Private markets leader Hamilton Lane strengthens European presence, opening office in Switzerland to serve its institutional and private wealth clients
Zug, Switzerland — Hamilton Lane (NASDAQ: HLNE), a leading global private markets investment management firm, is expanding into Switzerland, strengthening its commitment to the region by establishing a formal presence in the country where it has been serving clients for more than 22 years.
The opening of the new office in Zug is the latest development in the firm’s commitment to strengthen and grow its presence in the region. The office will be led by EMEA Head of Client Solutions Ralph Aerni, with Vice President Rainer Kobler spearheading the firm’s expansion efforts in the region. The expansion comes at a time when an increasing number of investors, both institutional and within the private wealth sector, are seeking access to the private markets in search of yield and due to strong historical performance.
Ralph has been with the firm since 2021 and has nearly 20 years of investment, business development and management experience. He splits his time between Zug and the firm’s Frankfurt, Germany office, as he seeks to expand new client relationships across in the DACH region and across Europe.
Within Switzerland, Rainer will focus on further broadening the distribution of the firm’s Global Private Assets Fund (“GPA”), open to high net worth and wholesale investors in parts of Europe (as well as in Australia and New Zealand, Canada, Asia, Latin America and the Middle East). GPA has seen strong demand in the two-plus years since its launch, growing to nearly US $1.8 billion in assets under management as of 31 December 2021. Wealth management platforms, private banks, asset managers and family offices in the region have been drawn to GPA, which as of 31 December 2021 had its best performance year since inception, delivering a 20.81% net return, and annualized since-inception net returns of 17.62%.
Rainer joined Hamilton Lane in 2021 and has extensive experience in the private markets, most recently with Partners Group, where he worked for more than seven years. He has observed the continued uptick in interest in the private markets from clients and investors across Switzerland, commenting: “Hamilton Lane has been serving clients in the region for over two decades and has had the good fortune to serve some of the biggest and most experienced Swiss investors. Our new office provides a direct base from which to continue supporting and servicing our clients here as well as prospective investors,” he explains. “It is an exciting time to build on our momentum in the region particularly within the private wealth space, with the Global Private Assets Fund now enabling a semi-liquid solution to investing in the private markets for a broader set of investors here.”
Ralph commented: "Opening a Swiss office was a natural expansion for us, with a strong existing client base, increasing interest in our private wealth offering, and our growing presence across Europe more broadly. Investors in Switzerland understand that strong historical performance of the private markets together with increasing access to the asset class make this an ideal time to engage with firms like Hamilton Lane. We are happy to have Zug as our 19th global office and our latest European outpost, expanding our office footprint and reach to European clients, and expect to add to the team in Switzerland and across Europe in the months ahead."
About Hamilton Lane
Hamilton Lane (NASDAQ: HLNE) is a leading private markets investment management firm providing innovative solutions to sophisticated investors around the world. Dedicated exclusively to private markets investing for 30 years, the firm currently employs more than 520 professionals operating in offices throughout North America, Europe, Asia Pacific and the Middle East. Hamilton Lane has $851 billion in assets under management and supervision, composed of over $98 billion in discretionary assets and nearly $753 billion in advisory assets, as of December 31, 2021. Hamilton Lane specializes in building flexible investment programs that provide clients access to the full spectrum of private markets strategies, sectors and geographies. For more information, please visit www.hamiltonlane.com or follow Hamilton Lane on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/hamilton-lane/.
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