KV Asia invests in Singapore’s Aalst Chocolate

Founded in 2003 by Richard Lee and Connie Kwan, Aalst Chocolate claims to be the first Singaporean-owned brand that can produce both chocolate covertures and compound chocolate. Aalst Chocolate exports 98% of its products to over 40 countries under five brands, supplying to ice-cream, biscuits and bakery shops, as well as chefs and other professionals in the food service industry.

"With its state-of-the-art production facility and experienced R&D capability, Aalst Chocolate is well-positioned in a growing market for quality chocolate, particularly in Asia, to become the leading chocolate manufacturer in Asia," Karam Butalia, executive chairman of KV Asia, said in a statement.

The new funds will be used to expand into new markets.

KV Asia was founded by Butalia, the former global head of Standard Chartered Private Equity, and Vibhav Panandiker, previously of SCPE and J.P. Morgan Private Capital Asia. The firm typically acquires significant or controlling ownership interests in mid-sized companies in Southeast Asia.

KV Asia is currently investing its debut fund, which has a corpus of $263 million.

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• Topics
• Southeast Asia
• Consumer
• Expansion
• Southeast Asia
• Singapore
• KV Asia
• Consumer
• Growth capital