New York-based private markets firm KKR closed its latest Asia-Pacific private equity fund, Asian Fund IV, at $15 billion — a record for a fund focused on the region.
Roughly $1.3 billion of that total will be invested by KKR and its employees alongside the firm's limited partners, according to a news release Tuesday.
The $15 billion close exceeded KKR's target for the fund of $12.5 billion.
The fund attracted those record commitments in less than 18 months, at a time of unprecedented operational challenges for the industry caused by the coronavirus pandemic, a spokeswoman for the firm said.
Asian Fund IV garnered commitments from 290 clients, a record for a KKR fund, with 80 investors new to KKR's private equity offerings. Clients accounting for 83% of the capital committed to KKR's Asian Fund III — which closed in June 2017 with $9.3 billion in commitments — signed up for the new fund as well, the spokeswoman said.
The fund has a wide remit to "pursue opportunities stemming from rising consumption and urbanization trends, as well as corporate carve-outs, spin-offs, and consolidation as companies look to optimize their portfolios," the news release said.
Demand for consumption upgrades, a fast-growing middle class, rising urbanization and technological disruption are presenting "phenomenal" opportunities for private equity investments in the region, Hiro Hirano, co-head of Asia-Pacific private equity at KKR, said in the news release.
The spokeswoman noted that a growing portion of the latest fund's commitments — nearly 30% — came from Asia-based limited partners. It couldn't immediately be learned what portion of KKR Asian Fund III investors in the region accounted for.
Institutional investors making commitments to the fund included the $282.5 billion California State Teachers' Retirement System, West Sacramento, with $300 million; Border to Coast Pensions Partnership, Leeds, England, which brings together £45 billion ($62.2 billion) in local authority pension fund assets, with a $94 million commitment; and $35.6 billion South Carolina Retirement System Investment Commission, Columbia, which committed $100 million.
