Partners Group to open office in Manila

Switzerland-headquartered investment firm Partners Group is opening a services hub in Manila, Philippines, in September this year, the firm said in a statement.

While the firm has no plans to establish an investment team in the Philippines, it will still continue to assess the country as an investment destination, a spokesperson from the firm told Private Equity International.

“Partners Group's continued growth in investment activity and assets under management is creating a parallel growth in demand for our internal services teams, which is why we are opening a services hub,” Christopher Rubeli, co-chief executive officer at Partners Group said. 

A spokesperson for the firm said it has started the hiring process for a range of roles in critical support functions in relation to client reporting, fund accounting, treasury, IT, technology, HR and marketing services. 

The new office, located in Bonifacio Global City business district, will have a team of around 20 people by the end of the year. Two long-standing Partners Group employees have moved from the Singapore office to head operations in Manila. 

That number is likely to grow to more than 100 by 2020, the spokesperson added, making Manila one of its five biggest offices worldwide four years from now.

“We considered several locations before deciding on the Philippines as the most suitable place. Manila has developed into a thriving global business hub in recent years and we felt this dynamism offered a great cultural fit for Partners Group and the opportunity to deepen our networks within Asia across all business lines,” Rubeli commented.

Partners Group had started planning its Manila office opening over a year ago with full visibility of the election on the near-term horizon, the spokesperson told PEI. 

She added that the firm is looking forward to working with the new government of President Rodrigo Duterte, confident that the country's talent pool and cultural fit will ensure the success of its operations in Manila.

Partners Group opened its first Asian office in Singapore in 2004. It has since added five offices in the region including in Tokyo, Sydney, Seoul, Mumbai and Shanghai.

Among its most recent investments in Asia are maternity and baby products retailer, Aiyingshi; Melbourne-based Ararat Wind Farm; and India-based affordable housing provider Au Financing.

Partners Group has committed capital to several Asian funds including Hony Capital, JD Capital, Affinity Equity Partners and Navis Capital Partners, according to PEI Research and Analytics.

Known limited partners in the firm’s funds are the Pennsylvania Public School Employees' Retirement System, Pensionskasse Thurgau and the Oxfordshire County Council Pension Fund.

Earlier this month, the firm signed a €1.83 billion direct deal alongside Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec and CIC Capital Corporation, acquiring French residential property management services provider Foncia, as reported by PEI.

The firm has more than $50 billion in total assets across private equity, real estate, infrastructure and private debt.