Technology
India's Molbio secures Temasek backing, becomes unicorn
India’s Molbio Diagnostics, a medical equipment maker best known for its COVID-19 testing systems, has raised a USD 85m round featuring Temasek Holdings at an enterprise valuation of USD 1.6bn.
Petronas Ventures backs Malaysian drone player
Petronas Ventures, the VC arm of Malaysian oil giant Petronas, has led a USD 30m round for drone developer Aerodyne Group with support from domestic pension fund KWAP.
India's True North buys stake in TA-backed Accion Labs
Indian middle market private equity firm True North has acquired a significant minority position in US and India-based IT provider Accion Labs from TA Associates for USD 93m.
Temasek leads $40m Series B extension for China's Well-Link
Temasek Holdings has led a USD 40m Series B extension for Well-Link Technologies, a China-based provider of real-time cloud rendering solutions for game developers.
India mass market: Bharat dreams
A labyrinth of logistical, cultural, competition, and business modelling challenges is curbing private equity appetite for India’s quickly modernising proletariat
Deal focus: AI integration pays off for Evomotion
With investors going cold on China artificial intelligence, Evomotion has remained popular and profitable by delivering hardware and software to corners of the market that are either overlooked or hard to access
China AI solution provider Evomotion raises $20m
Evomotion, a China-based artificial-intelligence-of-things (AIoT) specialist that supplies software and chips to electronic appliance makers and supermarket retailers, has raised USD 20m in Series B funding.
Japan flying car player SkyDrive gets $67m Series C
Japanese flying car developer SkyDrive has raised JPY 9.6bn (USD 67m) in Series C funding featuring US-based Pegasus Tech Ventures and local strategics such as Suzuki Motor.
Japan's Nomura launches blockchain VC unit
Japan’s Nomura Holdings has launched a business called Laser Venture Capital that will invest in companies in the blockchain and digital assets space.
India gifting platform secures $23m Series B
Join Ventures, an India-based company that owns a portfolio of direct-to-consumer gifting brands, has raised USD 23.5m in Series B funding led by Motilal Oswal Alternate Investment Advisors.
Korea autonomous driving player gets $25m
Korea’s Seoul Robotics, which specialises in computer vision for 3D sensors used by autonomous cars, has raised a USD 25m Series B round led by KB Investment.
Gaorong backs China energy storage company
China-based energy storage company WeView has raised CNY 400 million (USD 57m) from a group including Gaorong Capital, Green Pine Capital Partners, and ZhenFund.
China semiconductor player Shangda raises $99m
Chinese semiconductor packaging and testing company Shangda has raised a Series A extension of CNY700m (USD 99m) co-led by three government-backed funds.
India insurance start-up Zopper raises $75m
Indian private equity firm Creaegis has led a USD 75m Series C round for local insurance technology provider Zopper.
China semiconductor: Casualties of war
Private equity investment in China’s semiconductor industry continues unabated despite intensifying US regulatory action. While start-ups are not explicitly targeted, many are feeling the heat
Gobi raises $10m for Asia seed fund
Gobi Partners has closed a USD 10m Malaysia-focused seed fund with contributions from Allianz Malaysia, Malaysia Venture Capital Management (Mavcap) and Sunway Group.
C Ventures rebrands, hits first close on new fund
C Ventures, a VC firm set up by Adrian Cheng, scion of Hong Kong’s New World Development, has rebranded as C Capital – reflecting steps to diversify into a multi-strategy asset manager – and reached a first close on its latest fund.
Deal focus: Morse Micro takes Wi-Fi to the next level
Australia’s Main Sequence Ventures plans to make Morse Micro one of the few Wi-Fi chipmakers in an easy-to-imagine future where more reliable, long-range device connectivity surges in demand
Fund focus: Glenwood gains traction with carve-out thesis
Korea-focused Glenwood Private Equity has closed its second fund on KRW 900m (USD 648m) from local LPs, having established itself as a mid-market corporate divestment specialist
China satellite player Galaxy Space achieves unicorn status
Galaxy Space, a China-based satellite developer, has raised a new funding round led by CCB International at a post-investment valuation of CNY 11bn (USD 1.6bn).
Australia's Telstra Ventures raises $336m for latest global fund
Australia’s Telstra Ventures has closed its third global fund on AUD 500m (USD 336m), beating a target of AUD 400m. Fund II closed on AUD 675m in 2018 and added a USD 50m sidecar the following year.
Indonesia’s Fazz raises $100m Series C
Indonesia’s Fazz, a financial services provider for Southeast Asia micro businesses, has raised a USD 100m Series C round featuring Tiger Global, DST Global, and B Capital Group.
Billionaire Venture, DBS to invest $200m in India start-ups
India’s Billionaire Venture Capital and DBS Bank have agreed to invest USD 200m in 150m Indian start-ups via a special purpose vehicle and joint venture (JV).
Profile: Crescendo’s Kevin Lee
Kevin Lee founded Crescendo Equity Partners to spot overlooked Korean technology suppliers and reposition them as global leaders of their niches. This required a rare combination of skills
