Weekly digest - April 21 2021

21 April 2021

COVER STORY

MOBILITY: GRAVITATIONAL SHIFT

The automotive industry's VC overtures might be in retrograde, but traditional carmakers are finding new ways into mobility innovation. This creates new dynamics for financial investors.

Read more

TALKING POINTS

DIGITALIZING INDIA

Reliance Industries raised about $26 billion last year based in part on a pitch to bring India's small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) online. The combination of Jio Platforms, JioMart and Reliance Retail will digitalize the entire value chain, from ordering to fulfilment to the tech infrastructure that underpins it all.

It has become a familiar refrain, though sung to different tunes. Amazon wants to bring one million offline retailers and neighborhood stores on to the Amazon India marketplace by 2025 as part of efforts digitize the operations of 10 million SMEs. A $250 million fund has been established to support start-ups that contribute to this agenda.

Meanwhile, more than $300 million has been invested in B2B trading platforms in the past couple of months, with Zetwerk, OfBusiness and Infra.Market among the main recipients. They all essentially target SME customers in different verticals, offering better access to raw materials, equipment, logistics services, and financing by aggregating demand.

It remains to be seen which model transfers most easily from theory to execution at scale.

In Depth:
• India technology: The Jio Effect - March 2020

PROFILE

C.Y. HUANG OF FCC PARTNERS

Moving from advisor to investor and back again, C.Y. Huang has carved a niche in Taiwan's M&A and private equity world. But he remains conscious of the need to adapt and evolve.
Read more

DEAL FOCUS

LOYAL VALLEY REALIZES $600M FROM THE BILIBILI SHOW

Chinese video-streaming platform Bilbili has won the hearts, minds, and wallets of users amid an intensifying content-based battle. Loyal Valley Capital picked an opportune time to make a partial exit.
Read more

FUND FOCUS

LAKESHORE REMAINS ONE OF THAILAND'S FEW

Thailand is hardly a hotbed of private equity activity in Asia, but Lakeshore Capital has demonstrated an ability to deploy and return capital. It now has a $150 million second fund to put to work.
Read more

DEAL FOCUS

PLUS PULLS FINANCIAL, STRATEGIC LEVERS

China's first autonomous driving truck will shortly enter mass production, courtesy of Plus and its array of private equity and automotive industry supporters.
Read more

DEAL FOCUS

CENTURIUM, JOY RE-UP IN CHINA'S LUCKIN

The investors' $250 million commitment to the scandal-hit Chinese coffee shop chain is positioned as a demonstration of faith in its business model and ability to turn profitable by 2023.
Read more

A BIG WEEK FOR

GRAB

Well, yes. The Grab transaction is significant in all kinds of ways, not least as the largest-ever merger with a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC). The business will list at an enterprise valuation of $30.4 billion, more than twice the expected valuation of the Series H round it was raising last year. The deal underlines the potential of SPACs in bringing liquidity to Southeast Asia's unicorns, but this route isn't for everyone. It is estimated only half a dozen other companies - of sufficient scale to be relevant to a SPAC raised out of the US - in the region would be ready to do an IPO in the next 12 months.

SEEN AND HEARD

ENPACT ON START-UP HUBS

Singapore is the most start-up friendly city in Asia, according to German entrepreneur services provider Enpact. The city-state scored 66.09 out of 100 in the Startup Friendliness Index (SFI), which excludes mainland Chinese cities. The study noted Singapore's status as a primary incorporation hub, government support for entrepreneurship, and relatively easy access to financing, while noting that limited human capital remains a challenge.
Read more

SEEN AND HEARD

MONK'S HILL ON TECH TALENT COMPENSATION

Explosive growth in Southeast Asia's start-up ecosystem is creating a talent squeeze, according to Monk's Hill Ventures' tech talent compensation report. Companies are struggling to scale engineering and product teams post-funding, under pressure to deliver products despite a lack of technical talent, and unable to match packages offered by larger peers.
Read more

The rest of the week

FUNDRAISING

• China's Hike Capital seeks $300m for Fund III

• CPE hits $1.8b first close on China fund

• Singapore's Genesis closes $80m venture debt fund

• Alpha JWC seeks $250m for third Indonesia VC fund

• Japan's Samurai Incubate raises Africa fund

DEALS

• KKR, DCP back China's Adopt A Cow

• Media SPAC legitimizes MENA for Asia investors

• Kakao spins out online fashion unit, buys VC-backed Zigzag

• China home fitness brand Fiture raises $300m

• India's PE-backed Pine Labs acquires Malaysia's Fave

For your calendar

UPCOMING EVENTS

• April 29 - AVCJ SPACs Spotlight

• May 27 - AVCJ Vietnam Forum

• July 26-28 - AVCJ Australia & New Zealand Forum

• August 3-4 - AVCJ Singapore Forum

Regional Reports

Industry Review

Weekly digest - April 21 2021

Asian GPs slow implementation of ESG policies - survey

Singapore fintech start-up LXA gets $10m seed round

India's InCred announces $60m round, claims unicorn status

Insight leads $50m round for Australia's Roller