Articles by Justin Niessner
TPG joins round for India’s Ess Kay Fincorp
TPG Capital, Norwest Venture Partners, and Evolvence India have jointly led a $33 million investment in Indian non-banking finance company Ess Kay Fincorp.
India start-ups: Land of the giants
Indian investors are savoring a rapid proliferation in billion-dollar technology start-ups, but as the unicorn heap gets bigger, an almost unrecognizable economy will pose new challenges
India's Paytm raises $1b
Indian mobile payment and e-commerce platform Paytm has raised a $1 billion Series G round led by T Rowe Price.
Cento leads $52m round for SE Asia payments player
Cento Ventures has led a $52 million round for 2C2P, a Singapore and Bangkok-based payments platform that claims to serve some 620 million customers across Southeast Asia.
Y Combinator abandons China program
Silicon Valley-based accelerator Y Combinator has terminated its recently launched China program citing a change in its US leadership.
China’s MSA Capital, Bahrain bank launch $50m VC fund
Beijing-based MSA Capital and Al Salam Bank-Bahrain have set up a $50 million VC fund that will target cross-border opportunities between China and the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region.
Vietnam's Sendo raises $61m Series C
Vietnamese e-commerce company Sendo has received $61 million in Series C funding from a group of investors including SBI Group and SoftBank Ventures Asia.
Maritime start-up accelerator launched in Singapore
US-based accelerator business Techstars and Singaporean logistics giant Eastern Pacific Shipping have teamed up for a maritime start-up accelerator in Singapore.
Warburg Pincus, Bessemer invest India's Perfios
Warburg Pincus and Bessemer Venture Partners have led a $50 million Series B round for Indian financial technology provider Perfios.
Japan's SmartNews secures $92m Series E
Japan-based news app SmartNews has closed its Series E round at $92 million with contributions from Japan Post Capital and Globis Capital Partners.
Profile: Jungle Ventures' Amit Anand
Across the checkered early stages of his career, Amit Anand intuitively gravitated toward the technological engine of developing Asia. This underpinned the creation of Jungle Ventures
Chinese GPs back $120m Series B for OPay
A group of Chinese investors including Gaorong Capital and Sequoia Capital China have joined a $120 million Series B round for Nigerian logistics and payments technology company Opay.
Advent buys Indian biopharma player
Advent International has agreed to acquire a controlling position in Bharat Serums and Vaccines, an Indian biopharmaceuticals supplier focused on the women’s health segment.
Norwest raises $2b for latest global VC fund
Norwest Venture Partners, a US-headquartered investor with a strong presence in India, has closed its latest global VC fund at $2 billion. It is the firm’s largest vehicle to date.
Blackstone commits $244m to India's Future Lifestyle Fashions
The Blackstone Group has agreed to invest INR17.5 billion ($244 million) in India-listed clothing retailer Future Lifestyle Fashions (FLF).
Tech, policy changes the main risks in energy – AVCJ Forum
Technology disruption and short-term policy changes are the two key challenges facing investors in the energy sector, industry participants told the AVCJ Forum.
Pavilion, Gobi lead $18m round for Indonesia's Travelio
Pavilion Capital and Gobi Partners had co-led an $18 million Series B round for Indonesia’s Travelio, an Airbnb-style home rentals start-up.
India’s Sanaka Capital invests $44m in Edelweiss
Sanaka Capital, an Indian private equity firm established by Shankar Narayanan, formerly co-head of The Carlyle Group's Asia growth team, has agreed to invest $44 million in local financial conglomerate Edelweiss.
Fundraising gap impedes mid-market exits – AVCJ Forum
Polarization in fundraising has left middle-market investors with difficult options for realizing exits, according to industry participants at the AVCJ Forum.
GPs see specialization as antidote to challenging market - AVCJ Forum
Investors at the AVCJ Forum offered optimistic outlooks for 2020 but said tighter deal markets would demand specialization in defensive sectors and a closer watch on valuations.
LPs rank attitude higher than policy in ESG – AVCJ Forum
Investing with an environmental, social, and governance (ESG) mindset in Asia is more important than having an ESG policy, LPs told the AVCJ ESG Forum.
Korean mobile app market One Store gets $86m
One Store, a Korean mobile app market controlled by SK Telecom, has raised a KRW100 billion ($86 million) round led by local VC firm Kiwoom Investment.
Due diligence & psychology: Internal audit
PE investors – whether they are putting money into companies or funds – must apply more psychologically informed tactics to remain competitive. It is the industry’s most intellectual frontier
Alibaba invests $3.3b in logistics affiliate Cainiao
Alibaba Group has enlarged a controlling stake in its PE-backed shipping affiliate Cainiao Smart Logistics Network with a $3.3 billion investment.