Holm plans to tap Indonesia’s rich

So what does a debutant do? Chad Holm's solution is to target local high net worth individuals, with institutional money little or no role. A seasoned M&A practitioner in the region from his days with Bank of America Merrill Lynch, Holm has set up a merchant banking operation called Yawadwipa and hopes to raise a $1 billion fund. It would be the largest private equity vehicle ever seen in Indonesia.

Some industry watchers are understandably skeptical, but Holm believes he has the inside track on wealthy locals who would be willing to back the fund. "The idea evolved over the course of social dinners in Jakarta," he says. "We originally planned close to $500-600 million, but when we talked to people we know well who would be potential LPs, the appetite was so strong."

Holm adds that local business people support the project in part due to the role it can play in promoting Indonesian PE. Gita Wirjawan, co-founder of Ancora Capital and now the country's minister of trade, has given Yawadwipa his public backing, highlighting its "ability to attract first-rate global banking and investing talent to drive cross-border activity and help further the development of Indonesia."

Anyone wishing to illustrate the scale of private equity opportunities in Indonesia doesn't have to look far for relevant numbers: The country has a nominal GDP of around $800 billion and a stock market capitalization of $400 billion, yet there is only $5 billion in private equity assets under management. If he is to convince investors that Yawadwipa is a good fit, Holm must explain why Indonesia's rich would back the fund given that some families already have their own vehicles looking for deals; and how the full will access a sufficient number of large-ticket deals.

Holm says the broad scope of his merchant banking operation - offering asset management and advisory services to local businesses - will allow him to build on the relationships he already has in the country, opening up new sources of capital as well as proprietary deal flow. Infrastructure, an area in which the government recognizes there is a need for investment, is seen as the natural sweet spot.

"I know what I've seen as an M&A advisor in the past couple of years," Holm says. "Deals were there but didn't get done because strategic investors couldn't get it right and no private equity firm could write a big enough ticket."

He gives himself a year to raise the $1 billion deemed sufficient to fill this gap in the market.

• Tweet  
• Facebook  
• LinkedIn  
• Google plus  
• Save this article  
• Send to  

• Topics
• Southeast Asia
• Fundraising
• Fundraising
• Indonesia
• Yawadwipa
• Northstar Group
• Saratoga Capital Group