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Matrix Partners India Leads Investment in Olacabs (Asia)
Venture capital firm Matrix Partners India has acquired a significant minority stake in India-based Olacabs, an aggregator of car rental and point-to-point cab service operators. Matrix, along with existing investor hedge and private equity firm Tiger Global Management, co-invested in Olacabs’ second institutional round of equity funding, reportedly worth US$20 million. Olacabs previously raised US$5 million from Tiger Global last… Read More
Canaan Partners and RRE Ventures Lead US$3.3 Million Investment in Singapore-based Bitcoin Exchange itBit (Asia)
Venture capital firms Canaan Partners and RRE Ventures have led a US$3.3 million funding round in Singapore-based itBit, a digital currency exchange platform. Other investors in the round included seed stage fund Liberty City Ventures and individual angels. itBit, which offers an electronic global currency exchange for trading digital currencies like Bitcoin, intends to use the funding to support its… Read More
Hopu and Temasek Participate in HKD1.6 Billion Investment in Yashili International (Asia)
China-focused private equity investment firm Hopu Investment Management, Singapore sovereign wealth fund Temasek and three investment holding companies will buy a 13 percent stake in Hong Kong-listed dairy company Yashili International Holdings for a total of HKD1.6 billion (approximately US$213 million). The investors will acquire 471.1 million shares at HKD3.50 (approximately US$0.45) apiece from China-based dairy product manufacturer China Mengniu… Read More
Jacana Partners Invests in Process and Plant Sales Ghana (Sub-Saharan Africa)
Jacana Partners, a pan-African private equity firm that focuses on small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), has invested in Process and Plant Sales (PPS) Ghana, a supplier of industrial products and services to the mining, construction and processing industries in Ghana. The investment will support the growth of PPS Ghana’s operations by increasing its stock and product range and financing its… Read More
WAMEX Invests in Mexico-based Bodesa (Latin America)
Mexico-focused private equity fund manager WAMEX Private Equity has invested US$32 million, jointly with German development finance institution Deutsche Investitions- und Entwicklungsgesellschaft (DEG), in Mexico-based retail chain Bodesa. This was reportedly the sixth and final transaction structured through WAMEX’s second growth fund, MIF II. Bodesa, which operates stores in Mexico’s Pacific region, offers consumer and household products. Read More
Armstrong Closes Debut Southeast Asia Fund with US$164 Million in Commitments (Asia)
Southeast Asia-focused clean energy investor Armstrong Asset Management has held a final close on its Armstrong South East Asia Clean Energy Fund with US$164 million in capital commitments, exceeding its initial target of US$150 million. The fund is focused on the development and construction of small-scale infrastructure projects in emerging Southeast Asia. A total of ten investors from Europe, North… Read More
SB China Venture Capital Participates in Venture Rounds for Yooli.com and 8trip (Asia)
Venture capital and private equity firm SB China Venture Capital (SBCVC) has invested US$10 million in a Series A funding round for China-based peer-to-peer (P2P) financing platform Yooli.com. The company, which launched its platform in February 2013, intends to use the capital injection to maintain the growth of its P2P network. In a separate deal, SBCVC participated in an RMB150… Read More
Capitalworks Backs South Africa-based Much Asphalt (Sub-Saharan Africa)
South Africa-based alternative asset management firm Capitalworks has led a consortium of investors to acquire a 100 percent stake in Much Asphalt, a South Africa-based supplier of hot mix asphalt to the construction industry. The consortium, which includes Mineworkers Investment Company (MIC) and senior executives of Much Asphalt, purchased the stake from engineering, contracting and construction services company Murray &… Read More
Prostor Capital and e.ventures Back Russia-based AdMoment (CEE and CIS)
Venture capital firms Prostor Capital and e.ventures have invested US$3 million in Russia-based AdMoment, developer of a real-time bidding platform for mobile advertising. Fastlane Ventures, a Russia-based online business developer, and several angel investors also participated. Prostor Capital led the Series A funding round. AdMoment intends to use the new capital to further develop its product base. Read More
Kedaara Capital Closes Debut Fund at US$540 Million (Asia)
India-focused private equity firm Kedaara Capital has held a final close of its debut fund with US$540 million in capital commitments, hitting its hard cap and exceeding its target of US$500 million. Investors in the fund include anchor investor Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan, sovereign wealth funds, pension funds, family offices, fund-of-funds and endowments. Kedaara Capital will focus on corporate divestitures… Read More
Enterprise Investors Acquires a 100 Percent Stake in Poland-based Danwood for EUR57 Million (CEE and CIS)
Enterprise Investors, a private equity firm focused on Poland and CEE, has acquired a 100 percent stake in Poland-based Danwood, a producer of prefabricated timber houses, for EUR57 million (approximately US$77 million). The firm purchased the stake from Ferrovial Agroman's Polish subsidiary Budimex, structuring the transaction through Polish Enterprise Fund VII. Danwood intends to use the capital injection for reinforcing… Read More
Actis to Acquire Three Power Assets in Cameroon for US$220 Million (Sub-Saharan Africa)
Pan-emerging markets private equity firm Actis has signed an agreement with United States-based energy company AES to acquire the majority interest in three power assets in Cameroon for US$220 million. The investment will give Actis a 56 percent stake in Cameroon’s national integrated utility, Société Nationale d’Electricité (SONEL), and in two independent power plants, Kribi and Dibamba. SONEL provides 933… Read More