Funds
Contour Energy gets Asia PE backing for battery development
California-based next-generation battery developer Contour Energy Systems has closed a more than $20 million Series C round of financing led Singapore-based EDBI. CMEA Capital, Harris & Harris, Schlumberger and US Venture Partners, along with new investor...
PAG shows appetite for distress
Interest in Asian distressed assets appears to be living up to the hype, with PAG last week reaching a final close of $900 million a regional special situations fund. Several investments have already been made and more are in the pipeline, a source familiar...
SBI makes first foray into Cambodia
Japanese Financial Group SBI Holdings has entered Cambodia through the creation of a private equity fund in partnership with Royal Group, the country’s largest conglomerate. It is SBI’s second overseas joint venture vehicle this year, following the...
Colorado Group gets back on its feet
Is there life after receivership? The owners of Colorado Group are banking on it, and have injected A$70 million ($68.7 million) to resurrect the retail brand in the hopes of finding longevity the second time around.
Countdown to the AVCJ Forum
In just over a month, we will be holding our 24th Annual AVCJ Private Equity & Venture Forum in Hong Kong. As in the past, AVCJ’s annual event has attracted the biggest and most influential names in the private equity industry including such leaders...
Tata Opportunities Fund makes second close at $550m
Tata Capital has completed the second close of its latest private equity vehicle, the Tata Opportunities Fund LP, at $550 million.
PE-backed Affle gets $10m from Japan's D2 Communications
Japanese mobile advertising company D2 Communications (D2C) has invested more than $10 million in Singapore-headquartered Asian mobile media firm Affle. It joins existing backers Microsoft, Itochu Corp., Bennett Coleman & Company and Centurion Private...
Accel nears close of $150m early-stage India fund
Accel Partners is reportedly on track to raise its first India-dedicated fund - a $150 million early-stage investment vehicle – and is expected to announce a close in the coming weeks.
HDFC targets $600m property fund
Housing Development Finance Corp. (HDFC), India’s largest mortgage lender, is looking to raise a $600 million fund from overseas investors. It will be the firm’s property-focused vehicle.
Ex-EM Alternatives execs join Pomona’s Asia team
Pomona Capital has hired Ernest Lambers and John Stephens as managing directors in its London and Hong Kong offices, respectively, with a remit to focus on the firm’s investment programs in Asia and other emerging markets.
HSBC hires Glenn Kennedy to head regional alternatives sales
HSBC Securities Services has appointed Glenn Kennedy as regional head of sales and relationship management for the alternatives sector. Based in Hong Kong, he will be responsible for new and existing client relationships throughout Asia Pacific, with...
CDC focuses on direct investments, debt in India
CDC Group, the UK development finance institution, is changing its strategy in India to focus on direct investments, co-investments and debt, as well as making commitments to private equity fund managers. It will also make investments in early-stage funds.
Partners Group in mezzanine deal with Archer Capital’s QSRH
Partners Group has provided a mezzanine loan to Australian Quick Service Restaurant Holdings (QSRH), the fast food chain that Archer Capital bought from Quadrant Private Equity for A$450 million ($474 million) in June.
Sumitomo Mitsui looks to acquire distressed lender Promise Co.
Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group, Japan’s second-largest lender, will make a $2.6 billion tender offer for all shares it does not already own in distressed consumer lender Promise Co.
Mobeam gets venture capital from Asian, US funds
Mobile coupon and scanning technology developer Mobeam has closed a $4.9 million Series A venture round from Samsung Ventures, the investment arm of Korean tech giant Samsung, Mitsui, a Japanese corporate conglomerate, and US-based yet2Ventures.
Intel Capital invests $20m in Indian tech companies
Intel Capital has invested $20 million in six Indian companies, including semiconductor company Saankhya Labs and Testing Czars, a mobile application provider.
HDFC PE unit commits $90m to Bangalore IT park
The overseas private equity unit of Housing Development Finance Corp. (HDFC) has agreed to invest $90 million in a 200-acre information technology park being planned near Bangalore airport.
MLC Private Equity invests in search engine Blekko.com
MLC Private Equity, a division of the National Australia Bank, has participated in a $30 million round of funding for search engine Blekko.com, alongside the likes of Russian internet company Yandex.
Asia LPs are raising PE allocations, says Warburg Pincus’ Landy
Joseph Landy, co-president of Warburg Pincus, said that limited partners in Asia are maintaining or increasing their allocations to private equity on a percentage basis, despite the global economic downturn.
PAG raises $900m for Asia special situations fund
PAG has raised $900 million for an Asia-focused distressed asset fund. It follows a wider trend of private equity assuming the special situations role traditionally occupied by hedge funds and debt- or equity-linked capital for companies in need of funding.
VC-backed Newsummit in $100m JV with US biomed fund
Sequoia-backed Newsummit Pharmaceutical Group, a biomed developer based in Shanghai, has partnered with Cleveland Bio Fund (CBF) to launch a $100 million vehicle to invest in American medical device companies.
Australia portfolio companies: Debt burdens
High profile debt woes among portfolio companies in Australia has put some private equity firms on the defensive – for now
Submit your nominations for the 2011 AVCJ Awards
Diligent readers will recall that we’ve first announced in the August 30 issue of AVCJ that nominations for our 2011 AVCJ Asian Private Equity & Venture Capital Awards are open – to readers as well as the rest of the private equity industry.
Global buyout firms warn of tightening credit markets
Henry Kravis, co-founder of KKR, said that private equity deals are becoming more expensive as debt markets tighten and the cost of capital goes up.