Published by Global Banking and Finance Review
Posted on May 14, 2025
By Anton Bridge and Miho Uranaka
TOKYO (Reuters) - EQT is hiring in Japan for its private capital, infrastructure and real estate teams and feels the Asian nation could become its biggest market in the region over the next five years, the investment firm's chairperson and founder said.
The Swedish firm has made two investments in Japan since entering the market in 2021, including the $1.4 billion management buyout of education company Benesse in 2024, which it led.
It is pinning its hopes on support for changing management practices in Asia's second-largest economy, citing an openness to change by politicians, unions, media, and companies.
"I think Japan has a really good chance at becoming the biggest and most important investment market for us in Asia," EQT's Conni Jonsson told Reuters in an interview.
Jonsson, who was in Japan for an industry conference, did not specify how much EQT will be investing in Japan in the coming years or how many people it will hire. EQT currently employs around 50 people, which includes staff from Baring Private Equity Asia which it acquired in 2022.
Baring had made seven investments in Japan since it started operations there in 2006.
Private equity backed M&A deals in Japan were worth over $14 billion in the first three months of 2025, the highest since 2023, but deals have slowed since then to just $500 million between April 1 and May 12, LSEG data shows.
The U.S. tariffs unveiled at the start of April triggered fears of a global recession and a brutal trade war and forced the postponement of a host of M&A deals.
EQT's latest Asia-focused buyout fund reached its first close in April and has received commitments exceeding $10 billion. The fund will not set a specific allocation for Japan or other countries, Jonsson said.
(Reporting by Anton Bridge and Miho Uranaka; Editing by Muralikumar Anantharaman)
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