BEIJING, April 28, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Founded in 2020, Huatai International Private Equity Fund ("HTPE") is the USD private equity fund management platform launched by Huatai Securities, one of China's largest financial conglomerates who just celebrated its 30th birthday.
As the debut dollar-denominated blind-pool fund, HTPE focuses on mid-to late-stage growth equity and mid-market buyout investment opportunities in China and beyond, covering semiconductor, technology, healthcare, as well as consumer sectors.
Although born at a difficult time amidst the pandemic, HTPE's fundraising was not affected by the melancholy of the market. It receives commitments from prestigious institutional investors and high-net-worth individuals around the globe, including large insurers, corporates and family offices.
Just within one-year stint, HTPE has already notched up several remarkable investments in industry-leading companies such as LiDAR sensor company Hesai Technology, MEOL semiconductor foundry house SJ semi, automotive chipmaker Semidrive and single-use bioreactor manufacturer JYSSBIO.
"The establishment of this fund is a new venture for both Huatai and myself," said Yang Lei, Managing Partner of HTPE, "We are a value-added investor who are fully equipped with broader capabilities and resources to underpin the growth of innovative companies in varied industries. We contribute professional expertise and multi-level support to help companies realize their full potentials, growing into industry leader in China and internationally. HTPE is well positioned for continued momentum to capture the boundless opportunities with industrial innovation and upgrading in China and beyond."
Extensive transaction, operating and strategic expertise across whole industry chain
The fund is comprised of a diversified high-caliber team with deep industry background and professional investment capabilities. Via its "Capital boosts Industry" investment philosophy, HTPE dives into every link of the whole industry chain, seeks to understand the structural economic and industrial shifts caused by mega trends, and translates the structural opportunities into tangible support to its portfolios as well as China's economy.
Since 2020, the unexpected changes of domestic policies and international situations have brought China's semiconductor industry back into the spotlight. Under such circumstance, HTPE invested in SJ Semiconductor Corp. (SJ Semi), one of the leading companies in the advanced packaging localization.
"We believe that China's semiconductor packing market is going to resume its world leading growth and even achieve a higher level in the near future, as a result of rejuvenation of global supply chain and the incremental market demand brought by emerging applications such as 5G, automotive electronics and smart wearable devices," said Yang Lei.
While in healthcare, long before domestic pharmaceutical companies became highly concerned about the domestic replacement of bioreactors and pharmaceutical equipment, HTPE had completed its investment in JYSSBIO, a leading Chinese biopharmaceutical upstream company, which validates the strength of its investment strategy and leading capabilities in healthcare industry.
Integrated support to portfolio companies through full cycle of corporate lifespan
HTPE differentiates itself as a farsighted pure-play investor with capabilities covering through growth equity, M&A integration, to post-IPO public market, providing deep insight and multi- dimensional support to its portfolio companies for the whole capital market lifecycle.
The team understands the unique and often complex needs of today's entrepreneurs throughout all the phases of their corporate development to help them navigate the maze of growing complexity, fierce competition and fragmented markets. This allows the fund to deliver innovative and bespoke solution supports during different phases, helping grow grand visions into great companies.
As the USD investment platform of China's top financial group, HTPE is buoyed by Huatai's full-suite financial businesses and enjoys its well-established resources and networks, not only for growth equity and buyout investment, but also for IPO advisory backed by investment banking team, M&A opportunities for horizontal or vertical integration or even spin-offs that are adapted to different phases of its portfolio companies.
One such demonstration is its investment in Hesai Technology, a global leader in LiDAR sensors for autonomous driving and smart vehicle. In mid-2021, HTPE took part in Hesai's over US$370 million Series D financing, together with a number of first-tier PE houses and industry giants including Xiaomi Group, Hillhouse Venture, Meituan and CPE. As a key strategic partner of Hesai, HTPE provided operational value-add through introducing downstream OEM customers, fostering key industry collaboration and partnerships, as well as advising on Hesai's IPO plan together with Huatai's investment banking division.
In addition, HTPE invested in Semidrive Semiconductor during Q3 2021, a highly reputable company in the automotive chip industry who has made notable progress by HTPE introducing significant national-level investors and industry endorsement which facilitate the rapid growth of its R&D and manufacturing.
Global vision across the international ecosystem
As a technology-driven securities group listed in Shanghai, Hong Kong and London who also successfully acquired AssetMark and completed its spin-off listing in the United States, Huatai has built a reputation of innovation and entrepreneurial spirit with global vision. The precedent US$630 buyout deal of Norwegian largest furniture manufacturer Ekornes, partnered with Qumei Home Furnishing Group, is a testament to Huatai's international footprints in private equity investment. This deal set record among Chinese financial institutions in terms of both transaction scale and overseas influence.
Founded with the legacy of Huatai's global vision and extensive network in international capital markets, HTPE is uniquely inherited with cross-border capabilities to foster the expansion of its portfolio companies from different dimensions.
With global network of internal and external professionals across international value chain, HTPE is dedicated to back the next-generation innovative technologies and business models reshaping its target market, and leverage its unique access to both Chinese and overseas resources as well as in-depth market understanding with international ecosystem.
"There is tremendous opportunity for PE investment with China's developing economy and technology innovation, and we look forward to bringing our unique offering to a market that is well positioned for long-term growth. The rapid growth we have achieved so far demonstrates our sizable long-term capital base, solid experience in sourcing and structuring transactions, as well as advanced management techniques," said Yang Lei at HTPE's AGM held in last December, "underpinned by Huatai's global platforms and financial resources across different sectors, we are uniquely well-positioned among Chinese PE investors, offering bespoke add-on value to our portfolio companies. We remain steadfast in our ambition to build a thriving ecosystem to integrate capital with industry, as a pioneer with best practices among international private equity brands."
About HTPE
Huatai International Private Equity Fund ("HTPE") is a USD private equity fund under Huatai Securities, one of China's largest financial conglomerates. HTPE is focused on mid-to late-stage growth equity and mid-market buyout investment opportunities in China and beyond, covering healthcare, semiconductor, deep tech, TMT, and consumer sectors. The core investment team is comprised of investment veterans with more than ten years of experience in private equity and capital markets. Leveraging on Huatai's solid platforms and networks in China and worldwide, HTPE utilizes a unique multi-pronged strategy and integrates its global best practice, broad know-how, deep industry understanding, as well as comprehensive local expertise and experience to capture high growth potential across a variety of sectors, to identify and work with top-notch companies with promising capabilities at different stages.
