HONG KONG (Reuters) - Apollo Global Management ( APO ) plans to expand in Japan and add staff to its Asia wealth business, its regional top executive said, as global investment firms pump more resources into the region to capitalise on a surge in deals and assets.

The New York-based asset manager aims to add around 10 people in Japan to accelerate its expansion in the country, Matthew Michelini, Apollo's Singapore-based partner and Asia-Pacific head, told Reuters.

"If I look at the regional leads that we need to hire over the next year or two, most of them we're looking for will be seated in Japan," said Michelini, one of the architects behind Apollo's move to ramp up Asia's contribution to its global business three years ago.

Its Tokyo office currently has around 20 to 25 staff including 10 investment professionals and the firm could expand the total to 30 in the next two years, he said.

Japan will be Apollo's fastest-growing office in Asia for the next two years, with a setup covering private equity, institutional sales, wealth and credit, Michelini said, adding capital allocation to the country is also likely to rise.

Rivals including Warburg Pincus and Carlyle are also expanding in Japan with more hires.

The Japan expansion coincides with a surge in dealmaking over the past two years, making the country a rare bright spot amid a slowdown in mergers and acquisitions, helped by a push for better corporate governance and a weakened yen making assets cheaper.

Japan was the largest market for private equity deals in the Asia-Pacific region in 2023 accounting for 30% of total deal value, compared to only 5% to 10% historically, showed data from consultancy Bain & Co.

DOUBLE WEALTH STAFFING

Meanwhile, the wealth business, launched two years ago and which has garnered over $5 billion in Asia-Pacific assets, will be one of Apollo's regional growth engines where it plans to double staffing over the next two years.

Michelini said the firm will start wealth hiring in South Korea and Australia in 2025, adding to teams in Hong Kong, Singapore and Japan, without providing staffing targets.

In December, Apollo poached Diane Poon from KKR as a principal in its wealth team in Singapore.

Apollo is among a few private equity firms approached by Japan's Seven & i Holdings about participating in a potential buyout of the retailer, Nikkei reported in November, in what would be the world's largest-ever management buyout.

The firm declined to comment on whether it is engaged with parties for a Seven & i deal.

Globally, the Nasdaq-listed private equity and corporate credit specialist aims to more than double in size over the next five years.

Founded in 1990, Apollo is a multi-asset manager with $733 billion of assets under management as of the end of the third quarter last year. It also provides investment and asset management services to retirees.