Exclusive | Citic unit in race with GIC, TPG to buy Singapore smart card maker Jing King, as deal making shifts to Southeast Asia
- Citic unit, GIC and TPG are in a race to buy a 60 per cent stake in Singapore’s smart card maker Jing King Tech Group from RRJ Capital
China’s largest state conglomerate is in a race with Singapore’s sovereign wealth fund and one of the biggest US private equity funds for control of a Singapore-based maker of smart cards, in a sign that investors are shifting their sights to Southeast Asia for better valuations.
Also in the race are the Government of Singapore Investment Corporation (GIC) and TPG Capital, a U$75 billion US private equity firm based in Fort Worth, Texas, the people said.
RRJ Capital, founded in 2011, plans to exit from its US$100 million investment in Jing King, according to sources familiar with the matter. The Hong Kong-based investment firm has US$11 billion of assets under management.
Negotiations for the stake could conclude in a week, when RRJ is expected to select the winner, the sources said.
RRJ, founded by former Goldman Sachs banker Richard Ong, declined to comment. Among the firm’s limited partners are Singapore’s Temasek Holdings and the California State Teachers’ Retirement System (Calpers). Ong was also a founder and chief executive of Chinese private equity fund Hopu from 2008 to 2011 before establishing RRJ Capital.