New Horizon closes on $750m

Beijing-based New Horizon Capital, a growth and expansion capital-focused firm, has closed its third USD-denominated private equity fund on its $750 million hard cap, an industry source confirmed to PEI Asia.

The firm declined to comment. 

New Horizon entered the market in the second half of 2008 with a target of $1 billion and saw a first close in November that year, two sources told PEI Asia in January. The firm subsequently lowered its target to $600 million owing to a difficult fundraising environment. However, a return in appetite and increased interest from limited partners in late 2009 saw the firm re-raise its target to $750 million. 

Singaporean sovereign wealth fund Temasek Holdings and Softbank, two of the early investors in New Horizon, are among the backers of Fund III as well, one of the sources told PEI Asia then. 

The firm will look to make minority investments from this fund and will invest about $50 million a deal on average. It invests both at the pre-IPO stage and in local listed companies across sectors such as petrochemicals, energy, multimedia, technology, consumer products, automotives and pharmaceuticals. 

New Horizon manages $600 million across its first two USD-denominated funds. In January 2009, the firm closed its first RMB-denominated fund on RMB1 billion (€104 million; $146 million). 

Formed in 2005, New Horizon has made 24 investments. Wen Yunsong, Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao’s son, is one of the co-founders of New Horizon.