Its partnership with Bite Investments will enable Chinese and other Asian investors, as well as those across the broader APAC region, to develop a USD Alternatives investment portfolio.

Global financial services provider Apex is partnering Hong Kong fintech firm Bite Investments to give high net worth investors better access to alternatives, the two parties announced in a press release on Monday.

The move is in line with the «shift by HNWIs towards online wealth management solutions and diversification of their investment portfolio using alternative assets, which has been underway in recent years and is being accelerated by the current market environment,» the announcement said.

Bite, which provides high net worth investors access to alternative asset funds and their underlying, direct co-investment opportunities in more manageable sized amounts, recently closed a pre-Series A funding round backed by Apex. 

Underserved Market

According to the firm, HNWIs are typically under-allocated to alternative asset classes including private equity, despite the class historically outperforming the S&P 500, particularly during bear markets.

«The opportunity to partner with Bite comes at an ideal time for Apex as we focus our APAC strategy on addressing this underserved space and market opportunity,» said Peter Hughes, founder and CEO, Apex Group.

Focus on APAC

The APAC region has become a core strategic focus for Apex, where it has seen growth from its Hong Kong and Singapore offices in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic. Apex opened its first office in the region in 2007 and now has seven offices and over 500 employees and circa $40bn in regional AUA, according to the firm.

The group most recently appointed a new head of APAC, Valerie Mantot-Groene, who takes over from Maggie Chan, to build on its growth, and it also obtained a trust and corporate services license in Hong Kong.