As I put together this week’s roundup, two stories immediately stood out for me. First, how stablecoins—once a niche tool for crypto traders—are fast emerging as a faster and cheaper way to move digital dollars across borders. In 2025 alone, they processed $33 trillion in transaction volume, far exceeding the combined transaction volumes handled by credit card giants Visa and Mastercard over the same period. The stablecoin market is now beginning to look less like speculative crypto and more like the buildout of a new payments infrastructure.
In another striking piece of news, Indian PE-VC firms have raised just $2,836 million so far this year, almost half the amount raised during January-May last year at $4,958 million, as investors continue to be in ‘wait-and-watch’ mode amid the global uncertainty. Fundraising during the same period in 2024 stood at around $4,905 million.
Moving onto the other headlines of the week:
LP-GP updates
As liquidity tightens across Southeast Asia, investors are increasingly being forced to balance value preservation with the pressure to deliver DPI . About two years ago, DealStreetAsia spotted a growing trend of private equity-backed companies being bought back by families and founders. As exit challenges persist, the baton is increasingly being passed locally, albeit in a different form.
The International Finance Corporation has proposed an equity investment of up to $20 million in Siguler Guff’s second emerging markets growth opportunity fund (GEMGO II), a PE vehicle targeting mid-market companies in India.
Japan Post Bank‘s private equity programme grew to 8.5 trillion yen ($53.5 billion) during the year ended March 2026, including about 1.4 trillion in unrealised gains. Net realised gains hit a record 315 billion yen, up from 255 billion yen in the previous fiscal.
Australia and Singapore are emerging as key growth markets for Berlin-headquartered private markets platform Moonfare amid growing appetite for top-tier US-based venture and growth managers, particularly from family offices and smaller institutional investors based in this region.
JM Financial Asset Management is launching its second credit-focused Alternative Investment Fund, targeting a corpus of Rs 1,000 crore ($105 million) with a greenshoe option of an additional Rs 1,000 crore.
The Australian government’s flagship impact investment fund, Australian Development Investments, has committed $10 million to Vietnamese venture capital firm Do Ventures’s second fund.
KKR and Capital Group have launched their first public‑private investment strategy for eligible investors in Europe and the Asia Pacific region—Capital Group KKR Global Multi-Sector+.
Deal tracker
South Korean buyout fund Hahn & Co is exploring a secondary sale to unlock liquidity from its investment in a US-based medical aesthetics company.
Japanese private equity firm Advantage Partners is seeking to exit Vietnamese womenswear retailer Elise Fashion in a deal that is said to have drawn interest from a mix of global strategic buyers, financial sponsors, and Asian consumer-focused investment firms.
Bangkok-based investor SeaX Ventures is set to launch its third and largest vehicle yet, with a target corpus of more than $100 million. The fund will invest in US-based startups primed for expansion into Southeast Asia.
The International Finance Corporation has proposed an unfunded guarantee facility with Malaysia’s GX Bank Berhad (GXBank) to support up to about $110 million in loans to MSMEs. It is also planning to invest 2.85 billion rupees (about $33 million) in listed subordinated debt issued by India’s Axis Max Life Insurance.
Jardine Matheson Holdings has agreed to acquire Australian diagnostic imaging provider I-MED Radiology Network from funds advised by Permira and other shareholders, in a deal valuing the business at A$3.4 billion ($2.4 billion).
Tokyo-based venture capital firm Genesia Ventures has announced the final close of its fourth fund, Genesia Venture Fund IV Investment Limited Partnership, at $113 million.
Healthworld Hospitals, a healthcare platform headquartered in Durgapur in eastern India, has roped in consulting firm Merfin Advisors as it prepares to raise close to $25 million in fresh capital.
Chinese electric vertical takeoff and landing startup Shanghai Volant Aerotech Co., Ltd. has raised nearly 1 billion yuan ($147 million) in a new funding round as it gears up for a Hong Kong initial public offering.
Singapore data centre thermal manager KoolLogix has raised more than S$1.8 million ($1.4 million) in fresh capital from a mix of new and existing shareholders.
Navis Capital Partners has set up a continuation vehicle in partnership with an affiliate of Pacific Equity Partners to acquire New Zealand egg producer Mainland Poultry.
