Japanese lighting solutions provider Iwasaki Electric is set to be acquired by The Carlyle Group through a tender offer at a valuation of 34.9 billion yen ($266 million), according to a company filing.
The private equity firm has won support from the board for a proposal to acquire 7.35m shares, or a stake worth 94%, for 4,460 yen ($34.06) apiece, the report added.
Iwasaki does lighting projects for sports stadiums, hospitals, and universities in Japan. The company was founded in 1944 and has 1,687 employees, according to its website.
Private equity (PE) giant Carlyle has been bullish on Japan in recent years. In 2021, the firm raised its offer to acquire energy and environment services firm Japan Asia Group. It also said it was expanding its footprint into Japan’s automotive sector as the universal shift to electric vehicles (EVs) had hit the industry’s supply chain.
“Everything’s on sale in Japan for people who have dollars,” William Conway Jr, co-founder and co-chairman of Carlyle, said at a panel discussion in Hong Kong last November.
Aside from Japan, Carlyle has also been betting big on South and Southeast Asian companies. Last October, DealStreetAsia reported that Carlyle was in advanced talks to buy a sizeable stake in Malaysia’s Caring Pharmacy. The same month, it joined the race alongside Warburg Pincus and Bain Capital to acquire Indian healthcare platform Evercare.
Most recently, it bought a majority stake in Indian beauty care and wellness solutions provider VLCC last month.