Investcorp has established the first private equity platform dedicated to investing in food brands in Asia, specifically China, Singapore and greater Southeast Asia.
Bahrain-based alternative investments manager Investcorp is partnering with food distributor China Resources and Fung Strategic Holdings to launch a private equity fund targeting the food sector in Asia, the partners jointly announced in a statement on Thursday.
According to the statement, the partners have already committed $300 million to the fund, which aims to raise $500 million. It will «primarily focus on capturing the growth and market opportunities of China’s highly fragmented food sector,» the statement said, highlighting China's large and fast-growing consumer market.
Investcorp has experience investing in companies operating in food sectors in the U.S., Europe and the broader Middle East and North Africa region. China Resources is one of the world’s largest owners and distributors of food brands in Greater China, and Fung Strategic Holdings is linked to Hong Kong based global consumer goods supply chain firm Fung Group.
Growing Asia Presence
«We are investing not only in what we consider to be the world’s largest and fastest-growing consumer market, and in one of the most defensive sectors, but also in partnership with some of the most respected entities in China,» Hazem Ben-Gacem, Investcorp co-CEO, said about the firm's growing presence in Asia.
As of end-June 2019, Investcorp had $28.2 billion in assets under management.
