Funds
Indiareit Fund invests in luxury residential project in Mumbai
Indiareit Fund Advisors, a private equity real estate fund backed by Indian entrepreneur Ajay Piramal, has reportedly invested INR2 billion ($43.8 million) in a luxury residential project in Mumbai, which has been developed by Omkar Realtors and Developers....
Nomura appointed to oversee sale of Tokyo Star Bank
Lone Star Funds and its fellow creditors have hired Nomura to sell off Tokyo Star Bank, The Wall Street Journal reported, citing people familiar with the matter. Lone Star sold the asset to Advantage Partners (AP) less than four years ago but resumed...
Sino-Forest expected to default on $1.3b in debt
Sino-Forest, the Toronto-listed Chinese timber firm whose chairman and CEO resigned on Sunday after regulators expressed concerns about fraudulent activity, is expected to default on its $1.3 billion of debt.
ANZ linked to potential acquisitions of Tokyo Star Bank, Aozora Bank
Australia and New Zealand Banking Group (ANZ) is reportedly looking to acquire Lone Star-controlled Tokyo Star Bank or Cerberus-owned Aozora Bank.
India's Axis Private Equity to sell portfolio companies
India’s Axis Private Equity is reportedly negotiating the sale of Vishwa Infrastructure and Corrtech International, and plans to dilute its stake in Neesa Leisure through an IPO.
Infinity establishes RMB and USD funds in Chongqing
Infinity Group, an Israel-based privat equity firm created by China Development Bank and Israeli conglomerate IDB Group, has announced the establishment of the Chongqing arm in cooperation with the government of Chongqing's Banan district.
Switzerland's SIFEM converts into a development finance institution
SIFEM, a Swiss fund-of-funds investor active in Asia since the 1990s, has been acquired by the government’s Swiss Confederation division and will now operate as a development finance institution.
Secondaries in Asia: Small beginnings
The global secondary investments industry announced its arrival in Asia not with a bang, but with a spate of office rentals. HarbourVest Partners’ moved first, relocating Tim Flower, a London-based vice president, to Hong Kong in October of last year....
Secondaries: The direct approach
Working for a fund held captive or semi-captive within an investment bank is a mixed blessing. On the one hand, it promises access to deal flow and resources that independent funds can only wish for. On the other, it is hard to raise money from third...
Groupon's China JV closes offices, fires staff
GaoPeng, the Chinese group buying site run as a joint venture between Groupon, Tencent Holdings and local private equity firm Yunfeng Capital, has closed offices in some cities and is laying off employees. Sources familiar with the situation told The...
SingTel Innov8 participates in Sentilla's $15m Series C round
SingTel Innov8 Ventures, the venture arm of the SingTel Group, has participated in a $15 million Series C round of financing launched by California-based Sentilla Corporation, a leading provider of IT infrastructure software. Other participants include...
Nexus Venture Partners prepares for $250m third fund
Nexus Venture Partners will reportedly launch the fundraising process for a $250 million fund early next year. It will be the private equity firm's third vehicle.
SAIF takes minority stake in Manpasand Beverages
SAIF Partners India has invested $10 million in Manpasand Beverages, a Gujarat-based juice manufacturing and marketing company.
Market volatility hits US-listed buyout firms
Publicly traded buyout firms have seen their share prices fall 19-27% so far in August, compared to a 9.5% drop in the Dow Jones Industrial Average. As the market troubles escalated yesterday, with the Dow retreating 3.7%, Blackstone Group, KKR, Apollo...
GSR hires former Baidu CTO as partner in Beijing
GSR Ventures has appointed Yinan Li, a serial entrepreneur who has previously served as chief technology officer at Baidu, as a venture partner. Li, 41, will be based in Beijing and focus on investments in the China wireless and internet technology spaces....
Japanese property plays
Distressed investment in Japan is very much a real estate game and the opportunities are considerable – provided you can get a seat at the table. Long-term market participants are eying office buildings in major cities such as Tokyo and Osaka, aware that...
Funds back India's rising cleantech sector
IDFC Private Equity and International Finance Corp. (IFC), the World Bank’s investment arm, reaffirmed their commitment to India’s clean energy sector in two separate deals announced last week. The transactions come a few weeks after a UN Environment...
AVCJ Forum: More than meets the eye
In the June 22 edition of this column, I shared a conversation with a venture capitalist about the reasons why it makes sense for VCs to attend the AVCJ Forum (www.avcjforum.com) in November. Basically, senior partners of the larger private equity and...
Tudou raises $174m in NASDAQ IPO
Venture capital-backed Chinese video site Tudou has raised $174 million through its NASDAQ IPO, surpassing the $100-150 million target it set earlier this year.
Blackstone hunts for financing for Valad acquisition
Blackstone is reportedly seeking A$431 million ($452 million) in financing to complete its purchase of distressed Australian property group Valad, and will tap investors in Australia and Greater China for the money.
SAIF, IDG team with Hollywood producer to release Chinese films globally
Hollywood entertainment company Relativity Media has teamed with SAIF Partners and IDG China Media to launch a $100 million fund that will produce and distribute China-focused film content and release it to global moviegoers.
AXA Private Equity raises $3b for secondary fund
AXA Private Equity has raised $3 billion for its latest secondary fund. It is targeting a final close of $3.5 billion for AXA Secondary Fund V, having set the hard cap at $4 billion, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing a person familiar with the...
CAS Capital to exits controlling stake in Japanese restaurant chain
CAS Capital will sell controlling stake in Japanese restaurant chain Kazokutei to H2O Retailing, a listed holding company of Hanshin and Hankyu Department Store Groups, through a tender offer buyout.
Carlyle, Unison sell nearly half of Covalent for $450m
The Carlyle Group and Unison Capital has sold part of Covalent Materials, a Japanese silicon wafer and ceramics manufacturer to Taiwanese solar wafer maker Sino-American Silicon Products (SAS). The deal size has not been disclosed, but it is thought to...