Financial Services
Sequoia leads $20m Series A for Singapore's Incomlend
Sequoia Capital India has led a $20 million Series A round for Incomlend, a Singapore-based invoice trading platform that aims to democratize access to trade finance.
MUFG launches Singapore venture debt business
Japan’s MUFG Bank has set up a Singapore-based venture debt business alongside Israeli financial technology start-up Liquidity Capital. Its debut fund has been set up with an initial $80 million.
BRI invests Indonesia fintech player Ayoconnect
BRI Ventures, the newly launched VC unit of Bank Rakyat Indonesia, has joined a $5 million pre-Series B round for local financial technology provider Ayoconnect.
WI Harper backs Hong Kong financial services player
WI Harper Group has led a $20 million Series B round for Hong Kong financial services provider EMQ.
Eurazeo backs UK, Singapore-based Thought Machine
Eurazeo Growth, a joint venture between French GPs Eurazeo and Idinvest Partners, has joined a $125 million Series B round for UK and Singapore financial technology player Thought Machine.
Australia's Square Peg backs Singapore wealth manager
Australian VC firm Square Peg Capital has led a $16 million Series C round for StashAway, a Singapore-based digital financial services provider focused on retail wealth management.
India payments player Pine Labs invests Malaysia’s Fave
Pine Labs, an Indian payments start-up backed by MasterCard, PayPal, and Sequoia Capital India, has invested Fave, a Malaysian e-commerce platform also supported by Sequoia.
TA Associates invests in Indian stock exchange
TA Associates has invested an undisclosed sum in the National Stock Exchange of India (NSE).
B Capital closes second fund at $820m
B Capital Group, a US-based VC with a presence in Singapore and a significant Asia portfolio, has closed its second global fund at $820 million.
Asia lending start-ups: Bump in the road
Digital lenders in emerging markets need to survive a tricky year under the shadow of potential defaults, but the survivors might become significant players in a renewed financial landscape
SCB 10X, Sparx lead $80m round for Thai fintech player
Thailand-based financial technology provider Synqa, formerly known as Omise, has raised an $80 million Series C round led by local VC firm SCB 10X and Japan’s Sparx Group.
Carlyle invests $198m in Korea's KB Financial
The Carlyle Group has invested KRW240 billion ($198 million) in KB Financial Group and agreed to work with the Korean company on investment opportunities and structuring and financing its deals in the country.
Sequoia joins $21m Series A for Philippines digital bank
Sequoia Capital India and US-based Point72 Ventures have led a $21 million Series A round for Tonik, a Singapore-based digital bank launching initial operations in the Philippines.
Deal focus: KKR’s Colonial First State breakthrough
Divestments of non-core assets by Australia's big four banks are keenly tracked by strategic players and financial sponsors. KKR's investment in Colonial First State represents the first PE deal of this nature
TA backs Australia's Honan Insurance
TA Associates has confirmed a growth investment of undisclosed size in Australian corporate insurance provider Honan Insurance.
KKR to buy majority stake in Australia's Colonial First State
KKR will buy a 55% stake in Colonial First State (CFS), the wealth management arm of Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CBA), in a deal that values the business at A$3.3 billion ($2.1 billion).
Australia SME lender Judo raises $147m
Judo Bank, a PE-backed start-up that provides loans to Australian small and medium-sized enterprises (SME), has raised A$230 million ($147 million) from existing investors.
Coronavirus thwarts PE partial exit from Indonesia's BFI Finance
Italian lender Compass Banca has abandoned its purchase of a 19.9% stake in Indonesia’s BFI Finance from TPG Capital and Northstar Group, citing economic disruption created by the coronavirus outbreak.
Capricorn acquires Hong Kong corporate services player
UK-based family office Capricorn Capital has made its second investment in Asia with the 100% acquisition of Hong Kong corporate services provider Ethos for an undisclosed sum.
ADB Ventures raises $50m for debut fund
ADB Ventures, a VC unit of the Asian Development Bank launched earlier this year, is set to begin investment after raising $50 million for its debut impact fund.
Australia's Airwallex gets $160m Series D
The VC divisions of ANZ Bank and Salesforce have led a $160 million Series D round for Australian financial technology company Airwallex.
Japan's Paidy tops up Series C round
Japanese payments start-up Paidy has topped up its Series C round with an additional commitment from Itochu Corporation. It brings the company's total capital raised to date to $281 million.
Hong Kong online banking start-up Neat raises $11m
Neat, a Hong Kong-based financial services start-up targeting digital entrepreneurs, has raised an $11 million Series A round with support from Visa.
KKR joins $120m investment in Philippines’ Voyager
KKR is re-upping in Philippines-based financial technology company Voyager Innovations as part of a $120 million growth round.