Agriculture
Indian agtech: Technology harvest
Indian investors are excited about a growing wave of agricultural technology start-ups focused on solving practical problems faced by farmers, but achieving scale with a limited scope will be a challenge
Bertelsmann leads $27m round for India's AgroStar
Bertelsmann India Investments has led a $27 million Series C round for AgroStar, an Indian mobile retail platform focused on the agriculture sector.
Australia's Artesian launches $36m agtech fund
Australia’s Artesian Venture Partners and government-backed Grains Research & Development Corporation (GRDC) have launched a A$50 million ($36 million) agriculture technology VC fund.
New Zealand's Enterprise Angels launches third fund
Enterprise Angels, a New Zealand angel investor network that focuses on domestic IT, agriculture, food, horticulture, life science and biotech companies, has launched its third early-stage VC fund.
1955 Capital leads Series A for sustainable foods specialist
1955 Capital, a cross-border PE firm that invests in US and European technologies with application potential in Asia, has led a $33 million Series A round for edible protein developer Sustainable Bioproducts.
Portfolio: QIC and North Australian Pastoral
Addressing Chinese demand was central to QIC’s acquisition of cattle breeder North Australian Pastoral, but the company has repositioned itself in response to changing patterns of consumption in global beef markets
Deal focus: India’s Licious cuts in a heavyweight
Indian online fresh meat and seafood delivery company Licious felt compelled to raise its Series D round within three months of its Series C after a segment leader from Japan made an irrefutable offer
Accel, Qualcomm join $35m round for India's Ninjacart
Accel Partners and Qualcomm Ventures have joined an INR2.5 billion ($35 million) funding round for Indian agriculture industry platform operator Ninjacart.
PE and aquaculture: Fishtech of the future
Rising consumer demand for high-quality products and the emergence of technologies that allow greater efficiency are driving investor interest in Asia’s previously overlooked aquaculture industry
India's CropIn gets $8m Series B
CropIn, an Indian developer of cloud technology for agricultural applications, has received INR580 million ($8.1 million) from Chiratae Ventures, formerly IDG Ventures India, and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.
Blackbird joins $7m round for New Zealand's Sunfed
Blackbird Ventures has joined a NZ$10 million ($7 million) funding round for Sunfed Meats, a New Zealand-based company that specializes in meat-like vegetarian foodstuffs.
Permira invests in Taiwan aquatic feed business
Permira has acquired a 50% stake in Ye Cheng Industrial Products, a Taiwan-headquartered aquatic feed producer that operates under the Grobest brand.
Direct Capital exits New Zealand's Cavalier Wool
New Zealand’s Direct Capital has exited its remaining 13.7% stake in domestic carpet manufacturing industry services provider Cavalier Wool Holdings (CWH) for an undisclosed sum.
Myanmar's Anthem reaches first close on SME fund
Myanmar private equity firm Anthem Asia has reached a first close of $34.5 million on its debut fund, which will invest locally in small to medium-sized enterprises (SME).
Adamantem buys its second Australia horse feed business
Australian middle-market private equity firm Adamantem Capital has agreed to pay A$59.5 million ($43.2 million) for poultry producer Inghams Group’s Mitavite animal feed business. It is a bolt-on acquisition for horse feed producer Hygain Holdings.
Golden Equator launches Brunei accelerator
Singapore’s Golden Equator has launched an accelerator in Brunei aimed at helping local small to medium-sized enterprises (SME) expand across Southeast Asia.
TPG-backed Dodla files for India IPO
Indian dairy firm Dodla Dairy has filed for an IPO that will provide a partial exit for its private equity backer TPG Growth, the growth investment arm of TPG Capital.
GLP invests $58m in China's Wangjiahuan
GLP, a private equity-owned warehouse operator based in Singapore, has invested RMB400 million ($58 million) in Chinese agricultural products distributor Wangjiahuan.
Tech investment case study: True North and Seedworks
True North aimed to set Indian seed maker Seedworks apart from its competitors by leveraging digital technology. Two years into its investment the private equity firm is seeing its initiatives pay off
China agriculture supply chain player adds $26m to Series B
Songxiaocai, a business-to-business (B2B) platform that provides agricultural wholesale services to Chinese retailers, has raised RMB180 million ($26.4 million) in the second tranche of its Series B funding, taking the overall round to RMB410 million.
TPG, ADIA back acquisition of agrochemicals producer Arysta
TPG Capital and Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA) have teamed up with India-listed UPL Corporation on a $4.2 billion acquisition of Arysta LifeScience, an agricultural chemicals manufacturer that originated in Japan.
NZ Super buys 27% stake in domestic food player
New Zealand Superannuation (NZ Super) has invested an undisclosed sum to take a 27% holding in New Zealand Gourmet, a company that farms and markets a range of fresh produce.
VCs invest $8m in Singapore's Umitron
Innovation Network Corporation of Japan and D4V, a Japanese seed-stage investor set up by Genuine Startups and US design consultancy Ideo, have joined a S$11.2 million ($8.2 million) investment in Singaporean agricultural technology company Umitron.
Beyond, Linear invest Hong Kong’s Insight Robotics
Beyond Ventures and Linear Capital have co-led a $9 million investment in Insight Robotics, a Hong Kong-based company that specializes in advanced forest fire detection systems.