Hong Kong - Global private equity firm The Carlyle Group announced today it has successfully closed its fourth Asian growth capital fund, Carlyle Asia Growth Partners IV (CAGP IV), a sector-agnostic growth capital fund which invests in high growth private companies with strong local management and leading market position in China, India, Korea and other key Asian markets. Despite a difficult fund-raising environment, the fund raised $1.04 billion in only 14 months from a broad geographical range of investors.

The closing of CAGP IV reflects improving investor sentiment towards China and India as the two major economies begin to stabilize and show signs of emerging from the downturn. Nearly 40% of CAGP IV’s limited partners are new investors, demonstrating growing demand for exposure to China and India.

“We are delighted with the support we have received from our investors, especially given challenging industry-wide fundraising trends. This is an excellent time for long-term investors to seek value in China and India. Our new fund offers access to high growth opportunities with no leverage, providing attractive risk-adjusted returns. Despite the economic downturn, most of our growth capital portfolio companies have achieved growth rates in the range of 20-50% over the last year,” said Wayne Tsou, Managing Director and Head of Carlyle Asia Growth Partners.

“The Chinese domestic consumption story is developing well. China’s strong economic performance, successful implementation of its stimulus plan and incentive measures for small and medium-size enterprises are attracting international firms and investors to the Chinese market,” added Tsou.

Carlyle also believes that India’s promising demographic fundamentals, mature capital markets and skilled workforce make it well-positioned for further growth.

"The strong entrepreneurial culture in India has created many potential investment opportunities for Carlyle. India’s emerging middle class is fuelling strong domestic consumption, while the outsourcing and re-engineering of various products and services from all over the world to India continues to grow at a lively pace. India’s growth story is sustained by its vibrant capital markets, a resilient banking system and a pro-business stable government," said Shankar Narayanan, a Carlyle Managing Director responsible for CAGP’s investments in India.

Existing investors have been encouraged by the success of CAGP IV’s predecessor CAGP III, which has made 22 investments in two and half years across more than ten sectors including energy, consumer, technology, business services, education, industrial, healthcare, real estate and media, 80% of which were made in China or India.

David M. Rubenstein, Carlyle Co-founder and Managing Director, said, "The Carlyle Group raised $19.9 billion in new capital last year, and this fund close builds on that momentum. Asia remains a core focus of our global business, and Carlyle continues to devote more resources to China and India. CAGP is one of the largest growth capital platforms in Asia and has consistently provided investors with exposure to the very best of the region’s opportunities."

Carlyle Asia Growth Partners IV is the fourth fund managed by the Carlyle Asia Growth Capital group, which has an aggregate committed capital of approximately US$2 billion. The group invests through a team of local professionals in six offices - Beijing, Hong Kong, Mumbai, Shanghai, Seoul and Tokyo. CAGP brings significant support and value to portfolio companies through its vast international business network, deep local insight from its native investment team, experience in a broad range of industries, expertise in business management, and strong leverage in global M&A and capital market fundraising. This has allowed CAGP’s portfolio companies to expand capacity and seek acquisition opportunities.

CAGP IV is more than 50% larger than its predecessor CAGP III by capital commitment and has already made its first investment in a leading Chinese high-end women’s fashion company Ellassay.

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About Carlyle Asia Growth Capital Partners

In the last ten years, Carlyle Asia Growth Partners (CAGP) has grown to become one of the largest growth capital platforms in Asia. It seeks out and invests in outstanding local entrepreneurs, management teams and emerging leaders across sectors in the largest Asian economies, including China, India, Korea and other key Asian markets. It takes a sector-agnostic, country-specific investment approach. Its investment professionals, who are native to their respective countries, are spread across six offices in Beijing, Shanghai, Hong Kong, Mumbai, Seoul and Tokyo. CAGP manages investments in more than ten sectors: consumer & retail, energy & power, education, financial services, healthcare, industrial, real estate, technology & business services and media. CAGP’s significant investments include Focus Media, HaoYue Education, HongHua, and Xtep. The team manages four funds with total asset under management of approximately US$ 2 billion.

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