U.S. private equity giant TPG Capital plans to set up a $4.5 billion Asia fund, one of the largest capital raisings in the region, raising expectations for the PEF’s bigger investments in Korean assets.

According to industry sources on Thursday, the San Francisco-based buyout firm is seeking to launch TPG Asia VII fund by October to be focused on promising new startups in the region or assets that can add value to its existing portfolio.

The new Asia-focused vehicle would be 30 percent larger than its previous one, which raised $3.3 billion in 2014.

TPG has become a big name in the Korean M&A market, where it first entered under the brand Newbridge Capital, a joint venture with other asset management firms that primarily targeted companies in Asia. It bought out Korea First Bank when Korean financial institutions went on a fire sale after the Asian financial crisis in 1999. It made big money by selling the bank to Standard Chartered Bank in 2005. It also purchased broadband operator Hanaro Telecom cheaply with AIG in 2003 and made a huge profit by selling it to SK Telecom.

Its successful track record in Korea has kept the fund interested in Asia’s fourth largest economy. Last year alone, it invested a combined 1 trillion won ($936.4 million) in Korean companies, including taxi-hailing service provider Kakao Mobility and luxury flooring materials manufacturer Nox Group.

By Han Woo-ram and Kim Hyo-jin

[ⓒ Pulse by Maeil Business Newspaper & mk.co.kr, All rights reserved]