Articles by Tim Burroughs
Shenzhen investors offered cash handouts for Hong Kong IPOs
Shenzhen-based venture capital investors will receive one-off cash rewards for taking companies public in Hong Kong and sponsoring special purpose acquisition companies (SPACs) that list on the territory’s stock exchange.
Affirma leads $217m investment in Korean digital insurer
Affirma Capital has led a KRW 300bn (USD 217m) funding round – at a valuation of KRW 1trn – for Carrot General Insurance, a South Korea-based digital insurer.
China fitness app Keep pursues Hong Kong listing
Keep, a China-focused fitness app operator backed by the likes of GGV Capital, SoftBank Vision Fund 2, and 5Y Capital, has filed for a Hong Kong IPO.
Australia's Morse Micro gets $95m Series B
Morse Micro, an Australian fabless semiconductor developer specialising in long-range, low-power Wi-Fi for internet of things (IoT) devices, has raised AUD 140m (USD 95m) in Series B funding.
Deal focus: Remote working delivers for Glints
An outsourced talent management service that enables companies to recruit in far-flung markets has become the bulwark of Glints’ business on the back of COVID-19, underpinning a USD 50m Series D
Deal focus: Jai Kisan taps India rural resurgence
The founders of technology-enabled credit platform Jai Kisan went against the grain by forgoing urban customers and targeting India’s rural poor. A USD 50m Series B is an indicator of its progress
Deal financing: Homegrown solutions
Private equity firms are relying more heavily on Asia-based debt investors to support leveraged buyouts amid a loan logjam in the US, highlighting the region’s innovation and durability
China's Welkin Capital targets London IPO
China-focused Welkin Capital is looking to raise up to USD 300m through an IPO for a London-listed investment entity seeded with assets from its debut private equity fund, which closed in 2017.
Korea's MegaStudy pulls plug on 35% stake sale to MBK
MegaStudy Education, a listed Korean education provider with a market capitalisation of nearly KRW 900bn (USD 660m) has decided against selling a stake to North Asia-focused private equity firm MBK Partners.
Integral pursues $144m tender for Japan office services business
Integral Corporation has launched a tender offer for Daiohs Corporation, a Tokyo-listed provider of office services – such as coffee machines and water dispensers as well as cleaning services – at a valuation of approximately JPY 20.2bn (USD 144m).
Novo Holdings leads $50m round for India's MedGenome
Novo Holdings, which manages the wealth of Denmark’s Novo Nordisk Foundation, has led a USD 50m investment in MedGenome, an India-based genetic testing business.
Orchestra Private Equity buys Japan scaffolding business
Orchestra Private Equity, which specialises in cross-border transactions involving Korea, Japan, and China, has acquired Japan-based scaffolding provider Stack for an undisclosed sum.
Allegro makes partial exit from Australian retailer Best & Less
Allegro Funds has completed another partial exit from Australian baby and kids retailer Best & Less, generating proceeds of AUD 29.7m (USD 20.2m) through a block trade.
Potentia, HarbourVest move for Australia's Nitro Software
Australia-listed productivity software provider Nitro Software has rejected a AUD 386m (USD 263m) buyout offer from Potentia Capital and HarbourVest Partners.
Anchorage buys New Zealand assets from Evolve Education
Australia-based turnaround investor Anchorage Capital Partners has agreed to buy the New Zealand business of childcare provider Evolve Education for an enterprise value of NZD 46m (USD 28.1m).
PAG buys Japanese theme park for $722m
PAG has agreed to buy Huis Ten Bosch, a Japanese theme park best known for its recreations of idyllic European cityscapes, for an equity valuation of approximately JPY 100bn (USD 722m).
Fund focus: Fundamentum finds its niche
As one of few Series B and C specialists operating in India, The Fundamentum Partnership expects to have plenty to choose from over the next two years as the glut of early-stage start-ups thins out
Fund focus: Cherubic continues to scale
Early-stage investor Cherubic Ventures initially struggled to get traction with its idiosyncratic Greater China-US strategy, but the firm sees its USD 110m haul for Fund V as validation of the thesis
Singapore HR platform Glints raises $50m Series D
DCM Ventures, Lavender Hill Capital, and listed Japanese human resources business Persol Holdings have led a USD 50m Series D round for Glints, a Southeast Asia-focused recruitment and career development platform.
Bain agrees $3b carve-out from Japan's Olympus
Bain Capital has agreed to acquire Evident, a Japan-based medical devices manufacturer best known for producing microscopes, from Olympus Corporation for JPY 427.7bn (USD 3.08bn).
Kedaara buys minority stake in India's Oasis Fertility
Kedaara Capital has invested USD 50m for a significant minority stake in Oasis Fertility, a fertility treatment business with more than 26 centres across India.
Australia's Ramsay Health Care rebuffs revised KKR buyout offer
Australia-listed hospital operator Ramsay Health Care has rejected an alternative buyout proposal from a KKR-led consortium after progress with the initial bid was slowed by the need to conduct due diligence on Ramsay Santé, the company’s separate mainland...
GPs exit Australian quantity surveyor to management
The management team of Australia-based quantity surveyor BMT Tax Depreciation has assumed control of the business, ending a seven-year holding period for private equity backers CHAMP Ventures and Yorkway Equity Partners.
AIGF closes second ASEAN fund on $127m
AIGF Advisors, a private equity firm sponsored by Japan’s Mitsubishi Corporation, has closed its second ASEAN-focused fund with JPY 17.3bn (USD 127m) in commitments.