Global private investment firm Partners Group is selling its minority stake in Singapore-headquartered Apex Logistics to majority shareholder Kuehne+Nagel Group, the world’s leading sea and air freight company.
The transaction, which values Apex at an enterprise value of over $4 billion, gives Partners Group a full exit and “a strong return”, the firm said in a statement.
Partners Group invested in Apex in July 2021, acquiring a 24.9% equity stake from Kuehne+ Nagel.
The PE firm noted at the time that Apex’s operations focused on the transpacific and intra-Asia trade routes, which helped its multinational customers at a time when shifts in global supply chains were presenting operational challenges.
In 2020, Apex generated $2.4 billion in revenue and earnings before taxes of $141 million. It ranked seventh in terms of global air freight forwarding volume. Over the past five years, Apex’s earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation grew 151%.
The Switzerland-listed Kuehne+Nagel, meanwhile, posted revenues of CHF 18.5 billion and earnings of CHF 761 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2025. Free cash flow for the period amounted to CHF 521 million, or 67% higher than in the previous year.
It is also expanding its operations in Asia. On October 21, it announced an investment in a new fleet of prime movers in Thailand to serve growing cross-border transportation needs in the region. That builds on the company’s 2024 acquisition of City Zone Express, a logistics provider operating across Malaysia, Singapore, Vietnam, Thailand, and China. The company is also investing in five new fulfilment centres across tier-1 to tier-3 cities in India, including Kolkata, Mumbai, and Nagpur.
Partners Group’s PE business has $83 billion in AUM globally. The firm was advised by Clifford Chance, Fangda, and KPMG on the transaction.
