Partners Group

Partners Group Holding AG is a Swiss-based global private equity firm with US$152 billion in assets under management in private equity, private infrastructure, private real estate and private debt.

The firm manages a broad range of funds, structured products and customised portfolios for an international clientele of institutional investors, private banks, individual investors and other financial institutions. The firm has completed more than 250 private equity investments in portfolio companies. In 2020, Partners Group became a constituent of the Swiss Market Index, an index of the 20 largest stocks in Switzerland. As of 2024, Partners Group is the fifth most-valuable publicly listed private markets firm in the world by market capitalisation.

History

Early history (1996-2010)

Partners Group was co-founded in 1996 by Urs Wietlisbach, Marcel Erni and Alfred Gantner in Zug, Switzerland. Each of the co-founders contributed an equal share to the initial pool in the first year. In the firm's second year it had its first major milestone, launching a US$150 million small & midcap fund focused on investments in German-speaking Europe. The fund was a huge success in mainland Europe. According to Institutional Investor magazine, this is partly due to the lack of competition at the time in Europe compared to North America. In the same article, co-founder Alfred Gantner stated ''“you had to explain the term to people because ‘private equity’ in the way we understand it today did not exist, it was called Risikokapital, risk capital, which was associated with venture capital.”''

In 1998, it completed a secondary transaction involving the private equity portfolio of Royal Dutch Shell’s U.S. pension fund for US$265 million. At the time, it was the largest secondary transaction recorded. In 2002, Partners Group was an early investor in Esmertec, a Java client software maker. Partners Group is a joint stock company under Swiss law, listed on the Swiss Exchange since its 2006 initial public offering (minority floating). Around 45% of the shares are held by employees and partners. As of 2016, according to Forbes' annual billionaire's list, founders Gantner, Erni, and Wietlisbach are listed as three of the 25 wealthiest private equity managers in the world, each with net worths totaling $1.3 billion. Since 2001, Partners Group has pioneered evergreen funds in private markets and launched the first European Long Term Investment Fund (ELTIF) in 2017.

Beginning in late 2004, Partners Group made a number of announcements about the opening of new global offices. This began with the Asia Pacific region, with the opening of an office in Singapore in December 2004. The regional office would be responsible for the Asian-focused fund of funds and the investment firm's push into Asia. Christoph Rubeli was responsible for overseeing the expansion. Partners Group Singapore has since become an important regional office for the investment firm, reaching the operational milestone of 20 years in 2024. In March 2005, the investment firm opened its first UK-based office in London due to its growing investor base in the region. Erik Kaas of PG's executive board would manage the UK operations. By 2005, Partners Group had $6 billion in assets under management, and was benefitting from the growing private equity industry. The Financial Times reported that private equity funds had raised $60 billion in first half of 2005 compared with $90 billion for the whole of 2004, demonstrating a growing demand for private equity. Wietlisbach was quoted stating he saw continued growth in the industry as ''"generalist funds will struggle to attract new money."'' Partners Group reported in its 2007 annual report that the firm had undergone a period of rapid expansion over the previous 24 months. During that time, it has more than doubled its assets under management, employee numbers and its annual net profit figure. Two years after launching its first Asian private equity fund, the firm expanded its presence in Asia with the opening of its Japanese office in the country's capital Tokyo. As an early investor in Swiss-based semi-conductor manufacturer u-blox, Partners Group benefitted when the company announced it would be going public by the end of 2007.

On February 6, 2009, Partners Group announced that Peter Wuffli would be joining its board of directors. Wuffli had previously served as CEO UBS AG until 2007. Partners Group launched the Private Equity Master Fund in 2009. The fund was one of the first to meet the requirements of the Investment Company Act of 1940, and one of the first SEC-regulated funds available in the United States. Since its launch, the fund has consistently remained as largest entrant in this sector with US$16 billion in assets in 2024. According to the firm's 2010 Annual Report, total assets under management grew from €17.3 billion in 2009 to €21.4 billion in 2010.

