Keppel Corp's new asset management arm sets up two PE funds

CONGLOMERATE Keppel Corp's freshly formed asset management arm, Keppel Capital, has set up two new closed-end private equity funds with a combined fund-raising target of US$1.5 billion, mainboard-listed Keppel Corp said in a Singapore Exchange filing on Wednesday.

These two funds, both managed by Keppel Capital's wholly owned unit Alpha Investment Partners, have altogether received initial capital commitments of US$410 million, it noted.

The first closing of the two funds came on the heels of the restructuring of Keppel's asset management businesses under Keppel Capital, and reflects the group's strategy to grow its asset management business and "expand its capital base with co-investments", Keppel said.

It added that when fully invested, the two new funds will add as much as US$3.5 billion to Keppel's total assets under management.

The smaller of the two funds, the US$500 million Alpha Data Centre Fund, is aimed at tapping the growth in demand for data centres in the Asia-Pacific and Europe.

The larger one, Alpha Asia Macro Trends Fund III with a US$1 billion target size, will be for Asian property investment and is designed to ride on trends driving long-term growth in the Asia-Pacific region, such as urbanisation and consumerism.

Keppel Corp shares rose four Singapore cents to finish at S$5.60 on Wednesday before the announcement.