Investments
Australia's Starfish Ventures invests in email company Atmail
Starfish Ventures has invested $2 million in Atmail, a Australia-based enterprise email and web communication company. The capital will help the Atmail scale-up its technical team and expand into overseas markets.
Matrix India invests in Mewar Orthopaedic
Matrix Partners India has taken a minority stake in specialty healthcare provider Mewar Orthopaedic Hospitals for an undisclosed amount as part of a Series A round of investment.
PEP separates Braiform from portfolio company Spotless
Australia’s Pacific Equity Partners (PEP) has carved out coat hanger manufacturer Braiform from Spotless Group, the cleaning and catering contractor it acquired earlier this year. The company now reports directly to PEP.
Lone Star starts arbitration proceedings against Korean government
Lone Star Funds has initiated arbitration of its claim for damages suffered as a result of alleged unlawful intervention by the Korean government with the private equity firm’s rights as a major shareholder in Korea Exchange Bank (KEB) and other companies...
IDG-Accel China in take-private bid for US-listed Memsic
IDG-Accel China has submitted a takeover bid for NASDAQ-listed Memsic that values the semiconductor manufacturer at $96.8 million. The prospective investor would like to work with Yang Zhao, Memsic’s founder and CEO, to formulate a definitive proposal...
CDIB Capital invests in US-based Smith-Cooper
CDIB Capital, the overseas investment arm of China Development Financial Holding Corporation, has invested in Smith-Cooper International, a US-based manufacturer of pipe, valves and fittings. Blue Point Capital Partners also participated in the funding...
Everstone, ICICI invest $23.5m in Sohan Lal Commodity
Everstone Capital and ICICI Bank's Emerging India Fund (EIF) have jointly invested INR1.3 billion ($23.5 million) in Sohan Lal Commodity Management as part of a Series C round of funding. The two investors now own stakes of 25.55% and 6.93%, respectively....
VCs channel $25m into China's Innovent Biologics
Innovent Biologics, a China-based manufacturer of monoclonal antibodies, has raised $25 million in Series B financing from Lilly Asia Ventures, the VC arm of global pharmaceutical company Eli Lilly, and existing investors Fidelity Biosciences and Fidelity...
Malaysia's Ekuinas wants Icon Offshore to list by 2014
Ekuinas, the Malaysia sovereign wealth fund, plans to list its oil and gas services unit, Icon Offshore, within three years. Abdul Rahman Ahmad, the Icon’s CEO, said the company was already eligible for an IPO but they want to wait until earnings justify...
Auctions: The new normal
Private equity firms love selling assets via auction but hate buying them through such channels. As Asian company owners become more sophisticated, bidding contests for large assets are becoming more frequent.
NewQuest to invest $140m in India
Secondaries specialist NewQuest Capital Partners expects to invest about $140 million in India - almost one third of its $400 million NewQuest Asian Fund I.
Australia's PageUp People gets $10m from Accel-KKR
Accel-KKR, a Silicon Valley-based PE firm, has invested $10 million for an undisclosed stake in PageUp People, an Australian firm that provides software for tracking worker performance.
Northstar set to complete Nera telecommunications take-private
Northstar Pacific Partners has agreed to buy a controlling 50.05% stake in Nera Telecommunications from power conversion specialist Eltek and is offering to buy the entire company for S$177.3 million ($145 million). This is the Indonesian GP's first...
Australia's PEP targets $3.6b for Fund IV
Pacific Equity Partners (PEP) is targeting up to A$3.5 billion ($3.6 billion) for its fifth fund, including A$2 billion of core equity and a further $1-1.5 billion earmarked for a co-investment pool.
Ontario Teachers leads funding round for China's 360Buy.com
Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan (OTPP) has led a $300 million round of funding for 360Buy.com, China’s second-largest business-to-consumer e-commerce website by revenue.
Billabong director explores buyout options
Billabong shares spiked 17% during Monday morning trading in response to the Australian surfwear company announcing that one of its directors was looking at a possible leveraged buyout. TPG Capital and Bain Capital both submitted bids of A$694 million...
Carlyle, Seven Group plan Coates Hire sale
The Carlyle Group and Australia's Seven Group are planning to sell their stakes in Australian equipment rental company Coates Hire. The news comes after the pair failed to proceed with an A$800 million ($831 million) IPO of the company earlier this year....
Industry experts predict next 25 years of Asian PE - AVCJ Forum
The future of Asian private equity will see the rapid macro growth fuel the buy-out market while LPs demand more co-investment opportunities, said industry participants at the AVCJ Forum.
Slowdown in IPO exits is boon for trade sales - AVCJ Forum
Public market volatility has more or less cutting off IPO exits and investors don't expect a turnaround in the short term. However, PE firms that target control deals are excited by the prospects for trade sales.
SingTel Inov8 leads Series D round in mobile video firm Vuclip
SingTel Inov8, the venture capital arm of Singapore telecom giant SingTel, has led a $13 million round of series D funding in mobile video firm Vuclip.
Warburg Pincus backs India's Future Capital
Warburg Pincus' investment in Future Capital Holdings probably wasn’t the first private equity deal conceived on an evening flight from New Delhi to Mumbai and it almost certainly won’t be the last.
Permira cashes out of Galaxy at 2.8x
Thanks in no small part to the Chinese passion for gambling, Macau has emerged as the casino capital of the world in recent years, with takings six times those of Las Vegas. Permira has successfully ridden this wave, securing a 2.8x money multiple on...
Bain Capital wins Firm of the Year at 2012 AVCJ Awards
12th AVCJ Asia Awards: CVC’s Roy Kuan named PE Professional of the Year; Morgan Stanley Private Equity Asia takes Private Equity Deal of the Year; Inter-Asia’s Lewis Rutherfurd wins special achievement honor
Castle Harlan bid-rigging case goes before Australian court
A deal involving a Canadian mining services company that was bought and sold by US private equity firm Castle Harlan on the same day has gone before an Australian court.