Taiwan’s Cathay Life backs KKR Asian fund
Cathay Life Insurance, a subsidiary of Taiwanese financial group Cathay Financial Holdings, has committed $50 million to KKR’s fourth pan-Asian fund.
KKR is looking to raise $12.5 billion for the vehicle. Should the firm reach this target, it would be the largest-ever pool of private equity capital raised for deployment in Asia, surpassing Hillhouse Capital’s $10.6 billion.
KKR closed its third Asia fund at $9.3 billion in June 2017, upsizing from $6 billion for the previous vintage. Last year, it emerged that the firm also plans to raise a growth-stage technology vehicle focused on Asia, expanding a strategy that is already operational in North America, Europe, and Israel.
The Cathay Life commitment was announced by Cathay Financial Holdings. Cathay Life had approximately NT$7.1 trillion in assets as of December 2019. According to AVCJ Research, it is an investor in KKR's previous two Asia funds. Other Asia-focused commitments in recent years have gone to the likes of CMC Group, CVC Capital Partners, and Asia Alternatives.
In addition, Cathay Life supports Vertex Ventures, a VC arm of Singapore’s Temasek Holdings. It is an LP in Vertex's $290 million debut growth-stage fund and in the firm's $230 million Southeast Asia and India vehicle.
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