Financial Times
KKR has raised a record $6bn for its second big Asian buyout fund in a sign that investors are confident the New York private equity group can build on its successful record in the region.
The size of the fund trumps competitors, including TPG, which originally targeted as much as $5bn but will probably fall short, and Carlyle, which is aiming for $3.5bn. Bain Capital last year raised $2.3bn.
“They have been among our best performing funds in Asia,” said Alain Berdugo, who is based in Singapore for Axa Private Equity. “When they raised the first Asia fund, it was big at $4bn and we decided to back them because they were KKR and they also hired the best guys in the industry. We expect them to return between 2 times and 2.5 times our money on the first fund.”
Although Carlyle and TPG have been operating in Asia longer than KKR, most of their best Asia deals were made years ago, often with far less scrutiny than in today’s tougher environment.