North Asia
Japan sneaker marketplace raises $56m
SoftBank Ventures Asia has led a JPY6.2 billion ($56.4 million) Series C round for Japanese sneaker marketplace and e-commerce start-up Soda.
Deal focus: IMM sees structural change in home decor
Having agreed to provide a succession solution to the founder of Korean furniture retailer and interior designer Hanssem, IMM Private Equity wants to harness growth through demographics and differentiation
J-GIA carves out furniture business from Japan's Seven & i
Japan Growth Investments Alliance (J-GIA) has agreed to buy a majority stake in furniture and home décor business Francfranc – which has stores in Japan and Hong Kong – from Seven & i Holdings, the parent of 7-Eleven.
Deal focus: Fujitsu Ventures updates ancient grains
Fujitsu is bringing blockchain to the rice industry with a ramped up corporate VC agenda. Digital transformation is the goal; food security and sustainable trade are the outcomes
Portfolio: Integral Corporation and Nitto FC
Japan’s Integral Corporation treads lightly in the conservative agriculture space as it helps fertilizer maker Nitto FC evolve from an owner-centric culture to a more distributed power structure
Vision Fund commits $1.7b to Korean travel start-up Yanolja
Yanolja, which claims to be South Korea’s only travel industry unicorn, has received $1.7 billion from SoftBank Vision Fund 2. There are no other investors in the round.
Fujitsu VC unit backs rice trading platform
Fujitsu, one of Japan’s largest IT companies, is backing the world’s first digital global rice trading platform in the debut deal from its latest corporate VC fund.
GP profile: Unison Capital
Unison Capital hones its game and holds tight to its heritage as one of the pioneers of private equity in Japan, even as its tentacles begin to span the breadth of Asia
Korea's Kurly raises $200m, targets domestic listing
Korean grocery delivery platform operator Kurly has raised a $200 million Series F round at a valuation of $2.2 billion, as plans for a US IPO are scrapped in favor of a local listing.
Advantage, Tokyo Century agree Japan battery carve-out
Advantage Partners is making another investment alongside Tokyo Century Corporation – which bought a stake in the GP two years ago – with an agreement to buy a battery business controlled by local conglomerate Showa Denko.
Baring Asia secures $324m exit from Korean courier business
Baring Private Equity Asia has sold Korean courier company Logen, ending an eight-year holding period that featured a disputed – and aborted – sale to CVC Capital Partners followed by an arbitration proceeding.
Japan's Advantage adds renewables strategy
Japan’s Advantage Partners has broadened its investment scope with the introduction of a renewables and sustainability strategy.
Nippon Investment acquires Japan wine brand
Japanese private equity firm Nippon Investment Corporation (NIC) has acquired the local subsidiary of Germany-based winemaker and distributor Pieroth for an undisclosed sum.
Korea's Viva Republica raises $405m at $7.2b valuation
Viva Republica, operator of the Korean money transfer app Toss, has raised a KRW460 billion ($404 million) round led by US-based Alkeon Capital, at a valuation of around $7.2 billion.
Japan activists: Enablers or destabilizers?
The corporate governance scandal at Toshiba underlines the increasing influence of activist investors in Japan. For private equity firms, there are two sides to the coin
Korea delivery platform Barogo gets $72m Series C
Korean delivery platform Barogo has raised KRW80 billion ($72 million) in Series C funding featuring several local private equity investors, including LB Investment and STIC Ventures.
Japan's SmartHR raises $142.5m at $1.6b valuation
Japanese enterprise software supplier SmartHR has confirmed a JPY15.6 billion ($142.5 million) Series D round led by US-based Light Street Capital. It values the company at about $1.6 billion.
Deal focus: CVC gets intimate with A Bathing Ape
CVC Capital Partners has completed a complex carve-out of Japanese streetwear brand A Bathing Ape from diversified Hong Kong retail group I.T
Japan's Dentsu launches second VC fund
Japanese advertising agency Dentsu Group has set up its second corporate VC fund with a corpus of JPY10 billion ($91.1 million).
Deal focus: Hahn embarks on Korea dairy turnaround
Beleaguered by a string of scandals and unable to turn the tide of negative publicity, the family owner of Namyang Dairy Products opted to sell to private equity. His first call was to Hahn & Company
Ex-Goldman Japan strategist launches ESG VC fund
Kathy Matsui, formerly vice chair and chief Japan strategist at Goldman Sachs, has launched what is described as Japan’s first global venture capital fund focused on environment, social and governance (ESG).
Vision Fund invests $175m in Korea education start-up
SoftBank Vision Fund 2 has invested $175 million in Korean education app Riiid to build out its artificial intelligence (AI) capacities and advance a global expansion.
Japan's CyberAgent raises $55m for latest VC fund
CyberAgent Capital, a unit of Japanese advertising agency CyberAgent also known as CyberAgent Ventures, has raised JPY6 billion ($55 million) for its third flagship VC fund.
Anchor invests $550m in Japan unit of Korea's Kakao
Anchor Equity Partners, a mid-market private equity firm focused on opportunities in North Asia, with a particular focus on Korea, has invested JPY60 billion ($550 million) in the Japan unit of Korean internet giant Kakao.
