Interview
LP interview: North East Private Equity Asia
Seven years ago, Sam Robinson was invited to build a European family office’s Asia private equity portfolio from the ground up. He favoured familiar faces in the small to mid-cap space
Q&A: Aware Super’s Damien Webb
Damien Webb, deputy CIO and head of international at Australia’s Aware Super, on opening offices overseas, internalising asset management, and opportunities at the nexus of PE and infrastructure
Q&A: Blackbird Ventures’ Rick Baker
Rick Baker, co-founder of Australia’s Blackbird Ventures, on pricing adjustments in the tech space, fundraising and secondaries, valuing unicorns, and the rise of ChatGPT
Profile: Lightspeed China Partners’ James Mi
Rejecting a life-changing job offer from Google and overseeing a failed start-up are two of James Mi’s mistakes. He learned from them and then made a success of Lightspeed China Partners
AVCJ Awards 2022: Fundraising of the Year – Venture Capital: Qiming Venture Partners
Qiming Venture Partners defied tough conditions to close its eighth US dollar-denominated fund on USD 2.5bn. Managing Partner Nisa Leung looks back on the process and examines the prospects for healthcare
LP interview: Quilvest Capital Partners
Fund-of-funds Quilvest Capital Partners was an early-mover in PE globally but has maintained a lean profile that speaks to its family office roots. It is pressing ahead with a China and India-focused Asia strategy
AVCJ Awards 2022: Firm of the Year – Large Cap: Baring Private Equity Asia
Baring Private Equity Asia’s 2022 was punctuated by a high-profile merger with EQT, a bumper fundraise, and USD 10bn in exits. Jean Eric Salata, now head of BPEA EQT, shares his thoughts on the market
Q&A: Bertelsmann India Investments’ Pankaj Makkar
Pankaj Makkar has headed Bertelsmann India Investments since its inception in 2012. He reflects on a period of rapid market development with a new war chest that betrays confidence in more to come
Profile: Elevation Equity Partners’ Gordon Cho
Negotiating a spinout while troubled by health issues tested Gordon Cho’s faith and resilience. He feels stronger for the experience and is now looking to make his mark on Korea’s middle market
Q&A: CICC Capital’s Mengyang Yang
Mengyang Yang, an executive director and head of private equity in Hong Kong at CICC Capital, on China’s post-pandemic revival, plans for a flagship US dollar fund, and managing guidance funds
Q&A: Bain Capital’s David Gross-Loh
David Gross-Loh, a managing director and a founding member of the Asia business at Bain Capital, on expanding into Osaka, targeting large-cap carve-outs in Japan, and the availability of deal financing
Profile: Gaja Capital’s Gopal Jain
Though pleased with India’s progress in the past 30 years, Gopal Jain set up Gaja Capital to help take it to the next level. He sees PE as a central pillar of economic growth and by extension national morale
Q&A: Morgan Stanley Investment Management’s Patrick Reid
Patrick Reid, a UK-based managing director for alternatives distribution management at Morgan Stanley Investment Management, plots the future of themes around secondaries, longer holds, and hybrid approaches to PE
Q&A: AC Ventures’ Adrian Li
Adrian Li, founder and managing partner of Indonesia-focused AC Ventures, on Chinese incursions into Southeast Asia, localisation versus scale, the prospect of a protracted downturn, and being an Ironman
Q&A: Northwestern University’s Tianhao Wu
Tianhao Wu, a managing director in the investment team at Northwestern University’s endowment, on adding new GP relationships, addressing China risk, and pursuing geographic diversification in Asia
Q&A: CPPIB’s Suyi Kim
Suyi Kim, global head of private equity at Canada Pension Plan Investment Board, on investing amid uncertainty, finding alignment with partners of all types, and the evolution of direct investment
Q&A: BlackRock’s Michael Dennis
Michael Dennis, managing director and head of alternatives strategy and capital markets for Asia Pacific at BlackRock, on co-investment, customisation, and what Asian investors want from alternatives
Q&A: China Creation Ventures’ Wei Zhou
Wei Zhou, founder of China Creation Ventures (CCV), on why local GPs are targeting Southeast Asia, working with Chinese entrepreneurs overseas, and the prospects for renminbi and US dollar funds
Profile: Charles Li
Charles Li became known as a financial markets reformist during his stint in charge of Hong Kong’s stock exchange. He continues in the same vein at the helm of fintech start-up Micro Connect
Q&A: WeRide's Tony Han
Tony Han, founder and CEO of China’s WeRide, on commercialising fully autonomous passenger vehicles, surviving a capital winter, and why universities are vital to the hard-tech revolution
Q&A: Mayer Brown's Soumitro Mukerji
Soumitro Mukerji, a partner in the banking and finance practice at Mayer Brown in Singapore, explores potential drivers of increased fund finance activity in Asian private equity
LP interview: Partners Capital
Nearly a decade after establishing a foothold in Asia, Partners Capital has acquired a string of local clients and devised a distinct, middle market-oriented approach to deploying capital in the region
Profile: Crescendo’s Kevin Lee
Kevin Lee founded Crescendo Equity Partners to spot overlooked Korean technology suppliers and reposition them as global leaders of their niches. This required a rare combination of skills
Q&A: Unitus Ventures’ Surya Mantha
Indian returns-focused impact investor Unitus Ventures is sharpening its thesis around jobs as it celebrates its 10-year anniversary. Surya Mantha, a managing partner at the firm, traces the evolution