Official Record
Fortune backs Huimin’s B2C-B2B switch
Huimin started out in 2012 as an online B2C platform, enabling Chinese consumers to order daily household items from small-scale supermarkets in their neighborhood. The supermarkets took care of the delivery and Huimin got a commission on each transaction....
CDC banks on rail to share the wealth
Uttar Pradesh, the most populous state in India, is served by just two rail freight container terminals. They are located in the northern industrial hotbed of Kanpur, with one operated by Pristine Logistics & InfraProjects and the other by Concor.
Longreach puts a ring on it
Is the spirit of romance ebbing away in Japan? Naoki Sawano, president of bridal jewelry specialist Primo Japan, suggested as much a couple of years ago. He held a trend among young people “to think of the proposal and the engagement ring as two separate...
China’s Banyan fast-tracks Fund II
The launch of Banyan Capital's second US dollar-denominated fund came sooner than expected. The China-focused VC firm, which spun out from IDG Capital Partners and closed its debut vehicle at $206 million just over 12 months ago, had the Fund II launch...
ClearVue’s cross-border cosmetic play
Beauty is a big business for ClearVue Partners. Sales of cosmetic products in China grew 10% year-on-year between 2008 and 2013. The market is thought to be worth $80 billion with plenty of room for further growth.
China's Meituan enters the big league
Asked whether, two years ago, he could have envisaged Chinese group-buying site Meituan achieving a $7 billion valuation Feng Deng, founding managing director of Northern Light Venture Capital, gives a swift no.
Goldman backs Antuit’s big data ambitions
Various factors influence the amount of milk a cow produces – breed, diet, weather, living conditions and the calving cycle among them. Working with one of its clients, dairy giant Fonterra, Singapore-headquartered big data analytics firm Antuit now...
Deal focus: ChrysCapital doubles its money on ING Vysya
In November it was revealed that Kotak Mahindra Bank - India's fourth largest private lender - would acquire its smaller rival, Bangalore-based retail bank ING Vysya, in an all-stock deal at a valuation of $2.4 billion.
Deal focus: Macro headwinds weigh on Peoplebank exit
Not every investment works out as planned - often for reasons beyond the investor's control. Navis Capital Partners recently sold Australia-based IT and specialist recruiting firm Peoplebank to Japan's Recruit Holdings for A$68.6 million ($56.6 million)....
KKR's long-term India real estate solution
When KKR set up its first India-based non-banking financial company (NBFC) in 2009 to provide structured credit solutions to entrepreneurs, it was funded off the firm's own balance sheet. A few years on, it was reported that third-party investors were...
Investors back WeLab’s financial innovation
For Hong Kong-based financial technology start-up WeLab, setting up a peer-to-peer lending (P2P) platform was never the priority. Rather, the company wanted to develop and leverage its capabilities in the design of internet finance products and big data...
Samurai Incubate targets Tel Aviv
When Prime Minister Shinzo Abe travels to Israel later this month it will be the first time a Japanese leader has visited the country since Junichiro Koizumi in 2006.
NZ Super, Infratil target aged care integration
Morrison & Co, an investment manager of New Zealand-listed infrastructure fund Infratil, has been looking into Australian retirement village space for a while. In early 2014, it approached RetireAustralia, the country’s fourth-largest player, as a potential...
MSPEA enters the China hospital space
To Homer Sun, CIO at Morgan Stanley Private Equity Asia (MSPEA), the current climate in China’s hospital services space is reminiscent of pharmaceuticals circa 2008. Government policy was pushing the industry towards consolidation and MSPEA capitalized,...
Musical chairs: Asia PE people moves
A selection of the transfers, promotions, arrivals and departures in the private equity community in 2014
EQT bakery investment proves out
EQT's 2010 acquisition of a controlling stake in Chongqing New Qinyuan Bakery – which it has just exited to Swire Pacific – was something of a coup for the European mid-market GP. Not only did the firm overcome several competitors, but it also managed...
Carlyle starts a new chapter with Newgen
When The Carlyle Group first parted ways with India-based publishing and technical services provider Newgen KnowledgeWorks in 2011 it was on good terms.
Hony takes a trip to Tuniu
A private funding round was not Tuniu’s original plan. Earlier this month, the US-listed Chinese online package tour provider informed regulators that it wanted to raise $100 million via a public offering.
AVCJ Awards: Deal of the Year - Venture Capital: Flipkart
Flipkart received $1 billion in funding from a consortium of investors in July. It is ammunition for the arms race currently consuming India’s e-commerce industry
AVCJ Awards: Fundraising of the Year - Large Cap: CVC Capital Partners
Buoyed by strong returns out of Southeast Asia and pipeline of China control deals, CVC Capital Partners defied early expectations by closing Fund IV at the hard cap
KKR backs desert-farming solution
Tough climatic challenges are in store for South Australia, already the nation's driest state. Agriculture, which is worth more than $5 billion each year to the state, will increasingly be affected by rising temperatures and reduced rainfall.
SoftBank hitches a ride with GrabTaxi
Six months ago, Southeast Asia-focused mobile taxi-booking platform GrabTaxi was adjusting to the fact that its resources had ballooned by $15 million, following a Series B round provided by GGV Capital and Qunar. On this basis, the past six weeks have...