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B Capital Group Reaches USD250m Final Close for Global Early-stage VC Fund
B Capital Group reached a USD250m final close for Ascent Fund II, its first early-stage venture fund. The vehicle will invest in pre-seed through Series A rounds globally with an emphasis on U.S. and Asia. Read More
500 Global Leads Six-figure Seed Round for Palestine’s Modesta
500 Global led a seed round for Modesta, a Palestine-based fashion e-commerce startup, with participation from the Innovative Private Sector Development Project (IPSD) program funded by the World Bank and angel investors, for an undisclosed amount. Read More
I&P Launches ~USD4m Digital Energy Program for Africa and Southeast Asia; Invests in Senegal’s Delta
Investisseurs & Partenaires (I&P) has launched I&P Digital Energy, a EUR4m (~USD4m) seed financing program funded by the European Commission and implemented by the French Development Agency, Gaia Impact Fund and I&P. The program will invest in 12 startups and SMEs focused on the energy transition and operating in sub-Saharan Africa and Southeast Asia..Separately, I&P, through its fund I&P Afrique… Read More
Glade Brook Capital Leads USD20m Round for Indonesia’s KitaBeli
Glade Brook Capital Partners led a USD20m round for KitaBeli, an Indonesia-based social commerce platform, with participation from InnoVen Capital and follow-on from AC Ventures and GoVentures. Read More
C5 Capital Invests USD50m in Zimbabwe’s Cassava Technologies
C5 Capital invested USD50m in Cassava Technologies, an Africa-focused, Zimbabwe-founded IT provider. C5 portfolio company Haven Cyber and Cassava had previously established a joint venture to scale Microsoft’s cybersecurity products across Africa. Read More
Sorin Investments Reaches USD100m First Close for India-focused Debut Fund
Sorin Investments reached a USD100m first close for its debut India-focused venture fund. The vehicle will invest in Series A to C startups and has a target of USD130m. The fund was co-founded by Sanjay Nayar (KKR) and Angad Banga (Caravel Group). Read More
NIIF To Invest in India’s Navayuga Quazigund Expressway at USD380m Enterprise Value
NIIF agreed to acquire an equity stake in the Indian tunnel road Navayuga Quazigund Expressway (NQEPL) through its NIIF Master Fund at a USD380m enterprise value. Read more here. Read More
Macquarie Asset Management To Acquire Stake in Brazil’s CLI for ~USD92m To Fund ~259m Deal
Macquarie Asset Management, through its fund Macquarie Infrastructure Partners V (MIP V), agreed to invest BRL500m (USD92m) in Brazil-based port operator CLI. The deal will facilitate CLI’s acquisition of an 80% stake in Brazil-based Elevações Portuárias (EPSA), a subsidiary of Rumo, for BRL1.4b (~USD259m). MIP V will hold a 50% co-control stake with CLI’s current owner IG4 Capital. Read more… Read More
Dayone Capital Leads Series D3 for China’s Nezha Auto
Dayone Capital led an undisclosed Series D3 for Nezha Auto, also known as Neta, a China-based electric car brand established in 2018 by Hozon Auto. Read More
BAI Capital, GGV and GIC Lead USD50m Round for Mexico’s Stori at USD1.2b Valuation
BAI Capital, GGV and GIC led a USD50m round for Stori, a Mexico-based credit card issuer for the underbanked, at a reported USD1.2 valuation, with follow-on from Lightspeed, General Catalyst, Vision Plus Capital, Goodwater Capital and Tresalia Capital. Stori also secured USD100m in debt financing. Stori raised a USD125m Series C led by GGV and GIC in November 2021 and… Read More
HealthQuad Leads USD20m Series B for India’s Wysa
HHealthQuad led a USD20m Series B for Wysa, an India-based AI-powered mental health support platform, with participation from BII. Read more here and here. Read More
Norfund and KLP Invest USD40m in Kenya’s CrossBoundary Energy
Norfund and KLP acquired an equity stake in CrossBoundary Energy, a Kenya-based commercial and industrial renewable energy company, for USD40m through their joint company KLP Norfund Investments. CrossBoundary previously raised USD40m in equity from ARCH Emerging Markets’ Africa Renewable Power Fund in 2020. Read More