NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--KKR, a leading global investment firm, today announced senior appointments within KKR’s Global Impact business, deepening its geographic reach and local impact. Stanislas de Joussineau will lead KKR’s Global Impact team in Europe, and Sharon Yang will join KKR Global Impact as a senior investor in Asia. The expanded global team will be further supported by KKR executives across key industries and regions of focus.
KKR Global Impact is focused on identifying and investing behind global opportunities where financial performance and societal impact are intrinsically aligned. Specifically, the business is focused on companies whose core business models provide commercial solutions that contribute measurable progress toward one or more of the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
With the appointments of Mr. De Joussineau and Ms. Yang, the KKR Global Impact business continues to deepen its global reach and local impact.
“Stan and Sharon are both long-time KKR executives and seasoned professionals with deep relationships across their respective geographies,” said Robert Antablin and Ken Mehlman, Co-Heads of KKR Global Impact. “This combination of KKR’s global strength and local market expertise is key to capturing the many opportunities we’re seeing for impact investments around the globe. These additions further underscore our commitment to growing KKR Global Impact in Europe and Asia. We are thrilled to welcome Stan and Sharon to our team.”
Mr. De Joussineau, a Director, has a decade-long tenure as a private equity investor with KKR, most recently as part of KKR’s Technology and Retail sector teams in Europe and country-level coverage team in France. He has been involved in KKR’s investments in Webhelp, The Hut Group, Adocia, Visma and KnowBe4, and currently serves on the Board of Directors of Webhelp. In his new role, Mr. De Joussineau will be responsible for leading the KKR Global Impact team in Europe and further developing the group’s activities in the region. De Joussineau will also serve as a member of the firm’s Global Impact Investment Committee and Portfolio Management Committee.
Johannes Huth, Member & Head of KKR EMEA, said “Stan has been an important part of the KKR EMEA private equity team for over ten years, and his investing experience will be a major benefit for the Impact strategy. Stan will work in close alignment with our other investment platforms in Europe to identify and execute on promising Impact Investing opportunities.”
Ms. Yang, a Director, joined KKR in 2009 where her responsibilities have included portfolio, strategy, operating, capital raising and capital markets activities across private equity, growth equity and real estate in Asia. In her new role, Ms. Yang will become a senior member of the KKR Global Impact investment team in Asia and focus on regional sourcing, investment and portfolio activities. She will continue to work closely with and be further supported by the Asia Private Equity team.
Ming Lu, Member & Head of KKR Asia Pacific, said, “Asia Pacific has become a compelling destination for impact investment driven by the structural policy changes and reforms across the region combined with increased public awareness and corporate adoption of environmental, social and governance initiatives. Emerging markets are leading the way – homegrown champions are developing innovative products and services to meet sustainable development opportunities resulting from rapid urbanization and a growing middle class. As we look to expand the reach of our impact investment strategy in Asia and provide funding to more businesses and entrepreneurs, we are delighted to have an investment executive of Sharon’s caliber to help lead our efforts.”
Over the last decade, KKR has been a leader in driving and protecting value throughout the firm’s private markets portfolio through thoughtful Environmental, Social and Governance (“ESG”) management, as well as measuring and reporting on performance to the public and investors. The firm also has a history of investing in businesses that promote sustainable solutions to societal challenges. This experience of responsible investment combined with a changing landscape of global challenges led to KKR’s decision to create a dedicated Global Impact business in 2018. KKR’s growing Global Impact team will continue to build on this experience.
About KKR
KKR is a leading global investment firm that manages multiple alternative asset classes, including private equity, energy, infrastructure, real estate and credit, with strategic partners that manage hedge funds. KKR aims to generate attractive investment returns for its fund investors by following a patient and disciplined investment approach, employing world-class people, and driving growth and value creation with KKR portfolio companies. KKR invests its own capital alongside the capital it manages for fund investors and provides financing solutions and investment opportunities through its capital markets business. References to KKR's investments may include the activities of its sponsored funds. For additional information about KKR & Co. Inc. (NYSE: KKR), please visit KKR's website at www.kkr.com and on Twitter @KKR_Co.
