Private Equity Firms Shifted Exit Strategies in Asia
Investors are moving away from traditional auctions toward bilateral deals as exit challenges mount in the region.
Updated on Oct. 3, 2026 in Investing
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Private equity firms in Southeast Asia have abandoned broad auctions in favor of direct buyer cultivation to secure exits. This pivot follows a significant supply-demand imbalance where assets seeking a sale currently exceed available capital.
Why it matters
The shift reflects a broader struggle between buyers and sellers to reach agreement on valuations amid tightening market conditions. By pursuing targeted deals, firms are better able to present specific equity stories that justify their market entry and capabilities.
Private equity fundraising in Asia dropped to an average of 110 billion dollars annually from 2023 to 2025, down from 280 billion dollars in the 2018 to 2022 period. Annual fundraising reached only 66 billion dollars in 2025.
The players
Mekong Capital
This is a private equity firm that has focused on the Vietnamese market and recently utilized bilateral exit strategies.
Mutosi Group
This is a company that received investment from Mekong Capital before being sold to Ariston.
Ariston
This is the entity that acquired the stake in Mutosi Group from Mekong Capital.
CVC
This is a global private equity firm that recently divested minority stakes in Fast Group back to its founding family.
The details
Firms like Mekong Capital have successfully utilized these bilateral methods, such as its recent exit from Mutosi Group to Ariston. As market conditions remain constrained, experts expect exit activity to accelerate only once sellers begin to lower their valuation expectations.
Timeline
From 2018 to 2022, annual private equity fundraising averaged 280 billion dollars.
Mekong Capital invested 10 million dollars in Mutosi Group in 2021.
From 2023 to 2025, annual fundraising fell to an average of 110 billion dollars.
Total private equity fundraising hit 66 billion dollars in 2025.
The Asia PE-VC Summit 2026 held a panel on these trends on September 23, 2026.
Market Dynamics
The discussion on exit strategies at the 2026 Asia PE-VC Summit highlights the current volatility facing regional investors. This panel marks the official industry recognition of the move away from traditional competitive auctions.
Retail investors should note that the cooling of private equity exits may signal lower short-term returns for funds heavily exposed to the Asian market. These shifts often lead to longer holding periods for assets, impacting the liquidity of individual portfolio allocations.
The takeaway
Investors should prepare for a period of slower deal turnover as the private equity sector recalibrates its valuation expectations. Monitoring how firms tailor their equity stories during bilateral negotiations may provide insight into which businesses are successfully navigating this supply-demand gap.
Further reading
For additional context on how market shifts influence corporate deals, visit our Investing section.
Source note: This article includes information reported by DealStreetAsia.
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