CMC Capital Partners to raise $1b China media fund

The fund comprises two vehicles, one US dollar-denominated fund and the renminbi-denominated, according to people familiar with the situation. The investment strategy for Fund II is largely consistent with that of its predecessor, which focuses on media, entertainment and technology, with a particular emphasis on mobile technology.

Li set up CMC in 2010. The firm claims to be China's first media and entertainment-focused PE fund approved by the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC). Its debut renminbi fund - which was worth RMB2 billion ($313 million) - received commitment from domestic state-owned financial investors, including China Development Bank and China Merchants Bank. The fund was fully deployed two years ago.

The private equity firm then raised its first US dollar fund worth $350 million early last year after spending six months in the market. Fund-of-funds such as AlpInvest and Adams Street Partners are among the LPs, as well as corporate investors from the US, Japan and Australia. This fund is almost fully deployed.

CMC recently made a partial exit from IMAX China as the company went public in Hong Kong, raising HK$1.92 billion ($248 million). The GP and FountainVest Partners jointly acquired 20% of IMAX China for $80 million, at a valuation of $400 million. The two investors each exited 11 million shares - realizing HK$341 million - and continue to hold stakes of 6.4% apiece.

IMAX China is one example of how CMC is boosting its investments in the media and entertainment value chain. Last month, it backed US virtual reality technology developer Jaunt and announced a deal with Warner Brothers Entertainment  to form a joint venture to produce Chinese-language films. CMC previously launched a fund with IMAX China, which will bankroll Chinese-language movie productions.

Earlier in the year, CMC acquired a stake in the consortium that controls Hong Kong's TVB, having previously established TVB China through a joint venture with parent company in 2012. It also owns New Corporation's former China portfolio, has joint ventures with Dreamworks Animation and FremantleMedia, and is a backer of OCJ, a Chinese TV shopping business.

In the mobile technology space, CMC has invested in  online movie ticket site Gewara, education platform Yuantiku, luxury e-commerce site Secoo.com, and online food-ordering platform Ele.me.

Separately, Li founded Whaley Technology, which specializes in making web-enabled smart TVs, in April. The company subsequently received RMB2 billion ($313 million) in funding from CMC, Alibaba Group and Tencent Holdings.

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• Topics
• Greater China
• Media
• Fundraising
• Expansion
• Fundraising
• China Media Capital
• China
• Media
• TMT
• Growth capital