While the market obsesses over volatile AI software and tech start-ups, global private equity giant EQT says the real money is being made in the physical layer. In this episode of The Rules of Investing, Ken Wong, Partner and Head of Asia Pacific Infrastructure at EQT Partners, breaks down why the massive, structural build-out of data centres and renewable energy grid connectivity is the market’s most misunderstood, and overlooked, growth opportunity.

Is this the market’s most-misunderstood growth opportunity?

The Rules of Investing

# Full Transcript

**Podcast:** The Rules of Investing

## Transcript

Today on The Rules of Investing, I'm speaking with Ken Wong, Partner and Head of Asia-Pacific Infrastructure at EQT Partners. Now EQT may not be a household name for many listeners, however the firm has a deep history and is investing at the cutting edge of what are some of the biggest structural growth themes taking the world right now.

I'll be speaking with Ken about EQT's background and how the firm is investing in a massive digital infrastructure build-out that's being driven by exponential growth and demand for AI. Now my name's James Marley and this podcast is brought to you by Livewire Markets. Ken, you're joining us from Hong Kong, thanks very much for making the time to have a chat. Thank you for having me, really glad to be on the podcast. Well it's going to be a learning journey for me and hopefully a learning journey for our audience.

You're an Aussie by background and as I mentioned EQT, not a household name in Australia, but a firm with a deep history and a lot of background. Can you introduce us to the firm and tell us a bit about it? Yeah, absolutely. You're 100% right. EQT is probably the largest private equity firm no one's ever heard of. We know that. If anything, it's probably a little bit by design.

A little bit about EQT. We're the largest private equity firm in Europe, the largest in Asia. So that makes us the largest private equity firm outside of the US. We are headquartered in Stockholm. We've been operating for over 30 years. And over that time, we've built the business originally with private equity as the original founding principle, then into infrastructure and real estate.

All of that combined, we have close to half in Aussie dollars, just under half a trillion of assets under management. In terms of, you know, that's just the size and scale of EQT as it is today. What I think is really, you know, near and dear to my heart, but also a key part of the EQT philosophy is actually not just our 30-year operating history as a firm,

but we actually have a strong tie with the Wallenberg family, which is a six-generation family who still today control 30% to 40% of the Swedish stock market capitalization. And it's really been important for EQT in terms of defining our values, our value creation, and how we govern our portfolio companies. And honestly, it's a privilege to be associated with the Wallenbergs. Actually, they have a very strong tie into Australia.

It's one of those things that, you know, you wouldn't know about the name, but even today, we, you know, the Wallenbergs have a strong tie with Australia. The interesting stat I always quote with people is Australia's first honorary citizen was Raoul Wallenberg, who during World War II saved tens of thousands of Jews through issuing diplomatic passports, safe houses and the like.

And then actually you go down Parliament, there's a tree in Raoul Wallenberg's name. There's a park in eastern subu...

Is this the market’s most-misunderstood growth opportunity?

Transcript

Built for investment professionals

Every day you wait, your competitors are finding
edge in conversations you're not hearing.

Is this the market’s most-misunderstood growth opportunity?

Transcript

Built for investment professionals

Every day you wait, your competitors are findingedge in conversations you're not hearing.

Every day you wait, your competitors are finding
edge in conversations you're not hearing.