Southeast Asia’s IPO performance has raised hopes for private equity firms that have had a long waiting period to monetise investments.
Three blockbuster listings, each raising more than $500 million, accounted for nearly two-thirds of Southeast Asia’s IPO proceeds in the first half: Macquarie-backed UI Boustead REIT, GIC-backed Sunway Healthcare Holdings and Vietnam’s Dien May Xanh.
In the top story from SE Asia during August, we examined how the IPO window is reopening, giving private equity firms conviction that listing-ready portfolio companies could finally provide a source of distributions to investors.
Among other exclusive stories, we tracked updates on the first payout at eFishery, marking the first confirmed return of capital from the wind-down of the Indonesian aquaculture unicorn.
Our scoop on 500 Global’s strategic shift in SE Asia and GIC’s potential sale of a $ 1-billion-worth private fund portfolio marked the most-read stories in August.
From India and Greater China, our private equity-focused newsletter, Beyond the Buyout, touched the top spot. The most-read editions during the month focused on the healthcare gold rush in India and the secondaries trend in Asia.
In case you missed these, here are some of the deeply reported top stories that our readers and subscribers loved in August 2026:-
Southeast Asia
SE Asia’s resurgent IPO market raises hopes of private equity payouts
Companies raised $3.07 billion in H1 2026—more than double the $1.41 billion raised in the same period last year—as investors gravitated toward fewer but much larger deals.
AI is a catalyst for structural change, not an investment thesis in itself: Genesia
While AI has become one of venture capital’s hottest investment themes, the firm believes investors risk oversimplifying its impact by treating it as a standalone sector.
eFishery investors receive $21.6m as liquidators assess Aqua Bridge proposal
The proposed eFishery 2.0 transaction represents the most potentially significant source of additional value for investors, although its structure and likely returns remain uncertain.
KV Asia said to be weighing exit from Indo personal care firm
KV Asia’s potential exit comes amid heightened deal activity in SE Asia’s beauty and medical aesthetics sector, as investors continue to back consumer healthcare and skincare platforms.
500 Global said to wind down standalone SE Asia investing, shift focus to global funds
The shift marks a significant retreat for the US venture capital firm that has backed more than 300 companies across Southeast Asia over the past decade.
GIC explores sale of private fund portfolio worth $1b in secondaries market
The sale may contain stakes in funds managed by Thoma Bravo, KKR, EQT Asia (formerly BPEA), and TPG Asia, among others.
Secondaries part of capital solutions offering, not standalone: Temasek
The state investor is building a roster of global general partners focused on single-asset continuation vehicles, and using its wider platform to participate in transactions and provide capital.
Foreign buyers lift SE Asia tech M&As as exit pressure mounts
Acquisitions involving PE- and VC-backed tech companies recovered in 2025, but offered limited relief for Southeast Asia’s crowded exit pipeline, according to the SE Asia Tech M&A Review: 2026.
Vietnamese hospitality startup M Village bags $26m in new funding
The latest round is led by new investor Japan’s Mizuho Asia Partners and saw participation from existing investor Trip.com.
EQT sets sights on premium Bangkok school
EQT’s interest in Shrewsbury comes as the firm expands its Asia-Pacific investment firepower, having closed its latest Asia-focused fund, BPEA IX, at $15.6 billion in April.
Weak minority exits push Asia PE towards buyouts, says Federated Hermes
The market has shifted towards buyouts in Australia, Japan and S Korea while exit conditions for minority growth investments remain weak across SE Asia, India and China.
Greater China
Startup funding in Greater China in H1 surpasses all of 2025
Startup fundraising in Greater China notched a fifth consecutive quarter of growth in Q2 2026, crossing $26.7 billion—the highest level in over six years.
Beyond the Buyout: Asia’s secondaries boom meets a slower reality
Periods of market volatility typically tend to paralyse primary buyouts as valuation gaps widen, while secondaries benefit as investors seek liquidity. But this year, the opposite appears to be happening.
India
Beyond the Buyout: India’s hospital gold rush has a valuation problem
Global PE firms are buying and consolidating assets, while existing investors are finding buyers willing to pay increasingly higher prices for hospital platforms.
Deep tech in focus as at least 3 Indian VCs raise funds in a month
As technologies move from research labs towards commercial applications, the sector is beginning to look like a bigger long-term opportunity rather than a niche bet.
