Financials
India's PE-backed Pine Labs acquires Malaysia's Fave
Pine Labs, an India payments start-up backed by MasterCard, PayPal, and Sequoia Capital India, has acquired Fave, a Malaysian counterpart also backed by Sequoia India, for $45 million.
Deal focus: Gobi sees 100x return on Airwallex
Gobi Partners became Airwallex's first institutional investor in 2016 due to a lack of support in the Australian company's home market. The GP made a partial exit in a recent Series D round at a valuation of $2.6 billion
True North makes partial exit from India's PolicyBazaar
Indian private equity firm True North has confirmed a partial exit from local insurance portal PolicyBazaar.
Qiming leads $30m Series B for China crypto start-up
Qiming Venture Partners has led a $30 million Series B round for China-based imToken, which claims to be Asia’s largest crypto wallet.
Japan payments start-up Paidy closes $120m Series D
Japanese payments start-up Paidy has raised $120 million in Series D funding from JS Capital Management, Soros Capital Management, Tybourne Capital Management, and Wellington Management.
KKR, Sequoia lead $234m round for Indian NBFC
KKR and Sequoia Capital India have led a $234 million investment in Indian non-banking financial company (NBFC) Five Star Business Finance at a valuation of $1.4 billion.
JC Flowers exits Asia trading platforms business
JC Flowers has agreed to sell Hong Kong-based Chi-X Asia Pacific, which operates equity trading platforms in Australia and Japan, to US-based Cboe Global Markets.
Australia's Airwallex sees valuation hit $2.6b
Airwallex, an international payments technology provider that launched out of Melbourne, has closed a third tranche of Series D funding, taking the overall round to $300 million and its valuation to $2.6 billion.
DCM set for partial exit from Japan's Freee
Tokyo-listed accounting software provider Freee is set to raise up to JPY42.5 billion ($391 million) through an offering of new shares and the sale of shares held by DCM Ventures.
India NBFCs: Agreeable aftermath
India’s non-bank financiers remain attractive investment targets as a convergence of macro and systemic shocks tests the market. Sturdy underlying drivers provide confidence as models evolve
Carlyle gets $543m through partial exit from India's SBI Card
The Carlyle Group has sold approximately one-quarter of its remaining 15.8% stake in SBI Cards & Payment Services – a year after the Indian company’s IPO – for INR39.4 billion ($543 million).
India's PolicyBazaar raises $75m for Middle East expansion
PolicyBazaar, India’s largest insurance comparison portal, has raised $75 million from US-based Falcon Edge Capital for a Middle East expansion.
Jungle leads $17m round for India edtech, fintech player
Singapore’s Jungle Ventures has led a $17 million Series B round for Leap Finance, a financial technology provider targeting the Indian education space.
Hillhouse, Tencent lead Series C for China's Fenbeitong
Hillhouse Capital and Tencent Holdings have led a $92.5 million Series C round for Fenbeitong, a China-based enterprise payment and expense management software provider.
MDV, Kenanga launch $73m Malaysia fintech fund
Malaysia Debt Ventures (MDV) and Kenanga Investment Bank have launched a VC fund focused on the local financial technology space with a target of MYR300 million ($73 million).
Jungle joins $46m Series D for India's Turtlemint
Indian online insurance broker Turtlemint has closed its Series D round at $46 million following a significant contribution from early-stage investor Jungle Ventures.
Allianz leads $75m round for Hong Kong's WeLab
Allianz Group has led a $75 million round for Hong Kong’s WeLab with a view to helping the financial technology provider develop new insurance and investment products.
TA backs Australia ETF manager BetaShares
TA Associates has added to its Australia and New Zealand financial services portfolio with an investment in BetaShares, an Australia-based exchange-traded fund (ETF) manager.
India’s Zolve raises $15m seed round
Accel and Lightspeed Venture Partners have led a $15 million seed round for Zolve, an India-based digital bank focused on cross-border services.
PE-backed Arohan Financial Services files for India IPO
Arohan Financial Services, an Indian microfinance institution (MFI) that was acquired by Aavishkaar Group in 2012 and went on to receive funding from several other PE investors, has filed for a domestic IPO.
India's KreditBee secures $75m Series C
Premji Invest, Mirae Asset Capital, Alpine Capital and Arkam Ventures have contributed $75 million in Series C funding for Indian financial technology start-up KreditBee.
Q&A: Bain & Company's Henrik Naujoks
Henrik Naujoks, Bain & Company’s financial services lead for Asia, observes that investors must not ignore the increasing cohesion of the Greater Bay Area despite a relative lack of near-term gambits
AVCJ Awards 2020: Exit of the Year - IPO: SBI Card
The Carlyle Group helps SBI Card win its place in the ongoing rise of digital India before realizing a landmark domestic IPO. Coordination with State Bank of India has been crucial
Deal focus: iStox finds firmer footing
A clutch of Japanese investors has validated iStox’s blockchain-enabled digital securities marketplace. Now the Singapore-based start-up is taking the idea to new markets
