Kuala Lumpur-based private equity firm Creador has taken a 40% stake in Malaysian pet food brand owner Pet World International from COPE Private Equity and Pet World’s founding family, according to a statement on Tuesday. Other financial details were not disclosed.

Creador’s founder and CEO Brahmal Vasudevan said his firm will assist Pet World in M&A capabilities and international expansion. The deal marks Creador’s 50th investment since its establishment in 2011.

In February, Reuters reported that Pet World was mulling an IPO in Singapore, seeking to raise $100 million, as early as end-2023.

COPE then told DealStreetAsia that the IPO could be one possible exit option for the firm. Prior to that, it had exited cybersecurity firm LGMS Berhad through a stock exchange listing.

COPE invested in Pet World in 2021. Since then, the pet food company has built a manufacturing plant in Shah Alam, having a monthly capacity of 3,000 tonnes, with future expansion in the works.

Pet World products are sold across over 20,000 points of sale across the country, Creador said in its announcement. The brand’s pet care segment grew at a 27% CAGR in the past three years.

Creador is investing from its $700-million fifth fund. It has recently backed retail chain DALI Stores in the Philippines, and picked a 14.7% stake in CTOS Digital through a rollover of its investment from Creador II to its current fund.

Meanwhile, COPE will soon raise its fifth fund, DealStreetAsia reported last September. COPE IV was closed at $70 million in 2018.

The pet care industry in Asia Pacific has captured a lot of interest from private equity houses. Last week, L Catterton injected $60 million in India-based Drools as its first investment in the sector in the country. Before that, the US investor had invested in China’s premium freeze-dried pet food company Partner Pet.

Australia-based chilled pet food supplier The Real Pet Food Company also reportedly raised A$248 million ($161.2 million) this month from investors including Temasek.

In 2021, KKR & Co acquired New Zealand-based premium pet food company Natural Pet Food Group.