Articles by Alvina Yuen
VIDEO: Paul Strecker of Shearman & Sterling
The Chinese government's decision to allow overseas private equity investments by domestic insurers will be a boon for global fundraising, according to Paul Strecker, head of Shearman & Sterling's Asia M&A group
Actis launches fourth India-focused fund
Actis Capital is raising its fourth India-focused fund, four years after its predecessor closed at $500 million. The move comes at a difficult time for the Indian fundraising environment, resulting in some GPs dropping out of the market while others take...
China eases restrictions on mutual funds to include private vehicles
China is planning to bolster the equities market by allowing brokerages and insurers’ asset management units to launch mutual funds. “Sunshine” funds, which traditionally invest privately raised capital in listed companies, will also be eligible.
Founder of SAIF-backed NVC Lighting sells a 12% stake
Wu Changjiang, founder and former chairman of NVC Lighting Technology Corp, a Hong Kong-listed lighting company backed by SAIF Partners, has agreed to sell close to two-thirds of his stake to Elec-Tech International (HK), another China-based lighting...
Taiwan's Chinatrust in talks to buy Tokyo Star Bank - report
Chinatrust Commercial Bank, one of Taiwan's largest commercial banks, is reportedly in talks to acquire Tokyo Star Bank for JPY50 billion ($582 million). Tokyo Star's shareholders, which include Lone Star Funds, have previously struggled to find interested...
India's Essel Group to launch private equity fund
Essel Group, the Indian conglomerate headed by media mogul Subhash Chandra, has set up a new investment arm - Essel Financial Services - that will target private equity, infrastructure, real estate and financial services.
Equis closes first fund at $647m
Equis Funds Group, a pan-Asian fund manager focused on Asian energy and infrastructure, has closed its first private equity fund - Equis Asia Fund I - at $647 million, exceeding its initial target of $500 million.
Riverside-owned Retail Zoo completes Australia bolt-on
Retail Zoo, an Australia-based restaurant chain backed by The Riverside Company, has completed the bolt-on acquisition of Cibo Espresso, a franchiser of espresso bars in South Australia and Queensland.
Baird teams up with Axis Capital for cross-border investment banking
International asset manager Baird is forming a strategic alliance with Axis Capital, the investment banking subsidiary of India’s Axis Bank, to focus on cross-border M&A between India, Europe and the US.
IFC to provide $25m to General Atlantic-backed Fourcee
International Finance Corporation (IFC), the private investment arm of the World Bank, will provide a loan of $25 million to Fourcee Infrastructure Equipments, an Indian logistics firm backed by General Atlantic (GA) and India Equity Partners.
TPG-backed Li Ning warns of loss for 2012
Li Ning, the Chinese sportswear retail group backed by Government of Singapore Investment Corporation (GIC) and TPG Capital, will record a substantial net loss for the year based on its preliminary review for the 11 months ended November.
China removes QFII cap on sovereigns, central banks
China's State Administration of Foreign Exchange (SAFE) has removed the $1 billion limit on quotas for sovereign wealth funds, central banks and monetary authorities under the Qualified Institutional Investor (QFII) program.
Hony invests in China International Marine Containers
Hony Capital has secured a 5.16% stake in China International Marine Containers (CIMC), the state-owned container producer that intends to shift its listing from China's B-share market to the Hong Kong Stock Exchange.
PE-backed Bharti Infratel IPO oversubscribed
The $830 million IPO of Bharti Infratel, the Indian telecoms infrastructure subsidiary of Bharti Airtel, was oversubscribed by investors on Thursday. The intended flotation – which has been mooted for more than a year – will be the country’s largest in...
Hong Kong tightens rule for IPO sponsors
The Securities and Futures Commission (SFC), Hong Kong’s stock market regulator, is looking to strengthen investor protection by tightening regulations on IPO sponsors. Under the new regulation, sponsors will be made liable for civil and criminal action...
Actis exits hotpot chain Xiabu Xiabu to General Atlantic
Actis has exited Chinese hotpot chain Xiabu Xiabu to General Atlantic after an investment period of four years.
China wine funds: Sour grapes?
Wealthy Chinese may recognize wine’s investment potential, but inexperience, taxation issues and limited access to top-tier vineyards means many domestic wine funds often promise more than they can deliver
Olympus-backed DM Healthcare targets IPO by 2015
Olympus Capital-backed DM Healthcare, a Dubai-based healthcare services provider which gets a majority of its business in the Middle East, aims to go public by 2015.
PE-backed Xiaomi gets 10% of Kingsoft's cloud computing unit
Chinese smart phone maker Xiaomi has agreed to purchase a 10% stake in Kingsoft Cloud Group, a unit of Chinese software maker Kingsoft, for $1.82 million in total.
Sutherland Global Services to acquire Apollo's PE-backed BPO arm
Sutherland Global Services, a US-based business process and technology management services, has signed a definitive agreement to acquire Apollo Health Street (AHS), Apollo Hospitals’ healthcare business process outsourcing (BPO) arm. The company is part-owned...
ChrysCapital wins major trophies at 2012 AVCJ India Awards
ChrysCapital Partners led the way at the 2012 AVCJ Private Equity & Venture Capital Awards India, claiming Firm of the Year as well as the prize for best fundraising. Meanwhile, Sanjay Nayar, CEO of KKR India, was named Private Equity Professional of...
GPs see more secondary deals, stress entrepreneur alignment – AVCJ India Forum
The Indian private equity industry is now diversifying its exit channels in the light of a conspicuous lack of public market deals, GPs told the AVCJ India Forum. Secondary transactions could be an alternative, but alignments with entrepreneurs is the...
Asia Awards: Exit of the Year – King's Safetywear
Navis Capital Partners' acquisition of King’s Safetywear in 2008 didn’t happen at an opportune time. One week after the firm completed its $62 million take-private deal and de-listed King’s from the Singapore Stock Exchange, Lehman Brothers collapsed...
Asia Awards: Fundraising of the Year – PAG
Given the challenging fundraising environment, GPs – especially first-time fund managers – should expect the marketing process to be at best protracted and at worst impossible. The notion doesn’t apply to this year’s winner of the Fundraising of the Year...