Australia
Carlyle seeks $1.9b Coates Hire refinancing
The Carlyle Group is in negotiations with banks to refinance the A$1.9 billion ($1.9 billion) in leverage used to purchase Australian equipment hire company Coates Hire.
PE-backed M&A picks up in second quarter
Private equity-backed M&A in Asia Pacific recovered during the second quarter of 2012, as deal value increased 32.9% to $5 billion from last quarter. This comes after consecutive quarterly decline since the start of 2011.
Singtel Innov8, Optus launch Australia start-ups program
SingTel Innov8, the venture capital arm of SingTel, has teamed up with Australian telco Optus to start a seed program to help Australian digital startups grow and expand into Asia.
Illiquidity putting Japan pension plans off PE
The liquidity constraints of negative cash flows are making private equity less attractive for Japanese defined benefit pension plans, according to a new survey.
Asiasons buys Australian pre-school show from CVC's Nine
Southeast Asian private equity firm Asiasons Group has acquired Australian pre-school television show Hi-5 from Nine Network Australia and Southern Star Entertainment. Nine Network is owned by the debt-laden Nine Entertainment Group, which is backed by...
Australian businesses don’t trust PE – PwC survey
Only 5% of small- to medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Australia that are currently seeking funding would consider private equity as a source of capital, according to a survey published by PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC).
Australia’s old media: Where did it all go wrong?
Traditional media in Australia has been colonized by buyout houses since 2006, but a number of these assets are now in distress. Can private equity use this situation to its advantage?
OneVentures backs Paloma Mobile with $1.5m
Australia-focused venture capital firm OneVentures has led a $1.5 million Series A round of funding for Paloma Mobile, a developer of smartphone services for emerging markets.
PE firms consider bid for Australian packaging firm – report
The Blackstone Group, KKR and The Carlyle Group are said to be in talks with banks over a bid for Australian packaging company Pact. The deal could value the firm at as much as $1.4 billion.
Qantas appoints Macquarie to defend against PE bids
Qantas Airways has hired Macquarie Group to set up an internal team “to advise on the defense against potential private equity bids,” a company spokesman has confirmed. The news prompted an 11% spike in the airline’s share price to A$1.08 during...
Carlyle, Apollo miss out as Brambles cancels $2b asset sale
ASX-listed Brambles has announced that it has canceled it plans to raise cash by selling Recall, its information management business. The 10-month process was called to a halt because of low offers from potential buyers, which included a number of private...
Hawkesbridge backs Colemans
Australian private equity firm Hawkesbridge has acquired a stake in Australian fencing infrastructure firm the Colemans Group.
Blackstone, Morgan Stanley buy Lloyds Australia loans for $621m - report
Blackstone and Morgan Stanley have bought 34% of a A$1.9 billion portfolio of distressed property loans for A$640 million ($621 million), from a unit of Lloyds Banking Group in Australia.
Australia's ASX may join bid for PEP’s Link - report
Australia's bourse operator ASX may join the auction for Link Market services, the share registry owned by Pacific Equity Partners (PEP), in a deal that could be worth as much as $1.36 billion. If the transaction goes through, it would be Asia’s biggest...
Australia offers residency for VC investors
The Australian government has announced plans to offer permanent residency to those who invest $5 million in domestic venture capital funds. It is expecting the most interest in the incentive to come from Asia – or more specifically, China.
Australia’s NAB pulls out of private equity
National Australia Bank (NAB) is winding down its private equity unit a matter of months after the division suffered an A$25 million write-down on its investment in electronics retailer WOW Sight & Sound.
Lazard-backed Hastie Group enters administration
Hastie Group, the Australian engineering company backed by Lazard, has entered into voluntary administration after recapitalization talks failed. It comes after recapitalization talks failed due to “accounting irregularities” led to a profits charge...
Asahi says it paid too much for PE-backed Independent Liquor
Asahi Group is re-examining the terms of its NZ$1.5 billion ($1.27 billion) acquisition last year of Independent Liquor from Pacific Equity Partners (PEP) and Unitas Capital, suggesting there were differences in understanding between the buyer and sellers...
Crest Capital acquires 51% of Australia’s Questus
Singapore-based Crest Capital Asia has agreed to recapitalize Western Australia’s Questus in exchange for a 51% stake in the investment company.
VIDEO: Advent Private Capital's Rupert Harrington
Western Australia is the country's fourth-largest state by population but the richest by natural resources and this has seen it emerge as the primary source of economic growth. This shift in momentum from east coast to west – coupled with the cyclical...
PE-owned oOh!Media tipped to buy Ten’s outdoor ad business
Australia’s Ten Network Holdings has entered into exclusive negotiations with a bidder for its outdoor advertising business, Eye Corp. The company didn’t disclose the identity of the bidder, but it is thought to be oOh!Media Group, which was bought...
PEP seeks buyers for Link Group – report
Pacific Equity Partners (PEP) has reportedly begun the auction process for Link Group, which could sell for as much as A$1.4 billion ($1.4 billion), including debt. It is poised to be Asia’s biggest private equity exit of the year.
Ironbridge targets $1b for Fund III, invests $95m in dental business
Australian private equity house Ironbridge Capital has said it will target up to A$1 billion ($1 billion) for its third fund, for which it will begin fundraising in the second half of this year.
AMP Capital acquires Australian schools project for $232m
Asset manager AMP Capital has received approval to acquire the South Australian Schools Public Private Partnership (PPP) project for an enterprise value of $232 million.