Riverside closes Asia fund on $235m

The Riverside Company has held a final close for its Riverside Asia-Pacific Fund II on $235 million, well north of its $150 million target.  

Fund II focuses on control buyouts of companies in the developed economies of the Asia-Pacific region with less than $15 million of EBITDA. The firm launched its second Asia private equity offering in 2012, making a first close in September that year. 

Limited partners in Fund II come from North America, Europe and the Asia-Pacific region and include the Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance Company, Munich Private Equity Partners and the Development Bank of Japan. Roughly 30 percent of commitments come from new investors. 

“Buyouts in the smaller end of the middle market are still a relatively new business in the Asia-Pacific region,” said Riverside co-chief executive officer Stuart Kohl in a statement. “Because of that, there are some remarkable opportunities to grow outstanding companies that meet our criteria.”  

Riverside’s Asia team is led by managing partner and fund manager Stuart Baxter, who has been with the firm since 1997. The firm has continued to strengthen its capabilities in the sub-region, promoting Ivica Turza to managing director and head of Asia Pacific deal origination in October last year. Turza was the first member of the Riverside team based out of its newly-established Singapore office. 

Deals from the recent fund include its November investment in Japanese bike retailer Y International and New Zealand-based animal drug administrator Simcro, which it acquired in July last year.