Global alternative investment manager Investcorp and the private equity arm of Hong Kong’s Fung Investments —Fung Capital — have launched a $500 million fund to invest in companies in the Greater Bay Area (GBA), according to an announcement on Wednesday.
The sector-agnostic fund will focus on investing in mid-cap companies and privately-negotiated equity or equity-linked investments across GBA.
GBA — China’s very own Silicon Valley — comprises nine cities and two Special Administrative Regions, Hong Kong and Macau, in South China. The Chinese government aims to integrate them into an economic and innovation hub.
The fund, once established, will operate out of Hong Kong. “Hong Kong, in the midst of the GBA, is ideally placed to serve as the major international financial centre serving China and the rest of the world,” Kevin Lam, managing partner, Investcorp Fung GBA Fund told DealStreetAsia.
Bahrain-based Investcorp, founded in 1982, manages alternative investments in private equity, real estate, absolute return investments, infrastructure, credit management and strategic capital.
Fung Investments is the private investment office of the families of Hong Kong billionaires Victor Fung and William Fung. They operate the Fung Group, a multinational group with major operating groups engaging in trading, logistics, distribution and retailing.
The $500 million fund marks the fourth venture between Investcorp and Fung Capital.
Fung Capital has made Series A to Series D investments in companies such as SaaS platform Celect, which was acquired by Nike, and retail intelligence platform ThirdChannel.
“Our differentiator is that our fund is buy-out focused and we believe there is huge scope for strong returns,” said Investcorp’s Co-CEO Hazem Ben-Gacem in the statement.
GBA-focused funds have also been launched by HSBC and Alibaba.
