Colonial First State partners with J.P. Morgan Asset
Management for Private Equity

06 August 2025 

Colonial First State (CFS) has partnered with global asset manager, J.P. Morgan Asset Management (JPMAM) to make its debut private equity allocation as it continues its expansion into unlisted asset classes. 

CFS and JPMAM worked together to design a multi-year deployment program to capitalise on opportunities in the current market environment, by investing in secondaries and co-investments, with a focus on small and mid-market buyout transactions that offer attractive risk and return characteristics. 

“Our decision to appoint J.P. Morgan Asset Management for Colonial First State’s inaugural private equity allocation reflects their proven expertise and performance in the asset class, as well as their strong alignment with our client-centric investment philosophy. We were particularly impressed by the depth of their private equity team, their commitment to delivering tailored solutions, and their ability to access and leverage the broader capabilities and relationships across the J.P. Morgan organisation,” said Jonathan Armitage, Chief Investment Officer at Colonial First State.

JPMAM’s Private Equity Group (PEG) manages USD351 billion on behalf of a global client base with a deal sourcing engine that traces its roots back to 1980. PEG uses a bottom-up, opportunistic investment approach that seeks to identify high conviction ideas across 250+2 general partner relationships.

“Our deep insights and reputation as a strategic partner allows us to select from the best opportunities available in the market, with attractive economics, enhanced return profiles and accelerated deployment.  We’re incredibly proud of the platform we have built, and since 2008 the PEG team has generated direct alpha comfortably above the MSCI World Index on a net of fees basis3,” shared Ashmi Mehrotra, Global Co-Head of the Private Equity Group at JPMAM. 

“We are delighted to grow our partnership with CFS, which spans both public and private markets. Private equity plays a critical role in diversifying portfolios because it has the potential to enhance returns and reduce risk, but selecting the right partner with the experience and network to source transactions that exhibit attractive risk and return characteristics is critical. We are a big believer in long-term strategic partnerships and ultimately aim for our clients to view JPMAM as an extension of their own investment teams,” said Andrew Creber, Australia and New Zealand CEO, JPMAM.

Steven Reilly, Director External Communications, Colonial First State

steven.reilly@cfs.com.au

Carmen Lau, Head of Marketing, Australia and New Zealand , J.P. Morgan Asset Management

carmen.lau@jpmorgan.com