Indonesia’s beleaguered aquatech startup eFishery continued to hog the top headline in March. The saga of eFishery unfolded late last year when the company’s board suspended its two co-founders following alleged financial irregularities.
DealStreetAsia has been at the forefront of coverage of the troubled aquatech startup, which was deemed commercially unviable by financial advisor FTI in a forensic audit.
Our exclusive on Grab-GoTo’s progress in their merger talks was another important story during the month. Per our report, the merger discussions between Nasdaq-listed Grab Holdings and Indonesia-listed GoTo may not involve the Indonesian company’s fintech division, GoTo Financial.
Deal activities related to the consumer sector dominated the most-read stories in March. We had exclusive news stories on Indonesia’s gummy bear brand Yupi, Domino’s Pizza Indonesia, Fore Coffee, and Vietnam’s restaurant chain Aladdin. The month saw us trace the troubles facing Indonesian P2P lender Akseleran and agri lender CROWDE.
From our Greater China and India sections, we featured interviews with top executives at ADM Capital and TR Capital. Our most-read stories analyse the factors driving M&A activity in China and the impact of India’s stock market downturn on new retail investors.
Here are the top stories that our readers and subscribers loved in March 2025:
Southeast Asia
Draft audit exposes eFishery’s struggles with Kabayan financing—its biggest cash drain
eFishery floundered not only in its mainstay fish and shrimp business segments but also in its non-core financing division, particularly Kabayan financing via P2P lending.
Affinity-backed Yupi said to be nearing Indonesia IPO at around $1.2b valuation
Yupi was owned by Indonesian investment firm Mahanusa Capital and local conglomerate Gunung Sewu before Affinity acquired significant stakes in the company.
Everstone, MAP sell their entire stake in Domino’s Pizza Indonesia
Asia Partners acquired Everstone’s stake along with an additional 33.52% held by Indonesian retail giant Mitra Adiperkasa, as well as several smaller stakes held by angel investors.
Indonesia’s Fore Coffee files prospectus for $23m IPO
The public offering plans come at a time when Indonesia, like much of Southeast Asia, witnessed a drop in IPO volumes and proceeds in 2024.
Vietnam’s Do Ventures ropes in Pavilion Capital exec as General Partner
Archer Goh was part of Temasek-owned Pavilion Capital’s SE Asia investment team. Pavilion has invested in Asia Business Builders, Touchstone, and Urbox.
GoTo Financial may be spun off in potential Grab-GoTo merger
This is similar to the hive-off of e-commerce marketplace Tokopedia from GoTo before the former was acquired by TikTok-owner ByteDance in December 2023.
Indonesian P2P lender Akseleran faces $11m loan default; key exec’s powers curbed
Following the loan default, the board of directors and commissioners have decided to restrict Christopher Gultom’s powers and limit his role to just collections and loan recovery.
Excelsior Capital Vietnam invests in dining chain operator Aladdin
The Aladdin transaction comes at a time when F&B deals in Vietnam have bounced back after the industry faced a prolonged slowdown in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic.
MDI’s portfolio sale said to have drawn three new potential buyers
Coller Capital, HarbourVest Partners, and Hong Kong-based Ion Pacific are the secondaries buyers that have expressed interest in MDI’s portfolio.
Indonesian agri lender CROWDE names new CEO amid allegations of mismanagement
CROWDE has reportedly appointed Magdalena Joyce Andries as its new CEO, replacing Yohanes Sugihtononugroho, amid allegations of fraud and data manipulation.
Greater China
ADM Capital sees Asian LPs doubling down on private credit funds
A rising trend in intra-Asian investment is what may be driving this activity, according to David Whyte, managing director at Hong Kong’s ADM Capital.
Flurry of small deals in consumer, retail set to drive M&A in China
As market consolidation in consumer and retail gains traction, the overall M&A activity by volume in China is projected to grow by double digits in 2025.
India
Asset selection crucial in India’s pricey secondary market: TR Capital
Competition is increasing from two groups—domestic firms expanding into secondaries, and firms historically focused on China pivoting to India.
As India’s stock market party ends, new investors wake up with a hangover
Weak corporate earnings, persistent foreign capital outflows, and uncertainty around Trump’s tariffs have combined to form a deadly cocktail, dragging down Indian stocks.
