Partners Group exits Taiwanese bubble tea investment

Partners Group is pulling the plug on its Gong cha investment just as Bain Capital takes control of the Taiwanese bubble tea chain. The Swiss asset manager has entered an agreement to be fully repaid on the financing it provided to Gong cha and on its minority equity stake, according to a document seen by Bloomberg. The transaction closes a seven-year chapter that began when Partners Group backed TA Associates’ acquisition of the fast-growing brand in 2019.

The deal mattered because it combined two very different forces: Switzerland’s expanding private-credit industry and Asia’s consumer-driven growth story. Partners Group supplied a financing package worth more than $200 million, while also taking an equity position in the company. Bain’s purchase from TA Associates now gives the Swiss firm a clean exit.

The crucial number remains under wraps. Partners Group has not disclosed its investment return, leaving investors without a public measure of how much value the Gong cha bet created. What is clear is that the exit arrives as Swiss capital hunts for opportunities beyond the United States—and as Asia’s private-credit market enters a more demanding phase.

The original bet topped $200 million, but its payoff stays confidential. In 2019, Partners Group assembled a financing package of more than $200 million to support TA Associates’ purchase of Gong cha. The Swiss firm also secured a minority equity stake, giving it exposure not only to lending returns but also to the brand’s potential growth.

That structure reflects the hybrid tactics increasingly used by private-credit investors. Rather than relying solely on interest payments, lenders can pair financing with equity participation, creating an additional route to returns if a company expands or changes hands. In Gong cha’s case, Bain Capital’s acquisition provides the trigger for Partners Group’s repayment and departure.

However, the transaction offers no public verdict on performance. The returns have not been disclosed, and the available information does not identify the value assigned to either the financing or the equity stake at exit. For Swiss investors watching the sector, that opacity is a reminder of private markets’ central trade-off: access to negotiated opportunities, but far less day-to-day transparency than listed assets. The financial result may remain private even as the deal sends a public signal about Partners Group’s regional strategy.

Asia-Pacific is still a small slice of a staggering $1.8 trillion global private-credit market. That imbalance explains both the opportunity and the pressure facing firms such as Partners Group. Private credit is expanding across the region, yet fundraising now confronts a harsher backdrop: economic uncertainty, geopolitical tensions and elevated interest rates are making investors more wary of locking money into illiquid assets.

Moody’s Ratings said those forces are set to slow the growth of private-credit fundraising in Asia-Pacific. The region’s challenge is not a lack of ambition; it is the difficulty of scaling a market while capital becomes more selective and borrowing costs remain high. A successful consumer brand can attract buyers, but the wider financing environment is becoming less forgiving.

For Partners Group, the Gong cha exit therefore cuts two ways. It crystallises a position in a sector with strong consumer visibility, while the firm continues to assess where Asian private credit can deliver defensive, risk-adjusted exposure. The Swiss manager is not abandoning the region. Instead, it is positioning the exit as part of a broader rotation toward businesses able to withstand a more volatile cycle.