Consumer
Bain serves up Skylark in Tokyo IPO
When Bain Capital bought Skylark in 2011, the restaurant operator was going through one the rougher patches of its 40-year history. A dysentery outbreak had forced the closure of 120 outlets, further delaying a transaction that had already been on hold...
PayU acquires VC-backed Indian payments start-up
Online payment solutions provider PayU India has acquired Cobboc, the VC-backed start-up behind mobile payments app Eashmart.
Warburg Pincus leads $30m round for India’s CarTrade
Warburg Pincus has led a INR1.85 million ($30 million) investment in Indian auto classifieds site CarTrade. Existing investors Canaan Partners and Tiger Global also took part.
China’s Baidu buys VC-backed Brazilian online discount site
Chinese search giant Baidu has bought a controlling stake in Brazil-based Peixe Urbano, an online discount platform that has received several rounds of VC funding, for an undisclosed sum.
SAIF Partners invest $13m in Indian jewelry chain
SAIF Partners has invested INR800 million ($13 million) in Senco Gold, an Indian jewelry retail chain.
Shares in Bain-backed Skylark fall on Tokyo debut
Shares in Skylark, the Japanese restaurant operator backed by Bain Capital, fell by nearly 4.8% on the first day of trading on the Tokyo Stock Exchange (TSE) following a JPY75.1 billion ($686.2 million) IPO.
Navis acquires Australian early education business
Navis Capital Partners has acquired a majority stake in Modern Star, an Australian B2B distributor of education resources to early childhood centres and schools, for an undisclosed amount.
Japan's Mercari raises $22m Series C round
Mercari, the Japanese start-up behind the mobile flea market app of the same name, has raised JPY2.36 billion ($21.8 million) in Series C funding from World Innovation Lab (WiL) and existing investors Global Brain, Globis Capital Partners, GMO Venture...
Club Med board endorses improved Fosun buyout offer
The board of directors of Club Méditerranée (Club Med), the France-based vacation resorts operator, unanimously recommended that shareholders should accept an improved takeover bid from Chinese conglomerate Fosun International and its partners.
Jafco commits $4.6m in Japan footwear site Locondo
Jafco has invested JPY500 million ($4.6 million) in Japanese footwear e-commerce start-up Locondo in a Series C round of funding.
Marunouchi exits Japan supermarket chain to Lawson for $501m
Marunouchi Capital - the private equity arm of Mitsubishi Corp - has exited Japanese high-end supermarket chain Seijo Ishii to convenience store operator Lawson for JPY55 billion ($501 million) including debt.
VC-backed Chinese car rental firm eHi files for US IPO
EHi Car Services, a Shanghai-based car rental company backed by a string of VC investors, has filed for an IPO on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE).
Matrix India backs online food-ordering platform LimeTray
Matrix Partners India has provided a Series A round of funding for Alchemy Web Private, operator of online food-ordering platform LimeTray. The size of the commitment was not disclosed.
Jungle Ventures commits $1.6m to Thailand fashion site
Jungle Ventures has led a $1.6 million pre-Series A round for Pomelo, a Thailand-based online fashion retailer.
Affinity backs poultry producer in debut Malaysia deal
Affinity Equity Partners has secured its debut Malaysia investment after agreeing to buy a significant minority stake in poultry producer Leong Hup International in a deal that values the company at around $600 million excluding debt.
Alibaba invests $458m in hotel IT software firm
Alibaba Group has bought a 15% stake in Beijing Shiji Information Technology, a Chinese hospitality information technology developer, for RMB2.81 billion ($458 million).
Australia's Treasury Wines ends PE buyout talks
Australia’s Treasury Wine Estates (TWE) has ended talks with two private equity suitors, TPG Capital and a consortium comprising KKR and Rhône Capital, after deciding the offer was too low.
New Asia, AIF in $15m round for Vietnam restaurant chain
New Asia Partners and AIF Capital have led a Series B round of funding worth $15 million for Huy Vietnam Group, Vietnam’s largest operator of self-managed, local cuisine restaurants.
China’s Tiantu in $63m first close on debut US dollar fund
Chinese GP Tiantu Capital has reached a first close of $63 million on its debut US dollar-denominated fund. A final close of $100 million is targeted for before the end of the year.
PE-backed apparel maker La Chapelle eyes $285m HK IPO
Ladies apparel maker Shanghai La Chapelle, which is backed by a string of PE investors, plans to raise HK$2.21 billion ($285 million) through an IPO in Hong Kong.
Lightspeed leads $10m round for China P2P car-sharing site uuzuche
Lightspeed China Partners has led a $10 million Series A round of funding for uuzuche.com, a Chinese peer-to-peer (P2P) car-sharing platform.
Standard Chartered PE backs garlic-themed restaurant in Korea
Standard Chartered Private Equity (SCPE) has led a $48 million joint investment in Mad for Garlic, a Korea-based Italian restaurant chain that has expanded into Southeast Asia.
China food-ordering platforms: Stand and deliver
Competition is increasing in China's online food delivery market as VC investors back start-ups looking to achieve scale ahead of expected consolidation. How asset-heavy should the business model be?
Second hand, first place
Manheim, the world's largest automobile auction provider, was a project more than 30 years in the making. The company facilitates sales of used cars worth $46 billion annually, dominating a US market that trades 40 million vehicles a year.