Sectors
Deal focus: Running the CFIUS gauntlet for Grindr
Grindr, America's most popular LGBTQ dating app, was only put up for sale because its Chinese owner violated foreign investment regulations. San Vicente's subsequent $560 million acquisition faced intense scrutiny
Deal focus: KKR's Vietnam macro proxy
KKR's investment in Vietnam property developer Vinhomes is supposed to tap into infrastructure development as well as the home-ownership ambitions of a burgeoning middle class
Profile: Kejora Ventures' Sebastian Togelang
Looking for new business opportunities, Sebastian Togelang returned to Indonesia from Germany to invest in technology start-ups. He counsels entrepreneurs that it pays to be part of a larger platform
China establishes $5b SME support fund
China has launched a government guidance fund intended to support small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) with initial capital commitments of RMB35.75 billion ($5 billion).
Asia lending start-ups: Bump in the road
Digital lenders in emerging markets need to survive a tricky year under the shadow of potential defaults, but the survivors might become significant players in a renewed financial landscape
India's Milkbasket raises $5.5m Series B
Inflection Point Ventures has led an INR420 million ($5.5 million) Series B round for Indian grocery delivery startup Milkbasket.
Fund focus: Beenext targets a world beyond the mirrors
Beenext Capital Management has expanded its LP base while maintaining fund size discipline. This is born of a philosophy that capacity for cross-pollination is more important than capacity for deployment
Hillhouse invests $400m in China data center player
Hillhouse Capital has taken a 3.9% interest in US-listed Chinese data center developer GDS Holdings for $400 million.
VC-backed SinocellTech enjoys strong Star Market debut
Chinese drug developer SinocellTech nearly trebled in value on its first day of trading on China's Science and Technology Innovation Board (Star Market) following a RMB1.28 billion ($181 million) IPO.
Australia's Canva raises $60m at $6b valuation
Canva, an Australian graphic design platform, has raised $60 million in VC funding, almost doubling its valuation to $6 billion. It attributed the growth to a shift online amid COVID-19.
Southern Capital, HPEF agree exit from Singapore school
Southern Capital Group and HPEF Capital Partners – formerly Headland Capital Partners – have agreed to sell Singapore-based Canadian International School (CIS) to Hong Kong-listed China Maple Leaf Educational Systems for S$680 million ($488 million),...
Toshiba seeks exit from PE-controlled flash memory business
Toshiba is exploring ways to fully exit its 40.2% stake in Kioxia Holdings, two years after selling control of the Japanese flash memory division to a Bain Capital-led consortium for an enterprise valuation of JPY2 trillion ($18.7 billion).
Blackstone invests $150m in China's 21Vianet
The Blackstone Group has invested $150 million in 21Vianet, a US-listed Chinese data center developer backed by Singapore’s Temasek Holdings.
Chinese IPOs: One less option
Will Chinese companies listed in the US become the latest casualties of tensions between the two countries? It could lead to a narrowing in IPO exit options for PE and VC investors
Deal focus: Yidui delivers love by video
Sky9 Capital and Xiaomi have thrown their support behind a Chinese video-dating platform designed for Generation Z, complete with virtual meeting rooms, live audiences, and mechanisms for crashing other people's dates
SCB 10X, Sparx lead $80m round for Thai fintech player
Thailand-based financial technology provider Synqa, formerly known as Omise, has raised an $80 million Series C round led by local VC firm SCB 10X and Japan’s Sparx Group.
Chinese car parts supplier Casstime raises $50m
Chinese aftermarket car parts supplier Casstime has raised $50 million in the second tranche of Series C round led by Greater Bay Area Homeland Investments.
China's Genetron trades flat after upsizing US IPO
Genetron Holdings, a Chinese company that uses DNA sequencing to support the diagnosis and treatment of cancer, traded flat on its NASDAQ debut following a larger-than-planned $256 million IPO.
Five V buys New Zealand software developer
Australian private equity firm Five V Capital has acquired a controlling stake in New Zealand employee management software provider Totara for an undisclosed sum.
China logistics robot specialist raises $200m Series C
Geek+, a manufacturer of robots used to move merchandise around warehouses, has closed a Series C funding round, having raised $200 million across two tranches.
China gay dating app Blued pursues US IPO
BlueCity Holdings, the company behind Chinese gay dating platform Blued, has filed an application to list on NASDAQ, which would provide a liquidity event for several PE and VC investors.
Carlyle invests $198m in Korea's KB Financial
The Carlyle Group has invested KRW240 billion ($198 million) in KB Financial Group and agreed to work with the Korean company on investment opportunities and structuring and financing its deals in the country.
A91 invests $16m in India spices maker
India’s A91 Partners has invested INR1.2 billion ($16.4 million) in local spices and condiments brand Pushp.
India's Jio Platforms set for record Asia growth capital fundraise
Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) has agreed to invest INR113.6 billion ($1.5 billion) in India’s Jio Platforms. This takes its overall funding to INR1.15 trillion, the largest single growth capital haul for an Asian technology company.