Partners Group warns it could cap more fund withdrawals after triggering private equity rout

Partners Group is prepared to restrict investor withdrawals across more of its funds, the Swiss private markets giant said Thursday, after capping redemptions in one of its European vehicles following a surge in exit requests. The Zurich-listed fund manager warned that the spike in client withdrawals that upended private credit markets this year now appears to be spilling over into the private equity space. On Wednesday, Partners Group said it was halting withdrawals from its Global Value SICAV vehicle at 5%, after redemption requests hit 9.8%. It warned that another one of its funds — a Delaware-domiciled U.S. private equity vehicle — is also set to face redemption requests of about 6% of net asset value in the second quarter. Three other evergreen funds, whose assets together total approximately $9.7 billion, are also likely to experience second-quarter redemptions of 3.5%-5%, Partners Group said. In a statement, Partners Group acknowledged heightened volatility across open-ended so-called "evergreen" funds, adding that it would impose 5% liquidity limits in such vehicles if withdrawal requests exceed that threshold. The rush for the exits by investors is reigniting anxiety over pressures in the global private markets industry. "Liquidity features are designed to protect long-term investors, and to ensure that returns continue to be driven by the quality of the underlying private assets rather than by short-term flow dynamics," CEO David Layton said. …