Apollo will increase the number of employees for the wealth of Japan and Asia, the top regional director told Reuters
By Selena Li and Kane Wu
HONG KONG (Reuters) – Apollo Global Management ( NYSE: ) plans to expand in Japan and add staff to its wealth business in Asia, its regional chief executive said, as global investment firms pump more resources into the region to capitalize on a surge in business and property.
The New York-based asset manager aims to hire about 10 people in Japan to accelerate its expansion in the country, Matthew Michelini, Apollo’s Singapore-based partner and head of Asia Pacific, told Reuters.
“If I look at the regional heads we need to hire over the next year or two, most of them we’re looking for will be based in Japan,” said Michelini, one of the architects behind Apollo’s move to increase Asia’s contribution to its global business three years ago.
Its Tokyo office currently has about 20 to 25 employees, including 10 investment specialists, and the company could increase the total to 30 in the next two years, he said.
Japan will be Apollo’s fastest-growing office in Asia over the next two years, with a lineup covering private equity, institutional sales, wealth and credit, Michelini said, adding that capital allocation to the country is also likely to increase.
Rivals including Warburg Pincus and Carlyle are also expanding in Japan with more hiring.
The expansion in Japan coincides with a surge in dealmaking over the past two years, making the country a rare bright spot amid a slowdown in mergers and acquisitions, helped by efforts for better corporate governance and a weaker yen that makes assets cheaper.
Japan was the largest market for private equity deals in the Asia-Pacific region in 2023, accounting for 30% of total deal value, compared with just 5% to 10% historically, data from consultancy Bain & Co showed.
DOUBLE WEALTH STAFFING
Meanwhile, the fortune, which launched two years ago and has amassed over $5 billion in Asia-Pacific assets, will be one of Apollo’s regional growth drivers where it plans to double its headcount in the next two years.
Michelini said the company would begin hiring wealthy individuals in South Korea and Australia in 2025, adding teams in Hong Kong, Singapore and Japan, without giving staffing targets.
In December, Apollo poached Diane Poon from KKR as a lead in its wealth team in Singapore.
Apollo is among several private equity firms approached by Japan’s Seven & i Holdings about participating in a potential takeover of the retailer, reported in November, in what would be the world’s largest-ever takeover.
The company declined to comment on whether it was engaged with parties for the Seven & i deal.
Globally, the Nasdaq-listed private equity and corporate lending specialist is set to more than double in size over the next five years.
Founded in 1990, Apollo is a multi-asset manager with $733 billion in assets under management at the end of the third quarter last year. It also provides investment and asset management services to retirees.
