Southeast Asian private equity firm Navis Capital Partners has anchored a $38 million Series C funding round in Eton Solutions, a wealth management technology firm based in the US.
Eton, founded by Robert Mallernee, is the developer of the cloud-based AtlasFive technology platform for family offices. The platform aggregates and manages office data, reporting, and workflow processes. AtlasFive has over $425 billion in assets under administration, according to the announcement.
In a statement, Eton Solutions said the fresh investment from Navis will be used to fund the company’s growth and product development as well as its international expansion.
The company plans to establish an international headquarters in Singapore — the Asian hub for family offices. According to Ernst & Young, over 400 family offices have been established in Singapore in the past five years.
“Singapore has become the nexus of the family office industry in Asia. We are committed to serving this fast-growing market with the best enterprise technology solution and services in our industry,” said Kevin Hayes, president of Eton Solutions.
The funding comes as, according to Eton founder and CEO Mallernee, family offices grow rapidly both in number and operational complexity.
“The critical need for a purpose-built technology platform to provide greater operational efficiency, transparency, and risk reduction has intensified globally,” said Mallernee.
DealStreetAsia had recently reported that high net worth individuals (HNIs) and their family offices in India are increasingly parking their wealth in the country’s burgeoning startup ecosystem, hoping to make windfall gains.
Navis Capital Partners, the lead investor in the round, manages approximately $5 billion in PE capital and focuses on investments primarily in Southeast Asia and its adjacent economies. Since its inception, the Malaysia-headquartered firm has completed over 90 control transactions, of which over 60 have been exited.
Navis’ other portfolio companies in the textile and apparel industry include Vietnam-based denim manufacturer Saitex and regional leather manufacturer ISA TanTec.
Recently, the PE firm invested in Thailand-based Ambassador Education to build up its regional education platform with current assets in Vietnam and Cambodia. Navis has put a total of $110 million into the entire education platform.
Early this month, Navis also agreed to sell its stake in Hong Kong-based apparel material provider Texon to UK-based thread manufacturer Coats Group for $237 million.