AI Fund Awards 2018

16 Acquisition International - 2018 International Fund Awards IF180010 Best Infrastructure Focused PE Fund Manager - South East Asia & Best Mid-Market Infrastructure Investment Fund: The CapAsia ASEAN Infrastructure Fund III, L.P. Capital Advisors Partners Asia Pte Ltd Founded in 2006, today CapAsia is a leading infrastructure private equity investor in Non-BRIC Emerging Asia. The firm currently manages funds operating in a wide set of infrastructure sectors including transport, power, renewable energy and telecommunications. Its first fund was one of the top performing infrastructure funds for its vintage according to Preqin data, and was fully realised prior to its fund life expiry. Devarshi explores the secrets behind this phenomenal success. “Here at CapAsia, we are one of the oldest infrastructure fund managers focusing primarily on Southeast Asia, and as such we are able to draw on vast experience in the market. Aside from our long track record in the region, our firm believes that an on- the-ground local presence is a strategic advantage in our business. We focus on mid-market opportunities where there are more genuine complementary value- add partnerships for financial investors, and we typically source our deals on a proprietary basis.” “Presently, we have offices in Singapore, Kuala meet our clients’ needs across the region. CapAsia’s clients include a diverse set of financial institutions including pension funds, asset managers, banks and multilateral development institutions.” Alongside its long experience investing in the South East Asia market, CapAsia is also majority owned by The Rohatyn Group, a global emerging markets asset management firm, with the CIMB Group being a significant minority shareholder. As such, the firm is able to draw on the experience of these parent firms to ensure it offers clients a truly unique service which meets their needs. Devarshi tells us more about how the group utilises this experience and vast knowledge to its clients’ advantage. “Investing for over a decade definitely helps keep us focused and one step ahead of our peers in the market. Long term experience in investing in infrastructure helps us to be credible in our markets and to attract suitable partners for building businesses in our focus countries. Local presence and local staff is essential. The ability to connect quickly and closely with business partners and to bridge language gaps is definitely a competitive edge.” “Fundamentally, we believe our long track record in a region that may be peripheral for most fund managers differentiates us in the market. We have invested heavily in making our business local and on-the-ground which keeps us a step ahead. We are also committed to diversification. While some of our competitors focus heavily on a single country such as China or India, a single sector such as renewable energy, or riskier strategies such as greenfield, we prefer to invest across multiple countries, sectors and strategies.” With regards to the future of CapAsia, Devarshi is optimistic that the firm will be able to take advantage of the myriad of opportunities he foresees across the Asian corporate landscape, as he proudly concludes. “Looking to the future, at CapAsia we are incredibly proud of the complete exit of our first fund, which generated attractive returns for our investors. Our second fund is in divestment mode, and we have recently fully invested our third fund in a diversified portfolio of telecoms, renewable energy and transportation in four ASEAN countries. We expect to invest further in core infrastructure such as toll roads and telecommunications towers across the Southeast Asia region. Most transactions are also in the power and renewable energy sector which we believe should grow more active as the economies of our target countries expand.” “Ultimately, we foresee AUM consolidating into mega-funds, which will drive more competition in larger economies such as China and India, markets that can cater to the deployment needs of these funds. Higher competition in these large transactions drives valuations to levels that make returns unattractive for us and our investors. First time funds have a high hurdle to reach in order to raise capital and prove themselves in such a market. Many of our competitors will be pressured to deploy large amounts in riskier strategies, which will be reflected in suboptimal transactions and failed fundraisings. We believe a focused and disciplined investment approach combined with deep diversification is key, and as such this will remain CapAsia’s ongoing focus as we look towards an exciting future.” Capital Advisors Partners Asia (CapAsia) is an award-winning private equity firm that invests in the infrastructure sectors of Emerging Asia with South East Asia as a home market. We invited Devarshi Das to tell us more about the firm and the range of investment options it offers. Company: Capital Advisors Partners Asia Pte Ltd Contact: Devarshi Das Address: 1 Temasek Avenue, #30-02 Millenia Tower, 039192, Singapore Phone: 65 6632 0480 Web: www.capasia.com Capital Advisors Partners Asia Pte Ltd