Sectors
Vipshop buys majority stake in VC-backed China cosmetics site
Chinese online retailer Vipshop Holdings, a DCM and Sequoia Capital portfolio company that went public in the US in 2012, has agreed to buy a 75% stake in cosmetics and fashion products site Lefeng.com for approximately $132.5 million.
Xiaomi Ventures invests in Kingsoft gaming unit Westhouse
Xiaomi Ventures, a corporate VC unit of Chinese mobile phone maker Xiaomi, has invested $20 million in Westhouse Group, a game developer controlled by Kingsoft Corporation.
India impact investments total $390m in 2013 - Unitus
Private equity impact investments in India totaled $390 million across 80 deals last year – comprising 23% of all PE transactions in the country - says Bangalore-based financial advisor Unitus Capital.
Fosun Venture leads Series B for Joyme
Fosun Venture Capital Investment, a venture arm of Fosun Group, has led a RMB130 million ($21 million) Series B round of funding for Joyme.com, a Beijing-based mobile game operator. BlueRun Ventures also participated.
Mingxin China Growth Fund backs liquid fuel cell specialist
Oorja Protonics, a California-based liquid fuel cell technology firm, has raised a Series E round of funding from Mingxin China Growth Fund, with participation of existing investor DAG Ventures.
IMM set to buy Hyundai Merchant Marine's LNG business
IMM Private Equity has been selected as the preferred bidder for Hyundai Merchant Marine’s (HMM) liquefied natural gas (LNG) business in a deal worth KRW1.1 trillion ($1 billion). The announcement comes a few weeks after fellow South Korean GP Hahn...
Japanese corporates, VCs back Indonesian e-commerce site
500 Startups and existing investors Gree Ventures have together invested in Bukalapak, an Indonesian e-commerce marketplace, alongside two Japanese strategic investors: price comparison site Aucfan.com and digital marketing firm IREP.
RRJ to invest $250m in Shanghai Bright Dairy JV
RRJ Capital plans to invest RMB1.5 billion ($250 million) for a 45% stake a dairy farming joint venture with Shanghai-listed Bright Dairy & Food, a subsidiary of Chinese conglomerate Bright Food Group.
Tiger Global picks up Alibaba stake for $199m
Tiger Global has agreed to acquire a minority stake in Alibaba Group from Chinese online game developer Giant Interactive Group for approximately $199.1 million. Giant originally invested $50 million in 2011 via limited partnerships managed by Yunfeng...
Tiantu Capital commits $8m to Qinghai dairy firm
China’s Tiantu Capital has committed RMB50 million ($8 million) to Qinghai Xiaoxiniu Biological Dairy Industry, a dairy products manufacturer, for an undisclosed stake.
China’s Sungy Mobile buys VC-backed app store Getjar
Sungy Mobile, a VC-backed Chinese app developer that went public on NASDAQ last year, has acquired GetJar, a US-based mobile ad network. GetJar previously raised three rounds of VC funding, two led by Accel Partners and the third led by Tiger Global.
INCJ picks up stake in robotic hand maker
State-backed Innovation Network Corporation of Japan (INCJ) has acquired a 20% stake in Squse - a Kyoto-based company that makes robotic hands - for JPY500 million ($4.9 million). INCJ joins existing investors Amazon and Google.
Hony in talks to join Giant Interactive take-private - report
Hony Capital is said to be in advanced talks to join a consortium led by Baring Private Equity Asia that is supporting the $2.8 billion take-private deal for Chinese online game developer Giant Interactive.
Piramal, CPPIB form $500m realty finance fund
India's Piramal Enterprises is to form a $500 million realty debt fund with CPPIB Credit Investments,, a subsidiary of the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPPIB).
Xiaomi’s Lei Jun leads $100m round China’s Vancl – update
Lei Jun, Chinese super angle and co-founder of smart phone maker Xiaomi, has led a $100 million round for Vancl, China’s largest online clothing retailer. Existing investors Temasek Holdings, IDG Capital Partners, Ceyuan Ventures and SAIF Partners also...
GE, SAC exit Taiwan’s Cosmos Bank
GE Capital and SAC Capital will exit Taiwan’s Cosmos Bank to domestic financial services conglomerate China Development Financial Holding Corp. The announcement of the NT$23.1 billion ($762.4 million) deal, which was priced below market value, saw Cosmos...
CITIC leads $41m China tech fund launch
A group of investors, including CITIC Capital and the Shenzhen municipal government have launched a RMB250 million ($41 million) venture fund to invest in technology companies.
Jafco-backed Eleven Bio raises $50m in NASDAQ IPO
Eleven Biotherapeutics, a US biopharma company firm backed by Japan’s Jafco Ventures, has raised $50 million through its NASDAQ IPO – short of the $69 million initially sought.
TMall’s Inman Apparel receives funding from IDG, Alibaba – report
IDG Capital Partners and Alibaba Group have reportedly invested in Inman Apparel, a Guangzhou-based clothing brand that sells its products through Alibaba’s TMall and Taobao platforms.
American Express VC unit backs India's Capillary Technologies
American Express Ventures (AEV), the corporate venture arm of credit card company American Express, has made its first India investment, backing Bangalore-based cloud software solutions provider Capillary Technologies.
Portfolio: STIC Investments and Access Bio
STIC Investments backed Access Bio when the Korean-led malaria testing technology player wanted to buy key components and expand output. Now KOSDAQ-listed, the company has its eye on specialty diagnostics
Premji tries Myntra on for size
The growth of Indian e-commerce is well documented and recent estimates by online marketplace and industry poster child Flipkart illustrate just how much farther it has to go. According to Sachin Bansal, Flipkart’s co-founder and CEO, e-commerce grew...
Catalyst completes cool exit
Throughout last year's election campaign, Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott pledged to repeal the country’s carbon tax on taking office. Five months on, he has yet to do it and the debate rumbles on as to whether the drop in emissions – 0.3% for...
Temasek, Ceyuan, IDG, SAIF invest $100m in China’s Vancl
Vancl, China’s largest online clothing retailer, has raised more than $100 million in funding from existing investors Temasek Holdings, IDG Capital Partners, Ceyuan Ventures and SAIF Partners.