Regions
Asia private credit: Muffled momentum
The conservative virtues of private credit relative to private equity have come into fashion in a risk-off world. But global participation in the Asian side of the story will be limited
Deal focus: Go aims to bring Japan’s taxis up to speed
Goldman Sachs-backed taxi-hailing platform Go wants to address Japan’s taxi driver shortage and bring digitalisation to an industry that remains rooted in an analogue world
LP interview: Escala Partners
Escala Partners is one of a cluster of Australia-based wealth management platforms attracting more attention from private equity fundraisers. Getting on its approved list requires push as well as pull
Square Peg leads round for India payments start-up
Australia’s Square Peg Capital has led a USD 10.2m pre-Series A round for India-based payments technology provider XFlow.
Prosperity7 backs China autonomous driving player Hyperview
Prosperity7 Ventures, a growth equity fund established by Saudi Arabia state oil giant Saudi Aramco, has invested in Hyperview, a China-based autonomous driving technology provider.
India home appliance manufacturer Atomberg raises $86m
Steadview Capital and Singapore’s Temasek Holdings have led a USD 86m funding round for Atomberg Technologies, an India-based home appliances manufacturer best known for its electric motor fans.
China National Energy Storage raises $143m
Zhongchu Guoneng Technology (ZGT), also known as China National Energy Storage, has raised CNY 1bn (USD 143m) in Series A funding led by a China Development Bank Capital-managed fund and Xinda Kunpeng Equity Investment Management.
Japan's Heartseed raises $14m Series D
Heartseed, a Tokyo-based biotech start-up specializing in treatments that use cardiac muscle cells to initiate the remuscularization of patients who have suffered heart failure, has raised JPY 2bn (USD 14.3m) in Series D funding.
Shenzhen Capital backs Chinese titanium metal producer
Shenzhen Capital Group has participated in a CNY 2.27bn (USD 321m) funding round for Yunnan National Titanium Metal, a subsidiary of Shenzhen-listed chemicals producer LB Group.
Indonesia e-commerce player Evermos gets $39m Series C
The International Finance Corporation (IFC) has led a USD 39m Series C round for Evermos, an Indonesian social commerce platform that positions itself as an impact play.
Singapore's Qualgro seeks $150m for Fund III
Qualgro Partners, a Singapore-headquartered venture capital firm, is looking to raise USD 150m for its third fund.
PE-backed CompareAsiaGroup merges with US-listed SPAC
CompareAsiaGroup, an Asia-focused financial products comparison platform also known as MoneyHero Group, has agreed to merge with a US-listed special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) at an enterprise value of approximately USD 342m.
VC investors primed for exit with China Youzan reorganisation
Hillhouse Capital and Matrix Partners China are set for liquidity events after China Youzan, an e-commerce software-as-a-service (SaaS) business listed in Hong Kong, agreed to take full control of its key subsidiary for HKD 2.6bn (USD 334.5m).
Goldman backs Japan taxi-hailing player Go
Goldman Sachs Asset Management (GSAM) has committed JPY 10bn (USD 75m) in Series D funding to Go Inc, operator of a Japan-based taxi-hailing app.
Digital bank Tyme wins funding for SE Asia, Africa expansion
Tyme Group, an emerging markets-focused digital banking group with operations in the Philippines and South Africa, has raised USD 77.8m in pre-Series C funding. A portion of the proceeds will be used for expansion into other markets in Southeast Asia.
Australian satellite provider Fleet gets $33m Series C
Australian satellite maker and services provider Fleet has closed a AUD 50m (USD 33m) Series C round led by Blackbird Ventures following an aggressive foray into mining.
Singapore's BandLab raises $25m
Singapore-based social music creation platform BandLab has raised USD 25m from Cercano Management, formerly Vulcan Capital, a vehicle established by Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen.
Japan's Mizuho to buy M&A advisor Greenhill
Boutique investment bank Greenhill, arguably best known in private equity for advising on LP and GP-led secondary transactions, has agreed to an acquisition by Japan’s Mizuho Financial Group.
UK, India-based Builder.ai raises $250m Series D
Qatar Investment Authority (QIA) has led a USD 250m Series D round for UK and India-based Builder.ai, a low-code business software platform that compares is modularity to Lego blocks.
China generative AI start-up Luchen gets Series A funding
Luchen Technology, a Chinese start-up specialising in artificial intelligence (AI) training, has closed a Series A round amounting to several hundred million renminbi.
Energy transition: An emerging speciality
Kerogen Capital is trying to plot a more nuanced course into energy transition than building renewables. It is one of a growing number of nascent specialists in the space.
Deal focus: Investcorp finds optimal entry point with Jianuo
Investcorp negotiated its debut China control deal in the shadow of COVID-19 but expects to see long-term gains through the target company’s exposure to electric vehicles and renewable energy
Deal focus: PrimeMovers buys Malaysia machinist in debut deal
PrimeMovers, which spun out from Platinum Equity last year, and UK-based Lingotto Investment Management have jointly acquired Malaysian precision manufacturing company EngTek