Financials
Australia's VC-backed Xpansiv raises $40m pre-IPO round
Australia and US-based Xpansiv CBL, a VC-backed marketplace for clean commodities such as carbon offsets and renewable fuels, has raised $40 million with plans to list in Sydney this year.
Hanwha leads $300m Series A for Grab's financial unit
Korea’s Hanwha Asset Management has led a $300 million Series A round for the financial services unit of Singapore-based ride-hailing and services platform Grab.
Warburg Pincus, Goodwater lead Series D for Vietnam's MoMo
MoMo, a Vietnam-based mobile wallet provider, has closed a Series D round of more than $100 million led by Goodwater Capital and Warburg Pincus.
Indonesian stockbroker Ajaib raises $25m Series A
Horizons Ventures, which is controlled by Hong Kong billionaire Li Ka-shing, and Indonesia’s Alpha JWC Ventures have led a $25 million Series A round for Indonesian investment platform Ajaib.
Bow Wave joins $175m round for Philippines-based GCash
Bow Wave Capital Management, a US-based private equity investor in mobile payment ecosystems globally, has participated in a $175 million round for Philippines-based mobile wallet GCash.
Japan's J-Star confirms two exits
Japan’s J-Star has confirmed trade sale exits of healthcare coverage specialist NHS Insurance and fire safety equipment supplier Yokoi Manufacturing.
Thiel, Pacific Century launch second Southeast Asia SPAC
Peter Thiel (pictured), co-founder of PayPal, Palantir Technologies and Founders Fund, and Richard Li, son of Hong Kong billionaire Li Ka-shing, are launching another special purpose acquisition vehicle (SPAC) that will target new economy assets in Southeast...
Sequoia India leads $30m round for Indonesia's Bibit
Sequoia Capital India has led a $30 million investment in Bibit, an Indonesian robo-advisory app for first-time investors.
Singapore's VC-backed GoBear to wind down
GoBear, a Singaporean financial technology start-up that received VC backing as recently as May, will cease operations and begin a phased closure of the business, citing pandemic-related disruption.
Sequoia joins $81m Series C for India’s Cred
Sequoia Capital India has joined an $81 million Series C round for India’s Cred, a credit card rewards start-up also known as Dreamplug Technologies.
Apax buys software business from India's 3i Infotech
Apax Partners has agreed to acquire the software products business of Indian IT provider 3i Infotech for INR10 billion ($136.6 million). It will be renamed Azentio Software.
PE-backed WealthNavi soars on Tokyo debut
Japanese financial technology start-up WealthNavi gained 100% on its trading debut following a JPY17.9 billion ($172.9 million) IPO that facilitated partial exits for Gree Ventures, Infinity Venture Partners, and Global Brain.
Australia home solar fintech start-up raises $73m
Grok Ventures, an investment firm set up by Atlassian co-founder Mike Cannon-Brookes, has led a A$100 million ($73 million) round for Australian household solar energy financier Brighte.
SoftBank joins $60m Series B for Korean payments player
SoftBank Ventures Asia has joined a $60 million Series B round for Korean payments technology start-up Chai.
China's Snowball Finance raises $120m
Snowball Finance, a Chinese online financial information platform with wealth management ambitions, has raised $120 million Series E from Orchid Asia.
India's PhonePe spins out from Flipkart, raises $700m
PhonePe, the digital payments platform of Indian e-commerce marketplace Flipkart, has been spun out as a stand-alone entity and raised $700 million in funding at a post-money valuation of $5.5 billion.
Deal focus: Cashfree targets merchants in India’s payments boom
Apis Partners' support of India-based Cashfree is driven by a recognition that the democratization of digital payments is as much about empowering traditional merchants as unbanked consumers
Apis invests $35m in India's Cashfree
Apis Partners has invested $35 million in Indian digital payments services provider Cashfree as part of a Series B round also featuring Smilegate Investment and Y Combinator.
India's True Balance gets $28m Series D
Indian financial technology provider True Balance has raised a $28 million Series D round from a group including SoftBank Ventures Asia.
Hong Kong insurtech start-up Coherent raises $14m
Coherent, a Hong Kong-based insurance technology company, has raised a $14 million Series A round led by Cathay Innovation, with participation from Franklin Templeton.
Grab leads $100m round for Indonesia e-wallet player
Singapore-based ride-hailing and local services platform Grab has led a $100 million Series B round for Indonesian e-wallet services provider LinkAja.
Regulators halt Ant Group's Shanghai, Hong Kong IPO
Private equity-backed Ant Group’s bumper IPO in Hong Kong and Shanghai has been put on hold by Chinese regulators over a potential failure to meet listing qualifications or disclosure requirements.
PE-backed Lufax follows $2.3b US IPO with weak debut
Online lending and wealth management platform Lufax raised $2.36 billion in the largest US IPO by a PE-backed Chinese company so far this year but endured a difficult first day of trading.
Ares bids for Australian financial services player AMP
Ares Management has submitted a non-binding offer of around A$6.4 billion ($4.5 billion) to acquire Australia’s AMP, continuing the recent private equity push into the country’s wealth management industry.
