Deals

Lexington lead buyer on $1.3bn Norinchukin portfolio – exclusive

The portfolio, which the secondaries giant split with another buyer, included EQT, Apax Partners and BC Partners fund stakes.

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Lexington Partners has emerged as the lead buyer of a portfolio of stakes shopped by one of Japan’s largest banks.

The New York-headquartered secondaries firm acquired a majority of the $1.3 billion portfolio brought to market by Norinchukin Bank, according to a source with knowledge of the deal. The identity of the other strategic buyer is not clear.

Among the funds in the portfolio were the 2011-vintage €4.82 billion EQT VI, 2007-vintage €11.2 billion Apax Europe VII and the 2011-vintage €6.69 billion BC European Capital IX, according to UK regulatory filings.

It is understood that Greenhill advised on the transaction.

Norinchukin initially considered selling a portfolio of up to $2.4 billion in size, Secondaries Investor understands.

Its portfolio is one of 14 of over $500 million in size launched or closed last year.

Norinchukin has tapped the secondaries market before: in August 2017 it sold a portfolio of around $100 million in tail-end stakes to Strategic Partners, as Secondaries Investor reported.

Asian sellers accounted for 10 percent of transaction volumes in 2018, according to data from advisor Evercore. Financial institutions accounted for 16 percent of sellers on a global basis.

Lexington started raising its ninth flagship secondaries fund in February last year with a target of $12 billion, Secondaries Investor reported.

Deals that it backed in the second half of 2018 include a $1 billion stapled tender offer on two of TPG’s Asia funds and a €600 million transaction involving a portfolio of direct stakes owned by Eurazeo.