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CDH-backed WoWo Completes a US$40 Million IPO (Asia)
WoWo, a China-based entertainment-focused e-commerce platform backed by China-focused private equity and venture capital firm CDH Investments and private investment firm Tianyou Investment, has raised US$40 million in an initial public offering (IPO). The company listed on the NASDAQ Stock Market on 8 April, selling four million shares at US$10 apiece. Neither CDH nor Tianyou disposed of any shares in… Read More
Vantage Capital and FMO Exit Plastic Polymer Manufacturer Safripol (Sub-Saharan Africa)
Pan-African mezzanine fund manager Vantage Capital and Dutch development bank FMO have exited their ZAR220 million (approximately US$31 million) investment in Safripol, a South Africa-based plastic polymer manufacturer. In 2007, Vantage Capital and FMO funded Thebe Investment Corporation, a South Africa-based black economic empowerment investment company, to acquire a stake in Safripol. Post-transaction, Thebe retains its stake in the company. Read More
Templeton Asset Management-led Consortium Acquires a Minority Stake (CEE and CIS)
A consortium led by Templeton Asset Management, a financial services subsidiary of Franklin Templeton Investments, has acquired a minority stake in Turkey-based apparel retailer Defacto Perakende Ticaret. The investment was structured through Templeton Strategic Emerging Markets Fund IV, which is managed by Templeton Emerging Markets Group of Templeton Asset Management. Defacto intends to use the investment to grow within Turkey… Read More
Aqua Capital Acquires a Majority Stake in Grand Cru (Latin America)
Aqua Capital, a private equity fund manager focused on mid-sized agribusiness, food and logistics companies in South America, has acquired a majority stake in Grand Cru, a Brazil-based wine retailer. Grand Cru intends to use the new funding to increase its number of stores within Brazil and expand its e-commerce operations. Financial details of the transaction were not disclosed. Read More
Actis Partially Exits Edita Food Industries in an IPO (MENA)
Pan-emerging markets private equity firm Actis has sold a 15 percent stake in Edita Food Industries, an Egypt-based snack food company, through an oversubscribed initial public offering (IPO) on the Egyptian Exchange and the London Stock Exchange. Actis sold 54.4 million shares in the offering at a price of EGP18.5 (approximately US$2.43) per share, for total proceeds of EGP1.0 billion… Read More
Legend, SIG Asia, VMS, Sequoia and Lightspeed Participate in a Series C Funding Round (Asia)
Legend Capital, the venture capital arm of China-based investment group Legend Holdings, and SIG Asia Investments, the venture capital and private equity arm of the Susquehanna International Group, have led a Series C investment round in Ppdai.com, a China-based peer-to-peer lending company. Venture capital firms Sequoia Capital and Lightspeed China Partners and private equity firm VMS Investment Group also participated… Read More
Advent International Exits Partner in Pet Food to Pamplona Capital Management (CEE and CIS)
Global private equity firm Advent International has sold Partner in Pet Food (PPF), a Hungary-based pet food company, to global private equity firm Pamplona Capital Management for EUR315 million (approximately US$339 million). Pamplona’s investment was structured through its Pamplona Capital Partners IV fund. Advent initially acquired PPF through a carve-out from Provimi Group, a global animal nutrition company, in 2011,… Read More
Hahn & Company Partially Exits Korea-based Cowell in a Hong Kong IPO (Asia)
South Korea-focused private equity firm Hahn & Company has partially exited its investment in Cowell e Holdings, a South Korea-based mobile phone camera module manufacturer, in an initial public offering (IPO) on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. The sale returned US$68.4 million to Hahn, giving Cowell a market capitalization of HKD3.5 billion (approximately US$451 million) based on its offer price… Read More
IVFA Indium V Fund Reaches a First Close with US$500 Million (Asia)
India Value Fund Advisors (IVFA), a firm focused on investing in mid-sized businesses, has reached a first close for its Indium V fund with US$500 million in capital commitments. The fund, which is sector-agnostic and has a hard cap of US$700 million, also recently announced its first investment, an INR2.2 billion (approximately US$35 million) commitment to India-based non-bank financing company… Read More
IDFC Alternatives Acquires a Stake in ONGC Tripura Power Company (Asia)
IDFC Alternatives, the alternative asset management arm of infrastructure financing company IDFC, has purchased a 23.5 percent stake in ONGC Tripura Power Company (OTPC), an India-based operator of a gas power plant, for INR4.3 billion (approximately US$68 million). The investment was structured through IDFC’s India Infrastructure Fund II. Existing shareholders in OTPC include ONGC, an India-based state owned oil and… Read More
DPI Raises US$725 Million for Its Second Fund (Sub-Saharan Africa)
Private equity firm Development Partners International (DPI) has closed its second pan-Africa-focused fund, ADP II, with approximately US$725 million in capital commitments. Investors in the fund include corporate and public pension funds, endowments and foundations, funds of funds, family offices and development finance institutions from the United States, Europe, the Middle East and Africa. The fund seeks to invest in… Read More
CVC Capital Partners to Buy Convertible Bonds from MAP Aktif Adiperkasa (Asia)
CVC Capital Partners has agreed to invest IDR1.5 trillion (approximately US$114 million) in convertible, unsecured, zero-coupon bonds issued by MAP Aktif Adiperkasa (MAA), a sports and lifestyle retail and manufacturing subsidiary of Mitra Adiperkasa, an Indonesia-based apparel retailer. The agreement provides CVC with the option to convert its investment into a 30 percent equity stake in MAA in the case… Read More