EQT used Fund VII in Asia staple

EQT‘s stapled deal on its latest Asia-focused fund also included stakes in its 2015-vintage flagship, UK regulatory filings have revealed.

The Stockholm-headquartered investment firm had offered limited partners in its 2011-vintage €4.8 billion EQT VI the opportunity to sell their stakes to Partners Group in a deal that involved commitments to EQT Mid Market Asia III, Secondaries Investor reported in September.

Partners also acquired stakes in the €6.75 billion EQT VII, according to two filings from November.

Selling LPs from EQT VII included Fubon Life Insurance Company; Longbow Finance, which backs the Sauber Formula One team; the Local Pensions Partnership; and Guardian Life Insurance Company of America, the filings show.

Partners used its 2015-vintage Partners Group Secondary 2015 fund to invest in the deal and picked up the stakes in EQT VII through its Partners Group Barrier Reef Access 12 and Partners Group Exchange Access vehicles, according to the filings.

The firm was selected as the sole buyer through a competitive bid process and LPs in EQT VI who decide to part with their stakes received a 19.5 percent net internal rate of return and a 1.8x net money multiple, Secondaries Investor reported.

EQT Mid Market Asia III was close to reaching its $800 million hard-cap in September, a source told Secondaries Investor at the time. It is understood that Partners had already committed to Asia III before taking part in the staple.

It is also understood that EQT did not hire an advisor to work on the process.

EQT VII has invested in healthcare technology company Certara, UK veterinarian chain Independent Vetcare and German property services firm Apleona, among others.

Both firms declined to comment.