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ICICI Venture Reaches a US$190 Million First Close for India Advantage Fund Series 4 (Asia)
India-focused private equity fund manager ICICI Venture has reached a first close for its India Advantage Fund Series 4 with US$190 million in capital commitments. Investors in the fund included an Asian sovereign wealth fund and ICICI’s existing investors. The fund will be sector agnostic and will invest US$25 million to US$50 million per deal. Read More
Hony Capital Fund VIII Reaches a US$2.7 Billion Final Close (Asia)
China-focused private equity firm Hony Capital has reached a final close for Hony Capital Fund VIII with US$2.7 billion in capital commitments. Investors in the fund included pensions California State Teachers’ Retirement System, Canadian Pension Plan Investment Board and BBC Pension Trust; sovereign wealth funds Temasek Holdings and Abu Dhabi Investment Authority; investment bank Goldman Sachs; global private markets investment… Read More
KKR Supports Astarc Group’s Buyback of Navis Capital Partners’ Stake in Classic Stripes (Asia)
Global investment firm KKR has backed India-based conglomerate Astarc Group in support of Astarc Group’s buyback of a 51 percent stake in its subsidiary Classic Stripes from Asia-Pacific-focused private equity firm Navis Capital Partners. The deal was reportedly valued at INR3.6 billion (approximately US$54 million). Established in 1987, Classic Stripes designs, manufactures and distributes automotive graphics. Navis originally invested in… Read More
Jacob Ballas Capital Partially Exits PNC Infratech via Share Sale (Asia)
Private equity advisory firm Jacob Ballas Capital India has partially exited its investment in India-based infrastructure construction company PNC Infratech, selling a 2.6 percent stake on the Bombay Stock Exchange. Jacob Ballas sold 1.3 million shares and is estimated to have returned INR670 million (approximately US$10 million). Post-transaction, Jacob Ballas holds a 5.8 percent stake in the company. Read More
Tiger Global, IDG Ventures India and Yuri Milner Lead a US$30M Series C Round for NestAway (Asia)
Global investment firm Tiger Global, venture capital firm IDG Ventures India and individual investor Yuri Milner have led a US$30 million Series C round for India-based online rental property manager NestAway. The company, which acts as an agent for homeowners looking to rent out their homes, plans to use the new capital to scale up its operations and improve its… Read More
The Abraaj Group to Lead a US$30 Million Financing Round for Ninja Logistics (Asia)
Global growth markets investor The Abraaj Group is leading a consortium of investors in a US$30 million funding round for Singapore-based Ninja Logistics, operator of last-mile logistics company Ninja Van. Other participants in the round include venture capital firm Monk’s Hill Ventures, growth stage investment firm B Capital Group and Yahoo Japan’s investment arm YJ Capital. Ninja Van—which operates in… Read More
ARX Equity Partners Exits Tomplast to KJK Capital (CEE and CIS)
ARX Equity Partners, a private equity investor focused on mid-sized companies in CEE, has sold its stake in Slovenia-based plastic components producer Tomplast to funds managed by Finnish investment manager KJK Capital. ARX, which originally invested in Tomplast in 2007, reported a 4.1x cash-on-cash return multiple and an IRR exceeding 20 percent. Financial details of the transaction were not disclosed. Read More
TPG Leads a US$210 Million Financing Round for Janalakshmi Financial Services (Asia)
Global private equity firm TPG has led a US$210 million financing round for India-based microfinance institution Janalakshmi Financial Services. Asia-Pacific-focused private equity investor Morgan Stanley Private Equity Asia, India-based electrical equipment company Havells India and individual investor Vallabh Bhansali also participated in the round. The investment consisted of US$150 million in primary equity financing and US$60 million in secondary transactions,… Read More
Innova Capital Backs Poland-based Netsprint Group (CEE and CIS)
Mid-market private equity firm Innova Capital has invested in Poland-based advertising and marketing technology firm Netsprint. The investment consisted of both a capital increase and an acquisition of shares from Poland-based holding company Dirlango. With Innova Capital’s support, Netsprint hopes to expand into other markets and to increase the scale of its operations. Financial details of the transaction were not… Read More
Enterprise Investors Agrees to Acquire Noriel Group (CEE and CIS)
Poland-based private equity and venture capital firm Enterprise Investors (EI) has agreed to acquire 100 percent of Romania-based toys and games retailer Noriel Group from the Constantinescu family—Noriel’s founding entrepreneurs—and CEE-focused investment manager Axxess Capital’s Balkan Accession Fund. The transaction will be structured through EI’s Polish Enterprise Fund VII. As part of the deal, EI will provide EUR2 million (approximately… Read More
Omidyar Network Leads a Seed Financing Round for Giraffe (Sub-Saharan Africa)
Philanthropic investment firm Omidyar Network has led a seed financing round in Giraffe, a South Africa-based company that operates an automated mobile recruitment app matching businesses with medium-skilled jobseekers. Omidyar will support the expansion of Giraffe’s platform and reach within the country. Financial details of the transaction were not disclosed. Read More
Convergence Partners and Stockdale Street Acquire e4 (Sub-Saharan Africa)
Africa-focused investment management firm Convergence Partners and Stockdale Street—a firm representing the Oppenheimer family’s South African private equity portfolio—have acquired 100 percent of South Africa-based software-as-a-service platform e4. Convergence Partners structured its contribution through its Communications Infrastructure Fund. With support from the new investors, e4 plans to accelerate its growth through new product and services development and further expand geographically.… Read More