Investments
How much is too much?
KKR had received commitments of $6.2 billion for its 11th North American fund as of the end of September. The vehicle, which entered the market in early 2011, has attracted about $700 million from LPs in the last six months and questions are being asked...
Japan's NTT DoCoMo to set up $125m venture fund
Japanese mobile giant NTT DoCoMo is to set up a venture fund and incubation program targeting mobile business models and technologies.
Mumbai Angels to launch $20m sidecar fund
Mumbai Angels, an Indian investment firm focusing on early stage companies, is to launch a maiden sidecar fund of INR1 billion ($20 million) next month.
Australia’s RMB invests in card producer Placard
RMB Capital Partners, an Australian mid-market private equity firm backed by South Africa's FirstRand, has led an investment in Placard, a Melbourne-based producer of secure transaction cards. It is partnering with the existing owner and management team,...
DCM exits game developer Pokelabo to GREE
DCM has generated a 6x money multiple on its investment in social mobile game developer Pokelabo after the company was sold to Japanese media giant GREE for $175 million.
Mayfield backs Indian Incubator AngelPrime
Mayfield Fund will take a majority interest in AngelPrime, a Bangalore-based incubator. The investment will be used to support operations as well as seed capital for companies that AngelPrime plans to incubate over the next three years.
Cast your vote in the AVCJ Awards
Voting has opened for the 2012 AVCJ Private Equity & Venture Capital Awards. The region’s private equity community has until October 31 to pay tribute to the leading fundraising, investments, exits, individuals and firms of the past 12 months.
A slice of the pie: Selling a stake in the GP
PE firms have been selling stakes in themselves for as long as they’ve existed. The invasion of first-time funds into Asia creates extra opportunities for LPs keen to participate in GP economics
Matrix, Lightspeed invest $5m in India's LimeRoad
Matrix Partners and Lightspeed Venture Partners have invested $5 million in Series A funding for LimeRoad.com, a social commerce site aimed at women in India.
Japan's government to set up $500m VC drug fund
The Japanese government plans to set up a public-private fund to support research into drugs targeting cancer, hepatitis, diabetes and other difficult-to-treat diseases.
Accel, Tiger Global back Series B round for India's Commonfloor
Indian real estate and apartment management portal Commonfloor.com has raised a second round of funding from Accel Partners, an existing investor, and Tiger Global Management.
Motilal Oswal PE plans $59m impact investment fund
Motilal Oswal Private Equity plans to raise an impact investment fund with a corpus of INR2.5-3 billion ($47-59 million) that will target socially relevant businesses.
Tech-focused US M&A advisor sets up in Seoul
J. Moore Partners, a technology-focused investment bank based in San Francisco, has opened an office in Seoul as part of plans to expand into Asia. It claims to be the first US technology M&A advisory firm to establish a presence in the city.
CVC backs Australia's Mantra in Asia expansion
CVC Capital Partners will back Australian hotel group Mantra as it expands into Indonesia, Thailand and Papua New Guinea.
Jungle Ventures launches $10m 'super angel' fund
Jungle Ventures, a Singapore-based investment firm, has launched a new "super angel” fund, which has raised an initial $10 million to be invested in start-ups across Asia.
VCs invest $1.2m in Japanese website Retty
GREE ventures, NTT investment Partners and Mitsubishi UFJ Capital have jointly invested JPY100 million ($1.2 million) into Retty, a Japanese social restaurant guide.
Asian PE fundraising slips in 3Q as RMB vehicles struggle
Asian private equity fundraising reached $10.8 billion in the third quarter of 2012, continuing a downward trend that stretches back 12 months, according to provisional data from AVCJ Research. Renminbi-denominated fundraising experienced the most acute...
Fund-level due diligence: More than ticking boxes
Corrupt deals, agreements with the dishonest and lackluster returns can all be avoided by doing sufficient due diligence on a GP. But advisers say LPs in Asia sill aren’t doing enough
CHAMP makes first Southeast Asia forays
CHAMP Private Equity’s engagement with the wider Asian market began 15 years ago, before Australian Mezzanine Partners partnered with US-based Castle Harland to create the PE firm as it exists today.
Bonderman praises India finance minister
David Bonderman, founder of TPG Capital, has said that the change in the finance minister for India has enhanced sentiment about the country as a place to do business. His firm plans to put more effort into hunting down local investment opportunities...
Launching the 2012 AVCJ India Awards
India sees relatively few big-ticket private equity deals outside the infrastructure space. As such, Bain Capital’s $851 million investment in Hero Honda Motors last March, was an outlier – and by far the largest buyout of 2011.
PE-backed M&A in Asia reaches $22b in first nine months
Private equity-backed M&A in Asia Pacific ex Japan reached $22.2 billion in the first nine months of 2012, down 17% year-on-year, according to Thomson Reuters. However, the third quarter was comparatively active, with total deals worth $11 billion, up...
Motilal Oswal PE invests in Indian realty project
Motilal Oswal Private Equity Advisors has teamed up with two real estate firms - Supreme Universal and the Mirchandani Group – to invest INR600 million ($11 million) in an Indian realty project.
Corporate Japan more open to PE partnerships – AVCJ Forum
Corporate Japan is more open to the idea of working with private equity partners, but ensuring alignment of interests remains a challenge, according to David Shen, regional managing director of Olympus Capital Holdings Asia.