Texas-based private equity firm Lone Star Funds has laid off most of its investment team in Asia outside Japan in a major retreat from the region
(This July 21 story corrects to remove Singapore in paragraph 2, and corrects percentage in paragraph 3)
By Kane Wu and Chibuike Oguh
HONG KONG/NEW YORK (Reuters) - Texas-based private equity firm Lone Star Funds has laid off most of its investment team in Asia outside Japan in a major retreat from the region, three people familiar with the situation told Reuters.
The firm let go of around 25 investment professionals in its mainland China, Hong Kong, India offices on July 8, effective immediately, said two of the people, who declined to be named due to the sensitivity of the issue.
The people accounted for nearly 60% of its total workforce in the offices affected, one of the people said.
The retreat mainly resulted from the firm not finding much investment opportunity in Asia outside Japan, the people said.
It comes at a time when private equity dry powder in the region was at a record-high $384.9 billion in June, according to data provider Preqin, with global and local firms raising ever bigger funds, and shows some of them are struggling to put the funds to work due to increasing competition and regulatory uncertainty.
Lone Star, which mainly focuses on distressed opportunities, has retained a small number of people in asset management in its Asia offices who manage the firm's current portfolio, they said.
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