Asia’s Private Equity News Source avcj.com November 15 2016 Volume 29 Number 43 EDITOR’S VIEWPOINT Governments’ support for fintech turns concrete Page 3 NEWS Ascendent, Blackstone, Carlyle, Future Venture Capital, GIC, HarbourVest, Hony, IFC, IMM, Macquarie, Movac, Northstar, ShoreVest, SoftBank, Warburg Pincus, Wattle Hill Page 4 DEAL OF THE WEEK IFMR bridges credit gap for Indian NBFCs Page 11 INCJ helps US cloud data start-up get global reach Page 11 Upstream unrest? AVCJ RESEARCH Private equity looks for value opportunities in Asia’s oil and gas sector Page 8 Data f ile Page 15 2016 AVCJ AWARDS PORTFOLIO AVCJ award winners The exterminators Quadrant, PAG, Affinity, NewQuest honored Page 6 IVFA and Indian pest control player HiCare Page 12 Stretching our roots and reaching for the sky, SPRG grows along with you. Crowned “Asia Pacic Network of the Year” – Campaign Asia-Pacic PR Awards, “Asia Pacic Financial Consultancy of the Year” – The Holmes Report, “Public Relations Agency of the Year in Asia Pacic” – The Stevie® Awards, “Local Hero – PR Agency of the Year” – Marketing magazine, we know how to take you to a higher plane. EDITOR’S VIEWPOINT [email protected] Managing Editor Stretching our roots and reaching for the sky, Tim Burroughs (852) 2158 9661 Associate Editor SPRG grows along with you. Head start Winnie Liu (852) 2158 9663 Crowned “Asia Pacic Network of the Year” – Campaign Asia-Pacic PR Awards, Staff Writer Holden Mann (852) 2158 9646 “Asia Pacic Financial Consultancy of the Year” – The Holmes Report, Justin Niessner (852) 2158 9678 “Public Relations Agency of the Year in Asia Pacic” – The Stevie® Awards, Design Edith Leung, Mansfield Hor “Local Hero – PR Agency of the Year” – Marketing magazine, Rana Tang we know how to take you to a higher plane. Events George Sengulovski, Jessie Chan, Jonathon Cohen, Sarah Doyle, Amelie Poon, Fiona Keung, FOR LATTICE80, SEE STONE & CHALK. THE week, Tharman Shanmugaratnam, chairman of Jovial Chung, former is Singapore’s recently launched co- the Montary Authority of Singapore (MAS) and Marketing working space, a 30,000 square feet facility close deputy prime minister, noted that “the Goliaths Agrina Sandri, Priscilla Chu, to the central business district; the work of local of the financial world have become more Yasna Mostofi investor Marvelstone Group, it has already signed nimble-footed, and are both competing with up 20 tenants exploring technologies ranging and partnering the Davids.” This remark implied Research Helen Lee, Herbert Yum, from blockchain to trading systems. The latter is that the corporate and start-up segments of the Kaho Mak, Tim Wong, Sydney’s equivalent financial technology hub, industry can co-exist, but there was a sense from which launched last year. his broader statement that Singapore wants to Sales Both represent attempts by established do more to help the start-ups. Anil Nathani, financial centers to ensure a long-term future There are an estimated more than 300 Darryl Mag, Debbie Koo, Nathan Ho, Samuel Lau, in the face of intensifying disruption. Indeed, nascent fintech companies in the city state, while Gavin Lam, Pauline Chen the Sydney initiative in part arose from a global banks and insurance companies have government-backed report that warned the established local innovation labs and research Subscriptions city must act now to stay competitive because centers. To this end, the MAS is endeavoring to Jade Chan, Karina Ting Australian start-ups were already being make it easier for venture capital firms to back Sally Yip encouraged to relocate elsewhere. The financial these start-ups, with promises of shorter and Publishing Director sector accounts for 9% of Australia’s GDP, 18% of simpler registration processes and exemptions Allen Lee corporate tax receipts, and 420,000 jobs, most of from certain business conduct requirements. them in Sydney. Specific VC incentives will also be considered. Financial institutions in each market have However, arguably the most significant already moved to shore up their positions. contribution is Lattice80 itself. Not all co-working Hong Kong Headquarter Suite 1602-6 National Australia Bank established NAB Ventures space business models are successful – much Grand Millennium Plaza last year with a A$50 million ($36 million) rests on execution ability of the people on the 181 Queen’s Road captive fund to be invested in start-ups that ground in terms of providing mentorship and Central Hong Kong T. (852) 2158 9700 enhance its product offerings. Westpac Banking other value-added services. For fintech hubs F. (852) 2158 9701 Corp. and AMP entered the space even earlier, specifically, a key component is connections with E. [email protected] with Reinventure – the Westpac-backed unit the traditional financial services industry. URL. avcj.com – launching its second A$50 million fund in For established financial services centers, Beijing Representative Office August. Superannuation funds