New
Opportunities For Asian SMEs
Launch Of The ASEAN China Investment Fund
Bangkok/Berne, 19 March 2004
The ceremony for the launching of the ASEAN China Investment Fund
was held today in Bangkok in the presence of Mr Joseph Deiss,
President of the Swiss Confederation, ASEAN Secretary-General
Mr Ong Keng Yong, and Mr Wee Ee Cheong, Deputy Chairman and President
of the United Overseas Bank of Singapore . The ASEAN China Investment
Fund is a private equity fund that provides capital for small
and medium sized enterprises located within ASEAN and the People's
Republic of China . The Swiss Government, the Asian Development Bank and United
Overseas Bank are among the sponsors/investors of this fund.
The ASEAN China Investment Fund (the "Fund") will focus on small and
medium-sized enterprises in the ASEAN/China region that have attractive growth
prospects and are engaged in intra-regional and inter-regional trade or investment
activities.
"The Swiss Government, together with the Asian Development Bank, initiated
this project and is among its main investors", said President Deiss today. "This
is the first private equity fund that will serve SMEs throughout the ASEAN/China
region. We believe that this Fund will contribute towards growth and poverty
reduction in the region. It will also help to promote closer economic and trade
links among the countries of ASEAN, and between ASEAN and China ."
The Fund aims to raise capital commitments totalling US$125 million. A first
closing was realized in January this year at US$60 million. The initial core
investors include the Asian Development Bank, the Swiss Government represented
by the State Secretariat for Economic Affairs, the French development finance
institution Proparco, the Japan Asia Investment Company, and the United Overseas
Bank of Singapore . An additional US$15million has been committed by China Development
Bank subject to final regulatory approval.
The Fund is structured as a closed-end limited partnership and has a charter
life of eight years, with an option for two one-year extensions. The Fund is
targeted at high growth companies from various sectors, such as automotive parts,
electronics, distribution, transport, light manufacturing and information technology.
The investments will generally be held by the Fund for three to five years. By
the end of the Fund's life, all investments are expected to be liquidated and
the capital, including returns, distributed to the investors.
Mr Wee Ee Cheong, Deputy Chairman and President of United Overseas Bank ("UOB")
Group said: "This Fund is a tangible example of the public and private sectors
coming together to facilitate and develop the inherent growth possibilities of
the ASEAN China growth corridor on a sustainable basis. UOB is pleased to be
involved both as a sponsor and as the fund manager and advisor through its subsidiaries,
UOB Global Capital and UOB Venture Management".
Describing the establishment of the Fund as "timely", ASEAN Secretary-General
Ong Keng Yong noted that access to capital had remained limited since the Asian
financial crisis, particularly for SMEs. He said: "This fund will contribute
towards the development of economic growth and further integration in the region."
UOB Capital Partners LLC, a special purpose company, is the General Partner of
the Fund and is responsible for the management of the Fund. The General Partner
has engaged UOB Venture Management Ltd (UOBVM), a wholly-owned subsidiary of
UOB Group in Singapore , to provide investment advisory services to the Fund.
For further information, please contact:
Esther Hauert Wermuth
Investment Promotion Division, SECO
Tel: (41)(31) 324 0855
Mark Yeo
Associate Director
UOB Venture Management
Tel: (65) 6539 3049
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