TPG Investment Firm To Buy Education Assets Worth USD 300M From KV Asia Capital

TPG, a private equity firm based in the United States, is in advanced talks to acquire Malaysian private education assets owned by regional buyout firm KV Asia Capital in a deal worth more than $300 million, according to three sources with knowledge of the matter.

According to one of the sources, an agreement could be reached as early as the first quarter.

TPG, which manages $135 billion in assets globally, has been expanding in Southeast Asia, including Malaysia, in recent years.

KV Asia hired Rothschild & Co last year to look into selling Asia Pacific Education Holdings, according to sources who declined to be identified because the talks are still ongoing.

TPG, KV Asia, and Rothschild did not respond to requests for comment.

Southeast Asia's growing number of affluent families has made education assets in the region appealing to investors.

According to sources, the sale of Advent International's stake in Singaporean tuition chain The Learning Lab has piqued the interest of private equity firms such as PAG and Platinum Equity.

Asia Pacific Education owns two tertiary institutions in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia's capital city.

Asia Pacific University of Technology & Innovation and Asia Pacific Institute of Information Technology operate out of two campuses and have more than 10,000 students, according to KV Asia's website.

According to an earlier press release, Asia Pacific Education was purchased by KV Asia and the education firm's management team in 2018 from Malaysian government-linked private equity fund management company Ekuiti Nasional Bhd.

That transaction had an enterprise value of 725 million ringgit, but it included Asia Pacific Schools, a primary and secondary school operator that was sold a year later for an undisclosed sum.

According to its website, KV Asia focuses on investing in mid-sized Southeast Asian companies in sectors such as consumer and healthcare.

According to the website, its current portfolio includes PT Victoria Care Indonesia, an Indonesian beauty and personal care company, and Power Diesel, a Singapore-based marine diesel engine services firm.