Asian Venture Capital Journal (AVCJ)

Vietnamese agriculture start-up TechCoop was founded last year by an entrepreneur whose experience includes C-suite positions at fruit exporter Nafoods, investment bank Auxesia Holdings, and iCare Benefits, a social enterprise for low-income women factory workers. Venture capitalists swooped immediately. View more: https://lnkd.in/eqMGidKZ

For Stellaris Venture Partners, the headline reads another fund closed, another target beaten. The India-based early-stage investor received commitments of USD 225m for its second vintage in 2021, having set out to raise USD 160m. Now Fund III has closed at the hard cap of USD 300m, comfortably exceeding the USD 250m target. Yet Alok Goyal, a partner at the firm, noted a clear shift in LP sentiment. View more: https://lnkd.in/ePkRw98Z

The evolution of private equity’s interest in artificial intelligence (AI) is handily traced through the history of EQT’s Motherbrain programme. The platform, launched in 2016, has been used for everything from identifying bolt-on acquisition targets to sourcing VC deal flow, to tracking down the optimal industrial advisor in the firm’s existing network. But now it’s really getting its hands dirty. View more: https://lnkd.in/d_AuXTsM

EnvisionX Capital bears traces of Vision Knight Capital – they share a founder, https://lnkd.in/dary82Wp CEO David Wei, and some LPs – but they are entirely separate firms, with their own teams, legal structures, and strategies. While some China-linked VC players invest in the US surreptitiously, Wei and Holly Zheng, chair of BlueFocus International, established a brand-new Silicon Valley-based GP. View more: https://lnkd.in/db6QTKxj

Southeast Asia GP’s fourth early-stage fund closes on USD 163m, short of target Second growth fund likely to seek USD 300m for PE-style expansion strategy Exits remain a challenge region-wide, but there are hopes for SGX rejuvenation. View more: https://lnkd.in/dHQFG8P8

The election of Donald Trump to the US presidency and sizeable stimulus programmes in China in recent months – including a CNY 10trn (USD 1.4trn) package announced in November – have given investors in China a lot to think about. However, Robert Gilhooly, senior emerging markets economist at Abrdn [LON:ABDN], estimates that the dynamics of US-China trade tensions will remain highly uncertain until at least mid-2025 or likely 2026. View more: https://lnkd.in/dPBq3Muu

Negotiations are slowing fundraising processes as GPs entertain structural compromises intended to accommodate LP appetite for co-investment, the AVCJ Private Equity Forum 2024 heard. View more: https://lnkd.in/etssXeyd

Bain Capital’s special situations team has utilised most of its tools in India over the past six years: from distressed and rescue financing following the country’s bankruptcy reforms to opportunistic lending during the non-banking financial company (NBFC) liquidity crisis to structured solutions for real estate developers caught short during COVID-19. Now, though, the economy is strong, and everyone knows it. View more: https://lnkd.in/e5zd_RwN

“There’s an anticipation of M&A markets opening up as potentially some regulatory changes happen in the US in the next year or so,” said Dana Johns, Head of Private Equity at the Division of Investment, Department of the Treasury, State of New Jersey, speaking at the AVCJ Private Equity Forum 2024. During the panel, LPs expressed optimism about exit markets re-opening with the change in US government, but uncertainties remain around Asia and liquidity options like continuation vehicles. Explore the full conversation here: https://lnkd.in/eVBfV_hh #AVCJForum #privateequity

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