KKR’s $3 bn Asia infra fund to raise $200 mn from Korea

South Korean pension funds and insurance companies will commit $200 million in aggregate to KKR’s first Asia infrastructure fund targeting to raise $3 billion, a local newspaper reported.

The blind pool fund has already raised $1.5 billion in its first close to invest in core and core plus infrastructure assets across Asia, including waste management and solar energy facilities, the Maeil Business Newspaper said on Oct. 25.

It targets more than 15% in annualized returns with a 12-year term.

The new fund will finance KKR’s investments this year in South Korean waste treatment companies, the daily added.

The US private equity giant has purchased a combined 440.8 billion won ($386 million) worth of shares in TSK Corp., a leading South Korean sewage and wastewater treatment firm, from three Korean companies. In August, it snapped up two other Korean waste management companies for 875 billion won.

KKR has been bolstering its Korean infrastructure investment team with new hires from Macquarie’s infrastructure management company in Korea since last year.

Yeonhee Kim edited this article.