Investments
AVCJ Awards 2023 - nominations have closed
Nominations for the 2023 AVCJ Private Equity & Venture Capital Awards have now closed. Thanks to all who participated. Voting will open in about two weeks.
Bain set for $630m buyout of Australia's Estia Health
Bain Capital has won board approval to acquire Australia-listed aged care provider Estia Health through a scheme of implementation that gives the business an enterprise value of approximately AUD 959m (USD 630m).
PE-owned Japanese drug maker seeks bankruptcy protection
Kyowa Pharmaceutical Industry, a Japanese generic drug manufacturer owned by Unison Capital, has applied for alternative dispute resolution, an out-of-court process that allows companies to continue operations while negotiating with creditors on a restructuring.
Hong Kong's Micro Connect raises $458m Series C
Hong Kong’s Micro Connect, a financier for micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs), has raised USD 458m in Series C funding. It did not name the investors.
KKR buys India pallet pooling business
KKR has paid an undisclosed sum for a majority stake in Leap India, a supply chain services provider focused on cost reduction through pallet pooling. It sets up exits for several PE investors.
Japan's I-Grid Solutions raises $21m
Japan’s The Fund, a joint venture between Mizuho Capital and VC firm Signifiant, has invested JPY 30bn (USD 21m) in local corporate energy management advisor I-Grid Solutions.
FMO invests $24m in Suminter India Organics
Netherlands-based development finance institution FMO has agreed to invest USD 24.3m in Suminter India Organics, a company that helps farmers grow and process organic foods with ethical practices.
Singapore's Nium raises capital at $2b valuation
Singapore-based payments technology provider Nium claims to have doubled its valuation in the past 24 months to USD 2bn with new investors such as US-based Bond and Moore Capital joining the capital table.
Deal focus: Topolefin finds favour as import substitution play
China-based Topolefin has gained traction thanks to breakthroughs in polymer science and the willingness of local medical equipment makers to use its components in foreign-dominated supply chains
Q&A: The Longreach Group’s Mark Chiba
Mark Chiba, group chairman of North Asia-focused The Longreach Group, on deal flow in Japan’s middle market, pursuing platform acquisitions, the rise of digitalisation, and the complexities of take-privates
Deal focus: AGIC eyes beauty with industrial characteristics
Pure Trade runs a network of third-party manufacturers that provide packaging to global beauty brands. AGIC saw an asset that sat neatly in its Asia-Europe industrial supply chain sweet spot
India edtech: Class dismissed
With investment all but evaporated and its champion in a tailspin of bad press, India’s massive online K-12 education space is in an awkward limbo. It’s a welcome correction though
Australian mining tech start-up Plotlogic raises $28m
Australian mining technology start-up Plotlogic has raised a USD 28m Series B round led by US impact investor Galvanize Climate Solutions and Schneider Electric’s SE Ventures.
RTP leads $17m round for India internet provider
RTP Global has led a USD 17m round for India’s Wiom, a home internet provider for middle and lower-middle-income customers.
PEP raises continuation fund for New Zealand's Up Education
Australia's Pacific Equity Partners (PEP) has raised a single-asset continuation fund of approximately AUD 400m (USD 268m) for Up Education, a vocational education business it has held since 2015.
China ride-hailing platform T3 gets $140m Series A extension
T3 Go, a Chinese ride-hailing platform looking to challenge incumbent market leader Didi Chuxing, has raised more than CNY 1bn (USD 140m) in an extended Series A round of funding.
Singapore's Mirxes raises $50m, files for Hong Kong IPO
Singapore-based biotech player Mirxes has raised USD 50m in Series D funding - at a post-money valuation of USD 600m - from the likes of Beijing-based Fupu Capital and Japan's Mitsui & Co, and filed to list in Hong Kong.
US sports, media-focused GP backs Australia's PMY Group
Bluestone Equity Partners, a US private equity firm specialising in sports and media, has made an investment of undisclosed size in Australia’s PMY Group, an IT provider for stadiums and arenas.
Astra leads Series D for Indonesia health-tech player Halodoc
Indonesia-based healthcare technology platform Halodoc has completed its Series D round with USD 100m in commitments. It comes more than two years after the company raised USD 80m in Series C funding.
BPEA EQT completes Vistra, Tricor merger
BPEA EQT has completed the merger of Asia-headquartered corporate services providers Vistra Group and Tricor Group through a transaction that values the combined business at USD 6.5bn.
Hong Kong's Immuno Cure raises $27m
Hong Kong’s Immuno Cure BioTech, a vaccine and antibodies developer focused on cancers, inflammatory and infectious diseases, has raised USD 27m in Series A funding featuring Gobi Partners.
BPEA EQT buys India fertility clinic business
BPEA EQT has agreed to acquire a controlling stake in Indira IVF, India’s largest fertility clinic chain, facilitating an exit for minority investor TA Associates.
Australia GP stakes investor Pacific Current gets buyout offer
Pacific Current Group, a listed Australian asset manager that takes economic interests in third-party investment managers, has become the subject of a bidding war between two industry peers.
TDK backs India smart factory start-up
TDK Ventures has invested an undisclosed sum in India’s Infinite Uptime in an apparent extension of a Series B round that has raised more than USD 24m to date.