Regions
PE-backed film studio gets funding from China’s Huayi
STX Entertainment, a Hollywood studio set up with support from Hony Capital and TPG Capital, has secured a three-year financing deal with China’s Huayi Brothers Media Corp. to release 12-15 movies a year by 2016.
China investors agree $3.3b deal for Philips LED unit
A Chinese consortium led by Go Scale Capital will buy an 80.1% stake in Philips’ combined LED components and automotive lighting unit at an enterprise valuation of $3.3 billion.
Creador to seek $450m for Fund III
Creador is preparing to launch its third Southeast Asia- and India-focused fund with a target corpus of $450 million. This comes barely eight months after the GP closed its second fund at $330 million.
Bain-owned MYOB targets $638m in Australia IPO
MYOB, an Australian accounting software developer owned by Bain Capital, is seeking to raise up to A$833.8 million ($635.5 million) through an IPO on the Sydney bourse. The PE firm will not sell any shares in the offering.
India's AppsDaily raises 16m Series C from Zodius, others
Zodius Capital has led a $16 million Series C round for Indian mobile app developer and distributor AppsDaily, with participation by current investors Kalaari Capital, ru-Net Ventures and Qualcomm Ventures.
Japan news app raises another $10m from VCs
SmartNews, the Tokyo-based start-up behind the news curation app of the same name, has raised $10 million in another round of funding led by Japanese internet gaming firm Gree.
Japan's Beenos leads $2.5m Series A for flea market app
Japanese e-commerce incubator Beenos has led a $2.5 million Series A round of funding for Southeast Asian flea market app Duriana. Existing investors also took part in the round.
Mayfield, Kalaari back India-based travel itinerary site
Kalaari Capital and Mayfield have committed $3 million in Series B funding to Indian travel planning site TripHobo.
China exits: Liquidity lags
Despite the return of domestic listings, many China PE investors are struggling on distributions. Much rests on the success of IPO reforms, the ability to execute trade sales, and an unblocking of the secondary market
India microfinance: Acorns to oaks
Several large funding rounds – plus the birth of a new bank – have shown how far India’s microfinance institutions have come in just four years. But more is to come, and more VC backing will be required
China's middle market: Small is beautiful
What has become of China's middle-market GPs? Twelve managers reached final closes in 2014 of $301-750 million. All bar two of them were raising venture capital funds.
Catapult steers through new waters
When employees at Australian Reef Pilots (ARP), which provides pilotage services through the Great Barrier Reef and Torres Straits, wanted to engineer a management buyout (MBO), they found help from a newcomer to the private equity industry: Catapult...
PEs seek a harvest in rural India
A tractor is one of the most versatile tools on a farm, but it is out of reach for many in rural India because they have no access to credit.
LP interview: PGGM
Following the decision to sell AlpInvest Partners, Dutch pension fund PGGM set up its own PE division. There is a preference for buyouts in Asia’s developed markets and a growing appetite for co-investment
Allegro Funds buys Australia's Great Southern Rail
Allegro Funds has agreed to buy a 100% stake in Australian railway company Great Southern Rail (GSR) from its UK parent Serco.
India's LimeRoad raises $30m Series C round
Tiger Global has led a $30 million Series C round of funding for India LimeRoad, an online social discovery platform aimed at women. Lightspeed Venture Partners and Matrix Partners India also took part in the round.
Magma Fincorp raises $80m from KKR, Leapfrog, IVFA
Magma Fincorp, an Indian non-banking finance company (NBFC), has raised INR5 billion ($80 million) from KKR, LeapFrog Investments, and India Value Fund Advisors' (IVFA) Indium V.
Mercurius Capital launches $80m PE fund with Chinese firm
Mercury Capital Investment, a subsidiary of Singapore-listed Mercurius Capital Investment, has teamed up with a Chinese real estate developer to launch a RMB500 million ($80 million) PE fund targeting urbanization projects in China.
Banyan leads $50m Series A for China education platform
Banyan Capital has led a $50 million Series A round of funding for Genshuixue, committing $41 million to the online education platform.
PE-backed Meinian Onehealth to list via reverse merger
Meinian Onehealth Healthcare Group, the largest private provider of preventive healthcare check-up services in China and a portfolio company of The Carlyle Group among others, plans to list in Shenzhen through a reverse merger with Jiangsu Sanyou Group.
India's IL&FS divests stake in Maharashtra Natural Gas
IL&FS Investment Managers has fully divested its stake in Maharashtra Natural Gas (MNGL) to Indraprastha Gas (IGL), securing a cash multiple of 4.1x.
IDG commits $24m to Kingsoft’s cloud computing unit
IDG Capital Partners has agreed to invest $24.06 million in Kingsoft Cloud Group as part of a funding round led by the cloud computing venture’s parent company, Kingsoft.
China fund to lead $5b investment in Indonesia industrial park
China Minsheng Investment, a private equity firm set up last year by the former head of China Minsheng Banking Corporation, will lead a $5 billion investment in an Indonesian industrial park.
CMC, New Horizon lead $60m round for China education site
CMC Capital Partners and New Horizon Capital have co-led a $60 million Series D round of funding for Yuantiku, valuing the Chinese online education platform at $360 million.