Region
Partners Group acquires $648m MLC portfolio
MLC, the private wealth unit of National Australia Bank(NAB), has sold a A$750 million ($648 million) portfolio of private equity investments to Partners Group.
LeapFrog reaches $400m close on second microfinance fund
LeapFrog Investments - the specialist microfinance investor backed by George Soros and JP Morgan Chase - has reached a $400 million close on its second fund targeting financial services investments in emerging Asia and Africa.
Japan's Relux raises $3.1m from Recruit Holdings, others
Japanese luxury hotel booking site Relux has raised JPY330 million ($3.1 million) from Recruit Holdings and other undisclosed investors.
Gobi invests in China second-hand car trading site Mychebao
Gobi Partners has invested in a Series A round of funding for Mychebao.com, a Chinese online trading platform for second-hand cars.
Rebright leads $1m seed round for Singapore's Smove
Japanese seed investor Rebright Partners has led a $1.1 million funding round for Clean Mobility Singapore, the Singapore-based start-up behind car rental service Smove, with participation from 500 Startups and Wavemaker Pacific.
OPTrust, Catalyst consortium acquires Australia's SkyBus
A private equity consortium including Canada's OPTrust Private Markets Group (OPTrust PMG) and Catalyst Direct Capital Management has acquired Australian bus route operator SkyBus.
PE investors set for partial exits as Alibaba targets $24b IPO
Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba Group is seeking to raise as much as $24 million through a US IPO that could be the largest tech offering in history.
Unison holds $428m first close on Fund IV, eyes $714m
Unison Capital has reached a first close on its latest Japan buyout vehicle - Unison Capital Partners IV(F) - of JPY45 billion ($428 million), with the fund expecting a final close of JPY75 billion.
PE-backed China Auto Rental to raise $467m in HK IPO
China Auto Rental, a car hire firm backed by Warburg Pincus, has set terms for a Hong Kong IPO that will raise up to HK$3.62 billion ($467 million).
Foxconn invests $2m in Taiwan's AirSig
Electronics manufacturer Foxconn Technology Group has invested $2 million for a 10% stake in AirSig, a Taiwan-based mobile authentication start-up.
Providence makes partial exit from India's Idea Cellular
Providence Equity has made a partial exit from Idea Celluar, a Indian mobile network operator promoted by Aditya Birla Group, selling a 2.3% stake - or a quarter of its previous holding - for around INR14.1 billion ($234 million) via an open market transaction....
Rocket, Kinnevik to form emerging market fashion e-commerce giant
German start-up incubator Rocket Internet and Investment AB Kinnevik, Rocket's biggest backer, are to consolidate five emerging market fashion e-commerce brands into a single global company with a combined valuation of EUR2.7 billion ($3.5 billion).
UOB, Orix launch $200m SE Asia-focused mezz fund
Singapore-based United Overseas Bank Limited (UOB) and Japan's ORIX Corp. (ORIX) have launched a mezzanine fund providing expansion capital to mid-sized companies in Southeast Asia.
Shunwei, Angelvest back English evaluation firm Vericant
Shunwei Capital Partners and Anglevest have led a Series A round of funding for Vericant, a Chinese company that provides a third-party English evaluation services to North American universities.
VCs take part in $2.1m round for Japan's Innova
Nippon Venture Capital, Draper Nexus and strategic investor Salesforce.com have together invested JPY220 million ($2.1 million) on Tokyo-based search engine optimization (SEO) and content marketing agency Innova.
Singapore Red Dot Payment complete Series A round
Wavemaker Pacific and GMO Global Payment Fund have taken part in a Series A round of funding for Singapore's Red Dot Payment, an online payment solutions provider. The financial details were not disclosed.
Carlyle, FountainVest pull out of China Shanda Games take-private
The Carlyle Group and FountainVest Partners have pulled out of the consortium backing a $1.9 billion bid to acquire US-listed Chinese games developer Shanda Games.
Asian media giants form China-focused film and TV fund
Taiwan’s Fubon Group, Hong Kong's Media Asia and South Korean music giant SM Entertainment have established a media-focused fund to jointly invest in Chinese film and TV production.
IFC invests $27.5m in Indian food additives producer
World Bank investment arm International Finance Corporation (IFC) has invested $27.5 million in Lucid Colloids, one of the top four producers of food additive guar gum.
H&Q leads $16.7m round for cloud insurance software firm
H&Q Asia Pacific has led a $16.7 million Series A round for US cloud insurance software provider One Inc.; Camp One Ventures and AGI Partners also took part in the round.
Tencent invests $20m in Korea's PATI Games
China’s Tencent Holdings has invested KRW20 billion ($20 million) in Korean mobile game developer PATI Games.
Japanese mobility firm Whill closes $11m Series A round
The government-backed Innovation Network Corporation of Japan (INCJ) has led an $11 million Series A round for Whill, a Japanese startup which has designed a type of electronic mobility chair.
Korean LPs: A targeted market
From the National Pension Service downwards, Korean institutions are increasingly courted by international GPs on the fundraising trail. Building ties with these groups, formally or informally, can be difficult
Korea VC: Seoul-searching
The South Korean start-up community is flourishing as early-stage investors flock to the country in search of opportunities. What is driving this renewed interest and can it last?