ING launches private equity fund

Monday, October 11th 2004, 10:17PM

ING Investment Management (INGIM) has rolled out the New Zealand launch of Australia’s first listed private equity fund of funds.

Investors will get the opportunity to access the growth potential of Australia’s private equity market, ING says.

The ING Private Equity Access fund intends to list on the Australian Stock Exchange and aims to raise up to A$120 million from Australian and New Zealand investors.

The fund will invest across a diversified range of established Australian private equity managers and will also consider New Zealand private equity funds.

Its long-term allocation will be about 90% private equity and 10% Australian listed securities and cash.

ING Investment Management chief executive Grant Bailey (who is also an executive director of the fund) says the offer should suit long-term investors looking for superior performance above traditional assets such as listed equities, as well as those wanting to diversify the risk of their overall portfolio.

One of the benefits of the fund is that investors will have liquidity in their investment, something which is often hard to achieve with private equity funds.

ING New Zealand managing director Paul Fyfe believes the listing is an ideal vehicle for New Zealand investors who wish to take a position in Australia’s private equity sector.

“This is a unique opportunity for New Zealanders to get in at the ground floor with some of Australia and New Zealand’s most exciting unlisted companies – companies that have the potential to become the household names of the future."

The fund's investment strategy will be spearheaded by ING PEAL managing director Jon Schahinger.

He says that in the past year the Australian private equity market “come of age”, and that there continued to be great opportunities for investors.

“Australia has had the best-performing private equity market in the world over the past few years, which serves to validate the notion that the sector has finally come of age.”

Schahinger said the innovative stapled securities structure of the offer had been designed in close consultation with the broker and planner community, in an effort to overcome some of the deficiencies of earlier private equity vehicles.

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