We are back with the top deal updates, fundraising milestones, scoops and headline news from Asia’s private capital markets.
The week kicked off with Southeast Asian tech giant Grab reaching an agreement to acquire Delivery Hero’s Foodpanda business in Taiwan for $600 million in cash. The deal, conducted on a cash-free and debt-free basis, marks Grab’s expansion into its ninth market and its first territory outside of Southeast Asia.
Grab’s latest strategic acquisition, Foodpanda Taiwan, marks several milestones for the company. It is Grab’s first acquisition outside Southeast Asia, one of its largest in recent years, and a partial continuation of earlier discussions to acquire Foodpanda’s assets, which did not materialise.
The Foodpanda acquisition is a direct consolidation of a competitor in Grab’s core business: food delivery. The last time Grab pursued a similar strategy, acquiring a direct rival to consolidate market share, was the Uber deal. Check out this analysis on the deal that stands out against Grab’s recent acquisition history.
Separately, Grab also said it will repurchase up to $400 million worth of shares over the next four months, deploying most of a $500 million buyback programme approved by its board in February. The share buyback comes as Grab hit a long-awaited milestone in 2025, closing the year in the black.
Moving on to other headlines that dominated the week.
LP-GP updates
Healthcare-focused Somerset Indus Capital Partners has closed its third fund at about $288 million, exceeding its initial target of $250 million.
The University of Hong Kong (HKU) and Gobi Partners have made the first close of the Gobi-HKU Fund I at HK$120 million ($15.3 million). The fund is targeting a total size of $30.6 million.
Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management (Singapore) and Singapore-based Aravest Private Funds have secured $165 million for their joint APAC Real Estate Credit strategy.
Actis has completed the acquisition of a 90% stake in 800 Super, a Singapore-based environmental management company. The transaction brings Actis’s total deployment in Southeast Asia to about $1.7 billion.
Thailand-based financial advisory firm The Brooker Group is seeking to raise $100 million for its first-ever vehicle to invest in cryptocurrency-focused funds. The fund has already backed 14 venture capital firms, such as Andreeson Horowitz (a16z), Pantera Capital, Maven11, Stanford’s Blockchain Builders Fund, UOB Signum, Finality, and AJ Scaramucci’s Solari Capital.
In last week’s Beyond the Buyout edition, we discussed the listing prospects of PE-backed firms in Asia in the aftermath of the Gulf conflict. This week, with some performance data available, we discuss how Asia is feeding opportunities. And, private markets may see an upside provided the asset class can demonstrate superior returns.
Data-led insights
Private equity funds flocked to deals in technology, media and telecommunications in Southeast Asia, sealing buyout deals worth $2.6 billion in 2025, or 41% of the total deal value of $6.4 billion, according to a Deloitte report.
Asia-Pacific private equity (PE) has entered 2026 with signs of optimism after a year of improved exit activity across the region and dealmaking growth in key markets, including Japan and Greater China, according to Bain & Company’s latest report.
Private equity dealmakers across Asia and the Middle East notched big performance bonuses in 2025 as returns drove carry payouts across all funds to as high as $3.4 million for top-performing managing partners, per a survey conducted by Heidrick & Struggles.
Almost three months into 2026, exit activity in India’s private equity (PE) and venture capital (VC) market has fallen to about half of last year’s levels, reflecting a cautious investment climate amid global uncertainty. Analysts point to a series of geopolitical shocks as key drivers.
Interviews
Philippine sovereign wealth fund Maharlika Investment Corporation has deliberately set a high bar for deploying the country’s sovereign capital. The approach is being shaped by Kheed Ng, who was appointed Chief Investment and Operating Officer (CIOO) in mid-February. A private equity veteran, Ng is steering MIC toward a more clinical, process-driven discipline, closer to that of global buyout firms. Ng framed the fund’s caution as intentional, even essential.
Asia’s private credit market remains a bright spot amid global volatility and warnings of defaults in developed economies, Sumit Bhandari, Managing Director, Asia Private Credit, Allianz Global Investors. The firm has been focusing on sectors such as infrastructure, energy transition, digital infrastructure, and domestic demand-driven industries, alongside themes tied to supply chain resilience, which was described as “structurally strong”.
Silicon Valley-based venture capital firm Pegasus Tech Ventures is doubling down on Southeast Asia, with plans to open an office in Thailand in the next two months. “The Thailand office will serve as an initial step toward deeper regional expansion,” Jeff Wu, China Partner at Pegasus Tech Ventures, told DealStreetAsia.
Deal scoops
Tata Capital Healthcare Fund has initiated talks to invest in Tenet Diagnostics, which offers both radiology and pathology services. Founded in 2016, Tenet Diagnostics operates a network of diagnostic centres across several Indian states.
The pharmaceutical unit of Thailand’s oldest conglomerate, B.Grimm Group, is considering selling a 100% stake in its manufacturing business after a formal process was launched last year.
CVC Capital Partners is planning to sell its stake in a Vietnam-based maternal and infant care hospital group, adding to another deal in its exit pipeline as the fund giant seeks monetisation from its Asia franchise.
Singapore-based private equity firm KV Asia Capital is exploring an investment in an Indonesian institution specialising in cardiac care, diagnostics and advanced treatment procedures.
At least two private equity firms are believed to have dropped out of the fundraising talks of Philippine hard-discount retailer DALI, while a Southeast Asian sovereign wealth fund is said to have entered the fray.
Funding news
QCraft, a Chinese developer of autonomous driving solutions for global automakers, has secured $100 million in a Series D funding round.
Bengaluru-based foodtech startup Swish has raised $38 million in its Series B funding round, led by Hara Global and Bain Capital Ventures.
Thailand-founded AI startup Amity has announced raising $100 million in a Series D funding round anchored by Singapore’s EDBI as it ramps up expansion ahead of a planned IPO.
Octen, a search infrastructure startup focused on AI, has emerged from stealth with $10 million in seed funding anchored by Australian venture investor Square Peg.
Malaysia’s KWAP is set to invest up to 190 million ringgit (about $48 million) in district cooling platform Lestari Cooling Energy.
Japanese financial services giant SBI Group has led a $50-million investment in blockchain infrastructure firm Startale Group, completing the company’s $63-million Series A round.
India’s Rocketlane, an AI-powered professional services automation company, has secured $60 million in Series C funding led by Insight Partners.
Singapore payments startup Tazapay has announced raising a total of $36 million in Series B funding after closing an extension round anchored by venture investor Circle Ventures.
