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Warburg Pincus and Wensheng Launch Special Situations Platform for Real Estate Opportunities in China Jul 5, 2021
Shanghai, July 5, 2021 – Warburg Pincus, a leading global private equity firm focused on growth investing, and Wensheng, one of the largest special situations asset managers in China, jointly announced the establishment of Wensheng Special Situations Asset Management Company (“the Platform”), focused on single credit real estate special situations investments. Warburg Pincus and Wensheng are committing up to $600 million to the Platform with a target to bring the total assets under management to $5 billion over the next five years and create a clear market leader. Through diversified asset sourcing channels and creative deal structures, the Platform is committed to unlocking the values of under-utilized real estate assets in China.
The Platform will pursue a number of key strategies, including “non-performing loan-to-own”, rescue financing, and other special situations. The seed assets are located in Shanghai, Zhejiang, and Hainan.
Mr. Zhijie Zhou, the Founder of Wensheng, said, “The economic development and urban renewal demand in China have unleashed tremendous opportunities for our special situations strategies. By leveraging our strong track record in distressed real estate and value enhancement capabilities, Wensheng has made significant progress in this area since the establishment of our distressed real estate practice in 2017 followed by the formation of a dedicated team in 2018. We are excited about the partnership with Warburg Pincus, an experienced investor with a solid know-how in real estate especially distressed real estate investments. We are now better positioned to further accelerate our growth with all-round capabilities – investing, financing, operations, and exit.”
Mr. Qiqi Zhang, Managing Director of Warburg Pincus, said, “In light of the ongoing financial reform in China and the continued regulatory development, the real estate special situations sector is entering an accelerated growth trajectory. Through the partnership with Wensheng, we look forward to leveraging the complementary strengths and abundant resources of both parties to acquire high-quality assets and positively contributing to the growth of the Chinese economy.”
Warburg Pincus is one of the largest and most active private equity firms in real estate investing in Asia, with more than $6 billion invested in 36 companies since 2005. The firm has invested actively in the new infrastructure verticals including logistics, technology/biotech parks, data centers and smart parking, which represent one of the largest secular growth opportunities in Asia. Currently, investments in the new economy real estate and infrastructure account for approximately 2/3 of the firm’s total activities in real estate.
About Warburg Pincus
Warburg Pincus is a leading global private equity firm focused on growth investing, and an experienced partner to management teams seeking to build durable companies with sustainable value. The firm has more than $60 billion in private equity assets under management. The firm’s active portfolio of more than 200 companies is highly diversified by stage, sector, and geography. Founded in 1966, Warburg Pincus has raised 19 private equity funds, which have invested more than $90 billion in over 930 companies in more than 40 countries.
As a trusted partner to entrepreneurs, Warburg Pincus is committed to supporting and creating industry leaders in new economy sectors. Warburg Pincus is one of the largest and most active private equity firms in China and Southeast Asia, with more than $22 billion of assets under management. Since 1994, the firm has invested more than $16 billion in 150 companies in the region.
About Wensheng
Established in 2006, Wensheng is a credit asset manager and service provider engaged in special situations portfolio acquisition, corporate restructuring, and distressed bonds acquisition. The company reported RMB95.5 billion of assets under management in 2020. Since the set-up of its Distressed Property Assets Restructuring department in 2017, Wensheng has greatly enhanced the value of the properties acquired, including those in Shanghai, Beijing, Jiangsu, and Guangzhou, with accurate market positioning and professional asset management.