Articles by Justin Niessner
Sequoia leads $50m round for China's Adagene
Sequoia Capital China has led an oversubscribed $50 million Series C funding round for Chinese biotechnology company Adagene.
China’s Hua Medicine gets $117m
Hua Medicine, a Chinese clinical-stage biotechnology company, has closed a combined Series D and Series E funding round at $117.4 million with support from a group of VCs.
Deal focus: SBI helps Japan AI player smarten up the road
SBI Investments backs a Japanese start-up focused on improving decision-making technology in self-driving cars
Cathay launches $239m China smart energy fund
Cathay Capital Private Equity has launched a fund with a targeted corpus of RMB1.5 billion ($239 million) for investment in emerging technologies and business models in the Chinese energy sector.
Victory Park, IFC launch emerging markets fintech fund
The International Finance Corporation (IFC) has committed $25 million to a fund that it will co-manage with US-based Victory Park Capital. The fund will improve access to debt capital for financial technology companies in emerging markets, including Asia.
Australia virtual data room provider gets $18.5m
Australia’s Ellerston Capital has led a A$24 million ($18.5 million) Series A round for Ansarada, a domestic business services company that provides virtual data rooms and artificial intelligence-enabled due diligence.
Hitachi backs Japan-US cross-border GP
Hitachi has agreed to invest an undisclosed sum in a Japan-US cross-border venture capital fund managed by Geodesic Capital that will focus on social problem solving through technology.
Asia risk: Bullish on the brink
Investors appear to be discounting Asia risk in the face of rising political concerns, ranging from North Korea to Myanmar
Sinar Mas, East Ventures, Yahoo Japan form SE Asia fund
Indonesian conglomerate Sinar Mas Group, Singapore’s East Ventures and Yahoo Japan have teamed up to launch a $150 million venture capital fund targeting technology-enabled companies in Southeast Asia.
Singapore, Australia VCs team up for $125m fund
Singapore-based VC firm Hatcher and Australian accelerator BlueChilli will jointly invest a $125 million exchange-traded fund that will back 240 start-ups globally over the next three years.
Insight leads $18m round for India's Chargebee
Insight Venture Partners has led an $18 million Series C funding round for US and India-based financial technology company Chargebee.
Secondaries: Holding patterns
Advisory firms focused on private equity secondaries are confident that Asia will fulfill its potential as an expansion market for their services. They will not be able to effectively seize the opportunity remotely
Alibaba invests $2b in Southeast Asia's Lazada
Alibaba Group will invest an additional $2 billion in PE-backed online retailer Lazada. It brings Alibaba’s total commitments to the Singapore-based company to $4 billion.
China's CIC sets up $184m cross-border tech fund with Ireland
China Investment Corporation (CIC) has teamed up with state-controlled Ireland Strategic Investment Fund (ISIF) to launch a EUR150 million ($184 million) cross-border technology fund.
HarbourVest closes flagship fund-of-funds at $1.7b
HarbourVest Partners has closed its latest fund-of-funds targeting European and Asian markets with $1.7 billion in commitments.
OTPP appoints Asia head
Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan (OTPP) has appointed Datuk Ben Chan, formerly of Malaysia’s Khazanah Nasional, as regional managing director for Asia Pacific.
Deal focus: Electrify’s energy vision switches on VCs
Asian VCs lead a $30 million initial coin offering for Singapore-based blockchain-enabled power marketplace Electrify
Korean cross-border fund supports US solar panel buyout
The Corporate Partnership Fund (COPA Fund), a cross-border program backed by Korea's National Pension Service (NPS), has joined Korea Electric Power Corporation (KEPCO) in the acquisition of three US solar power projects.
Australia invests $12m in domestic agtech ecosystem
The state government of Victoria in Australia has confirmed a plan to invest A$15 million ($12 million) in the local agricultural technology sector.
Cybersecurity: The dark side of disruption
Asian GPs are putting themselves at unnecessary risk by failing to prioritize cybersecurity. However, even smaller players with fewer resources at their disposal can implement effective countermeasures
Singapore's GTR Ventures invests five fintech companies
GTR Ventures, a Singapore-headquartered VC firm launched last September, has made its debut investments in five financial technology companies.
Actis leads $82m round for India's Pine Labs
Emerging markets-focused private equity firm Actis has led an $82 million funding round for Indian financial technology company Pine Labs.
VCs invest $27m in Asian expansion for US-based Yogome
US-based Exceed Capital Partners has led a group of international VCs in a $26.9 million investment aimed at supporting an Asian expansion by domestic educational technology company Yogome.
MDI leads $10m round for Australia's Whispir
MDI Ventures, the corporate VC arm of state-controlled telecommunications firm Telkom Indonesia, has led a $10 million funding round for Australian communications platform Whispir.