Five private equity groups are set to bid for Springer Science+Business Media, owned by private equity firm EQT and sovereign wealth fund GIC, writes Reuters. While EQT and GIC are hoping to reap as much as 4 billion euros ($5.2 billion) for the German speciality publisher of scientific journals, the prospective buyers are unlikely to offer much more than a price tag of slightly over 3 billion euros, writes Reuters.

EQT has pulled the sale of German academic publisher Springer Science+Business Media because it believes it can achieve a better price later in the year, the Financial Times reported, writes Reuters. Sweden’s EQT, which teamed up with GIC, the investment vehicle of the government of Singapore, to buy Springer in 2009 was aiming to get up to 4 billion euros ($5.3 billion) for the publisher.

European headquartered buyout house Apax Partners has reached a first close on Apax VIII in just ten months.

Axiom Asia Capital Management, the private equity firm founded by former executives of Singapore sovereign wealth fund GIC, has closed its third Asia fund at $1.15 billion, writes Reuters. About half the firm’s investments are made in Greater China with India following as the next biggest market for Axiom, writes Reuters. Reuters – China remains [...]

HONG KONG, March 25 (Reuters) – Private equity deals in Asia got off to a steady start in 2011, as buyout funds provided capital to companies in rapidly growing China and India, and some analysts say competition is pushing up valuation in some Asian countries. Asia has traditionally been a growth market for PE funds, [...]

Singapore sovereign wealth fund GIC is seeking to sell an office building in Seoul, Reuters reported citing South Korea’s Maeil Business Newspaper. The property has an estimated value of up to 1.1 trillion won ($977.2 million), the newspaper said. Government of Singapore Investment Corp., purchased the 30-story building, which is known as Seoul Finance Center, for 355 billion won in 2000.

TPG Capital and Singapore sovereign wealth fund GIC have paid 2.99 trillion rupiah ($331 million) for a stake in an Indonesia coal contractor, Reuters reported. The two firms acquired a stake in the special purpose vehicle Northstar Tambang Persada, which owns 40% of coal contractor PT Delta Dunia Makmur, Reuters said.

LONDON/STOCKHOLM (Reuters) – Swedish private equity firm EQT and the Singapore government are buying Springer Science and Business Media, allowing an exit for the two UK buyout firms that have owned the debt-laden business since 2003. EQT, closely linked with Sweden’s powerful Wallenberg family and its Investor (INVEb.ST) group, said on Friday it would buy [...]

HONG KONG/SINGAPORE (Reuters) – Minzhong, a leading Chinese food processing company backed by Singapore’s GIC and buyout fund Olympus Capital, has hired JPMorgan (JPM.N) to help it go public, sources said on Monday. It would be Singapore’s largest IPO since June 2008. Minzhong, based in the southern Chinese province of Fujian near Taiwan, aims to [...]

SINGAPORE (Reuters) – Singapore’s $200 billion-plus sovereign wealth fund GIC will likely reveal next week it is moving more money into property, resources and Asian assets after recently cutting its exposure to major Western banks. The Government of Singapore Investment Corp, or GIC, is due to release its annual report for the year to March [...]