North Asia
Japan's LayerX extends Series A to $67.5m
Japanese enterprise billing and invoicing software provider LayerX has raised JPY 2bn (USD 13.2m) from Hong Kong’s Keyrock Capital Management, lifting its Series A round to around USD 67.5m
Integral makes partial exit from Japan’s Skymark
Japanese private equity firm Integral Corporation has sold most of its remaining position in Skymark Airlines, the budget air carrier it took public in December last year.
Q&A: BPEA EQT’s Jean Eric Salata
Jean Eric Salata, head of BPEA EQT and chair of EQT Asia, on the benefits of diversification, why Asia’s limited reliance on leverage could lead to better relative performance, and being creative with liquidity
Asia’s LP landscape: North to south
Pools of institutional – and less institutional – capital in Asia are deepening, but it remains a multi-speed market with some investors just beginning their alternatives journey and others achieving maturity
Japan's Sensyn Robotics raises $15m
Japan’s Sensyn Robotics, which develops drones for various industrial inspection applications, has raised JPY 2.25bn (USD 15m) in growth funding from several local banks and VC investors.
Japanese digital alternatives platform gets pre-Series A
Luca, a Japan-based fundraising platform that aims to give local high net worth investors access to alternatives, has received seed-stage funding from VC investors.
T Capital exits Japan confectionery business
Japanese middle market private equity firm T Capital Partners has agreed to sell its majority stake in Confex Holdings, a wholesale confectionery products business, to Yamae Group Holdings for JPY 16.1bn (USD 107m).
Hahn acquires SKC's ceramics business for $267m
Korean private equity firm Hahn & Company is set for its sixth deal in five years involving local conglomerate SK Group, having agreed to carve out a fine ceramics business for KRW 360bn (USD 267m).
Japan's Integral agrees strategic exit for fertiliser maker Nitto FC
Japanese GP Integral Corporation has agreed to sell fertiliser maker Nitto FC to Ichinen Holdings, a listed automotive supplier with interests in industrial chemicals, for an undisclosed sum.
Money train: Raising capital out of Asia
Fundraising difficulties at home are prompting some US and European GPs to target Asian capital pools that they previously overlooked. It requires patience and persistence
Partners Group strengthens Japan private wealth coverage
Partners Group has recruited Tatsuro Aoyama to its private wealth team in Japan with a brief to build out relationships with local distribution partners.
Diageo sells whisky brand to Korean turnaround investor
Global beverage giant Diageo has agreed to sell Windsor, Korea’s best-selling whisky brand, to Pine Tree Investment & Management following the collapse of a transaction involving other Korean private equity firms.
SparkLabs launches Korea deep tech fund
Early-stage VC investor and accelerator SparkLabs Korea has achieved a first close of USD 15m on a deep tech fund. That target corpus has not been confirmed.
PE-owned Kokusai Electric gains on debut after $720m Japan IPO
KKR-owned Kokusai Electric gained 28% on debut after raising JPY 108.3bn (USD 720m) in Japan’s largest IPO in five years.
Korea's STIC to exit biofuels player to PE-backed consortium
Korea’s STIC Investments has agreed to sell biofuels producer Daekyung Oil & Transportation to a consortium backed by SK Group, Korea Development Bank (KDB), and Eugene Private Equity.
Korea's VIG seeks $1.1b for Fund V
South Korean mid-market private equity firm VIG Partners has launched its fifth fund with a target of USD 1.1bn, seeking to replicate the even split between domestic and foreign capital achieved in the previous vintage.
Japan plant-based meat player raises $47m
Japanese plant-based meat company Daiz has raised JPY 7.1bn (USD47.4m) in Series C funding that features Mitsubishi UFJ Capital.
East, SV target $100m for Southeast Asia-Korea fund
Indonesia-focused East Ventures and Korea’s SV Investment have launched dedicated Southeast Asia-Korea fund with a target of USD 100m.
Japan's Beyond Next raises $67m for third VC fund
Japanese deep tech investor Beyond Next Ventures has achieved a first close of JPY 10bn (USD 67.1m) on its third flagship fund. The target is JPY 25bn.
SparkLabs launches US-listed SPAC
SparkLabs Group, which operates a network of start-up accelerators and venture capital funds with a strong presence in Asia, has raised USD 100m through a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) offering on NASDAQ.
Mubadala supports buyout of Korea's Osstem Implant
Mubadala Investment has invested in Osstem Implant, a Korean manufacturer of dental implants that was taken private by MBK Partners and UCK Partners (formerly Unison Capital Korea) earlier this year.
Japan's WiL joins $27m round for health platform Micin
Japan-US cross-border investor World Innovation Lab (WiL) has joined a JPY 4bn (USD 27.3m) Series C round for Tokyo-based telemedicine and health platform Micin.
VC-backed streetwear retailers Kream, Soda to merge
Korean streetwear retailer Kream has paid KRW 97.6bn (USD 72.1m) for a 43.6% stake in Japanese counterpart Soda as part of a merger of the two VC-backed businesses.
Q&A: ADM Capital’s Chris Botsford
Chris Botsford, co-founding partner and CIO of Asia-focused private credit provider ADM Capital, on linking financial and sustainability outcomes, the merits of SMAs, and opportunities in complexity