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Catalyst Buys Chai Bora from TransCentury (Sub-Saharan Africa)
East Africa-focused private equity firm Catalyst Principal Partners has acquired a 95 percent stake in Tanzanian packaged tea producer Chai Bora from Kenya-based investment holding company TransCentury. Catalyst invested in the company through Catalyst Fund I, its US$125 million focused private equity fund. Financial details of the transaction were not disclosed. Read More
DLM Invista Holds First Close for IT Private Equity Fund (Latin America)
Brazilian financial asset manager DLM Invista has held a first close on its DLM Brasil TI private equity fund with BRL180 million (approximately US$90 million) in capital commitments. The fund, which will focus on Brazil’s information technology sector, is targeting BRL250 million (approximately US$125 million) in total commitments. DLM Invista reportedly raised much of the capital from Brazilian pension funds. Read More
Creador Reaches US$132 Million Final Close on Debut Fund (Asia)
Creador Capital, a private equity firm focused on India, Malaysia and Indonesia, has closed its first fund with US$132 million in total commitments. The fund will invest between US$10 million and US$50 million per transaction, and Creador plans to deploy between 40 and 50 percent of the fund’s corpus in Indonesia. In 2012, Creador completed three investments—one each in India,… Read More
Kaizen Venture Partners Secures US$20 Million from IFC to Invest in Sub-Saharan Africa (Sub-Saharan Africa)
Kaizen Venture Partners, a private equity investment firm focused on special situations investing in Africa, has signed an agreement with International Finance Corporation (IFC), the development finance arm of the World Bank Group. IFC has agreed to co-invest up to US$20 million with Kaizen in the acquisition of distressed assets in transactions targeting small- and medium-sized enterprises in Sub-Saharan Africa. Read More
Hony Exits Hong Kong-listed Chaowei Power (Asia)
Chinese private equity firm Hony Capital has fully exited its holding in Chinese lead-acid battery manufacturer Chaowei Power. Hony sold 150 million shares (representing 14.92 percent of Chaowei’s total equity) on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange for HKD600 million (approximately US$77.4 million). Hony originally acquired a 20.36 percent stake in Chaowei for US$41.06 million in March 2010 through its US$1.4… Read More
Everstone Capital, Verlinvest Buy Over 90 Percent in Restaurant Firm Harry’s Holdings (Asia)
India-based private equity firm Everstone Capital and Belgian family office Verlinvest have invested in Singaporean restaurant management firm Harry’s Holdings. Everstone and Verlinvest purchased 90 percent of the public shares of the Singapore Stock Exchange-listed firm through a special purpose vehicle owned by Everstone, F&B Asia Ventures. Under Singaporean securities law, as the public holding fell below 10 percent, trading… Read More
Consortium Buying Stake Worth INR3 Billion in Ratnakar Bank (Asia)
Private equity and venture capital firms Aditya Birla Private Equity, Norwest Venture Partners (NWF), Faering Capital, Argonaut Ventures and Gaja Capital are among the investors committing INR3 billion (approximately US$54.9 million) to India’s Ratnakar Bank. The investment is intended to help Ratnakar prepare for a possible initial public offering in India in 2014. Faering, NWF and Gaja previously invested in… Read More
Fidelity Growth Partners India Invests INR300 Million in Richcore Lifesciences (Asia)
Fidelity Growth Partners India (FGPI), the India-focused private equity arm of Fidelity Worldwide Investment, has invested INR300 million (approximately US$5.4 million) in Richcore Lifesciences, an Indian manufacturer of enzymes for the energy, food and water industries. The company’s portfolio currently includes enzymes to aid sugar and alcohol processing, as well as enzymes for industrial wastewater treatment. Read More
Moonray Healthcare Acquires Lexum (CEE and CIS)
U.K.-based healthcare investor Moonray Healthcare has acquired Czech Republic-based ophthalmologic hospital manager Lexum from CEE-focused private equity firm Arx Equity Partners and Lexum’s founder, Professor Martin Filipec. Lexum operates ten hospitals focused on general ophthalmology and refractive surgery in the Czech Republic and Poland. Financial details of the transaction were not disclosed. Read More
Linzor Capital Partners Acquires Farmashop in Uruguay (Latin America)
Latin America-focused asset management firm Linzor Capital Partners has acquired Uruguayan pharmacy chain Farmashop, which operates 78 pharmacies throughout the country. Financial details of the transaction were not disclosed. Read More
Matrix Partners India Invests in Mswipe (Asia)
Matrix Partners India, the India-focused arm of global private equity firm Matrix Partners, has invested in Indian payment solutions provider Mswipe Technologies. Mswipe’s products allow businesses to accept credit and debit card payments via mobile phones. Financial details of the transaction were not disclosed. Read More
Actis Makes Healthcare Investment in China (Asia)
Emerging markets private equity investor Actis has invested in Chinese medical equipment manufacturer Nanjing Micro-Tech, acquiring a minority stake in the company. Nanjing Micro-Tech’s product portfolio includes endoscopy consumables, non-vascular stents and disposable biopsy forceps, and the company has a network of 120 distributors within China. Financial details of the transaction were not disclosed. Read More