Kiyoshi Hirasawa is the CEO and founder of Real Capital Investment and Management.
Kiyoshi has been involved in the Asian private equity and real estate industry as a lawyer, advisor and fund manager since 1990.
Until November 2013, he led EXS Capital K.K., the Japan operation of EXS Capital, which is an independent investment firm dedicated to Asia Pacific, and was also involved in the activities of EXS Capital throughout the region. At EXS Capital, he was instrumental to various private equity investments including a USD 37 million private investment into a Vietnamese real estate developer and a USD 30 million acquisition of a control stake in a J-REIT. EXS Capital K.K. separated from the EXS Capital Group in December 2013 and changed its name to Real Capital.
Prior to joining EXS Capital, Kiyoshi founded Financia CI, Corp in 2006, a JV between himself and the Asset Managers/Investors Group. The company provided financing, capital and services in relation to real estate acquisition opportunities, as well as solutions to corporate capital needs for growth, pre-IPO, MBO/LBO and restructuring transactions. Among other transactions, he successfully acquired two office buildings for a major European real estate fund, as their first acquisition in Japan, and also a residential service apartment building in Tokyo for a major Asian financial institution, as their first direct acquisition in Japan.
Between 2000 to 2006 Kiyoshi acted as a director of ACTIV Investment Partners, a private equity firm focusing on investments in turnaround and MBO opportunities in Japan, as well as director and/or CEO for a number of investee companies. He successfully raised JPY 20 billion (split evenly between two funds) from institutional investors and completed investments for the first fund, including two exited investments, one of which delivered a return of 7 times investment value (IRR 165%). At investee companies he successfully managed hundreds of people and recruited entire management teams, with substantial business successes including improvement of cash flow from negative to positive, reversing losses, doubling of profits and improving stock prices by as much as 7 times.
From 1996 to 2000, Kiyoshi was a Senior Vice President with Rothschild, where he started up a new private equity fund with Rothschild as a key person, and advised numerous international companies regarding sale/purchase of company divisions to/from Japanese companies, including prominent automobile and auto-parts manufacturers, telecommunications companies and hotel operators.
Between 1990 to 1996, Kiyoshi was an attorney at law of Nagashima Ohno and Tsunematsu, specializing in M&A, banking and securities transaction and real estate investment for major corporate clients, including both Japanese and foreign companies. He was directly involved in a number of landmark transactions including the first major acquisition of a Japanese financial institution by a major foreign finance company and the first successful TOB by a foreign company of a Tokyo Stock Exchange 1st Section company. He also advised on and assisted in the execution of major real estate transactions (both acquisitions and divestitures) and development projects both in Japan and internationally. He continues to practice his law as a registered lawyer at Noda Sogo Law Office, where he is a colleague with Mr. Sadakazu Tanigaki, former Secretary General of the ruling party, Liberal Democratic Party of Japan since 2006.
Kiyoshi holds a law degree from Tokyo University and was admitted to the Japanese bar in 1990. He also holds an MBA from the Graduate School of Business of Stanford University.
Kiyoshi speaks fluent English and Japanese.