Neo Alternative Asset Managers enters real estate, hires ex-Walton Street India team

Neo Alternative Asset Managers, the asset management arm of the Mumbai-headquartered Neo Group, on Monday announced its entry into the real estate segment, bringing in former senior industry executives of Walton Street India.

The firm has brought on board Kaushik Desai, Vinit Prabhugaonkar and Vimal Jangla—former senior leadership members at Walton Street India—indicating at a push to build its real estate investment platform.

The trio, who have worked together for over 17 years, bring more than two decades of experience across real estate investing, asset management and structured financing. Collectively, they have managed and advised on over $650 million across more than 100 projects, delivering risk-adjusted returns across market cycles.

Neo said the move is aimed at strengthening its capabilities in structured and opportunistic investments, as it looks to scale its presence across India’s growing alternatives market.

The firm plans to focus on key segments including residential, industrial and logistics, commercial assets, as well as special situations, positioning itself to capitalise on evolving opportunities in urban real estate markets.

Tapping into a $500 billion opportunity

The expansion comes at a time when India’s real estate sector is estimated to be valued at over $500 billion and is expected to grow further, driven by urbanisation, infrastructure development and rising demand across residential and industrial segments.

Neo currently manages over ₹13,500 crore in assets, with a broader platform spanning roughly $3 billion in assets under advisory, making it a fast-growing player in India’s alternative investment space.

While still smaller than established players such as Nuvama Group and other large domestic asset managers, the firm’s expansion into real estate point towards its ambition to build a diversified private markets platform spanning credit, private equity, infrastructure and real assets.

Commenting on the development, Kaushik Desai, managing director at Neo Alternative Asset Managers, said the firm aims to build an execution-led investment platform.

“Our focus will be on building a best-in-class execution-led investment management platform that combines a disciplined investment approach with strong structuring capabilities, and on-ground asset management to deliver consistent, risk-adjusted returns for investors.”

Hemant Daga, co-founder of Neo Group and CEO of Neo Alternative Asset Managers, described the hiring as a strategic addition aligned with the firm’s long-term ambitions.

“The team brings deep domain expertise, a strong track record, and a differentiated approach to real estate investing, which aligns well with our focus on disciplined execution and long-term value creation.”

Neo Alternative Asset Managers is positioning itself as a multi-asset platform across private equity, private credit, infrastructure and real estate, catering to high-net-worth individuals, family offices and institutional investors. As of March 2026, at the group level, Neo oversees close to ₹1 lakh crore in client assets, having rapidly scaled-up in the wealth and asset management segment since its inception in 2021.