Apex Group has been appointed to provide fund administration and regulatory services to newly independent Asia-focused secondary fund, Bee Alternatives, following a competitive tender process.
Bee Alternatives was originally part of Ant Capital, where the team acted as one of the pioneers of secondary investments in Asia.
Bee Alternatives currently manages a series of flagship secondary funds with a total AUM of $300 million with investments across the globe.
The secondary fund is now seeking to raise up to $350 million for their latest fund Bridge 6 Bee Secondary.
The appointment of Apex Group falls in line with the rapid growth of the secondary market in the Asia-Pacific region, including Japan.
Prequin’s Secondary Market Update H1 2021 found that in the first six months of the year, $543 million was raised across markets including China, Japan and South Korea, a 62% increase on the volume of aggregate capital raised throughout 2020.
“The Asia-Pacific region now accounts for a growing portion of secondaries fundraising, and we are delighted to support Bee Alternatives, as they harness this potential for significant growth,” said Yuko Shimizu, head of sales, Japan at Apex Group.
“By leveraging Apex’s experience and our comprehensive solutions and technology platforms, Bee Alternatives will be enabled to deliver more precise information and transparent communication to their LPs, whilst achieving operational efficiencies.”
This announcement follows the recent appointment of Apex’s Japan office by Tokyo-based private equity manager Integral Group.
In addition, it follows the recent hires of Andrea Gallenca as head of private market sales, Australia and Prakash Kharel as head of real estate, Asia-Pacific.
“We are delighted to appoint Apex following a competitive tender process, as we believe they are the global player with the deepest understanding of our business and the specific administrative and regulatory needs of secondary fund of funds,” said Fumiki Otokuni, CEO & co-founder at Bee Alternatives.
“Most importantly, the team at Apex, led by Yuko, have reassured us throughout the process, and have demonstrated the enthusiasm and aptitude required to provide us with flexible solutions.”