Singapore’s sovereign wealth fund Temasek is intensifying its focus on India’s multigenerational family-run businesses, following its landmark $1 billion investment in Haldiram’s earlier this year. The firm, which has grown its India portfolio to nearly $50 billion, sees deeply rooted family enterprises as ideally positioned to benefit from the country’s rising consumer demand and structural reforms. With plans to deploy up to $10 billion over the next three years, Temasek is engaging with heritage brands and legacy companies across food and beverage, healthcare, retail and beyond, seeking partnerships that combine family stewardship with professional management.

Strategic Focus on Legacy and Brand Equity

Family-owned firms in India command significant domestic loyalty, often spanning decades or even centuries. Temasek’s decision in March to acquire a 10 percent stake in Haldiram’s—valued at approximately $10 billion—underscored its commitment to brands that have achieved household recognition and wide distribution networks. With over seven million retail touchpoints and a thriving export business, Haldiram’s offers a template for how family businesses can scale alongside institutional capital. Earlier investments in Manipal Hospitals and Dr Agarwal’s Health Care similarly highlight Temasek’s strategy of targeting businesses where family founders have built strong reputations and market leadership.

In each case, Temasek has structured deals to maintain continuity with incumbent management teams while ushering in fresh governance practices. For instance, after boosting its stake in Manipal Hospitals to 59 percent in April 2023—the largest hospital sector deal in India—Temasek retained majority control but invited global partners such as Novo Nordisk’s Novo Holdings and Mubadala to take minority positions. This approach preserves the founders’ vision and institutional knowledge, while injecting capital and expertise to accelerate expansion into new regions and service lines.

Professionalisation and Governance Driving Value Creation

Beyond brand equity, Temasek views the ongoing professionalisation of family businesses as a critical catalyst for unlocking value. Many mid‑sized family‑run firms in India have recently overhauled governance structures, elevated non‑executive directors, and introduced robust financial controls—steps that make them more attractive to large-scale investors. Temasek’s India team, led by managing director Vishesh Shrivastav, is keen to support these governance transitions through board advisory, talent recruitment and digital transformation initiatives.

The trend toward professional management is particularly pronounced in sectors such as pharmaceuticals, specialty chemicals and financial services, where regulatory complexities and global competition demand high standards of compliance and innovation. Temasek’s portfolio already includes stakes in future‑focused companies like online meat-and-seafood retailer Licious, which plans a public offering in 2026 targeting a $2 billion valuation. Although Licious was not family‑founded, its rapid growth and disciplined operating metrics mirror the professionalism Temasek looks for in its family‑run partners.

In parallel, Temasek is emphasizing environmental, social and governance (ESG) integration within legacy enterprises. Family businesses that once eschewed formal sustainability reporting are now adopting carbon‑reduction roadmaps, strengthening labor standards and embedding circular‑economy principles in manufacturing. Temasek’s capital is often tied to milestone‑based support for ESG targets, aligning the long‑term horizons of family ownership with global best practices and unlocking new pools of green financing.

Diversification Across Sectors and Geographies

While food and healthcare have been focal points, Temasek’s family‑enterprise thrust extends into consumer retail, agribusiness and even renewable energy ventures tied to legacy agricultural groups. The firm is evaluating deals in premium tea and coffee estates owned by long‑standing family clans in Assam and Karnataka, recognizing that these brands command international acclaim and premium pricing. Similarly, discussions are underway with select automobile component manufacturers—many of which began as small family workshops and grew into multi‑state suppliers—to back capacity expansion and technology upgrades.

To mitigate concentration risk, Temasek is concurrently exploring opportunities that complement family‑brand strengths with deeper market diversification. In the Middle East and Africa, for example, Italian wine and non‑alcoholic beverage makers—parallel in heritage to India’s own family producers—are being considered for distribution tie‑ups that could open new export channels for Indian partners. Closer to home, joint ventures between Indian family businesses and Southeast Asian conglomerates are on the table, aiming to fuse production base efficiencies with distribution networks across ASEAN markets.

This multi‑pronged diversification strategy follows Temasek’s broader playbook of pairing thematic long‑term megatrends—such as urbanization, digital adoption and the sustainability transition—with the unique value propositions of family‑run firms. By leveraging its global network, the firm can facilitate strategic alliances, technology transfers and co‑development projects that reinforce competitiveness in both domestic and export markets.

A Long‑Term Bet on Indian Growth

Temasek’s accelerating interest in family‑run businesses reflects its conviction in India’s enduring growth trajectory. Since opening its Mumbai office in 2004, the firm has steadily grown its local team and deepened its sector expertise, making India its top-performing market over the past decade. As the world’s fastest‑growing major economy and the second‑largest IPO destination in 2025, India presents a rare confluence of demographic dividends, rising incomes and regulatory reforms aimed at improving ease of doing business.

With more than $3 billion already deployed in the last year alone, Temasek intends to continue identifying family‑owned enterprises that combine strong legacies with the ambition to professionalize and internationalize. From snack and sweets makers to healthcare pioneers and agro‑commodity groups, these partnerships are designed to generate long‑term value creation, preserve cultural heritage and catalyze broader economic development.

As Temasek pursues its ambitious $10 billion commitment over the next three years, Indian family businesses stand to gain not just capital but also global best practices and market‑opening alliances. For many houses that have stewarded their brands for generations, the arrival of an investor like Temasek can signal a transformative juncture—one that blends time‑tested tradition with the rigors of institutional scale. In doing so, Singapore’s sovereign fund is both acknowledging and amplifying the unique strengths of family‑run enterprises at the heart of India’s growth story.

(Adapted from Investing.com)