Nearly five decades after it helped establish the private equity industry, KKR continues to evolve. Founded in New York in 1976, the firm has built a reputation for enhancing businesses and has grown into one of the world’s largest private markets investment firms.
Today, it manages more than US$600 billion in assets across private equity, credit, real estate, infrastructure and insurance solutions, investing on behalf of millions of individual investors through public pensions and insurance plans, as well as sovereign wealth funds, foundations and private wealth investors worldwide.
In 2026, KKR will celebrate its 20th year in Asia, a milestone that underscores its deep roots and long-term commitment there. According to the firm, its Asia business has become one of the largest private equity investors in the region, with more than US$80 billion in assets under management and a staff of over 600 people.
Value creation for the long term
The evolution of private equity mirrors KKR’s own journey. Early successes helped put the firm on the map, but sustaining long-term trust with investors required more than transactions. So the business shifted towards what is now known as value creation: growing revenue via operational improvements, investing in human capital to help make good companies great, and building cultures of accountability and ownership. To put this philosophy into practice, the firm launched KKR Capstone in 2000, one of the industry’s first dedicated value creation teams, to partner directly with management and drive results from within.
“What sets us apart is the way we grow companies from within,” says Alisa Wood, private equity partner at KKR. “We create value by working with management teams to unlock growth and empower employees, creating companies that can thrive for the long term.”
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