Challenger Limited’s multi-affiliate funds manager, Fidante, has purchased a minority stake in Proterra Investment Partners Asia — a private equity investor specialising in the Asian food and agribusiness sectors.
The strategic partnership aims to bolster Fidante’s global offering, enabling affiliate partners to “scale their businesses” and “focus on delivering returns for investors”.
The deal builds on existing agreements between Fidante and Proterra Asia in the UK and Europe, with support to be extended to new markets in Asia, including Australia and Japan.
The thematic driving the Proterra Asia Food Strategy is growing consumer demand across expanding urban populations for safe, high-quality food products prioritising health, nutrition, convenience, social impact, and sustainability.
“Diversifying Fidante’s capability and offering in the alternatives space is a strong area of focus for us. Proterra Asia’s commitment to supporting and investing in sustainable food and agriculture businesses in Asia is a highly sought-after proposition to global investors seeking innovative, high growth opportunities,” Victor Rodriguez, chief executive of funds management at Challenger, said.
“We are excited to support Proterra Asia to bring their exceptional offering to investors in strategic markets, whilst enabling Proterra Asia to maintain their diligent focus on investing in the dynamic food and agriculture landscape in Asia.”
Tai Lin, managing partner of Proterra Asia, welcomed Fidante’s investment in the firm’s global portfolio strategy.
“We have enjoyed a highly productive collaboration with Fidante over the past few years, including most recently in the successful final close of Proterra Asia Food Fund 3 in October 2022,” he said.
“We are pleased to be deepening our relationship with Fidante through this minority investment, leveraging their network and market expertise globally.”
This latest strategic partnership comes just months after Challenger announced it would sell its Australian real estate business, Challenger Real Estate (CRE), to Elanor Investors Group for $42 million.
The move includes an exclusive distribution arrangement, under which Fidante would distribute Elanor’s existing and new funds.
Meanwhile, Elanor would become Challenger’s commercial real estate partner in Australia and New Zealand.
