PEI Awards 2022: TR Capital, Evercore, Kirkland among APAC winners

There was plenty of creativity in Asia-Pacific secondaries showcased across four categories in affiliate title Private Equity International's latest awards.

Despite the global secondaries activity slowdown across the board last year, there were plenty of impressive deals that got over the line, demonstrated in submissions to affiliate title Private Equity International‘s PEI Awards 2022.

Transactions that are featured within the winning submissions include the strip sale of exposure to 15 investments held by L Catterton into a separate vehicle, as well as Mubadala Capital’s roughly $2 billion partial sale of a portfolio of fund and direct interests into a continuation fund, as well as new commitments to Mubadala’s latest PE flagship fund.

Here are the APAC secondaries winners as well as those that made the shortlist. Congratulations to all those included!

Secondaries Deal of the Year in Asia

  1. Hamilton Lane, GIC, L Catterton and UBS for L Catterton’s fund restructuring
  2. Hahn & Company, Coller Capital, Goldman Sachs Vintage Fund and Evercore for Hahn & Co’s single-asset deal with Ssangyong
  3. MBK Partners, Partners Group, Glendower Capital, Hamilton Lane and PJT Partners for MBK Partners’ GP-led transaction with BHC Group

This eye-catching deal worth $360 million saw a strip of exposure to 15 investments held in L Catterton’s third Asia-focused vehicle move into a separate fund, backed by Hamilton Lane, GIC and other buyers. The UBS-advised deal was reported to have included companies operating in beauty and personal care, consumer services, health and wellness, pet care and speciality food and beverages.

Secondaries Firm of the Year in Asia

  1. TR Capital
  2. Goldman Sachs Asset Management
  3. HarbourVest Partners

Hong Kong-based TR Capital had an active 2022, completing a partial sale of BigBasket, an online food and grocery store in India, to the Tata Group in May. It opened its fifth office in the region in Singapore and also launched a strategy to provide alternative credit options to both GPs and LPs via net asset value loans and preferred equity. The firm is making headway with its latest fund, having raised nearly two thirds of its $600 million target as of January this year, according to data from affiliate title PEI.

Secondaries Law Firm of the Year in Asia

  1. Kirkland & Ellis
  2. Ropes & Gray
  3. Proskauer

Once again, Kirkland & Ellis is the only law firm to have ever won in this category since its inception in the PEI Awards 2016. The firm advised on $4.7 billion of Asian secondaries activity over the year to end-October, including five LP portfolio sales for a total of $3.3 billion and four GP-led restructurings for more than $1 billion in transaction value. Notable clients for the firm in Asia last year included Hosen Capital, L Catterton Asia and Temasek.

Secondaries Adviser of the Year in Asia

  1. Evercore
  2. Lazard
  3. Campbell Lutyens

This is the second consecutive win for Evercore in this category, which reportedly advised on around $5 billion of Asian secondaries dealflow in 2022. Highlights for the firm in the region over the year included advising Hahn & Co on a $1.5 billion single-asset continuation vehicle, and advising Mubadala Capital on a roughly $2 billion partial sale of a portfolio of fund and direct interests into a continuation fund, as well as new commitments to Mubadala’s latest PE flagship fund.

Here are the North America and EMEA winners, and here is the full list of winners across the all categories on Private Equity International.