CMIA Capital Partners, a Singapore-based private equity firm, has been revealed by analysts at Alphaliner as the new owners of Asian feeder company Bengal Tiger Line (BTL). It acquired all of the company’s shares from BTL’s founding shareholders Schoeller Holdings and Transnaval Schiffahrt in July this year.
The transaction marks CMIA Capital Partners’ first investment in the shipping sector. No price was revealed for the transaction.
CMIA said it sees box shipping at a “cyclical low” with opportunities for value creation from continued intra-Asia growth.
According to Alphaliner data, BTL’s operated capacity has reduced from a high of over 25,000 teu in 2014 to only 6,750 teu currently.
BTL was incorporated in Hamburg in 1986 and transferred its registry and headquarters to Singapore in 2009. The company mainly operates around the Indian subcontinent, Southeast Asia and the Arabian Gulf, with chartered vessels, carrying up to 900,000 per year.
