Sectors
Longreach acquires Wendy's Japan
Longreach Group has acquired a majority stake in Wendy’s Japan as part of a growth strategy that will see the hamburger restaurant chain combined with fellow domestic operator, First Kitchen.
Beenext, Digital Garage lead Series B for India's Droom
Droom, an Indian used automobiles trading marketplace, has raised about INR2 billion ($30 million) in a Series B round of funding led by Singapore-based early stage investor Beenext and Japanese incubator Digital Garage.
China's Blued completes Series C round
Vision Knight Capital has led a Series C+ round for Chinese gay-oriented social network and community app Blued.
Australia's CapitalPitch launches $7m early-stage fund
Australia-based start-up networking platform CapitalPitch has launched a fund focused on early stage investments, with a target size of at least A$10 million ($7.3 million).
Japan's Whill closes $17.5m Series B
Eight Roads Ventures has led a $17.5 million Series B round for Japanese wheelchair and personal mobility device developer Whill.
Macquarie invests $29m in Japanese logistics business
Macquarie Asia Infrastructure Fund (MAIF) has invested EUR26 million ($28.9 million) for a 40% interest in Japanese logistics company Nippon Vopak.
Deal focus: Securing a nation's digital vaults
Data Republic has attracted Series A funding from some of Australia’s biggest companies, with a notable showing by the major banks demonstrating a growing focus on data security investment in the financial sector
Deal focus: VCs find inroad where giants prevail
A group of VCs are aiming to leverage an encouraging outlook for the autonomous vehicle industry by funding a Singapore-focused start-up that is offering significant competition to the major corporates that dominate this space
Blackstone invests $134m in New Zealand's Partners Life
The Blackstone Group’s tactical opportunities division has made a NZ$200 million ($134.5 million) investment in New Zealand insurance provider Partners Life.
Tencent invests $40m in VC-backed Chinese education site
Tencent Holdings has committed $40 million for a minority stake in VC-backed Yuanfudao - the largest single investment made by the internet company in the K-12 online learning and teaching space.
Chengwei backs China electronics recycling platform
China-focused Chengwei Capital has led a Series A round of funding worth about RMB100 million ($15 million) for Huishoubao, a Chinese electronic devices recycling platform.
Hong Kong's Lalamove raises $10m round led by MindWorks
MindWorks Ventures has led a $10 million funding round for Hong Kong-based van rental app developer Lalamove.
PEP launches $165m takeover bid for Australia's Patties
Australian GP Pacific Equity Partners (PEP) has launched a bid to buy snack maker Patties Foods in a deal that values the company at A$203 million ($165 million).
China GPs underline merits of sector focus
China GPs must respond to the country’s economic slowdown by paying closer attention to picking sectors that can outperform – and in which they can help drive that performance – industry participants told the Hong Kong Venture Capital & Private Equity...
Morgan Stanley marks down India's Flipkart again
Morgan Stanley Institutional Fund Trust has marked down its investment in Flipkart for the second quarter in a row, reducing its estimate of the Indian online retail giant by 15.5%.
Korea's Althea raises $3.5m Series A
Althea, a South Korean cosmetics e-commerce site that markets primarily to Southeast Asia, has raised a $3.5 million Series A round from a group of investors including Mirae Asset Ventures, Cherubic Ventures and 500 Startups.
Tencent invests in Korea's PE-backed YG Entertainment
China’s Tencent Holdings and Beijing Weiying Times Technology – an online ticketing platform in which Tencent is an investor – have committed approximately $85 million to YG Entertainment, a Korean record label and talent manager backed by L Capital Asia....
Japan's Creema raises $10m round
Globis Capital Partners has led a JPY1.1 billion ($10 million) round for Japan-based Creema, the operator of an online consumer-to-consumer (C2C) marketplace specializing in handmade items.
Alibaba, Ant Financial to re-up in China's Didi Chuxing
Alibaba Group and its financial affiliate Ant Financial plan to invest a further $400 million in Didi Chuxing. This comes as the Chinese ride-hailing app operator is raising a new round of fund said to be as large as $2.5 billion.
INCJ leads $10m round for Japan robotics start-up
Japanese robotics company 3D Media has received a JPY1.1 billion ($10 million) investment from Innovation Network Corporation of Japan (INCJ), Sparx Group and Mitsubishi UFJ Capital.
Intel Capital cancels plans for secondary sale
Intel Capital, the captive VC arm of Intel Corp, appears to have abandoned plans to offload some of its investments in technology companies, with Wendell Brooks (pictured), the unit’s president, saying there will be no major changes to the portfolio....
Lilly Asia, SBCVC invest $15m in China online drug seller
Healthcare-focused GP Lilly Asia Ventures and SBCVC have participated in a RMB100 million ($15 million) Series A round for 360 Haoyao, an online drug seller established by Chinese software company Qihoo360 Technology.
Aetius commits $5m Series A to Singapore's Cloud Alliance
Singapore-based mobile gaming platform developer Cloud Alliance has raised $5 million in Series A funding from Aetius Capital.
MBK-owned Komeda Coffee wins approval for Japan IPO
Komeda Coffee, a coffee shop chain owned by North Asia-focused MBK Partners, has won approval for a Tokyo IPO. The indicative price suggested the offering will be worth up to JPY60.2 billion ($547.4 million).