are even playing a cultivating a fintech industry is essentially a No.1-2-(2)-B-A554, 1st Building, role, with First State Super agreeing a partnership question of talent management. They are home No.66 Nanshatan, with local fintech investor H2 Ventures. to plenty of skilled professionals and have much Chaoyang District, Beijing, People’s Republic of China In Singapore, DBS is one of the most active to recommend themselves to others. But the key T. (86) 10 5869 6203 market participants, having set up a variety of is providing infrastructure and support to people F. (86) 10 5869 6205 programs on its own or in partnership with third – coming from academic institutions, other E. [email protected] parties. These include DBS HotSpot, a three- markets or the local industry itself – who are month pre-accelerator program aimed at very pursuing opportunities outside of the established The Publisher reserves all rights herein. early stage start-ups. The bank offers a S$25,000 order. Reproduction in whole or in part is permitted only with the written consent of entrepreneur award, workspace and access to AVCJ Group Limited. ISSN 1817-1648 Copyright © 2016 industry mentors including angel investors and DBS executives. Candidates are not required to have an existing prototype or commit to giving Tim Burroughs A Mergermarket Group company up an equity stake to DBS. Managing Editor Speaking at official launch of Lattice80 last Asian Venture Capital Journal Number 43 | Volume 29 | November 15 2016 | avcj.com 3 NEWS Wattle Hill in first close on has raised a RMB200 million ($29 million) Series GLOBAL B round of funding led by Golden Brick Capital. Sino-Australian fund Nanfang Asset Management, Southern Media HarbourVest raises $4.8b Sydney-based GP Wattle Hill RHC Funds has Union Group and Haitong Securities also took achieved a $200 million first close on its debut part in the round through their investment units. for secondaries Sino-Australia cross-border fund. A final close on The firm has removed its variable interest entity HarbourVest Partners has reached a final close around $300 million is expected next year. LPs structure in preparation for an onshore listing. of $4.8 billion on its latest global secondaries include a European insurance company, a leading fund, beating the target of $3.6 billion. LPs in Chinese privately-owned insurer, and a family IFC plans investment in the fund include corporations, pension funds, office representing the founder of China’s largest endowments, foundations and high net worth direct e-commerce player. CompareAsiaGroup private sector investors across the globe. Wattle Hill, which also has offices in Hong The International Financial Corporation (IFC) has Kong and Beijing, was set up in late 2015 by proposed an investment of up to $25 million Albert Tse, who previously worked for Macquarie in Hong Kong-based financial comparison AUSTRALASIA platform CompareAsiaGroup. The capital will go towards marketing efforts, expansion of Movac reaches $74.5m first the firm’s marketing and product teams, and close on tech fund improvements to its technology platform. New Zealand venture capital firm Movac has Ascendent backs cancer achieved a first close on its fourth technology- focused fund with NZ$105 million ($74.5 million) diagnostics firm in commitments. The corpus comprises NZ$75 Ascendent Capital Partners has committed million from institutional investors including RMB50 million ($7.36 million) to BioChain Beijing, Ngai Tahu Holdings and New Zealand Venture a Chinese biotech company that focuses on Investment Fund, as well as local family offices, early detection of cancer. BioChain, which was community trusts and other private investors. Bank. His wife is Jessica Rudd, the daughter of founded in 1994, is a subsidiary of Team Curis former Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd. Group. The group develops new technology and Wattle Hill focuses on investments in Australian treatments that focus on cancer, with laboratories GREATER CHINA and New Zealand companies with a view to in California and China. helping them access the Chinese market. Hony invests $121m in oil “There are many China-US cross-border funds. But there are few that specialize in China and NORTH ASIA player Santos Australia, and have a deep understanding of Hony Capital has re-upped in Australia-listed both markets,” Tse told AVCJ. “Given China now Macquarie invests $10m in oil and gas supplier Santos for A$159.2 million is the second-largest economy in the world, ($120.8 million). It bought 40 million shares, many Australian companies are very keen to tap Yello Mobile representing 2.25% of the company’s total issued Chinese growth.” Korean mobile internet platform Yello Mobile capital, at A$3.98 apiece. The PE firm now holds a Wattle Hill’s four core team members are has issued $10 million in convertible bonds to 3.2% interest in Santos. ex-Macquarie employees with backgrounds in Macquarie Capital.