Morgan Stanley PE acquires Korean restaurant chain

Details and the price of the transaction have not been released, though a Nolboo spokesman confirmed the investment to Reuters. Korea's Money Today speculated that deal is worth KRW120 billion ($108 million).

Nolboo's CEO Kim Soon-jin currently holds 90.4% of the company, which manages Korean cuisine restaurant franchises. The company launched more than 20 years ago and claims approximately 700 outlets across eight chains. Reuters noted that it has operations in Asian markets including China, Singapore and Thailand.

MSPEA's investment marks the latest casual restaurant transaction in North Asia. Last month, Bain Capital officially acquired 100% of Japanese restaurant chain Skylark from Nomura Principal Finance for an equity value of JPY160 billion ($2.1 billion), marking the largest buyout in Japan since the onset of the global financial crisis.

China set the stage for similar transactions earlier this year. In August, Apax Partners entered the low-to-mid-priced food market through its acquisition of Golden Jaguar, a buffet-style restaurant chain specializing in Western cuisine, for $250 million. That deal followed MUS Roosevelt, which bought pizza buffet chain Origus in late June.

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• Topics
• North Asia
• Consumer
• South Korea
• Morgan Stanley Private Equity Asia
• Consumer