Capital Dynamics, AXA plot European expansion

Capital Dynamics, a global private equity asset manager, is opening an office in Munich. It said the move reflected the strategic importance of the German market and an increased demand from German investors in products and services offered by the firm.  The office will be staffed by both senior investment and business development executives.

Katharina Lichtner, one of the founders of Capital Dynamics and managing director of the German entity, said: “We want to be close to our investments and our clients in order to offer superior services. We are already seeing an increased interest from local institutional investors in our products and services.”

The firm, headquartered in Switzerland and with offices in New York, San Francisco, London, Birmingham and Hong Kong, oversees over $20 billion of client capital committed to private equity funds.

AXA Private Equity, the private equity arm of French insurer AXA with more than $22 billion of assets under management, has opened an office in Zurich in response to investment opportunities among investors in the Swiss market.

The Zurich office will enable AXA Private Equity, which already has offices in Paris, London, Frankfurt, Milan, New York and Singapore, to strengthen its international presence and its links with Switzerland-based AXA Winterthur.

The office, which will be managed by Martin Kessi, will oversee AXA Winterthur’s existing portfolio of private equity investments, as well as develop additional services and customised products for Swiss private banks or family offices. Kessi’s team also aims to secure secondary deals on private equity portfolios held by large local institutional investors.