Investments
Asia PE performance: Special measures
Asian private equity has, by some accounts, failed to meet LP expectations in terms of risk-adjusted returns. With GPs under pressure to show they can be company builders, is specialization the inevitable end game?
India's Adlabs Imagica raises $8m from NYLIM, Jacob Ballas
Indian theme park operator Adlabs Entertainment has raised INR500 million ($8.18 million) in a pre-IPO round of investment from NYLIM Jacob Ballas India, a vehicle co-owned by New York Life Insurance Company and Jacob Ballas Capital.
Morgan Stanley PE Asia backs Hong Kong financial advisor AMTD
Morgan Stanley Private Equity Asia (MSPEA) has invested an undisclosed sum in AMTD, Hong Kong’s leading independent financial planner (IFA) and insurance broker.
China downside protection: Parachute play
All PE investors want downside protection in China, but they prefer to use it as leverage in amicable negotiations rather than pursue full enforcement. Knowing the entrepreneur and the business is crucial
Korea's KIC more than doubles PE exposure in 2013
Korea Investment Corporation’s (KIC) private equity investments more than doubled in size to $2.6 billion over the course of 2013 as total assets increased 27% year-on-year to reach $72 billion.
Sinarmas supports Ardent Capital's Southeast Asia expansion
Southeast Asia-focused e-commerce investor Ardent Capital has received $12.5 million in funding led by Indonesian conglomerate Sinarmas. Existing backers also participated.
China short-selling: Short shrift?
“The chairman just threatened to have me killed.” Delivered in a panicked voice, the statement brought proceedings to a standstill. As it happened, the meeting had been convened to share the news of my imminent departure with staff. But my bombshell...
Q&A: Ekuinas' Dato' Abdul Rahman Ahmad
Part of Ekuinas' mandate is to foster the development of a domestic private equity industry in Malaysia. Dato' Abdul Rahman Ahmad, CEO of the government-supported fund, explains its approach
LPs suffer by chasing growth – AVCJ Forum
Investors in private equity funds are often preoccupied by analysis of potential growth trends and neglect close due diligence of a GP’s ability to generate value over a sustained period of time, industry participants told the AVCJ Korea Forum.
Internal strife returns to China’s NVC Lighting
NVC Lighting, a Chinese lightning products manufacturer backed by SAIF Partners and Goldman Sachs, has once again run into corporate governance problems as its founder and CEO refused to accept a board resolution that he step down.
Warburg Pincus, Baosteel in $488m industrial gases deal
Warburg Pincus and a subsidiary of Chinese steel producer Shanghai Baosteel Group have agreed to buy industrial gas assets from Henan Jinkai Chemical Investment Holding for RMB3 billion ($488 million).
India infrastructure: Building confidence
Private equity is expected to play a significant role in India's infrastructure development, but regulatory constraints and disappointing returns are a turn-off for investors. Reform is required
Thriller in Manila: PE investors target the Philippines
The Philippines is the fifth-largest economy in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and has the second-largest population. GDP growth is among the fastest in Asia. But in terms of inbound and outbound commerce the country trails its comparable...
Cross-border PE: The ASEAN angle
Ambitions of building scale underpin many private equity investments in Southeast Asia. It is remarkable – although perhaps unsurprising – how few have succeeded. So far, at least.
Temasek ups investment pace, boosts unlisted exposure
Temasek Holdings’ exposure to unlisted assets reached a record high as the state-controlled Singaporean fund made S$24 billion ($19.3 billion) in new investments for the year ended March 2014, the most in six years.
Warburg Pincus backs property developer Jinmao’s HK IPO
Warburg Pincus has agreed to buy HK$77.5 million worth of shares in Chinese property developer Jinmao Investments’ Hong Kong IPO, which is targeting up to HK$3.39 billion ($437 million).
China job site Zhaopin trading strongly after $75.7m US IPO
Chinese recruitment website Zhaopin is trading at around a 17% premium to its IPO price after raising $75.7 million through a US offering and receiving a parallel investment from Apax Partners.
China VC: The virtuous circle
China’s VC market is evolving as funds started by or raised from founders of first-generation internet firms. Concerns about conflicts of interest must be addressed, but the influence of their ecosystems will grow
Red heat: China PE on the rebound?
Investors have not been chasing as hard as they used to on opportunities in Chinese private equity these past few years. It’s not hard to understand why: the combination of slowing economic conditions, frequently unrealistic valuations, the temporary...
Providence to buy Star Group's stake in India shopping JV
Providence Equity Partners has acquired a 50% interest in home-shopping channel Star CJ Network India from Star Group. The business is a joint venture with Korea-based CJ O Shopping.
Play the man
Denham Capital's investment in Pembroke Resources appears to follow a standard pattern: Find a management team with a track record of building and selling resources companies; furnish them with start-up capital to accumulate a portfolio of assets; provide...
Asia PE fundraising slows to $6.6b in first quarter
Asia private equity fundraising came to $6.6 billion in the first quarter of 2014, according to provisional data released by AVCJ Research, down from $9.7 billion in the final three months of 2013.
Co-investment: Toe in the water
Is co-investment worth it? Absolutely, provided the LP in question has sufficient willingness, experience and resources to conduct due diligence on a deal before the window of opportunity closes.
PE-backed Tongyang Life bids for LIG Insurance
Tongyang Life Insurance, a South Korean insurer majority-owned by Vogo Investment, is among the preliminary bidders for a controlling stake in LIG Insurance.