Jollibee to acquire majority stake in South Korea’s Compose Coffee
Jollibee Foods Corporation, the largest restaurant operator in the Philippines, is set to acquire a 70% stake in South Korean coffee chain Compose Coffee. The investment is valued at USD 340 million and will enable Jollibee to further its business interests in South Korea by leveraging Compose’s capabilities.
Compose Coffee, founded in Busan in 2014,, will become Jollibee’s largest brand by store count, bringing its total network closer to 10,000 stores, with over 66% outside the Philippines, according to Bloomberg. Jollibee said the purchase will add 2% to its revenues, 12% to its pre-income tax earnings this year, and boost its store count by 34%.
Heymax.ai snags USD 2.6 million in seed round
Heymax.ai, a Singapore-founded loyalty platform, has snagged USD 2.6 million in a seed funding round led by January Capital, with participation from Tenity, Ascend Angels, XA Network, and other strategic investors.
Founded in 2023 by four ex-Meta engineers, Heymax.ai operates a platform that allows consumers to earn “Max Miles” from over 500 businesses and redeem them for flights or convert them to miles and points for loyalty programs run by 25 airline and hotel partners.
In a statement, the company said it plans to use the funds to expand its rewards ecosystem and customer base.
Google partners with BlackRock for solar project in Taiwan
Tech giant Google has announced a partnership with BlackRock’s climate infrastructure business to develop a 1-gigawatt pipeline of new solar capacity in Taiwan. As part of this partnership, Google will invest in New Green Power (NGP), a solar developer and BlackRock portfolio company operating in Taiwan.
Google did not disclose the investment terms, but said that the deal is aimed at advancing clean energy production for the local electricity grid and support its goal of running on carbon-free energy.
Recent deals completed in China:
- TH International (Tims China), the exclusive operator of Tim Hortons in China, has secured up to USD 65 million in financing from its founding shareholders, Cartesian Capital Group and Restaurant Brands International (RBI). The financing includes USD 50 million in convertible notes, with USD 40 million issued at closing and the remaining amount to be funded over the next seven months, subject to conditions. Additionally, RBI has acquired the Popeyes China business from Tims China for an enterprise value of USD 15 million on a cash-free, debt-free basis. Tims China has also issued a USD 15 million convertible note to extinguish deferred consideration due to former shareholders of Popeyes China, with terms similar to the initial financing notes.
- Joywell Semi, a semiconductor company, has added the second phase of the China Integrated Circuit Industry Investment Fund (CICIIF) as a shareholder. The terms of the deal were undisclosed. —36Kr
- Prochip Group, a Shanghai-registered provider of bulk gasses for electronics, has secured tens of millions of RMB in a Series A++ funding round from SCGC Capital. Prochip serves primarily the semiconductor industry and will use the funds to enhance gas station construction and R&D efforts. —36Kr
- Loongrise Avionics, a Hangzhou-based avionics equipment manufacturer, has completed a multimillion-RMB Series A+ funding round. Huayu Venture Capital took part in this investment. The funds will be used to accelerate product R&D, expand its talent pool, and support market expansion. —36Kr
Jirnexu, Xurya, Longbridge Group, and more led yesterday’s headlines:
- Jirnexu, a Malaysian fintech company, is set to acquire CompareHero, MoneyHero Group’s B2C brand in Malaysia, as part of a strategic partnership between both entities. MoneyHero will retain an equity stake in Jirnexu.
- Xurya, an Indonesian renewable energy company offering rooftop solar rentals, received an additional USD 55 million investment in a deal led by Norfund’s Norwegian Climate Investment Fund, with participation from Swedfund, Clime Capital, British International Investment (BII), and AC Ventures.
- Longbridge Group, a fintech company, announced that it landed over USD 100 million in additional funding from various investment institutions, including Singaporean consortia, following the completion of its pre-Series A round.
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