Fossil fuel players turn to private markets where transition gets wider definition

PRIVATE markets investors in Asia are stepping in where banks will not tread, offering financing and doing deals in the brown spaces of fossil fuels and extractive industries.

Willingness to put money on the table is driven partly by family offices that have greater familiarity with these traditional industries and greater tolerance for assets that do not conform to strict environmental, social and corporate governance (ESG) standards.

Chiam Tao Koon, South-east Asia mergers and acquisitions (M&A) head at law firm Ashurst Singapore, is seeing “healthy interest” from family offices to invest in companies operating in these sectors. This is “especially if these family offices have traditionally made their fortunes in these sectors”.