Sharon Lim

A Korean court has slapped Warburg Pincus with a fine in addition to sentencing Hwang Sung-jin, the US private equity firm’s local chief to four years in prison for insider trading.

Merrill Lynch has made several key appointments in Asia in leveraging the region’s private equity boom.

A private equity consortium of Merrill Lynch Global Private Equity and Pacific Equity Partners has approached Veda Advantage, Australia-listed credit checking company, with a $636 million proposal.

Advantage Partners, a Tokyo-based private equity firm raising its fourth fund, has agreed to buy the financial business of Japan’s fallen internet giant Livedoor.

Lone Star will not proceed with a planned lucrative exit from Korea Exchange Bank because of continuing investigations surrounding its investment in 2003.

Lone Star’s cofounder and chairman is thinking about terminating a $7.3 billion deal to sell its stake in Korea Exchange Bank because of widening probes into its 2003 purchase. Local prosecutors have indicted the bank and Lone Star on stock manipulation charges.

A Korean court today issued warrants to arrest US-based Ellis Short and Michael Thompson on alleged stock manipulation charges. The warrants came through after prosecutors failed in their applications twice before.

A reapplication by Korean supreme Prosecutor’s Office to detain and arrest three senior executives of Lone Star including co-founder Ellis Short has been turned down by the courts again on 7 November.

Ripplewood Holdings, a US private equity firm, and Videoncon Industries, an Indian strategic partner, have won the race to acquire Korea’s Daewoo Electronics in a transaction worth a reported $700 million.

Shinhan Financial Group of Korea has narrowly beaten Hana Bank and MBK Partners to a $7 billion acquisition of Korea’s LG Card Co.