International growth (2011-20)

As of 30 November 2011, Partners Group has been included in the MSCI Switzerland Index, after having been included in mid-September in the Swiss Small & Mid Cap Index ( SMIM Index), which tracks the 30 biggest listed companies in Switzerland that are not listed by the Swiss Market Index.

At Private Equity International's 2012 awards, Partners Group were standout winners at the awards ceremony, as they were the only firm to win three categories. During the same year, Partners Group announced it was investing an undisclosed amount in solar panel production company, RioGlass. In July 2013, Partners Group announced the planned appointment of Christoph Rubeli and André Frei as co-CEOs, replacing Steffen Meister who had held the role since 2005. Meister would remain at Partners Group as a full-time executive member of its board of directors. In 2014, Partners Group announced that it had closed its third direct investment fund at its hard cap of €1.5 billion. Later that year, Partners Group and Duke Street Capital joined forces to acquire Voyage Care for £375 million, a specialist support company based in the UK. The Wall Street Journal reported the financial firm would likely continue its strategic focus on buyouts. It also held its first investor conference in the United States during the same year. Partners Group expanded its real estate portfolio in 2015 with a number of purchases in the United States and also in London. In London it acquired the 80 Fenchurch Street site next to Aldgate tube station, with plans to construct a 245,000sq ft office building in a joint venture with Marick Real Estate. This was after the firm brought the 0.6 acre site out of receivership earlier that year for over £50 million. In the US, hotels in New York and Tennessee were acquired, along with land in California. The United States real estate deals totalled US$163 million. In February 2016, Partners Group acquired Australia-based childcare firm Guardian Early Learning in a deal worth $440million.

In January 2018, Royal Dutch Shell purchased the company's 44% minority interest in solar energy firm Silicon Ranch for an estimated $200 million. Around the same time, Partners Group continued with its efforts to invest in green technology companies by investing in the Borssele Offshore Wind Farm project off the coast of the Netherlands. It acquired a 45% stake in the wind farm. Partners Group continued with acquisitions throughout 2018, including two other major deals. The first was German smart metre business Techem followed by Megadyne SpA and Ammeraal Beltech Holding BV. In August, it was announced that Christoph Rubeli would be stepping down from his role as co-CEO, and would be replaced by David Layton. The firm continued with its co-CEO model, with André Frei remaining as the firm's other co-CEO. Layton's role at the time was as senior manager at the firm's Denver office, and became Partners Group's first American chief executive officer. Bloomberg reported in October 2018 that the firm was seeking to raise a reported $5.8 billion for its fourth buyout fund.

In 2019, the former UK Prime Minister and chancellor Gordon Brown was announced as an advisor to Partners Group. His role would be to advise the private equity firm on impact investments. During the same year, Partners Group announced it was acquiring a majority stake in United States-based optometry specialist EyeCare Partners in a USD$2.2 billion deal. In June, the firm opened its 129,400-square-foot North American headquarters in Broomfield, Colorado. In 2020, Partners Group was awarded Firm of the Year in Switzerland for the fourth consecutive year (previously 2017, 2018 and 2019) by Private Equity International. Partners Group entered into a major cooperation with UBS in the form of a new private markets solution for its wealth management clients, targeting an annual investment capacity of US$1‐3 billion over time. During the same year, MidRail accused Partners Group of violating a non-disclosure agreement, which allegedly impacted the bidding process for acquisition target Patriot Rail. The case was closed in October 2023, after Partners Group and MidRail mutually agreed to dismiss their claims against each other. September 2020 saw Partners Group join the Swiss Market Index (SMI), with its first day of trading on 21 September. The SMI contains the 20 largest Swiss stocks, and is the most prominent stock index in Switzerland. It was Partners Group's first time listed on the index.

