By KKR Mar 06, 2020

On March 2, 2020, Private Equity International (“PEI”), Infrastructure Investor and Private Debt Investor (“PDI”) announced 2019 winners for their annual awards. After the global investment industry cast thousands of votes, KKR earned a number of awards across different asset classes and geographies. We are pleased to share details for each below.


PEI Awards:

Global
  • Technology Private Equity Firm of the Year
    • PEI noted that KKR “stormed to the top of the technology category” following investments in OneStream Software, Hyperoptic, heidelplay, and MYOB, and exits from Internet Brands/Autodata Solutions Group, and Trainline. In 2019, we also announced the appointment of Senior Advisor, Diego Piacentini, the Former Senior VP International Consumer Business of Amazon and former Italian Government Commissioner for Digital Transformation.
  • Impact Investment Firm of the Year
    • KKR announced investments in: BBP, Ramky, KnowBe4 and Burning Glass. We are also proud to be a founding signatory to the IFC’s Impact Investing Principles, announced in April 2019, which “set a new market standard for impact investing.”
Europe
  • Exit of the Year – Trainline
    • KKR announced the acquisition of Trainline in 2015, where its “growth trajectory accelerated in the following years.” The company “made its debut on the London Stock Exchange in June at £3.50 a share with a market cap of £1.68 billion ($2.2 billion, €2 billion). The share price closed at £4.11 on the first day of trading, pushing the firm’s market valuation towards the £2 billion mark.”
Asia
  • Large-Cap Firm of the Year in Asia
    • Recognized for the fourth year in a row, “KKR continues to dominate in Asia.” Recent investment highlights as described by PEI include Metro Pacific Hospitals, the operator of the largest private hospitals and healthcare network in the Philippines in terms of authorized bed capacity and revenues, NVC Lighting, a leading manufacturer of branded lighting products in China, and Eurokids, a leading Indian education services provider.
  • Deal of the Year in Asia – Metro Pacific
    • KKR invested in this healthcare network alongside GIC via Asian Fund III. It was “the country’s largest such investment and will be used to purchase additional hospitals and healthcare businesses.”
  • Exit of the Year in Asia – KCF Technologies
    • KKR announced in the middle of 2019 that SK Group affiliate SKC would acquire a 100% equity stake in KCF Technologies. This complex corporate carve-out from South Korea’s LS Automotive saw its capacity double during KKR’s investment period through the construction of new factories, in addition to expanding overseas into new markets.
  • Firm of the Year in China
    • For the second year in a row, KKR received Firm of the Year in China following investment highlights such as NVC China, Xingsheng Youxuan, ByteDance, and a follow-on investment in Cue & Co.
  • Firm of the Year in Japan
    • We are pleased to receive this award for the first time on the heels of our exit from Kokusai Electric, and two bolt-on acquisitions for PHC Holdings and Life Science Institute.
  • Firm of the Year in Southeast Asia
    • “KKR continues its winning streak in Southeast Asia” and received Firm of the Year in the region for the fourth time in a row.

Infrastructure Investor Awards:

  • Deal of the year - Asia Pacific
    • KKR announced, alongside GIC, an investment in India Grid Trust, a leading infrastructure investment trust. This represented the “first infrastructure investment trust in India’s power sector.”
  • Energy Investor of the Year, Asia-Pacific
    • Following KKR’s investment in India Grid Trust
  • Deal of the year - Middle East & Africa
    • As PEI noted, “BlackRock and KKR became the first major infrastructure funds to invest in the Middle East when they formed a partnership Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (“ADNOC”).” This landmark investment represented a major step in ADNOC’s 2030 smart growth strategy.

Private Debt Investor Award:

  • Deal of the Year
    • Provided close to $5 billion in a financing package, alongside Ares Management, for the buyout of athenahealth, a healthcare technology business, by Veritas Capital and Evergreen Coast Capital.