Singapore's SWF Temasek Backs New China PE Fund

Filed in archive Private Equity on January 26, 2008

Singapore's sovereign wealth fund, Temasek Holdings, has partnered with two Canadian pension funds to create "a high-profile private equity fund looking to invest in China," according to the Financial Times.

Canada Pension Plan and the Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan have joined with Temasek to form a fund called FountainVest. The fund's target is $750 million. The partnership with Temasek and the Canadian pension funds accounts for $450 million of that.





The creation of FountainVest is being seen by some analysts as a sign of the emerging importance of private equity in China. The fund is considering raising some of it's capital in the Chinese currency, yuan renminbi. Regulatory approval is sometimes easier to obtain when private equity transactions a denominated in yuan.

Fountainvest is being managed by a team of former Temasek employees headed by Frank Tang. The fund will have offices in Shanghai and Hong Kong. Tang is a Shanghai native.