When Bank of America-Merrill Lynch (BAML) turned its nose up at private equity (PE) in Asia, several former BAML bankers disagreed.
BAML didn't see private equity in the region as a core business, helping to clear the way for the spin-off of its private equity team in Asia with the creation of Hong Kong-based NewQuest Capital Partners, a US$400 million investment firm.
Darren Massara, NewQuest managing partner, set up the firm with several former BAML colleagues.
NewQuest, which officially opened for business early last year but has become a more aggressive dealmaker this year, targets the secondary private equity market in the region. It took over a portfolio of more than 20 private equity investments previously managed by the US bank.
Massara, former managing director of BAML's Hong Kong-based Asia private equity group, said the change provided a rare opportunity to do something unique.
'Being a specialist, being a niche player, and establishing our own platform has been pretty exciting for us,' said Massara, who also worked for International Finance Corp, part of the World Bank, and for the US government before he joined BAML.
BAML was created after Bank of America acquired Merrill Lynch at the height of the global financial crisis in 2008.