North Asia
KKR-owned Calsonic Kansei agrees $7.1b bolt-on
Calsonic Kansei Corporation, a Japanese automotive components manufacturer acquired by KKR last year, has agreed to buy Fiat Chrysler Automobiles’ (FCA) components business for EUR6.2 billion ($7.1 billion).
SBI backs $18m round for Japan bio-robotics start-up
SBI Investment has joined a $17.7 million funding round for Meltin, a Japanese company focused on combining robotics with bio-signal processing.
Deal focus: A repeat prescription for Korean shipping
Hahn & Company has secured a $3.7 billion corporate restructuring of SK Shipping with a view to implementing the same operational improvements that have proved successful with H-Line
CLSA makes Japan staffing bolt-ons
Outsourcing Investments (OSI), a Japanese business process outsourcing (BPO) firm owned by CLSA Capital Partners (CLSA CP), has acquired two domestic staffing service providers through bolt-on transactions.
Korea's NPS taps BNK Financial head for CIO role
Korea’s National Pension Service (NPS) has appointed Hyo-Joon Ahn as its new CIO after struggling for more than a year to find a permanent occupant for the role.
Hahn & Co buys Korea's SK Shipping for $3.7b
Hahn & Company has completed what is described as one of the first successful non-government led corporate restructurings in Korea’s shipping industry with the $3.7 billion acquisition of SK Shipping.
GP profile: Advantage Partners
Having successfully overcome a series of post-global financial crisis troubles, Advantage Partners now has a multi-strand domestic and international offering intended to give it an edge in investments
TPG, SoftBank Ventures Korea team up for $300m China fund
TPG Capital and SoftBank Ventures Korea are launching a $300 million China fund that will invest in start-ups focusing on technology, media, and the internet.
Deal focus: Hahn & Co agrees transformative bolt-on
Hahn & Company has followed up its bumper acquisition of Hanon Systems by supporting the company in the $1.23 billion carve-out of a division from Manga International. The deal should bring more balance - and synergies - to the Hanon portfolio
J-Star buys Japanese fashion retailer
Japanese mid-market private equity firm J-Star has acquired Wego, a domestic fashion brand that has 185 stores nationwide and annual sales of more than JPY35 billion ($310 million).
Asia leveraged finance: Institutional aspirations
PE firms can obtain financing for leveraged buyouts in Asia on increasingly favorable terms, but this doesn’t necessarily point to institutionalization – or at least, not yet. For now, banks still lead the way
Hahn & Co-owned Hanon agrees $1.2b bolt-on acquisition
Hanon Systems, an auto parts manufacturer owned by Hahn & Company and formerly known as Halla Visteon Climate Control, has agreed a $1.23 billion bolt-on acquisition of Magna International’s fluid pressure and controls business.
Japan payments player Origami raises $60m Series C
Origami, a Tokyo-based mobile payments platform, has raised JPY6.6 billion ($60 million) in Series C funding from investors including SBI Investment, Union Pay International, Mitsui Sumitomo Card, and Credit Saison.
AIC wins domestic PE mandate from Chikyoren
Japan’s Pension Fund Association for Local Government Officials (Chikyoren), which has more than $200 billion in assets, has awarded a domestic private equity mandate to Alternative Investment Capital (AIC).
Baring Asia to invest $538m in Japan's Pioneer
Baring Private Equity Asia has agreed to invest up to JPY60 billion ($538 million) in Pioneer Corp, by subscribing to a new share issue by the struggling Japanese conglomerate.
NSSK acquires operator of Japan's Thank You Mart chain
Japanese private equity firm NSSK has acquired Elsonic, operator of the Thank You Mart retail chain, for an undisclosed sum.
Activism not yet a key driver of Korean corporate divestments - AVCJ Forum
Shareholder activism is becoming more prevalent in Korea among the country’s chaebol groups, but it still trails distress sales and divestments of non-core divisions as sources of private equity deal flow.
Korean LPs prepare for a downturn - AVCJ Forum
Korean institutional investors are reviewing their alternatives allocations – and focusing new commitments on more liquid strategies such as credit – in anticipation of a correction in global markets.
MBK to sell stake in Korean life insurer for $2b
MBK Partners is set for a full exit from ING Life Korea – now known as Orange Life Insurance – after agreeing to sell its majority stake to Shinhan Financial Group for KRW2.29 trillion ($2.04 billion).
KKR strengthens Japan private equity team
KKR has hired Kazuyuki Kido, who previously spent 20 years at SMBC Nikko Securities and Nikko Principal Investments, as a managing director in its Tokyo-based team.
Japan Post backs $94m round for US-based Cloudian
Japan Post Investment Corporation (JPIC), a direct investment unit launched by Japan Post Bank and Japan Post Insurance earlier this year, has joined a $94 million round for Japan-founded and US-based data company Cloudian.
CLSA Capital buys Japanese real estate services platform
CLSA Capital Partners (CLSA CP) has acquired House Partner Holdings, a real estate services provider focusing on apartment rental agencies in the Greater Tokyo area.
Korea buyouts: Local edge
Private equity firms must double down on local networking, due diligence, and value-add capacity as competition for deals intensifies in the Korean buyout market
Korea tender offers: Bidding on winners
Tender offers have long been overlooked in South Korea’s PE toolbox, where their traditional use in privatization deals seems to have little value. Local GPs may be able to adapt them to the market’s needs
