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Marg Karaikal Port Attracts Equity Investment of US$39 Million (Asia)
Karaikal Port Private Limited, a subsidiary of Chennai-headquartered infrastructure company MARG Limited, has announced that Jacob Ballas Capital India has invested INR2 billion (approximately US$39 million) for a minority stake in the company. The investment, which came from the NYLIM Jacob Ballas India III fund, will be used for the MARG Karaikal Port’s expansion plans. Read More
Navis in 10x Sale to Partners Group (Asia)
Zug, Switzerland-based asset manager Partners Group has directly acquired Hong Kong-based business TrimCo, a provider of labels, tags and trimming products to apparel companies worldwide. Partners bought the stake from Southeast Asia-focused private equity firm Navis Capital. Navis bought a 70 percent stake in TrimCo in 2005 for US$11.1 million, and revealed the transaction with Partners was worth US$111.4 million. Read More
Russian Classifieds Website Inks US$75 Million to Fuel Growth (CEE/CIS)
AVITO.ru, a Russian online classifieds website, has announced that it received US$75 million in new funding from Baring Vostok Capital Partners’ Private Equity Fund IV, Accel Partners, and existing investors Kinnevik and Northzone. The new capital will be used to fuel the company’s growth throughout Russia and to attract talent to the firm. Further transaction details were not disclosed. Read More
GSR Ventures, HGI Capital Invest in Online Cake Shop (Asia)
Shanghai-based Tiantian Company, which operates the B2C e-commerce cake company Le Cake, has secured US$10 million in Series A financing from Chinese early-stage and venture capital investors GSR Ventures and HGI Capital. The proceeds will be used to build the company’s brand and optimize its website and hardware system. Read More
Virgin Mobile Latin American Secures New Funding and New Investors for Expansion (Latin America)
Virgin Mobile Latin America (VMLA), a mobile virtual network operator established last year, has raised US$26.5 million to support its recent launch of services in Chile. A number of investors participated in this funding round, including existing shareholders ePlanet Capital, a U.S.-based venture and growth capital investment manager, and Virgin Group, as well as new investors Hermes Growth Partners, CANEPA,… Read More
BTG Pactual Acquires 30 Percent of Bodytech (Latin America)
Banco BTG Pactual, a Brazil-based investment bank, has acquired a 30 percent stake in Bodytech, a Brazilian fitness chain, for approximately BRL200 million (roughly US$105 million. Bodytech plans to use the additional capital to support its expansion plans. BTG Pactual’s investment in Bodytech comes in the wake of the bank’s US$2 billion IPO last month and the US$1.5 billion final… Read More
Forus Health Raises US$5 Million (Asia)
Indian venture capital funds IDG Ventures India and Accel Partners have invested US$5 million in Series A funding for local medical technology and solutions company Forus Health. The company plans to use the financing to drive manufacturing and sales of its flagship product 3nethra (a portable, low-cost, non-invasive pre-screening ophthalmology tool that can detect a number of eye-related problems) as… Read More
South African Firms Buy into Nigerian Food, Juice Provider (Sub-Saharan Africa)
South Africa-based private equity group RMB Corvest and South African investment holding company Zico Capital have jointly purchased a 25 percent stake in Nigerian food company Vital Products. The value of the transaction is not disclosed. Vital began operations in 1999 as a manufacturer and distributor of fruit drinks and non-alcoholic beverages, but has since expanded its product portfolio. The… Read More
Tunisia’s Fidelium Launches Two Growth Capital Private Equity Funds (MENA)
Tunisian venture capital fund manager Fidelium Finance has launched two private equity funds dedicated to small- and medium-size enterprises in the country. Fidelium Performance is a TND50 million (approximately US$33 million) fund that will invest in companies via common shares or preferred non-voting investment certificates, equity securities, convertible bonds and equity shares. Fidelium Essor II is a TND20 million (approximately… Read More
VTB Capital Venture Leads US$18 Million Round in Fast Lane Ventures (CEE/CIS)
VTB Capital Venture Business, a Moscow-based firm focused on venture capital investments in Russia and CIS countries, has led a Series C investment into Fast Lane Ventures, a local developer and promoter of internet businesses. The transaction is valued at US$18 million. The funding will be used to develop Fast Lane Ventures’s current portfolio of companies, finance new investments, and… Read More
Newsweek Expands Asian Presence with TStone Corp Partnership (Asia)
The Newsweek/DailyBeast Company LLC and TStone Corp, a Seoul-based private equity firm that focuses on media, education and financial services companies, are entering into a joint venture in Asia. The JV will create a pan-Asian media group with a focus on expanding the current Asian edition of Newsweek magazine through added local editorial focus and increased distribution. Financial details of… Read More
Enterprise Investors’ Venture Fund Invests EUR5.5 Million in Mobile Technologies (CEE/CIS)
Enterprise Investors, a private equity and venture capital firm in Poland and Central and Eastern Europe, has invested EUR5.5 million (approximately US$6.6 million) in BLStream, a Finland-based software company focused on mobile technologies. The investment, which represents a 35 percent stake in the company, was made through the EUR100 million Enterprise Venture Fund I (EVF). The company intends to use… Read More