Secondaries investor Coller Capital and South Korean private equity firm Hahn & Co have closed a $1.5-billion GP-led transaction in Ssangyong C&E Co Ltd, a Korean cement manufacturer and portfolio company of Hahn & Co that is actively expanding into waste management businesses.
This is the largest transaction of its kind in Asia, Coller Capital and Hahn & Co said in a joint statement.
Coller Capital and an unnamed global secondary player co-led the investment in a continuation fund formed for this GP-led deal. Coller Capital said the firm and its co-investors were the largest investor group while Hahn & Co “is committing a significant amount of capital”.
Hahn & Co acquired a controlling 77% stake in Ssangyong in 2016. This GP-led transaction is the third time that the Korean buyout major has deployed funds into the company.
As per the statement, Ssangyong has demonstrated Hahn & Co’s core investment theses of strengthening the leading position of a business through market consolidation, divesting non-core assets to improve operational efficiency, and strategically transforming the company into Korea’s leading waste management group.
“Our first-hand expertise in Korea, together with our strong relationship with Hahn & Co, have enabled us to undertake extensive due diligence and execute this large, complex transaction,” said Peter Kim, partner and head of Asia at Coller Capital.
Meanwhile, Scott Sang-Won Hahn, CEO of Hahn & Co, added that the transaction has marked “an important milestone in Korea private equity and is evidence of how private equity firms can be successful, long-term owners of businesses”.
Hahn & Co is the largest buyout firm in Korea with $10.5 billion of assets under management. Companies controlled by Hahn & Co generate revenues of approximately 13.3 trillion won ($11.9 billion) with assets of 24.2 trillion won ($21.6 billion).
Coller Capital, one of the global secondaries firms that have been active in the Asia-Pacific, closed its Coller International Partners VIII in 2021. Earlier this year, the firm closed Coller Credit Opportunities I at about $1.45 billion.
In Korea, prior to this investment by Coller Capital and Hahn & Co, Swiss investment manager Partners Group had invested in F&B franchisor BHC Group through a single-asset continuation fund established by MBK Partners.