MSPEA closes debut Thailand fund at $440m

The private equity firm said the LP base comprised leading global institutional investors. The International Finance Corporation (IFC) approved an investment of $15 million in North Haven Thai Private Equity earlier this year.

The fund will make privately negotiated investments in companies with significant operations in Thailand. These businesses are expected to be beneficiaries of strong urbanization and per capita income growth trends and government initiatives. Environmental, social and governance (ESG) factors will also be important considerations in identifying investments, MSPEA said in a statement.

“Thailand has one of the most active M&A and financing markets in ASEAN, its per capita GDP has doubled in the past 10 years and the supply of private equity capital remains relatively low. When seen through that macro lens and when combined with Morgan Stanley Private Equity Asia’s investing experience and ability to source opportunities on a proprietary basis, we believe Thailand is a highly attractive market,” said Chin Chou, head of PE investing in Asia Pacific for Morgan Stanley Investment Management.

According to AVCJ Research, private equity investment in Thailand came to $302 million in 2017, although venture capital accounted for $124 million of that sum. A total of $1.35 billion has been deployed since 2010 or an average of $169 million per year. Over the same period, more than $75 billion has been invested in Southeast Asia as a whole.

MSPEA has been active in the region for more than 20 years. The firm closed its fourth pan-Asian fund at $1.7 billion in 2014. It made its first investment in Thailand in 2016 with a THB1.6 billion ($47 million) commitment to DSG International Thailand, a company that makes baby and adult diapers.

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• Topics
• Southeast Asia
• Fundraising
• GPs
• Growth
• Thailand
• Morgan Stanley Private Equity Asia
• IFC
• Growth capital