Japan
Japanese accelerator launches $17.5m hardware fund
Darma Tech Labs, operator of Japanese hardware-focused accelerator Makers Boot Camp, plans to launch a JPY2 billion ($17.5 million) venture capital fund, with Kyoto Bank serving as the anchor LP.
PE and funeral services: Untapped eternity
Increased urgency around demographic tailwinds in the funeral services space has coincided with a spate of investment activity in recent years. Private equity could be well positioned to play a leading role
Comcast takes full ownership of Japan's USJ, PE firms to exit
Goldman Sachs, MBK Partners, Owl Creek Asset Management and PAG Asia Capital will fully exit Universal Studios Japan (USJ) after Comcast NBCUniversal agreed to buy the 49% of the company it doesn’t already own for JPY254.8 billion ($2.3 billion).
INCJ, First Eastern in partial exit from Japanese airline
Innovation Network Corporation of Japan (INCJ) and Hong Kong-based First Eastern Investment Group have agreed to sell a combined 28.3% holding in Japanese airline Peach Aviation for JPY30.4 billion ($271 million).
Permira-owned Sushiro targets $728m Japan IPO
Sushiro Global Holdings, a sushi restaurant chain majority-owned by Permira, is looking to raise up to JPY82.4 billion ($728 million) through an IPO in Tokyo.
Japan's Mercari buys VC-backed e-commerce player
Japanese e-commerce company Mercari has agreed to acquire domestic competitor Zawatt, setting up an exit for a number of venture capital backers.
Global Brain backs Japan cybersecurity, driverless car play
Global Brain has led a Series A funding round of undisclosed size for Trillium, a Japanese cybersecurity company focused on the emerging autonomous vehicle industry.
India's PE-backed ReNew raises $200m from Japan strategic
Indian PE-backed renewable energy producer ReNew Power Ventures has raised $200 million from Japanese energy producer JERA.
Softbank to buy US-listed Fortress for $3.3b
SoftBank Group has agreed to acquire Fortress Investment Group – which manages $36.7 billion in alternatives – for approximately $3.3 billion in cash. It puts the Japanese company on course to become one of the world’s largest asset managers.
Fund focus: CITIC rides the Japan wave
CITIC Capital raises $268 million for third Japan fund, benefiting from an upturn in investor sentiment that should prove to be a boon for Japanese GPs in general
Azerbaijan fund commits $100m to e-Shang Redwood's Japan vehicle
Azerbaijan’s state oil fund (SOFAZ) has agreed to invest $100 million in a Japan-focused logistics vehicle being raised by e-Shang Redwood (ESR), a pan-Asian logistics services company that has a string of private equity backers.
Beyond Next Ventures leads $3.4m round for Japan's CureApp
Japan-based investor Beyond Next Ventures has led a JPY380 million ($3.4 million) round for domestic healthcare software developer CureApp.
Longreach achieves first close on North Asia buyout fund
The Longreach Group is understood to have reached a first close of approximately $200 million on its third North Asia-focused mid-market buyout fund, which has a particular focus on Japan. The full target is $650 million.
CITIC Capital closes third Japan fund at $268m
CITIC Capital Partners has achieved a final close on its third Japan buyout fund at the hard cap of JPY30 billion ($268 million). Three investments have already been made from the vehicle across retail and healthcare.
Japan VCs back domestic fintech start-up
Innovation Network Corporation of Japan (INCJ), SBI Investment and Dentsu Digital Holdings have contributed to a JPY800 million ($7.1 million) funding round for Tokyo-based financial technology company Coiney.
Japan fintech start-up Folio gets $16m Series A
Jafco and several other Japanese venture capital firms have joined a JPY1.8 billion ($18.7 million) Series A round for Japanese stock-trading app developer Folio.
Japan’s Advantage exits GTA TeleGuam to US investor
Japan-based Advantage Partners has agreed to sell its controlling stake in GTA TeleGuam, the principal telecommunications provider on the US island of Guam, to US-based family office Huntsman Family Investments (HFI).
iSigma exits Japan's Sweet Style
ISigma, a mid-size buyout firm controlled by trading and investment conglomerate Marubeni, has exited its 100% stake in Japanese food and beverage company Sweet Style to Mitsuuroko Group.
VIDEO: Jun Tsusaka, NSSK
Jun Tsusaka, managing partner, CIO and founding member at NSSK, discusses Japan's middle market
Japan succession deals: The long game
Succession planning opportunities are growing in Japan’s middle market as a generation of founders bend to the will of time and commercial pressure. For GPs seeking buyouts, it is all about who you know
IMJ, Opt invest $4.4m in Japan's Enechange
Enechange, which manages an energy price comparison site aimed at Japanese customers, has raised JPY500 million ($4.4 million) from Opt Ventures and IMJ Investment Partners.
Tokio Marine secures $363m second close on Japan fund
Tokio Marine Capital has reached a second close of JPY41.7 billion ($363 million) on its latest Japan mid-market fund. The full target is JPY50 billion.
LPs must address staffing constraints as Asian opportunities multiply
Global LPs targeting increasingly complex opportunity sets in Asia must streamline their activity and employ a range of techniques to reconcile shortages in investment team resources, panelists told the Hong Kong Venture Capital & Private Equity Association's...
Japan's Polaris exits Clean Surface Technology
Japan-based Polaris Capital has sold its 100% stake in domestic electronics supplier Clean Surface Technology (CST) to coal mining company Mitsui Matsushima for JPY4 billion ($35 million).