South Asia
Third close brings Circulate's cleantech fund to $53m
Circulate Capital, a Singapore-based environmental technology impact investor, has reached a third close on its second fund with USD 53m in commitments to date.
Deal focus: Prosus looks to aggregate India's fruit farmers
B2B marketplaces are the prevalent theme in Prosus Ventures’ agricultural technology investments in Asia. However, as fruit specialist Vegrow demonstrates, supply chain dynamics are not uniform
India's ChrysCapital adds US-based operating partner
India's ChrysCapital Partners has appointed Sanjay Jalona, formerly CEO of the IT division of Indian engineering conglomerate Larsen & Toubro, as an operating partner based in the US.
Mutiples commits $30m to India neo-banking platform
Multiples Alternate Asset Management has invested USD 30m in India-based neobank Niyo, entering on the heels of a USD 100m Series C round that closed in February.
B Capital raises $250m for global early-stage fund
Los Angeles and Singapore-headquartered B Capital Group has closed its first dedicated early-stage fund with USD 250m in commitments. It will target the US and Asia.
Fund focus: Lightspeed ramps up in India, Southeast Asia
Lightspeed Venture Partners is leaning hard into developing Asia with long-range vision, added operational resources, and a new USD 500m war chest
Asia logistics: Cost and complexity
Investment opportunities are expected to emerge as companies look to technology as a means of easing inflationary pressure on supply chains. Will Asia’s shallow pool of specialist logistics GPs deepen?
India blockchain player raises $100m Series A
India’s 5ire, a one-year-old blockchain infrastructure provider focused on promoting sustainable crypto-relate practices, has raised USD 100m in Series A funding at a valuation of USD 1.5bn.
India SaaS player Detect Technologies closes $28m Series B
Detect Technologies, an India-based software-as-a-service (SaaS) start-up with a suite of artificial intelligence-enabled products that help enterprise customers assess risk exposure, has raised USD 28m in Series B funding.
India credit card player OneCard raises $100m
India’s OneCard, which operates a credit scoring platform and issues own-branded credit cards, has raised a USD 100m round led by Temasek Holdings.
Lightspeed raises $500m for India, Southeast Asia
Lightspeed India Partners, which also targets Southeast Asia, has closed its fourth early-stage VC fund with USD 500m in commitments.
India's Axilor targets $100m for second seed fund
Indian seed investor Axilor Ventures has launched its second fund with a target of USD 100m. This compares to USD 30m for its first fund.
Prosus leads $25m Series B for India's Vegrow
Prosus Ventures, a technology investment business controlled by Naspers, has led a USD 25m Series B round for Vegrow, an India-based marketplace that helps farmers sell their fruit crops into organised distribution channels.
Deal focus: Carlyle targets consumerism in ceramics
The Carlyle Group, like many investors, sees premiumisation as a natural outcome of the expansion of India’s middle class. It could be the first to test this thesis in the local building materials industry
Deal focus: India's Shubham sees opening to accelerate
Shubham believes its long-curated datasets and institutional memory differentiate it from a growing pack of low-income housing lenders. Global impact investors appear convinced
Deal focus: Novel angle on mobile adoption gains traction
Cashify is leveraging and propelling India’s mobile penetration narrative at the most fundamental level. Adding tech to the secondhand smart phone space has allowed it to create a first-of-its-kind brand
BII names new India head
British International Investment (BII), a UK development finance institution formerly known as CDC Group, has named 20-year private equity veteran Manav Bansal as its head of India.
India start-up financier GetVantage raises $36m
GetVantage, a provider of revenue-based financing to Indian start-ups, has secured USD 36m in funding led by Varanium Nexgen Fintech Fund, DMI Sparkle Fund, Chiratae Ventures, and Dream Incubator Japan.
Arpwood leads acquisition of India's Sterling Hospitals
Indian private equity firm Arpwood Capital has led the acquisition of Sterling Addlife India, operator of the Sterling Hospitals chain, for an undisclosed sum.
India affordable housing player raises $112m
Indian lower-income mortgage lender Shubham has raised USD 112m led by British International Investment (BII). It facilitates exits for Elevar Equity and Motilal Oswal Private Equity (MOPE).
Bertelsmann to invest $500m in India
Bertelsmann India Investments has earmarked USD 500m, provided by its eponymous German parent, for investment in local start-ups. The VC unit’s total deployment since its launch in 2013 is USD 285m.
Panthera hits first close on India, Southeast Asia fund
India and Southeast Asia-focused Panthera Growth Partners has reached a first close on its second fund with commitments amounting to more than half the overall target of USD 250m.
Karthik Prabhakar to leave India's Chiratae Ventures
Karthik Prabhakar, who joined Chiratae Ventures – then IDG Ventures India – as a senior analyst in 2011 and rose to the level of managing director and head of global fundraising, has announced his departure from the firm.
Tiger Global, Google join $40m round for India's Progcap
Tiger Global Management, Google, and Creation Investments have led a USD 40m investment in India’s Progcap, a financing services provider for small businesses.