mohit Bhandari, Temasek’s managing director for India investments, the country now makes up 7% of the company’s worldwide exposure, a percentage the business hopes to grow.

Speaking during an interview at Temasek’s Mumbai headquarters, Bhandari declared, “We are bullish in India for the long term.”

“We are cognizant of the current economic and the geopolitical tensions that exist (in China) and to that extent we will align our portfolio accordingly,” he added.

Temasek stated last week that its underperformance in China was being lessened by the returns from its investments in the US and India. In light of the trade concerns, Temasek also stated that it is approaching China cautiously.

For the first time in ten years, Temasek’s exposure to the Americas outpaced China in the most recent fiscal year, with around 22% of its investments in the US and 19% in China.

In the fiscal year that concluded on March 31, Temasek made its highest yearly investment to date in India, allocating $3 billion.

Additionally, Bhandari stated that when Temasek’s portfolio expands, it will consider recruiting more people in India from the present 20, though he would not provide numbers.

Temasek now has interests in HDFC Bank, Manipal Hospitals, and e-scooter firm Ola Electric, which is planning an IPO.

In the largest healthcare sector purchase in Indian history, Temasek invested $2 billion to increase its share in Manipal from 18% to 59% in April 2023. Later, it sold a minority interest to Mubadala, the sovereign investor of Abu Dhabi, and Novo Holdings, the parent company of Novo Nordisk.

Foreign investors are becoming more interested in Indian hospital chains and healthcare companies as many of them expand into smaller locations where the need for private treatment is growing due to the overcrowding in public hospitals.

According to Bhandari, Temasek continues to look for new investment possibilities in the healthcare sector since it considers it to be an Indian industry with “multi-decade” development potential.

(Adapted from Business-Standard.com)