AZB & Partners, J Sagar Associates (JSA) and Sullivan & Cromwell have advised on Goldman Sachs’s complete acquisition of Indian asset management company Benchmark Asset for a reported Rs 130 crore to expand its foothold in the six trillion rupee Indian fund management industry.

Goldman's team was driven by Sullivan & Cromwell partner Michael DeSombre from Hong Kong and AZB partner Darshika Kothari in Mumbai.

Benchmark Asset Management Company which has $ 700m in assets management was advised by JSA Mumbai partners Dina Wadia with Somasekhar Sundaresan and Jay Gandhi, assisted by associates Sugandha Asthana and Kunal Mehta.

Forbes reported: “Though Goldman has held an asset-management license in India since 2008, these operations have been limited to providing research for offshore funds that invest in Indian and other emerging-market stocks. However, in an attempt to capitalize on the increasing wealth of people in emerging markets, Goldman is now planning to launch actively managed on-shore funds in India as well as other locations across Asia.”

The deal size has not been officially disclosed, but is estimated to be around four per cent of Benchmark’s total value of assets under management. The transaction is subject to regulatory approvals.