Private Equity’s Growing Appetite for Fast Food in Japan
Goldman has bought Burger King, Carlyle now owns KFC, and Wendy’s is in play.
A Colonel Sanders statue dressed as Santa Claus at a Tokyo KFC outlet.
Photographer: Kim Kyung-Hoon/ReutersJapan’s culinary delights are legendary: Tokyo is home to more Michelin-starred restaurants than any other city on Earth, and millions of tourists a year flock to the country to sample everything from simple dipping ramen to multicourse kaiseki dinners that change with the seasons. So why are US private equity firms betting millions on American burgers and fried chicken there?
Carlyle Group Inc. paid ¥135 billion ($847 million) for the Japanese operations of KFC in 2024, and last year the private equity arm of Goldman Sachs Inc. bought Japan’s Burger King operations for ¥70 billion. And the Japanese unit of Wendy’s is now in play, with investment firm Longreach Group said to be considering offers.