PEI Awards 2023: TR Capital, StepStone, Lazard among APAC winners

The Asia-Pacific region’s popularity among dealmakers in the secondaries market saw a slight decline last year amid persistent geopolitical tensions and weakening economic activities. In the GP-led market, Asia and the rest of the world accounted for 28 percent of deal volume in 2023, down four percentage points from the year before, according to Lazard.

Amid the headwinds, leading secondaries buyers were able to close continuation fund deals and expanded their footprints in countries where opportunities for secondaries were previously underexplored.

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. TR Capital, StepStone Group and UBS for Samara Capital continuation vehicle
2. HarbourVest Partners, TPG NewQuest, Committed Advisors and UBS for Capital Square Partners multi-asset continuation vehicle
3. AlpInvest Partners and Evercore for Pacific Equity Partners continuation vehicle

TR Capital – which over the past year opened in India its sixth office in Asia – led a $150 million three-asset continuation fund involving India’s Samara Capital and its 2014-vintage Fund II. Samara decided to move the best-performing assets remaining in its portfolio to a continuation fund in this UBS-advised transaction. Axiom Asia Private Capital, StepStone Group and Unigestion backed the deal as co-investors.

Secondaries Firm of the Year in Asia

1. TR Capital
2. HarbourVest Partners
3. TPG NewQuest

Hong Kong’s TR Capital picks up the award for Secondaries Firm of the Year in Asia for the fifth time since 2017. The firm closed four transactions totalling $150 million during the period, which included its acquisition of stakes in three Indian companies from Samara Capital II as a lead investor – a deal that has been recognised as Secondaries Deal of the Year in Asia this year. The firm also opened its sixth office in the region in New Delhi during the qualifying period.

Secondaries Law Firm of the Year in Asia

1. Kirkland & Ellis
2. Debevoise & Plimpton
3. Dechert

Kirkland & Ellis’s Asia secondaries team continues to dominate in this category. Kirkland advised on $3.49 billion of transactions in Asia-Pacific over the qualifying period, including four GP-leds worth a total of $992 million. Notable transactions for the firm in Asia included an RMB-to-USD continuation fund involving Kunling Capital, and its role on four LP portfolio sales in the region worth $2.5 billion, including for Cathay Life Insurance and Fubon Life Insurance.

Secondaries Adviser of the Year in Asia

1. Lazard
2. Campbell Lutyens
3. Greenhill

Enjoying its third win in this category, Lazard’s 15-strong team in the region completed several notable deals across the year. These included a A$255 million ($166.4 million, €154.5 million) single-asset continuation fund with Australia’s Quadrant Private Equity.