Recent history (2021-present)

In 2021, Partners Group was selected by Malaysia's Employees Provident Fund to manage a substantial portion of its US$600 million Shariah Private Equity Direct/Co-Investment Fund - the largest of its kind in the world. In September 2021, the firm announced that it had raised $15 billion for a private equity program. At the time of the announcement, $6 billion of the total had been invested to acquire stakes in 17 companies. Partners Group led a consortium in the biggest Swiss 2022 venture capital investment in cleantech company Climeworks, the world's largest direct air capture and storage plant. Also in 2022, Partners Group invested USD 500 million in Budderfly, an energy-as-a-service company that provides energy efficient systems to businesses. The Connecticut-based energy company served 2,750 clients across the United States at the time of the investment. In November 2022, Partners Group acquired EdgeCore for $1.2 billion, a Colorado-based data center owner and operator company. In December, Partners Group announced that it was increasing its stake in the Swiss watchmaker, Breitling. It previously had a 23% stake in Breitling and would become the majority shareholder once the deal was completed. Breitling at the time was valued at USD 4.5 billion. Co-founder of Partners Group, Alfred Gantner, also became President of Breitling's directorial board. Breitling re-entered the list of top 10 Swiss brands after it posted its 2022 revenue figures. Also in 2022, Partners Group bought U.S. heating, ventilation and air conditioning parts maker DiversiTech. In the same year, Partners Group acquired Version 1, a digital transformation company from Dublin.

On January 4, 2023, Partners Group announced that they had acquired SureWerx, a Canadian- American supplier of PPE, safety gear, and tools. They acquired SureWerx from Riverside Partners. In April, Partners Group continued its focus on decarbonisation, when it agreed to buy 7,000 credits generated by Climeworks’ direct air capture (DAC) facilities. The firm entered into a partnership with Canadian-based Bank of Montreal (BMO) to launch a private assets fund for smaller investors. The fund is aimed at Canadian retail investors as well as smaller institutional clients. In November 2023, Partners Group acquired ROSEN Group, an inspection and integrity management services provider for energy transmission pipelines, for an undisclosed amount. In December 2023, Partners Group acquired Velvet CARE, one of the leading European manufacturers of hygiene paper products.

In early 2024, Partners Group announced that it was expanding its investments in the PBSA (purpose built student accommodation) real estate sector. In March 2024, the firm added private markets royalties to its investment platform, launching the industry's first scalable multi-sector royalty strategy. The new offering would target a fast-growing addressable market, with royalties representing the fifth asset class on Partners Group's private markets platform. During the same month, the investment firm launched its new corporate brand with new logo and slogan, 'Built Differently to Build Differently.' The new logo incorporates bricks into its design, underlining the firm's focus as a business builder. In May, the firm announced it was expanding its ELTIF solutions with the launch of a private equity evergreen strategy. The firm also expanded geographically during the same period, opening a new office in Hong Kong.

In July of that year, it was announced Partners Group would be acquiring a majority share in the Portuguese biotech firm, FairJourney Biologics. Prior to the deal, FairJourney had assisted drugmakers including Johnson & Johnson discover novel antibody treatments. During the same month, it also closed its fifth private equity fund above its $15 billion target. Also in July, the company announced it was set to acquire Eteck, a market-leading provider of sustainable decentralised heating and cooling solutions in the Netherlands. In September 2024, Partners Group and BlackRock announced they had established a strategic partnership to launch a model portfolio solution streamlining retail wealth access to private equity, private credit, and real assets. The first-of-its-kind offering will enable advisors to deliver a one-stop multi-private markets portfolio managed by two global asset managers, positioning BlackRock and Partners Group to capture accelerating growth in private markets and managed models. The AuM in managed model portfolios is expected to grow rapidly in the next few years.

In the same month, Partners Group successfully completed a USD 1.9 billion equity investment in portfolio company Edgecore Digital Infrastructure. The investment is the second equity capital raise that Partners Group led since acquiring EdgeCore in 2022 and was conducted in conjunction with the firm's clients. It also acquired a controlling stake in Gateway Fleets, a provider of electrification solutions for logistics fleet operators in the United States. In September 2024, the company announced it would sell Techem, an international provider of digitally enabled solutions for the building ecosystem.

