Financing for commercial real estate in the country spans a genuinely distinct set of instruments and providers compared to conventional retail home loans, covering construction finance for developers building office parks and malls, lease rental discounting against completed income-generating assets, mezzanine and structured debt for complex development projects, and dedicated private equity real estate funds that provide capital across the entire project lifecycle. Real Estate Investment Trusts have added a further institutional layer to this ecosystem, with vehicles like Mindspace Business Parks REIT, which owns ten commercial office, IT park, and special economic zone assets across eight special purpose vehicles, issuing AAA-rated non-convertible debentures that draw the same institutional capital pools competing for CRE debt exposure. Dedicated real estate debt funds have raised substantial fresh capital through 2025 and 2026, exemplified by ASK Property Fund’s fourth debt fund targeting Rs 3,500 crore and HDFC Capital’s roughly USD 4.5 billion platform dedicated to financing affordable and mid-income housing supply. Let us have a look at the top 10 commercial real estate finance companies in India for the year 2026.
1. Piramal Finance (Piramal Capital & Housing Finance Limited)
Piramal Finance has built real estate financing into the core of its business since the inception of its financial services platform, capable of funding across the entire capital stack from early-stage private equity through mezzanine and structured debt, construction finance, and flexible lease rental discounting, alongside a dedicated hospitality sector financing vertical providing last-mile debt funding for under-construction hotels. The company’s broader Corporate Finance Group and Emerging Corporate Lending verticals extend customised funding into infrastructure, renewable energy, roads, and industrial components beyond pure real estate.
Piramal Finance serves commercial real estate developers and hospitality operators with genuinely full-capital-stack financing spanning equity to senior secured debt, and its unmatched breadth across every stage and structure of commercial real estate finance confirms its position as one of the most comprehensive and structurally sophisticated commercial real estate lenders operating in the country.
2. Kotak Realty Fund (Kotak Alternate Asset Managers)
Kotak Realty Fund, established in 2005 as one of India’s first private equity real estate funds, has raised approximately USD 3.5 billion in aggregate capital commitments across 13 funds, making it one of the country’s largest domestic real estate private equity platforms with a diversified portfolio spanning residential, office, hospitality, retail, and warehousing and industrial projects. The fund invests through preferred equity, listed equity, and mezzanine debt structures adopting an opportunistic real estate strategy, with recent notable transactions including a Rs 1,200 crore growth capital investment in the Elan Group and a USD 400 million office fund tie-up with DivyaSree.
Kotak Realty Fund serves commercial real estate developers across office, retail, hospitality, and industrial segments with flexible preferred equity and mezzanine debt structures, and its two-decade track record raising nearly USD 3.5 billion across 13 successive funds confirms its position as one of India’s largest and most established private equity real estate financing platforms.
3. ASK Property Fund (ASK Asset & Wealth Management Group)
ASK Property Fund, part of the Blackstone-backed ASK Asset & Wealth Management Group which managed assets exceeding Rs 80,000 crore as of April 2026, launched its fourth debt fund, ASK Real Estate Special Situations Fund IV, targeting a corpus of Rs 3,500 crore, with plans to raise Rs 1,500 crore from GIFT City and Rs 2,000 crore domestically. The company raised approximately Rs 2,500 crore across debt and equity strategies from domestic and offshore investors over the preceding two years, reflecting sustained institutional appetite for structured real estate credit.
ASK Property Fund serves real estate developers requiring structured debt and special situations financing, backed by Blackstone’s institutional scale and a genuinely international capital-raising strategy spanning GIFT City and domestic investors, and its successive debt fund launches confirm its position as one of the most actively growing dedicated real estate credit platforms in the country.
4. HDFC Capital Advisors
HDFC Capital Advisors manages a platform of approximately USD 4.5 billion as of March 31, 2026, combining multiple funds dedicated specifically to financing the supply of affordable and mid-income housing across India’s leading 20 cities, partnering with developers to provide long-term debt and equity capital across the capital stack. The platform’s investment philosophy centres on flexible financing to reputable developer partners coupled with active asset management and innovative project execution support.
HDFC Capital serves developers building affordable and mid-income housing across India’s major cities with a genuinely massive dedicated capital platform, and its roughly USD 4.5 billion scale focused specifically on this underserved segment confirms its position as the most significant institutional financier addressing affordable housing supply constraints in the country’s commercial and residential development ecosystem.
5. LIC Housing Finance Limited
LIC Housing Finance, alongside its core retail mortgage business, extends construction finance and lease rental discounting facilities to commercial and residential developers, backed by the institutional strength and low cost of funds available through its Life Insurance Corporation parentage. The company’s return on equity of 16.05 percent and notably low price-to-earnings ratio reflect strong capital efficiency that supports its ability to price construction and commercial lending competitively against private-sector NBFC competitors.
LIC Housing Finance serves commercial and residential developers requiring construction finance and lease rental discounting backed by one of India’s most financially efficient and institutionally trusted lenders, and its LIC-backed low cost of capital combined with genuinely strong profitability metrics makes it one of the most competitively positioned bank-adjacent commercial real estate financiers in the market.
6. PNB Housing Finance Limited
PNB Housing Finance, a subsidiary of Punjab National Bank, extends its lending beyond retail home loans into corporate and construction finance for developers, offering loan values up to Rs 20 crore covering up to 90 percent of total property cost, backed by the institutional strength of its parent public sector bank. The company’s dual retail and corporate lending model gives it visibility into both ends of the residential and commercial development value chain.
