Bain Capital LLC, the private equity firm co-founded by Republican presidential hopeful Mitt Romney, has completed fundraising for its second Asia fund, closing at $2.3 billion, one of its senior executives said on Tuesday.
"Bain just completed raising its second fund in Asia at $2.3 billion," Bain Capital Managing Director Craig Boyce told the Asian Venture Capital Journal USA forum in New York.
Bain formally completed the fundraising on July 2, Boyce added. Some $300 million of the capital raised by the fund, Bain Capital Asia Fund II, which kicked off fundraising last year, came from Bain executives.
Bain's fundraising close comes at a challenging time for private equity. The number of private equity funds seeking money from investors reached an all-time high in the second quarter, while those which completed fundraising hit a record low, according to data released by market research firm Preqin last week.
The successful fundraising could boost Bain's efforts to raise money for its global buyout vehicle, its flagship Bain Capital Fund XI, which people familiar with the matter told Reuters in May is looking to raise $6 billion.
Bain is asking investors for money as its former boss, Romney, is asking Americans for their vote in November in his campaign against President Barack Obama.
Romney's political opponents have criticized his record at Bain. But the Boston-based firm says it has created hundreds of thousands of jobs in its 28-year history and supported hundreds of charities.
Bain investors contacted by Reuters in March, including some of the largest U.S. public pension funds, said political attacks made no difference in their assessment of Bain and that their focus was on returns and the fees being charged.
Bain is offering investors three options on the fees it charges to manage the money they invest its latest global fund, and the concept was first tested on its second Asia fund.
Bain offered Bain Capital Asia Fund II investors the option of either a 2 percent management fee and a 20 percent carried interest with a 7 percent hurdle rate, or 1 percent management fee and 30 percent carried interest with a 10 percent hurdle rate.
Bain's first Asian fund raised $1 billion but the firm has invested $4.4 billion in total so far in the Asian region, Boyce said. Its investments include Jupiter Shop Channel, a 100 billion yen ($1.3 billion) deal, making it Japan's largest private equity transaction this year, and Domino's Pizza franchise in Japan.
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