Advantage Partners
Advantage, Tokyo Century agree Japan battery carve-out
Advantage Partners is making another investment alongside Tokyo Century Corporation – which bought a stake in the GP two years ago – with an agreement to buy a battery business controlled by local conglomerate Showa Denko.
Japan's Advantage adds renewables strategy
Japan’s Advantage Partners has broadened its investment scope with the introduction of a renewables and sustainability strategy.
Advantage backs Japan coffeeshop chain
Advantage Partners has agreed to invest about JPY7 billion ($64.6 billion) in Tokyo-listed coffeeshop and bakery chain Saint Marc.
AVCJ Awards 2020: Firm of the Year - Mid Cap: Advantage Partners
Richard Folsom, representative partner of Advantage Partners, looks back on a year dominated by succession planning, fundraising, and new investment opportunities
The crystal ball: Predictions for 2021
Industry professionals process the upheavals of 2020 to inform outlooks for a range of markets and investment themes. Realist bullishness abounds
Advantage, Tokyo Century agree Japan health foods deal
Advantage Partners has teamed up with Tokyo Century Corp. and Japanese strategic Euglena to acquire Q’Sai, a local health foods and cosmetics business, from Coca-Cola Bottlers Japan Holdings.
Deal focus: Japan GPs see upside in specialized staffing
CLSA Capital Partners’ sale of Japanese staffing services player Qit to Advantage Partners reveals enduring private equity interest in potentially shaky categories made sturdy by specialization
CLSA sells Japan outsourcing business to Advantage
CLSA Capital Partners has sold Japan-based industrial sector human resources outsourcing business Qit to Advantage Partners for an undisclosed sum.
Virtual AGMs & IR: Up in the air
Private equity firms are still finding their feet with annual meetings that no longer take place on the ground. Like it or not, virtual engagement is set to become a larger part of investor relations from now on
Japan fundraising: Middle-market machine
Buoyed by strong macro fundamentals and robust returns, Japan’s buyout managers continue to attract capital while most other strategies across Asia struggle. Will this popularity be sustained?
Advantage shuffles team for succession, strategic reasons
Advantage Partners has appointed Shinichiro Kita as head of its Japan buyout team as part of succession planning within the Japanese firm. The change also ties into efforts to create more synergies between the buyout operation and an expanded public markets...
Japan carve-outs: Profit from the core
Private equity firms hoping for a coronavirus-driven uptick on Japanese corporate carve-outs must be patient – and come armed with considered value creation plans when the time arrives
Advantage completes exit from Japan's FMI
Advantage Partners has completed its exit from Japanese kitchenware products manufacturer FMI Corporation to Toho Group, a Tokyo-listed food wholesaler that bought a majority stake in the business two years ago.
Advantage raises $790m for sixth Japan buyout fund
The middle-market private equity firm expects COVID-19 to generate more deal flow as founder-owners and corporates come under stress
Advantage-owned Japanese funeral services business to go public
Advantage Partners is set to make a partial exit from Kizuna Holdings Corporation, a Japanese funeral services business it acquired for around JPY2 billion ($18 million) in 2016, through an IPO.
Succession, global expansion drive Taiwan deal flow - AVCJ Forum
Private equity investors see helping solve succession planning issues and taking local companies global as the key opportunities in Taiwan.
GPs see more cross-border M&A within Asia – AVCJ Forum
The Asian M&A market, typically characterized by cross-border deals with Western entities, is seeing more intra-regional activity, industry participants told the AVCJ Forum.
Advantage seeks $690m for sixth Japan buyout fund
Advantage Partners is looking to raise around JPY75 billion ($690 million) for its sixth Japan-focused middle-market buyout fund, up from JPY60 billion in the previous vintage.
Japan succession planning: The generation game
By selling a stake in the GP, Advantage Partners has broken new ground in Japanese private equity. The move is designed to facilitate ownership transition, accumulate balance sheet capital
Advantage sells GP stake to Japanese strategic
Japanese mid-market private equity firm Advantage Partners has agreed to sell a minority stake in its fund management entity to domestic financial services company Tokyo Century Corporation.
Japan middle market: Going local
Private equity firms looking for an edge in Japan’s middle market are leveraging relationships with brokers and banks – including LPs in their funds – to access company founders in the hinterlands
Japan PE fundraising: Upsizing
Japanese private equity firms are looking to raise larger funds, based on what is described as a blossoming investment opportunity. Do they risk biting off more than they can chew?
Advantage buys Japanese niche education businesses
Advantage Partners has acquired two Japan-based education assets – vocational training provider Abitus and Tokyo Central Japanese Language School (TCJ).
Vietnam inbound investment: Regional rivals
Strategic interest in Vietnam is growing, especially among companies within Asia looking to tap growth no longer available at home. PE investors see them as partners – and sometimes as competitors