South Korea
IMM taps Korea’s coffee cravings
Statistics alone do not capture the role coffee has come to play in South Korean culture. Starbucks entered the country in 1999 and it is now the firm's sixth-largest market globally by store numbers, with 556 in operation as of March and plans to take...
Hong Kong launches start-up program
Hong Kong has launched a start-up program intended to attract local and global entrepreneurs to set up or expand their businesses in the city.
Baring PE Asia set for Korea logistics buyout
Baring Private Equity Asia has agreed to buy South Korean courier services provider Logen Logistics from Mirae Asset Private Equity. The deal is worth around KRW160 billion ($140 million).
Korea to grant start-up visas to foreigners
South Korea is to grant start-up visas to foreign entrepreneurs in a bid to facilitate inbound investment.
Korea’s IMM Private Equity invests $87m in Hollys F&B
IMM Private Equity has agreed to pay KRW100 billion ($87 million) for a controlling position in Hollys F&B, the parent company of Hollys Coffee, one of South Korea’s largest coffee shop chains.
Samsung Electronics buys VC-backed Boxee
Samsung Electronics has acquired Boxee, a VC-backed Israeli start-up that manufactures digital video recorders (DVRs). The financial details of the deal were not disclosed.
Angels in Asia: Exporting Silicon Valley
Early-stage investors in the US are casting their eyes eastwards as they seek out new partnerships in Asia. But what can these angels offer the region’s start-up community?
Vogo-backed Tongyang Life chosen as preferred bidder ING Korea unit – report
A consortium led by Tongyang Life Insurance, which is majority-owned by Vogo Investment, has reportedly been chosen as the preferred bidder for ING Groep’s South Korean life insurance unit. The consortium is said to have offered around KRW2 trillion...
Korean government tries again to offload Woori stake
The South Korean government will once again try to offload its majority stake in Woori Finance Holdings, this time breaking up the asset into three pieces to be auctioned separately. The plan is to sell two regional banks and a brokerage and related units...
Korea’s Castling gets first LP commitment, targets fund-of-funds
Castling Investment Group, a start-up alternatives investment advisory firm based in South Korea, has received its first external LP commitment – totaling $80 million – from a local museum foundation. The capital will be placed into a separate account...
Korea's NPS to boost alternatives exposure
South Korea’s National Pension Service (NPS) will increase its allocation to alternative investments to 11.3% from 8.4% as part of an aggressive plan that will see a substantial drop in the pension fund’s fixed income exposure.
Morgan Stanley-backed Hyundai Rotem gets green light for IPO
Hyundai Rotem, a South Korean railway vehicle manufacturer backed by Morgan Stanley Private Equity Asia (MSPEA), has received approval to list on the Korea Stock Exchange. It will likely be the country’s largest share offering so far this year and the...
CVC hires Korea specialist Charles Huh from Standard Chartered
Charles Huh has joined CVC Capital Partners as a senior managing director responsible for South Korea after spending nine years at Standard Chartered Private Equity (SCPE).
Korea’s STX Pan Ocean files for bankruptcy after PE rescue fails
STX Pan Ocean, South Korea’s largest bulk shipping group, has filed for court receivership after attempts to secure a private equity-led restructuring of the beleaguered business failed.
Secondaries valuations remain challenging – KIC
Korea Investment Corporation (KIC) will increase its allocation to alternatives to as much as 25%, up from 15%, but CIO Don Lee said there were no immediate plans to add managers in the secondary space, citing valuation challenges in the market.
A taste of Europe: Asian investor objectives
Asian LPs have become part of the landscape of European private equity, pursuing opportunities across buyouts, secondaries, credit and distress. But what do they really want from the region?
Korea’s Access Bio goes public, STIC PE expects 5x return
STIC Private Equity has made a partial exit from Korean biotech firm Access Bio after the company went public on the KOSDAQ exchange. The PE firm sold shares in two tranches – one just before the IPO and one during it – and has generated a money multiple...
Korea’s National Pension Service appoints new chairman
South Korea’s National Pension Service (NPS) has appointed Kwang Choi, an economist who served as health and welfare minister in the late 1990s, as its chairman and CEO. He replaces Kwang-woo Jun, who stepped down last month.
MBK, PE-backed insurers bid for ING’s Korean unit
MBK Partners, Tongyang Life Insurance and Kyobo Life Insurance have made separate bids for a controlling stake in ING Groep’s South Korean insurance business. The stake was valued at approximately $2.1 billion last year, when KB Financial Group was...
SparkLabs selects 10 companies for its second start-up class
Korean start-up accelerator SparkLabs has selected a second class of 10 for its mentoring program. The program is three months in length and provides funding, office space and access to a network of entrepreneurs, venture capitalists and angel investors.
Highland Capital appoints Korea BD director
Highland Capital Management has appointed Jun Park as director of business development in South Korea, with a brief to explore investment opportunities in the country.
Korea Teachers Pension Fund appoints new CIO
Korea Teachers Pension Fund (KTPF) has named Park Min Ho as its new CIO, replacing Yun Kyu Lee who is leaving the group. Park was previously head of investment strategy at KTPF.
Japan restructuring opportunities on the rise – PE survey
Japan is expected to emerge as a hotspot for restructuring over the next 12 months as domestic industries consolidate and foreign multinationals reassess their activities in a weak and demographically challenged consumer market. South Korea and Japan...
Saban Capital plans to triple Asia portfolio
Saban Capital is looking to triple its investments in Asia over the next two years with a focus on the media and communications space.