Region
Australian online book retailer gets $13m
Booktopia, an Australian online retailer specializing in books, has closed a Series A round of A$20 million ($13.4 million), after 16 years of self-funding.
Northstar joins $20m round for Indonesia education start-up
Northstar Group and Beenext have joined a $20 million Series A round for Indonesia’s Zenius Education.
Polaris pursues take-private of Japan's Sogo Medical
Polaris Capital Group has made an offer to privatize Sogo Medical Holdings, a Japanese pharmacy chain operator and B2B healthcare management platform, at a valuation of JPY76.3 billion ($694 million).
Deal focus: Lightspeed targets solid-state LiDAR
Having assessed some 40 autonomous driving companies globally, Lightspeed China Partners decided that Hesai - a business born in the US and raised in China - is best-placed to take the technology forwards
IFU leads $23m Series B for Indian agrilogistics firm
Leap India Food Logistics (LIFL), an Indian agricultural warehousing and logistics firm, received INR1.64 billion ($23 million) in a Series B round led by the Investment Fund for Developing Countries (IFU), a Danish development finance institution.
LP interview: Manulife Investment Management
Manulife Investment Management is easing into its first Asian private markets drive with a focus on optionality. Private credit, infrastructure, and real estate are early areas of interest
Next Capital buys stake in Australian supply chain specialist
Australia’s Next Capital has acquired a stake in local supply chain services provider TM Insight as the company executes an Asian expansion.
Hahn & Co agrees $322m acquisition of SK Chemicals unit
Hahn & Company has agreed to buy the biofuels division of South Korea-based SK Chemicals for KRW382.5 billion ($322 million). It is the private equity firm’s fourth carve-out of an SK Group-owned business.
Capital Dynamics loses Asia primaries head
Kazushige Kobayashi (pictured), a Tokyo-based managing director at Capital Dynamics and head of primaries coverage in Asia, is departing the firm after nearly 10 years.
India AIFs: A new phase
Locally domiciled Alternative Investment Funds have emerged as the structure of choice for India-focused private equity firms, but the system is still troubled by some imperfections
PE-backed Akeso Biopharma targets Hong Kong IPO
Chinese biotech player Akeso Biopharma has made a second attempt at filing for a Hong Kong IPO after its previous application was rejected last month for failing to meet regulatory requirements.
NSSK sells Japan nursing care business
Japanese mid-market buyout firm NSSK has secured a partial exit from nursing care provider Vati through a sale of the business to an investor group that includes Neuberger Berman.
India's Ascent invests in women's pharma producer
Indian private equity firm Ascent Capital has invested INR1.25 billion ($17.5 million) in Naari Pharma, a women's health pharmaceutical business focused on hormonal generics.
Samsung Ventures backs Japan tourism operator
Samsung Ventures has led a group of Korean investors in a Series B round for H2O Hospitality, which claims to be Japan’s largest vacation rentals provider.
Japan's Global Brain invests biometric ID player
Japan’s Global Brain has led a Series B round of undisclosed size for Gtriip, a biometrics-focused identity authentication technology provider pursuing a pan-Asia expansion.
Australia's IFM poaches Future Fund CEO
David Neal, who has spent the last six years as CEO of Australia’s Future Fund, will succeed Brett Himbury as head of IFM Investors.
Deal focus: Navegar dips its toe in e-commerce
Navegar sees Great Deals E-commerce, a provider of delivery and digital services to traditional retailers in the Philippines, as a proxy for growth in online shopping
Portfolio level HR: Human traffic
Private equity firms in Asia are paying more attention to recruitment at the portfolio level, in some cases allocating dedicated in-house resources. How is it impacting attitudes towards leadership change?
Japan's SBI seeks $920m for technology fund
SBI Investment has launched a technology-focused VC fund, known as 4+5 Fund, with a target of JPY100 billion ($920 million).
AVCJ Awards 2019: Deal of the Year - Small Cap: AffaMed Therapeutics
CBC Group established biosimilars specialist AffaMed Therapeutics to remove uncertainties in the development process and to tap Chinese demand for affordable treatments
MSPEA backs Indian affordable housing financier
Morgan Stanley Private Equity Asia (MSPEA) has invested INR1.9 billion ($26.6 million) in Centrum Housing Finance (CHF), an Indian non-banking financial company (NBFC) that offers loans for affordable housing projects.
Joy Capital leads $88m round for China's Shihuituan
Joy Capital has announced its participation - as the lead investor - in an $88.3m funding round for Chinese community group buying platform Shihuituan, which is also known as Nice Tuan.
Northstar's Bert Kwan launches PE business with BDA
Bert Kwan (pictured) has left his role as a managing director with Southeast Asia-focused Northstar Group to launch an investment platform with M&A advisory firm BDA Partners that will initially concentrate on Vietnam.
Caldera signs up French anchor LP for Southeast Asia fund
Caldera Pacific, a consumer-focused Southeast Asian private equity firm, has secured $250 million in commitments for its debut fund, with France-based investor Argenthal coming in as an anchor LP.