Consumer

EB Private Equity abandons David Jones takeover bid

Little-known UK-based investor EB Private Equity has withdrawn its takeover bid for David Jones, Australia’s second-largest department store chain. The group initially submitted an offer of A$1.52 billion ($1.55 billion) in May and later increased it...

CVC buys into C.Banner's organic growth story

Over the course of 17 years, C.Banner Holdings has become China’s third-largest ladies footwear retailer, building up a network of more than 1,800 outlets and four self-developed brands. Growth has been entirely organic: Chinese retailers habitually engage...

Billabong poised for takeover as share price tumbles

Australian surfwear retailer Billabong International saw its stock slump 36% when it resumed trading on Monday following a heavily discounted $225 million rights issue. The company is now worth less than one third of the value of TPG Capital’s A$841 million...

Bain buys half of Japanese TV shopping channel for $1.3b

Bain Capital will buy a 50% stake in Jupiter Shop Channel (JSC), a television shopping company, from Japan-based Sumitomo Corporation. Industry sources noted that the deal is worth JPY100 billion ($1.3 billion), which might be Japan's largest private...

Milestone backs China restaurant chain IPO

Milestone Capital Partners has agreed to become a cornerstone investor in Chinese restaurant chain Xiao Nan Guo’s Hong Kong IPO. The company is looking to sell 341.25 million shares at HK$1.50 to raise HK$511.5 million ($65.9 million). A Milestone subsidiary...

MBK named preferred bidder for Korea's Hi-Mart

MBK Partners has been chosen as the preferred bidder for South Korean electronics retailer Hi-Mart. The company said in a statement to the Korean Stock Exchange that its largest shareholder, Eugene Corp, had made the decision.

Unitas in timely bet on Korea's outdoor market

As in most proprietary deals, timing was everything when it came to Unitas’ most recent investment. By fortuitous coincidence, the Asia-focused private equity firm approached Korean outdoor apparel and equipment manufacturer NEPA at the very moment that...

Sony increases take in PE-backed India subsidiary

Sony Pictures Television, the international television production and distribution arm of Sony, has increased its stake in Indian subsidiary Multi Screen Media (MSM), which is also backed by private equity investor Capital International. Sony has agreed...

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 morning...