J-Star reaches $205m final close in Fund II

Launched in April 2011, J-Star No. 2 is nearly twice the size of its predecessor, which launched in March 2006 and reached a final close of JPY12.25 billion in December the following year.

The investment thesis with this latest vehicle is much the same as the first - focusing on consumer, manufacturing, media and healthcare sectors. The fund will invest in over 10 companies with a deal size of between JPY1 billion and JPY10 billion.

"We are honored to receive high level of interest from both domestic and global institutional investors," said J-Star CEO Greg Hara. "Due the issues such as Japan's changing demographics the business environment has changed rapidly which is leading to more of a demand for capital solutions such as private equity, especially in the mid-to-small market."

J-Star has seen two lucrative exits in the past few months: the first was the strategic sale of Japanese pharmaceutical firm Apo Plus Station, generating a 3x money multiple; the second involved the turnaround of hip teen clothing brand Olive des Olive, which also saw a 3x return.

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