Rothschild China Rainmaker Yu Eyes $800 Million Buyout Fund

(Bloomberg) -- Jennifer Yu, a veteran China dealmaker at Rothschild & Co., is starting a private equity fund targeting investments in regions including Europe, people with knowledge of the matter said.

Yu is aiming to raise about $800 million, according to one of the people, who asked not to be identified because the information is private. Rothschild plans to invest in the fund, which is also seeking to raise capital from Asian sovereign wealth funds, Chinese corporates and international investors, the people said.

Fundraising is expected to be completed in the next few months, the people said. The fund will make overseas investments with a Chinese angle, particularly in Europe, according to one of the people. Companies in the consumer, health care and manufacturing sectors will be among the major targets, the person said.

The fund may also make investments in other regions including Asia, the people said. No final decisions have been made, and details of the fund could change, the people said. Rothschild will help manage the fund aside from committing capital to it, the person said. A representative for the European advisory firm declined to comment.

Yu is non-executive chairman for greater China at Rothschild. She previously ran the bank’s global advisory business in greater China for 11 years until 2017, when Elizabeth Wang took over the role.

Read: Rothschild Bets on Yu’s ‘Guanxi’ to Build China M&A Business

Other longtime China investment bankers have also started their own funds. Former Deutsche Bank AG executive Henry Cai founded AGIC Capital in 2015 with backing from the country’s sovereign wealth fund. Cai set up the fund to invest in industrial companies in German-speaking countries seeking to grow their Chinese operations.

Private equity firms have raised billions of dollars globally over the past few years as investors seek higher returns amid low interest rates, the rise of index-tracking funds and years of lackluster hedge fund performance. KKR & Co. is seeking to raise $12.5 billion for a record Asia fund, Bloomberg News reported in November. Hillhouse Capital raised $10.6 billion in 2018 for its largest-ever buyout fund.

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