PNB Housing Finance serves both retail borrowers and commercial developers with construction and property finance backed by Punjab National Bank’s institutional credibility, and its dual exposure across retail and corporate real estate lending confirms its position as one of the more integrated bank-backed commercial real estate finance providers in the country.
7. Bajaj Housing Finance Limited
Bajaj Housing Finance, alongside its market-leading retail home loan business offering the longest tenures in the industry, extends lease rental discounting and construction finance facilities to commercial property owners and developers, leveraging the broader Bajaj Finance ecosystem’s rapid digital underwriting infrastructure. The company’s technology-enabled processing speed, including disbursement within 48 hours for eligible borrower profiles, extends a distinctive competitive advantage into its commercial lending operations as well.
Bajaj Housing Finance serves commercial property owners and developers seeking fast, technology-enabled lease rental discounting and construction finance, and its industry-leading digital processing speed combined with the broader Bajaj Finance ecosystem’s scale confirms its position as one of the more operationally efficient commercial real estate lenders among India’s major housing finance companies.
8. JM Financial Credit Solutions Limited
JM Financial Credit Solutions, jointly promoted by the JM Financial Group and a global fund led by former Citigroup CEO Vikram Pandit, provides structured credit and real estate financing solutions to developers and corporates, holding an ICRA AA rating that reflects solid institutional credit quality. The company’s structured credit expertise extends into complex commercial real estate transactions requiring bespoke financing structures beyond standard construction loans.
JM Financial Credit Solutions serves developers and corporates requiring structured credit solutions for complex commercial real estate transactions, and its backing by both the established JM Financial Group and a globally recognised financial executive’s fund confirms its position as one of the more sophisticated structured real estate credit providers in the market.
9. Sundaram Alternates (Sundaram Finance Group)
Sundaram Alternates, the alternative investment arm of the veteran Sundaram Finance Group, has built a dedicated real estate financing practice offering structured debt and credit solutions to commercial developers, drawing on the broader Sundaram Group’s decades of financial services credibility across South India and beyond. The platform’s structured credit approach targets developers seeking flexible, non-bank financing alternatives for commercial and mixed-use projects.
Sundaram Alternates serves commercial developers seeking structured, non-bank real estate credit backed by one of India’s most established financial services groups, and its Sundaram Group heritage combined with a dedicated alternative investment focus makes it one of the more institutionally credible structured real estate finance platforms operating in the country.
10. 360 One Prime Limited
360 One Prime, a wholly owned NBFC subsidiary of 360 One WAM Limited, formerly IIFL Wealth Management, offers lending solutions to the group’s wealth management clients including loans against securities, loans against property, and margin trading funding, with a well-capitalised capital adequacy ratio of 21.25 percent as of September 2025. While primarily serving the group’s ultra-high-net-worth wealth clients, the company’s loan-against-property offering extends meaningfully into commercial real estate-backed lending for its sophisticated client base.
360 One Prime serves ultra-high-net-worth wealth management clients requiring secured lending against property and securities, and its strong capital adequacy combined with its integration into one of India’s largest independent wealth platforms makes it a distinctive commercial real estate-adjacent lender for India’s most sophisticated private wealth clientele.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Q: What is lease rental discounting and how does it differ from construction finance?
A: Lease rental discounting is a loan structured against the discounted rental potential of a completed, income-generating commercial property, offering flexible repayment schedules to owners of finished assets, while construction finance is provided to developers to fund the actual building of a commercial project before it generates rental income, making the two products suited to different stages of a commercial real estate asset’s lifecycle.
Q: What is the difference between commercial real estate financing and a loan against property?
A: A loan against property allows a borrower to secure funds by pledging any property, residential or commercial, as collateral for general purposes without transferring ownership, while commercial real estate financing specifically involves financing tied to a commercial property’s development, construction, or income-generating potential, and neither structure requires the borrower to dilute equity or lose ownership of the underlying asset.
Q: How are REITs connected to commercial real estate financing in India?
A: Real Estate Investment Trusts such as Mindspace Business Parks REIT, which holds ten commercial office, IT park, and special economic zone assets, issue AAA-rated non-convertible debentures and other debt instruments that compete for the same institutional capital pools that commercial real estate lenders and debt funds draw from, effectively integrating REITs into the broader commercial real estate finance ecosystem beyond their role as direct property owners.
Q: How much capital is flowing into India’s commercial real estate debt funds?
A: Major real estate debt fund launches through 2025 and 2026 include ASK Property Fund’s fourth debt fund targeting Rs 3,500 crore, sourced partly through GIFT City, and HDFC Capital’s roughly USD 4.5 billion platform focused on affordable and mid-income housing supply, reflecting substantial and growing institutional capital commitment to India’s commercial and residential real estate credit market.
Q: What is GIFT City’s role in commercial real estate fundraising?
A: GIFT City in Gujarat has become an increasingly important channel for real estate fund managers such as ASK Property Fund to raise capital from offshore investors under more liberal regulatory treatment, with ASK specifically planning to raise Rs 1,500 crore of its latest debt fund’s Rs 3,500 crore target through GIFT City, reflecting the hub’s growing significance in India’s institutional real estate capital raising.
