Articles by Justin Niessner
India's Kae Capital closes Fund III on $94m
Indian seed-stage investor Kae Capital has closed its third flagship fund at about INR 7.7bn (USD 94m) with about 40% of the capital coming from overseas investors.
Qualcomm backs India EV maker Ultraviolette
Qualcomm Ventures and Lingotto, the largest shareholder in Ferrari, have invested in India’s Ultraviolette Automotive, an electric vehicle maker focused on two-wheelers.
Singapore's Wavemaker names new general partner
Singapore-based Wavemaker Partners has appointed Andy Hwang, an angel investor and start-up mentor transitioning into venture capital, as a general partner.
Australia's ABGF invests $10m in local tourism player
Australia Business Growth Fund (ABGF), a partially government-backed investor that backs small to medium-sized companies, has invested AUD 15m (USD 10m) in local tourism company HMC Group.
Korea laundry start-up gets $36m Series C
H&Q Korea has led a KRW 49bn Series C round for Korean laundry app provider Laundrygo with support from SoftBank Ventures and Altos Ventures.
Deal focus: KKR agrees first Australia growth tech deal
KKR has led a USD 68m Series B round for Australia’s Advanced Navigation, an autonomous systems developer for robots and vehicles used everywhere from the freeway to orbit
Japan PE sees digitalisation as national imperative – AVCJ Forum
Digital transformation is an urgent social issue as much as an operational one, Japan-focused investors told the AVCJ Private Equity & Venture Forum.
GSV leads $45m round for India's Simplilearn
GSV Ventures has led a USD 45m round for Indian education technology provider Simplilearn. The Blackstone Group acquired 70% of the company last year for USD 250m.
Tread more cautiously in PE-infra overlap – AVCJ Forum
Investors are increasingly challenged to reconcile a vanishing divide between some infrastructure and PE strategies, the AVCJ Private Equity & Venture Forum heard.
Uncertainty prompts deal financing discipline – AVCJ Forum
Large-cap buyout investors told the AVCJ Private Equity & Venture Forum they are hesitating to underwrite higher returns as debt terms tighten in cloudier market conditions.
Australia cultured meat start-up gets $49m Series A
Blackbird and Prosperity7 Ventures, a unit of Saudi Arabian oil company Aramco, have led a USD 49.2m Series A round for Australian cell-cultured meat company Vow.
Crypto's hyped transparency remains muddy – AVCJ Forum
Centralised finance (cefi) manifestations of decentralised finance (defi) technologies are becoming problematic for mainstream investors, the AVCJ Private Equity & Venture Forum heard.
India fintech player Lentra gets $60m Series B
India’s Lentra, a financial technology provider focused on cloud-based lending, has raised USD 60m in Series B funding led by Bessemer Venture Partners and SIG Venture Capital.
LPs' ESG checklists get ever more intricate – AVCJ Forum
LPs want more nuanced emissions measurement from their portfolio managers, the AVCJ ESG Forum heard.
KKR leads $48m Series C for Indonesia's Privy
KKR has led a USD 48m Series C round for Privy, an Indonesia-based company that specialises in technology for providing legally binding digital signatures.
Wavemaker hits first close on SE Asia climate fund
Singapore’s Wavemaker Partners has hit a first close of USD 13m on its debut impact fund, which focuses on climate themes in Southeast Asia. The target is USD 25m.
Deal focus: NSSK builds out drugstore empire
NSSK found a rare succession-driven special situations deal in Japan’s prosperous healthcare space with pharmacy operator Kraft. It is the eight-year-old private equity firm’s largest deal to date
Investcorp, Fung Capital launch $500m GBA fund
Bahrain-headquartered Investcorp and Fung Capital, the PE investment arm of Hong Kong’s Fung Investments, have established a USD 500m Greater Bay Area (GBA) fund.
Roc leads Series B for Australia carbon credits specialist
Australia’s Roc Partners has led a AUD 55m (USD 35.6m) Series B round for local carbon credits platform and sustainability advisory Viridios Group.
India's Jashvik Capital reaches first close on debut PE fund
India’s Jashvik Capital, a private equity firm set up by Naresh Patawari, formerly a partner at TA Associates, has achieved a first close of undisclosed size on its debut fund. The target is USD 350m.
Australia's Square Peg raises $550m across two VC funds
Australian venture capital firm Square Peg Capital has raised USD 550m across two vehicles, including its fourth flagship early-stage fund and a follow-on fund.
65 Equity invests $107m in Singapore's Cityneon
Temasek Holdings-backed 65 Equity Partners has invested SGD 150m (USD 107m) in Singapore’s Cityneon, a company that markets entertainment brands by staging elaborate events, displays, and exhibitions.
China's Welkin Capital puts IPO on hold
China’s Welkin Capital has paused a planned USD 300m London IPO for an entity seeded with assets from its debut private equity fund, citing macro uncertainty and market volatility.
US GP buys India's Acqueon from Everstone
US-based Long Ridge Equity Partners has acquired a majority stake in Indian customer engagement software provider Acqueon from Everstone Capital for an undisclosed sum.