Global investment firm KKR has announced the final close of KKR Asia Pacific Infrastructure Investors SCSp, a US$3.9 billion fund focused on infrastructure-related investments across Asia Pacific.
KKR said the fund reached its hard cap to become the largest pan-regional infrastructure fund to have been raised for Asia Pacific.
KKR invested approximately US$300 million in capital alongside external investors through its balance sheet and employee commitments.
“We are thrilled to announce the close of our inaugural Asian infrastructure fund, coming at this pivotal time for the infrastructure sector,” said Ming Lu, Head of KKR Asia Pacific.
“We believe that Asia Pacific contains some of the most favorable macroeconomic dynamics in the world, and that the region is expected to account for more than half of the world’s economic growth in the coming years. However, the demand to develop or upgrade critical infrastructure assets outpaces the available public funding in many markets. Private capital is playing an increasingly important role to fill the gap in the region, and through our new fund, KKR is committed to investing in essential infrastructure solutions over a long-term horizon,” he added.
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”The fund will focus on critical infrastructure with low volatility and strong downside protection where KKR believes it can achieve attractive risk-adjusted returns by leveraging its global network of industry experts, its highly experienced team in Asia Pacific and long history of operational value creation,” said the company in a press release.
The fund has a broad investment mandate across both emerging and developed Asia Pacific, in sectors, including waste, renewables, power and utilities, telecommunications and transportation infrastructure.
David Luboff, Head of Asia Pacific Infrastructure at KKR, said, “Infrastructure is a key priority for KKR in Asia Pacific and we are proud to have built one of the leading infrastructure investment platforms in the region. The size of this fund and the caliber of our limited partners reflect the strength of both our Asia Pacific and infrastructure businesses, and speaks to our ability to deliver attractive, risk-adjusted returns to our investors through a careful investment approach. Bringing together our deep, local market knowledge with decades of global industry expertise uniquely positions us to flexibly meet the crucial infrastructure needs of both developed and emerging Asia Pacific.”
KKR first established its global infrastructure team and strategy in 2008 and has since been one of the most active infrastructure investors around the world. Over this period, the firm has deployed more than US$24 billion across approximately 40 infrastructure investments, and currently has a team of approximately 45 dedicated investment professionals.
In Asia, KKR has committed US$1.8 billion across six investments as part of the firm’s dedicated Asia Pacific infrastructure strategy, which was launched in 2019.
