LPs
PE a key focus for institutions investing in Asia – survey
Institutions investing in Asia plan to make private equity and other alternative assets a key focus, according to a new survey.
Colonial First State buys TDF’s broadcasting assets in Finland
Colonial First State, an Australian wealth manager owned by Commonwealth Bank of Australia, has agreed to buy French broadcasting group TDF’s Finland business. The company, known as Digita, owns Finland’s largest broadcast tower network as well as...
GIC boosts cash exposure, warns of global volatility
Government of Singapore Investment Corp’s (GIC) exposure to alternative assets remained unchanged during the year ended March 2012 as cash reserves rose steeply at the expense of fixed income and developed market public equities holdings.
LP interview: New York State Common Retirement Fund
New York State Common Retirement Fund has put scandals behind it and, buoyed by two years of positive performance and limited liabilities overhand, is looking to boost Asia private equity exposure
America’s Skybridge to launch $500m Asia vehicle
US alternative investment manager SkyBridge Capital is planning to launch an Asia-focused fund next year worth $250-500 million, according to the firm’s founder.
New software helps LPs with benchmarking
EFront has launched an LP-focused performance and risk optimization solution that allows users to generate their own custom-weighted benchmarks.
Identifying good GPs is biggest LP challenge in SE Asia - AVCJ Singapore Forum
Finding the right fund manager is the greatest challenge facing LPs investing into Southeast Asia, according to panelists at the AVCJ Forum in Singapore on Thursday. The second greatest challenge is ensuring they remain the right managers.
China secondaries: Fresh start or false start?
China’s PE Secondary Market Development Alliance is meant to facilitate the trading of LP interests in renminbi funds. The absence of local expertise, portfolio transparency and mature LPs are obstacles to this.
Munich Private Equity Partners opens office in Shanghai
Munich Private Equity Partners (MPEP) has opened an office in Shanghai as it looks to increase investment allocations to Asian markets.
Ontario Teachers to up India exposure, back Kedaara Capital
Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan (OTPP) plans to increase its allocations to India and Latin America in order to diversify its emerging markets exposure, which is currently more weighted towards China. The pension plan’s first India commitment was to...
Endowments: Still gold standard?
North American endowments took a beating during the financial crisis and the recovery process has been slow. But they retain the ability to uncover high-quality GPs, in the US and beyond
Before going direct, go local
The way in which global buyout firms have built up their local expertise in Asia in recent years so as to compete more effectively with smaller regional and single-country funds is a clear reminder of the value of having people on the ground. Although...
Coller Barometer: Asia Pacific PE growth trend to continue
Global investors will continue to up their exposure to Asia-Pacific private equity over the next three years, according to the latest edition of Coller Capital’s Global Private Equity Barometer.
Illiquidity putting Japan pension plans off PE
The liquidity constraints of negative cash flows are making private equity less attractive for Japanese defined benefit pension plans, according to a new survey.
PennSERS commits $50m to Asia Alternatives’ third fund
The Pennsylvania State Employees’ Retirement System (PennSERS) has committed $50 million to Asia Alternatives' third fund-of-funds, which was launched early last year with a target of $1 billion. As of September 2011, it had attracted $375 million,...
Rise of the China PIPE deal
It has taken Indian fund managers years to convince their LPs of the merits of PIPE deals, and efforts haven’t been wholly successful. The knee-jerk response, “Why should I pay you fees to invest in companies that I could just invest in myself?”...
Cathay Life Insurance invests $30m in KKR’s Asian fund
Cathay Life Insurance has committed $30 million to KKR’s second pan-Asian fund, which has a target of $6 billion. Cathay Financial Holding, the Taiwan insurer’s parent company, announced the investment in a stock exchange filing dated June 11.
Blackrock hires Asia Pacific vice-chair
BlackRock has hired Philipp Hildebrand as vice chairman for Asia Pacific and EMEA. He will oversee the firm’s largest institutional client relationships in these regions.
China to expand insurers' investment scope
The China Insurance Regulatory Commission (CIRC) is likely to announce a new set of rules allowing insurers to expand their investment scope in order to diversify portfolios. As part of the move, the ceiling for domestic private equity investments will...
San Diego pension fund commits $50m to FountainVest
The San Diego County Employees Retirement Association (SDCERA) has committed $50 million to FountainVest China Growth Capital Fund II. FountainVest Partners, set up by former Temasek Holdings executives in 2007, raised $950 million for its first vehicle...
NSSF to boost investment in PE funds
China's National Council for Social Security Fund (NSSF) will boost its commitments in private equity funds by more than 50% in 2012, in a move to enhance investment returns.
Vermont state pension funds commit $75m to HarbourVest
A HarbourVest Partners fund targeting Europe, Asia and emerging markets has received a $10 million commitment from the Vermont Pension Investment Committee (VPIC). It is part of a $75 million investment by the committee, which represents pension funds...
LPs raise concerns over GPs’ ability to bring good returns - AVCJ China Forum
One of the key issues in China’s private equity space is whether GPs can maintain the robust returns they made in their previous investments amid quieter IPO markets and tightening regulations. LPs who participated in AVCJ China Forum 2012 continue...
Indian family offices add to GPs’ options
An increasing number of Indian PE firms are tapping local family offices for capital. Will this new wave of investors stick with the asset class in the long term?