Carlyle, Orchid back HK IPO

The Carlyle Group, Orchid Asia and European private equity firm Milestone have backed the Hong Kong initial public offering of Tenwow International Holdings, according to a source familiar with the matter. 

Tenwow, a food and beverage producer and distributor in China, raised HK$1.58 billion (€153 million; $203 million) via the IPO, with the cornerstone investors buying $92.3 million, media reports said following the announcement.

The company sold 500 million shares altogether, which represented 25 percent of its share capital. The price was fixed at

Carlyle, Orchid back Tenwow IPO

HK$3.15, a P/E ratio of 16.4x for 2013.

Despite the few IPOs on Hong Kong’s stock market, Carlyle has had some success on the exchange. In June, the firm listed China’s New Century Hotel Group – the first REIT to list in Hong Kong since 2011, Private Equity International reported earlier. 

Carlyle has also been identifying food and beverage opportunities in other parts of Asia. In early September, the firm and TPG became front runners to acquire Indian distiller Allied Blenders & Distillers for about $100 million, local media said. 

Carlyle continues to be active in Asia, recently launching a $1 billion Japan fund, PEI reported earlier. The firm also raised a record amount of capital from Asia for its $10.3 billion US fund, which it closed in August. 

Orchid Asia is a Shanghai-based firm with $1.4 billion in assets under management, according to PEI's Research & Analytics division. It is currently investing Fund V, a $650 million vehicle with a 2010 vintage, targeting growth investments in the consumer, outsourced manufacturing, and services sectors.