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The war raging in the Gulf region – with strikes on oil and gas installations – is exacerbating an already challenging economic environment in many parts of Asia and emerging markets.
The International Energy Agency (IEA) has asserted that the conflict is creating a major energy, having triggered the largest supply disruption in the history of the global oil market; even measures such as the release of 400 million barrels of emergency reserves cannot fully offset the scale of the disruption.
And in a bid to address the demand side and cushion the shock, the IEA has even offered ten measures, to be implemented by governments, businesses and households. They cover a combination of policy and regulatory action, business decisions, and consumer behaviour.
We are continuing to track how it affects businesses and investors, including the implications for the highly-anticipated investors’ exits that were already in the pipe.
Separately, before the events of February 28, there were indications that investors have had renewed vigour in backing startups in Greater China, albeit exercising more discipline following a prolonged downcycle.
The number of funding deals was up, for a total funding value of more than $46 billion. The last quarter of the year was dominated by megadeals in the industrials space, particularly in the automotive, semiconductor, and aerospace sectors. The other sectors that were top of investors’ minds were the medical devices, and pharmaceutical industries,
Southeast Asia deals and developments
Sunway Healthcare Holdings Bhd, the GIC-backed unit of Malaysian billionaire Jeffrey Cheah’s Sunway Group, raised 3.3 billion ringgit ($843 million) in its initial public offering on Bursa Malaysia this week in the largest listing the country has seen in nearly a decade.
In Indonesia, RANS Entertainment may finally make its public market debut this year, as media conglomerate Emtek is understood to be keen on exiting its stake through the listing. The company was previously reported to have considered listing in 2023 and 2024 at a valuation of around 3 trillion rupiah (around $176.4 million).
Meanwhile, listed Indonesian e-commerce giant Bukalapak is restructuring its investment portfolio as it races to spend the last of funds raised during its public offering in 2021. The company says its unused proceeds were due to it having been more selective in investments and expansion initiatives.
Bukalapak has just under 4.3 trillion rupiah parked in banks and bonds; it also has some 16.21 trillion rupiah in cash and cash equivalents on its balance sheet. Meanwhile, Bukalapak’s market capitalisation is hovering at about 14.55 trillion rupiah.
Indonesia-based venture builder Terratai is raising $85 million for early-stage climate and biodiversity ventures in Southeast Asia through a new blended finance facility.
Singapore-based digital payments firm dtcpay has announced raising $10 million in a Series A funding anchored by Vertex Ventures Southeast Asia & India. It will use the fresh capital to enhance its product suite, strengthen infrastructure, and expand operations across newly licensed jurisdictions.
Here are some longer reads on other developments in the region:
- An analysis of the online peer-to-peer lending industry in Indonesia, which is entering a consolidation phase as several platforms retreat from the market amid mounting competition and pressures surrounding credit risks and funding costs.
- How the fast-growing coffee-and-tea chains in the country are competing with a different playbook focused on operations.
- In the Philippines, crypto exchange and fintech platform Coins.ph is aiming for a doubling of revenue next year, driven by remittances – a $35 billion market – and cross-border payments. Read CEO Wei Zhou’s plans for the company in this exclusive interview.
- Over in Vietnam, investors are relooking at the electric vehicle sector amid surging petrol prices, as well as Hanoi’s push towards the switch from ICE vehicles by 2030. However, how far can the industry go, even with strong incentives and consumer demand, in the face of lagging EV infrastructure? Our reporters in Vietnam find out.
India developments
Early investors in Shubham Housing Development Finance, one of India’s leading affordable housing lenders have managed to cash out following a $96 million secondary transaction led by private equity firm Creador, with participation from existing investor LeapFrog Investments.
Homegrown specialty coffee brand Blue Tokai Coffee Roasters is in talks to raise fresh capital from a multi-family office. The company had raised some $25 million just six months ago in a bridge funding round from investors including A91 Partners and Verlinvest.
And Switzerland’s Partners Group reportedly aims to raise at least $1 billion for its inaugural India-focused buyout fund.
Meanwhile, funding for women-founded startups in India rose nearly 15% to $1.65 billion in 2025 from $1.43 billion in 2024, according to data compiled by DealStreetAsia. This is even as overall funding remains well below the 2021 peak. The bulk of investor interest were in growth-stage deals, with ecommerce and data companies seeing the highest share of funding.
Yet, women founders are still facing extra scrutiny, and being asked the questions their male peers do not hear. Read the full report, along with interviews with women founders.
Don’t miss:
This take on private credit in Asia in our private equity newsletter Beyond The Buyout.
Already, Singapore-based IFS Capital is building higher margins of safety in its deal structures amid the volatility in private markets, its Group CEO Randy Sim told DealStreetAsia in an interview.
An interview with Novo Holdings, which is deepening its exposure to key markets in Southeast Asia, China, and India, while evaluating a strategic entry into South Korea.
A report that one of Canada’s largest pension fund is seeking to sell its stakes in the older vintages of Asia-focused private equity funds.
