Nikkei buys Singapore-based media startup DealStreetAsia

NIKKEI, owner of the Financial Times (FT) and publisher of Nikkei Asian Review, is acquiring a majority stake in DealStreetAsia, a media startup that tracks private equity and venture capital activity across South-east Asia and India.

The deal is meant to deepen Nikkei's coverage of the Asian startup and tech scene, the "fastest-growing sectors in the region", said the group. The acquisition also strengthens Nikkei and FT's corporate news and data service scoutAsia, it added.

Investors that are exiting include SPH Ventures, North Base Media, Alpha JWC, SGAN (the angel investment arm of Thakral Group), and venture capitalist Ozi Amanat's K2 VC. SPH Ventures is the venture arm of Singapore Press Holdings, which publishes The Business Times.

Angel investors that are exiting include Paytm CEO and founder Vijay Shekhar Sharma and Singapore-based renowned investor Jim Rogers, chairman of Rogers Holdings. Indian business daily Mint, published by Hindustan Times, continues to be a minority shareholder.

DealStreetAsia was launched in late 2014. It organises its flagship event, the Asia PE-VC Summit, every September in Singapore. The company has reporters in Singapore, Indonesia, the Philippines, Myanmar, Thailand, Vietnam, Malaysia and India.

Naotoshi Okada, president and CEO of Nikkei Inc, said: "I am delighted to welcome DealStreetAsia to Nikkei Group as our new partner. Together, we will expand and deepen our reporting of the thriving Asian technology and startup landscape, with a strong focus on developing the editorial offering at Nikkei Asian Review, a key product in our global strategy."