Iris Capital Partners, an investment firm backed by the heir to a Malaysian fortune, is seeking to raise $200 million from institutional investors, marking the latest example of family wealth vehicles opening their doors to outside capital.
The Malaysia-headquartered private credit solutions provider is targeting cash for a new private credit and private equity fund, managing partner Rachel Lau told Bloomberg in an interview.
Lau said firms increasingly recognize that family investment alone is insufficient, requiring more permanent capital from insurance companies, pension funds, and sovereign wealth funds.
Founded in 2020, Iris plans to launch the private markets fund early next year. Family capital currently anchors about 25% of the firm’s assets, with the remainder coming from third-party institutions, according to the Bloomberg report.
Anchor investors include Kim Dong-won, a scion of the family behind South Korea’s Hanwha Group, and Malaysia’s sovereign wealth fund.
Lau is the daughter of the late Lau Boon Ann, who built a fortune in real estate and was an early investor in Top Glove Corp Bhd, the world’s largest rubber glove manufacturer.
She also co-founded venture capital firm RHL Ventures in 2016 alongside Raja Hamzah Abidin, son of former Malaysian politician Raja Nong Chik, and Jojo Kong, whose father David Kong founded funeral service provider Nirvana Asia Ltd.
RHL, a Malaysian multi-stage VC firm investing across Southeast Asia, also manages The Hibiscus Fund with South Korea’s KB Investment Co Ltd as part of Malaysia’s Dana Penjana Nasional economic recovery program.
Under the initiative, foreign and private fund managers match government allocations on a 1:1 basis for investments up to 1.2 billion ringgit ($290 million).
The pivot to private credit represents a strategic shift for Lau, who said institutional partners can be more straightforward to work with than family investors.
She plans to take majority stakes of 50% to 80% in international companies and assist with their Southeast Asian expansion, particularly U.S. and Chinese businesses entering Malaysia and Indonesia.
Recent investments include biotech firm Mirxes Holding Co, which listed in Hong Kong in May.
Lau told Bloomberg that institutional capital is easier to work with because institutional investors are clearer about their objectives and focus purely on financial returns without emotional considerations.
The move away from venture capital reflects broader market challenges in Asian startup investing.
Lau said Asian venture capital has been challenging, making private credit and private equity more attractive investment areas while the firm gradually reduces its venture capital exposure.
The fundraising comes as family offices globally increasingly seek outside capital to scale their operations and access larger deal opportunities in competitive private markets.
FamilyOfficeNewsAsia.com
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