In October, Partners Group was named as the Best Liquid Alternatives Manager by Citywire Asia in its 2024 Asset Management Awards. They were also part of a consortium which backed Australian startup Neara's $31 million Series C funding round. Neara’s digital modeling technology enables utilities to adopt a more proactive approach to network optimization, with simulations that surface safety and reliability risks and identify the most effective remediation
actions. In November, Partners Group opened the doors to its new Zug campus. It will serve as the firm's global headquarters and comprises three interconnected buildings: The Foundry, The Factory and The Greenery.

At the end of 2024, Partners Group announced a number of real estate and hospitality acquisitions. In November, they acquired a minority stake in the 5-star Standard Hotel in central London. They were part of a partnership deal with Trinity Investments and  Oaktree Capital Management, which totalled £185 million. Partners Group also acquired a majority stake in Spanish hotel group BLUESEA Hotels during the same month. Partner Group also announced with a major acquisition for Empira, a residential real estate company with a portfolio valued at EUR 14 billion.

The private-markets firm announced it was expanding its growth equity strategy, targeting fast growing companies in the technology and healthcare sectors. The expansion follows on from the firm investing USD 2.5 billion in the space to date. Partners Group also opened an infrastructure fund to Canadian investors through a partnership with  iCapital. It also sold its controlling stake in renewable energy company, VSB Group. The acquisition of VSB was made by TotalEnergies at a value of EUR 2 billion.

Partners Group finished 2024 with one of the largest deals in Indian private equity that calendar year, listing Vishal Mega Mart on the National Stock Exchange and Bombay Stock Exchange. The firm's PE secondary investments team finished the year having invested US$3.2 billion across different opportunities, up from US$1.5 billion the previous year.

Throughout 2024, Partners Group secured $22 billion in new commitments from clients. By the start of 2025, fundraising for evergreens had overtaken traditional closed-ended funds, with evergreens raising $8 billion the previous year.

At the end of January Partners Group received approval from the UK financial services regulator to launch a long-term asset fund (LTAF).

Management

Partners Group was managed during its early history by the three co-founders, Marcel Erni, Alfred Gantner and Urs Wietlisbach. In more recent years, the founders have all remained as large shareholders and board members, but the day-to-day management is done by the Executive Team. In the late 90s, the three founders introduced a number of changes to boost team morale. This included a one-month paid sabbatical every five years for employees to recharge and regular hikes up Wildspitz, located close to the Partners Group's Zug office. Hikes up Wildspitz are still done today by Partners Group as part of its onboarding process for new employees. In 2021, its CEO Dave Layton received media coverage for banning the word ''"deal,"'' a move which Layton believed could reduce the transactional mindset often associated with private equity. Senior management that broke the rule, would be asked to donate $1,000.

In 2023, Executive Chairman Steffen Meister documented the ongoing role reversal between private and public markets. In the white paper, Meister was quoted saying ''real value creation is rarely about big M&A transactions. Instead, it is about organic growth, platform-building, and research and development.'' Robert Collins, Co-Head of Private Wealth at Partners Group, spoke about the growing need for tailored investments for individual investors.

During the same year, Pensions & Investments magazine ran an article about Partners Group and its early adoption of generative AI and how the move was supported by senior executives.

References

External links

Partners Group
(company website)

Financial Times Profile

PEI Awards: Carlyle and Partners Group win big
PEI Awards, 2013

Silver Lake and Partners Group to Buy Global Blue for $1.25 Billion
The New York Times, 2012

Partners Group Holding Closes Partners Group European Mezzanine Debt Program Above its EUR 500 Million Target
Reuters, 2010

Partners Group successfully closes secondary fund at hard cap of EUR 2.5 billion
Bloomberg, 2009

Partners Group Secondary 2006 closes on €1bn
AltAssets, 2006

Partners Group opens London office and launches joint HSBC fund of funds
AltAssets, 2005

{{Swiss Leader Index companies

Financial services companies established in 1996
Investment management companies of Switzerland
Private equity firms of Switzerland
Private equity secondary market
Companies listed on the SIX Swiss Exchange
Companies in the Swiss Market Index
Breitling SA