100 billion, the largest PE fundraising in the Asia-Pacific region is born

A shocking scene emerged.

According to the investment community's information from the well - known private equity firm EQT, its BPEA Fund IX has completed fundraising. The total subscription reached $15.6 billion (approximately RMB 100 billion), exceeding the initial target.

In EQT's view, this is the largest private equity fund ever focused on the Asia - Pacific market.

The PE circle is no stranger to EQT. Backed by the wealthy Wallenberg family in Sweden, EQT was founded in 1994 by Investor AB. As of December 31, 2025, it manages over 270 billion euros in assets. At this moment, after four consecutive years of decline in the total fundraising of Asian private equity funds, such a super - sized PE fundraising is truly inspiring.

Set a Record for Asia - Pacific PE Fundraising

The investment community has obtained more details about the fundraising:

The total subscription of EQT's new fund reached $15.6 billion, with a fee - generating AUM of $14.9 billion.

The lineup of LPs emerged: The subscription funds of the new fund come from diverse sources, evenly distributed across the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, and the Asia - Pacific region. The committed capital from all regions has increased compared to the previous fund. Among them, pension funds and sovereign wealth funds are the major contributors, mostly long - term institutional investors.

It is worth mentioning that more than 75 new investors have joined the BPEA Fund IX this time, with over 45 coming from other investment platforms under EQT.

With the funds in place, the BPEA Fund IX will focus on making controlling investments in leading enterprises in high - certainty industries such as technology, healthcare, industrial technology, services, and technology services. The fund will invest in high - quality enterprises with solid fundamentals. EQT will improve the operations of these enterprises, accelerate their business expansion, and achieve long - term value growth.

Jean Eric Salata, Chairman of EQT Asia commented: "The successful fundraising of the BPEA Fund IX is another landmark milestone in EQT's development. It fully demonstrates the profound foundation, comprehensive strength, and investment performance we have accumulated through nearly three decades of continuous efforts in the Asian market. It also marks the in - depth integration of the long - standing accumulations of Baring Private Equity Asia and EQT in Asia. We are deeply proud of building a platform with strong capabilities and wide influence, which can navigate complex market cycles and lead invested enterprises through major transformations."

He believes that in the current highly competitive fundraising environment where investors are becoming more and more prudent in their selection, achieving stable exit returns consistently is the differentiating advantage that GPs can offer to investors. This fundraising also reflects EQT's long - term and firm commitment to the Asia - Pacific market.

As of now, 5% to 10% of the BPEA Fund IX has been deployed (including completed and/or signed investment projects, announced tender offers if applicable, and after deducting the expected co - investment portion), calculated based on the actual size of the fund.

Heavy Investment in Asia, Betting on China

EQT has left a deep impression on its peers in recent years.

Recall that in October 2022, EQT announced the completion of a 100% acquisition of Baring Private Equity Asia, the former employer of Xu Xin, creating the largest merger and acquisition case in the private equity industry at that time. Since then, Baring Private Equity Asia, headquartered in Hong Kong, China, and EQT's Asian private equity investment team have formed a new investment platform - BPEA EQT.

Looking back, EQT's Asian private equity team was established in 1997, and its Hong Kong, China office was opened in 2006. The Asian business was merged into EQT Partners Asia. In 2019, EQT successfully listed on the Stockholm Stock Exchange and set an important strategic goal of expanding its layout in the Asian market.

Over the years, this European PE giant has left many footprints in China, including Laobaixing Pharmacy, Artwall, Zhengxin Capital, VBill, Palm Medical, and Constellation Healthcare.

Currently, EQT's Asian private equity platform covers a full spectrum of investment opportunities in large - scale mergers and acquisitions, middle - market, and growth - oriented strategies. It has local professional investment teams in Japan, India, South Korea, Southeast Asia, Greater China, and Australia. The Asian private equity team has completed over 160 transactions, with a cumulative investment of up to $30 billion. Currently, its investment portfolio covers approximately 65 invested enterprises in 10 countries or regions.

Hari Gopalakrishnan and Nicholas Macksey, Co - Deputy Heads of EQT Private Equity Asia said: "Currently, investment opportunities in Asia have shifted from simply chasing growth to leading in - depth structural changes. As Asia continues to reshape the global supply chain and grow digital leading enterprises, the investment environment has become more complex. In a market environment where performance is measured by profit growth and active ownership, our value - creation ability will be a real differentiating advantage. Through the BPEA Fund IX, we will continue to support industry - leading enterprises and build resilient enterprises with global expansion capabilities. Focusing on enterprises with future development potential has always been the core of our long - term and stable returns."

EQT is not an isolated case. In March this year, Bloomberg reported that Blackstone Group was completing the fundraising of its third Asian private equity flagship fund, Blackstone Capital Partners Asia III, with over $10 billion. Similarly, this fundraising amount has significantly increased compared to the initial target of $6.4 billion for Blackstone's second Asian private equity fund, far exceeding market expectations.

More positive signals are emerging. As reported by the investment community last week, BlueRun Ventures announced the completion of the fundraising for its fourth dual - currency fund, with a fund size of approximately $560 million. Two days later, Photosynthesis Ventures announced the completion of the fundraising for its sixth early - stage US dollar fund, raising $460 million. Just today, news came that Hillhouse is planning to raise $8 billion for a new fund, including approaching external investors and using its own funds.

There are faint signs of a recovery. One can't help but recall the feeling of a US - dollar fund partner with nearly 30 years of experience: In the past two years, many US - dollar LPs went to India, Southeast Asia, and Europe in search of high - quality primary - market assets. But after going around, they found that they still had to return to China, which has the highest talent density and the largest market.

The world's capital is voting with its feet.

This article is from the WeChat official account “Investment Community” (ID: pedaily2012), written by Yang Jiyun and published by 36Kr with authorization.