Industry
Thailand sets up $44m in VC funds
Thailand’s Government Savings Bank and the Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET) have jointly established two venture capital funds worth a combined THB1.5 billion ($44 million).
Japanese LPs: The end of the beginning
Japan’s GPIF has finally signaled its readiness to invest in alternative assets. Though contributions will likely be slow to come and limited at first, the barest hint of its intentions has wide-ranging ramifications
China's NSSF sees returns plunge in 2016
China’s National Council for Social Security Fund (NSSF), the largest pension fund in the country, saw its investment return decline to 1.73% in 2016 from 15.19% the previous year, largely due to losses on fixed income products.
Intudo closes debut Indonesia-focused VC fund
Intudo Ventures, a newly-formed Indonesia-focused VC firm, has raised $10 million for its debut fund that will co-found and invest in early-stage companies.
Campbell Lutyens adds former GIC executive to advisory board
Placement agent and secondary transaction advisor Campbell Lutyens has appointed Kok-Peng Teh, formerly head of the special investments division at GIC Private, to its advisory board.
India's Fireside reaches $28m first close on debut fund
Fireside Ventures, an Indian VC firm set up by Helion Venture Partners co-founder Kanwaljit Singh (pictured), has reached a first close of INR1.8 billion ($28 million) on its debut fund.
India, Russia investors form $200m cross-border IT fund
India-listed Srei Infrastructure Finance and Russia’s state-backed Vnesheconombank have agreed to establish a $200 million fund that will promote IT and innovation exchange between the two countries.
ShoreVest targets $750m for China distress fund
ShoreVest Capital Partners, a China-focused distress and special situations investor created by former executives from Shoreline Capital, is looking to raise $750 million for its debut fund.
Lakson Investments becomes Pakistan's first VC firm
Pakistan’s Lakson Investments claims to have been awarded the country’s first venture capital license with the launch of a new fund that will target domestic start-ups.
IDG partners Unilever, AWS on India early-stage program
IDG Ventures India has joined Unilever Ventures and Amazon Web Services (AWS) for an initiative aimed at supporting early-stage technology start-ups in India.
Asia fundraising: Demand and supply
Capital is pouring into the asset class, globally and in Asia, to the benefit of brand-name buyout managers. Deploying a large fund in Asia means squeezing as much deal flow as possible out of each jurisdiction
Thailand's Kasikorn Bank launches $29m fintech fund
Beacon Venture Capital, the VC arm of Thailand-based Kasikorn Bank, has launched a fund aimed at financial technology start-ups with a corpus of THB1 billion ($29 million).
Hamilton Lane raises its largest-ever global secondaries fund
Hamilton Lane has closed its latest global secondaries fund at $1.9 billion. It is the largest secondaries vehicle the firm has ever raised, coming in at more than twice the size of the previous fund.
Hong Kong tech IPOs: Compromise solution
Hong Kong wants to reinvest itself as a destination for Chinese technology listings with a new board that would be open to companies that are pre-profit and have dual-class share structures. Will it fly?
L Catterton targets $1.25b for third Asia fund
L Catterton Asia – the regional arm of L Capital, which merged with US-based Catterton last year – is looking to raise $1.25 billion for its third fund.
Fund focus: Safe hands
With $9.3 billion in dry powder, KKR aims to capitalize on growing big-ticket opportunities in the region. The large and rapid fundraise is further evidence of the flight to quality among LPs
Legend raises $448m for seventh China VC fund
Legend Capital has closed its seventh China-focused venture capital fund at $448 million. The vehicle is smaller than the firm’s previous vehicle – which raised $500 million in about five months – and spent longer in the market.
Q&A: Vertex Ventures' Ben Mathias
Ben Mathias, managing director and head of India at Temasek Holdings-backed Vertex Ventures, discusses the firm’s priorities for adding value to Indian start-ups looking to the global stage
PE and Islamic finance: Underlying themes
Encouraging trends in population, social mobility, commodities, technology, and governance standards are converging on Islamic finance. PE plays a small role with strong upside in Asia
Sequoia discloses China, India fundraising activity
Sequoia Capital has topped up its fourth India fund – having closed the fifth country vehicle early last year – and disclosed that its most recent China growth vehicle closed at $899.5 million.
Fund focus: Lyfe attracts a diversified following for Fund II
Having been supported by fund-of-funds when raising its first China healthcare vehicle, Lyfe Capital has added pension funds, endowments and family offices to its $420 million second fund
Asia Alternatives gets $100m from Minnesota SBI
Minnesota State Board of Investment (SBI) has committed to $100 million to Asia Alternatives’ fifth fund-of-funds, having recently increased its exposure to the region through vehicles managed by Warburg Pincus and KKR.
KKR closes third Asian fund at $9.3b
KKR has closed its third pan-regional fund at $9.3 billion, breaking its own record for the largest pool of private equity capital ever raised for deployment in Asia. The fundraising process took less than seven months and the vehicle is said to have...
LP interview: Ekuinas
Ekuinas represents a mixed bag, serving as GP and LP and pursuing social and economic objectives. CEO Syed Yasir Arafat Syed Abd Kadir explains how the group is making a difference in Malaysian private equity