AGCA teams up with HarbourVest, Axiom to buy Credit Suisse PE assets

HarbourVest was the lead investor on the secondary buyout with Axiom helping to underwrite and consummate the transaction.

"We see a significant opportunity to acquire, restructure and support existing private equity portfolios in India and South East Asia and expect to work together with the team at AGCA in the future on similar secondary direct deals," said Tim Flower, a Hong Kong-based principal at HarbourVest who heads up the firm's regional secondary operations.

AGCA was founded by Harjit Bhatia and Soma Ghosal Dhar, formerly chairman and managing partner and partner, respectively, at Credit Suisse Private Equity Asia. Bhatia previously served as Asia head of General Electric's private equity business while Ghosal Dhar's industry experience includes stints at Ritchie Capital and GE Equity.

The spinout from Credit Suisse three years ago saw the Swiss bank's India and Southeast Asia teams join to form AGCA, but not the China and South Korea operations. They took with them around nine legacy assets from Credit Suisse's Asia portfolio.

With many smaller GPs in Asia struggling to raise new capital, secondary investors are scouring the region for managers that want to service their existing funds, either by selling off assets or receiving top-up capital, or even getting out of the business altogether. The implication is that HarbourVest and Axiom will use AGCA to mop up assets in cases where existing managers don't come as part of a secondary acquisition.

A similar transaction - involving HarbourVest, Axiom, LGT Capital Partners and Paul Capital - took place in 2011 when Bank of America Merrill Lynch's private equity team spun out with their parts of the existing portfolio to form NewQuest Capital Partners. The new GP has a brief to cultivate the existing portfolio and buy assets from other GPs that need to return money to investors but are unable to secure a quick exit via the capital markets or through a trade sale.

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

• Topics
• Secondaries
• Secondaries
• Southeast Asia
• South Asia
• Secondaries
• buyout
• HarbourVest Partners
• Axiom Asia Private Capital
• Southeast Asia
• India
• Credit Suisse Private Equity Asia