Technology
Formation 8 backs Singapore grocery delivery service
US venture capital firm Formation 8 has led a $15 million Series A round for Singapore-based on-demand grocery delivery start-up Honestbee.
India delivery start-up Opinio gets $7m Series A round
Opinio, a hyperlocal delivery start-up based in India, has raised $7 million in a Series A round led by Indian logistics firm Delhivery. Sands Capital Ventures and existing investor Accel Partners also participated.
Q&A: Vertex China's Choon Chong Tay
Vertex Ventures’ China team recently raised their first fund independent of the Singapore parent. Managing Director Choon Chong Tay explains the organizational changes and discusses the team’s investment strategy
Deal focus: SingPost’s one-world e-commerce play
Singapore Post buys TradeGlobal from Bregal Sagemount as part of a push from traditional mail delivery and into global e-commerce
Deal focus: KKR eyes O2O home services expansion
KKR joins Alibaba Group and Ping An Group in backing 58 Daojia, an online-to-offline local services platform that is tipped to match Didi Kuaidi and Dianping-Meituan for size
China technology: King content
The proposed acquisitions of online video platform Youku Tudou by Alibaba could be a crucial move in the battle for content being contested by China's internet giants
China’s LeTV buys control in VC-backed Yongche
Chinese media company LeTV Holdings has acquired 70% in Yongche.com, facilitating an exit for existing shareholders in the car rental and taxi-booking app.
Tiger, Flipkart lead $7.7m round for India's Cube26
Tiger Global and Flipkart have led a INR500 million ($7.7 million) seed round for Cube26, an India-based developer of gesture control technology for smart phones.
Matrix leads $5m Series A for Hong Kong's Klook
Matrix Partners has led a $5 million Series A round of funding for Klook, a Hong Kong-based online travel start-up.
Providence makes buyout offer for Australia's iSelect
Providence Equity Partners has submitted a buyout offer for iSelect, an Australian Securities Exchange-listed product comparison site specializing in insurance, household utilities and personal finance.
China's Wuxi Healthcare VC joins round for US genetics start-up
Wuxi Healthcare Venture, a corporate venture fund owned by China-based Wuxi Pharmatech, has participated in a $115 million Series E round of funding for 23andMe, a Silicon Valley-based genetics-testing company.
Alibaba seeks full ownership of video platform Youku Tudou
Alibaba Group is looking to take full ownership of Chinese online video platform Youku Tudou in a deal that values the US-listed company at approximately $4.2 billion.
PE-backed Jiuxian approved to list on China’s New Third Board
Jiuxianwang E-commerce, a PE-backed Chinese e-commerce site that sells wines and spirits, has won regulatory approval to list on China’s over-the-counter (OTC) board.
SingPost buys US e-commerce player from PE backer
Singapore Post (SingPost) has bought US-based online commerce provider TradeGlobal from its private equity backer Bregal Sagemount for $169 million.
Hera Capital exits China's ActSocial to Linkfluence
Singapore-based private equity investor Hera Capital has agreed to sell its entire stake in Shanghai and Singapore-based social media analytics firm ActSocial to Linkfluence, a European company with a similar remit.
Ant Financial leads round for China VC news platform 36kr
36Kr.com, a Chinese news portal that covers venture capital and technology start-ups, has raised a Series D round of funding led by Ant Financial, an online finance affiliate of Alibaba Group.
Monk's Hill commits $5m to Hong Kong-based Playlab
Hong Kong-based mobile game studio Playlab has raised $5 million in Series B funding from Monk's Hill Ventures.
Malaysia's Hermo raises $2m Series A led by Gobi
Shanghai-based VC firm Gobi Partners has led a $2 million Series A round of funding for Hermo, a Malaysian cross-border cosmetics e-commerce platform.
IFC to invest $25m in India's BigBasket
The International Finance Corporation (IFC), the investment arm of the World Bank, will commit $25 million to Indian online grocer BigBasket.
Legend transfers CAR shares to PE-backed Ucar
Legend Holdings, the largest shareholder in Hong Kong-listed China Auto Rental (CAR), has transferred part of its shares in the company to Ucar Technology, a Chinese chauffeured car service provider.
SoftBank backs US-based Cybereason, supports Japan expansion
SoftBank Corp. has led a $59 million Series C round of funding for US-based Cybereason and will help the company distribute its cyber-security platform in the Japanese market.
Australian LPs and domestic VC: Toe in the water
Australian super funds are showing renewed interests in domestic venture capital, supporting firms that offer flexible structures with co-investment opportunities. Can this approach work for all GPs?
Hong Kong vs Singapore VC: Flawed comparisons
Singapore has easily surpassed Hong Kong in terms of venture capital investment for the last four years, but that data should be assessed in the context of wider industry dynamics
Deal focus: Electra plays the long game
Electra Partners Asia's exit of Zensar Technologies to Apax Partners brings to an end one of the longest investment holding periods ever seen in the region's private equity industry