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Law360 (April 28, 2020, 3:27 PM EDT) -- Hong Kong-based ADM Capital has raised $630 million to provide private credit to mid-sized businesses in Asia that cannot obtain financing through traditional methods, with the investment management firm saying Tuesday that it is positioned to help such companies remain afloat in the aftermath of the coronavirus pandemic.
The fresh capital increases ADM's total assets under management to about $2.4 billion, according to a statement. The firm intends to use the $630 million for private credit investments, providing companies with flexible capital solutions.
Formed in 1998, the firm boasts that "as one of the few regional credit managers to lend through multiple credit cycles in Asia," it has a unique understanding of the challenges that lie ahead in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic.
"The impacts of COVID-19 compound daily and whilst the extent of the economic disruption is still unknown, we believe small and medium enterprises will be disproportionately affected as traditional lenders prioritize top-tier clients and their requests for urgent working capital," said Chris Botsford, co-founding partner and joint chief investment officer for ADM. "We are experienced in underwriting structures that solve borrowers' idiosyncratic problems, in the context of both growth and restructuring."
ADM said it believes companies that begin seriously considering social and environmental factors in the day-to-day operations of business will be better positioned to post stronger returns on the other side of the pandemic. Companies with strong social and environmental platforms will be prioritized as ADM mulls where to direct money for private credit investments.
"At ADM Capital, we believe investment valuations will be higher for companies that act more sustainably and that younger generations will demand corporate management take action in this area," said Lisa Genasci, CEO of the ADM Capital Foundation and sustainability adviser to the firm's Investment Advisory Committee. "We are committed to working with our borrowers toward sustainable value creation."
In addition to announcing the capital raise, ADM revealed Tuesday that Neil Harvey, a former executive at Credit Suisse Group AG, is joining the firm's Asia Pacific private credit team in Hong Kong as executive chairman. Harvey, previously CEO of Hong Kong and Greater China for Credit Suisse and head of the firm's Asia Pacific asset management division, will help as ADM seeks to expand its private credit group in the Asia Pacific region.
Counsel information was not immediately available.
--Editing by Orlando Lorenzo.
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