Vietnam
Investment/M&A activities:
- Parent company of Highlands Coffee acquires Paris Baguette: Viet Thai International (VTI Group), parent company of Highlands Coffee, has acquired Paris Baguette, South Korea’s leading bakery brand, expanding its food and beverage portfolio that already includes Pho 24 and The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf. Paris Baguette, which entered Vietnam in 2012 and currently operates around 10 stores, brings a premium bakery-café model with global reach—over 4,000 outlets worldwide. Read more here.
- Vietnam's SonKim Land in private credit deals: Vietnamese luxury real estate developer SonKim Land has raised USD200 million in private credit, advised by Jefferies. The undisclosed investor backs SonKim’s long-term strategic expansion across residential, office, and hospitality sectors. The firm has previously attracted capital from EXS Capital, ACA Investments and Skymont Capital. Read more here.
SEA
Investment/M&A activities:
- Malaysia's Sunway plans to list healthcare unit in 2026: Malaysian conglomerate Sunway plans to list its healthcare division, Sunway Healthcare Holdings by Q1 2026, targeting an IPO exceeding MYR3 billion (USD713 million). Proceeds will fund hospital expansion and new developments, with Sunway Healthcare aiming to grow its current five-hospital, 1,818-bed capacity to over 3,400 beds by 2032. Read more here.
- Carro eyes 2-3 M&As, Australia foray ahead of potential dual listing: Carro, Southeast Asia’s largest used-car marketplace backed by Temasek and SoftBank, is preparing for a potential listing in the U.S., Hong Kong, or Singapore, targeting a valuation above USD3 billion. To strengthen its position, Carro plans to enter the Australian market, and pursue 2–3 acquisitions next quarter, following its recent expansion into Hong Kong via the acquisition of Beyond Cars. CEO Aaron Tan emphasized that IPO timing will depend on achieving near-term EBITDA targets of USD120–150 million. Discussions with HSBC and UBS are underway, though no advisers have been appointed yet. Read more here.
Others:
- Malaysia reins in data centre growth, complicating China's AI chip access: Malaysia is tightening controls on its booming data centre sector, the country, which hosts over two-thirds of Southeast Asia’s data centre capacity under construction, has attracted major investments from U.S. and Chinese tech giants due to low costs and strategic location. Johor, the leading hub with 42 approved projects worth USD39 billion, is now enforcing sustainability standards (due to constraints on power and water resources), rejecting 30% of applications in 2024. Read more here.
EMEA
Investment/M&A activities:
- Vantage Capital exits Moroccan investment: Vantage Capital, a leading African mezzanine finance fund manager, has exited its investment in Morocco-based Equity Invest, a diversified IT group spanning electronic security, multimedia systems, renewable energy, digital payments, e-commerce, and hospital software. Read more here.
Others:
- DPA and iXAfrica announce African data centre partnership: Digital Parks Africa (DPA), a South African-owned data centre provider, has partnered with Kenya’s iXAfrica Data Centres to deliver integrated, hyperscale, AI-ready data centre services across Southern and East Africa. This reciprocal alliance enables multinational clients to access infrastructure in both regions through a unified platform, streamlining cross-border operations and expansion. Read more here.
