Investments
Deal focus: Korean GPs seal semiconductor carve-out
Alchemist Capital Partners and Credian Partners' acquisition of MagnaChip Semiconductor’s foundry services group was the largest PE buyout in Korea during the first quarter. AVCJ and Mergermarket offer some insights
Coronavirus & Southeast Asia VC: Unpleasant surprises
Start-ups in Southeast Asia have few capital sources, so it helps that the region’s VCs are well-funded – assuming they are ready to invest
Coronavirus & North Asia VC: Diverging fortunes
Speed of response to COVID-19 has led to differing outcomes for VC investment in Korea and Japan. But structural issues are also a factor
Facebook takes 9.9% stake in Reliance's India app platform
Facebook has acquired a 9.9% stake in Jio Platforms, the holding company behind a number of apps and the parent of India's largest telecom operator.
Coronavirus & India VC: Struggling to work
Investors don’t expect business activity in India to resume until the second half. Many start-ups will be desperate for capital before then
Coronavirus & China VC: Bifurcation point
China might be emerging from the grip of COVID-19, but many start-ups face a long battle. This is when VCs find out who the winners are
Korean digital food trading platform raises $11m
Tridge, a Korean international trading platform for agricultural products, has raised $11 million in a Series B round from SoftBank.
China cancer diagnosis player ChosenMed gets Series B
ChosenMed, a Beijing-based tumor detection company has raised a Series B round of more than RMB100 million ($14 million) led by state-owned Shanghai Lianhe Investment.
Indian corporate travel booking platform raises $13m
Itilite, a platform that helps Indian corporates manage travel-related expenses, has raised $13 million in a Series B round led by Greenoaks Capital and Vy Capital.
Chinese drug developer Mabworks raises $159m Series C
Beijing Mabworks Biotech has raised a RMB1.13 billion ($159 million) Series C round led by CICC Capital, Lyzz Capital, CITIC Securities Investment, and Huge Capital.
India's NoBroker raises $80 million in Series D funding
Existing investor General Atlantic has joined Tiger Global Management in a Series D funding round for Indian real estate marketplace NoBroker.
Lightspeed leads $20m round for India conversational AI platform
Lightspeed Venture Partners and Lightspeed India Partners have led a $20 million Series B round for Indian conversational artificial intelligence (AI) provider Yellow Messenger.
Warburg Pincus buys 17% stake in China Auto Rental
Warburg Pincus has agreed to acquire a 17.11% stake in Chinese car rental business China Auto Rental (CAR) from Ucar, a chauffeured car service provider. It follows a sharp drop in CAR’s share price following a scandal at Luckin Coffee, which is backed...
Microsoft venture arm leads Series D for India's FarEye
FarEye, an Indian logistics platform, has raised $25 million in a Series D round led by M12, Microsoft's corporate venture arm.
Chinese voice recognition player AISpeech raises $58m
Chinese voice recognition player AISpeech has raised RMB410 million ($58 million) in a Series E round led by CTC Capital.
China Everbright backs smart illumination start-up
China Everbright has joined a RMB200 million ($28 million) Series C round for Yeelight, a Chinese start-up that makes smart lighting products.
Australia's Airwallex gets $160m Series D
The VC divisions of ANZ Bank and Salesforce have led a $160 million Series D round for Australian financial technology company Airwallex.
Matrix, CICC back Chinese optical chip pioneer
Lightelligence, a US and China-based manufacturer of optical chips, has raised a $26 million Series A round led by Matrix Partners China and China International Capital Corporation (CICC).
Zerobridge highlights Asia distress opportunities
Distress and special situations investors will see plenty of opportunities in Asia’s middle market as companies struggling with coronavirus-driven liquidity issues consider restructuring options, according to debt advisory firm Zerobridge Partners.
Deal focus: Integral discovers booming cosmetics niche
Now under private equity ownership, T-Garden is credited with pioneering fashion model-led contact lens marketing in Japan - and helping an often-overlooked market creep into the mainstream
LPs worried about denominator effect as capital calls rise - survey
LPs are receiving more capital calls from private equity firms following the coronavirus outbreak, with the concurrent drop in public market valuations prompting concerns about overallocation to the asset class, according to a survey by the Institutional...
India's Capital Float secures $15m funding round
Capital Float, an online lending platform for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and e-commerce financiers in India, has raised $15 million in funding from existing investors.
Tenaya Capital leads Series A round in Indonesia's Kargo
Indonesian logistics platform Kargo Technologies has finalised a IDR504 billion ($31 million) Series A round led by Tenaya Capital, formerly the venture arm of Lehman Brothers.
Japan's Paidy tops up Series C round
Japanese payments start-up Paidy has topped up its Series C round with an additional commitment from Itochu Corporation. It brings the company's total capital raised to date to $281 million.