Carlyle, Cerberus Cash Out In Asia

A couple of big private equity firms have made all the money they think they're going to on a couple of Asian financial institutions.
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A couple of big privateequity firms have made all the money they think they're going to on a couple of Asian financial institutions.

Private equity firm Carlyle Group sold its remaining stake in China's No.3 insurer CPIC in a deal valued at $793 million, exiting the business with its largest dollar profit on an investment.

Cerberus plans to reduce its stake to about 8% by offering shares in the open market, Aozora said, in a deal that would generate ¥158.1 billion ($1.8 billion) based on Monday's closing price of ¥250 a share on the Tokyo Stock Exchange. That is on top of an estimated ¥100 billion Cerberus made from cashing out some of its stake at a much higher price in 2006, when Aozora's initial public offering priced shares at ¥570.

As the Journal points out, Cerberus is just the lastest p.e. shop, among the hordes who descended on Japan back when it was showing us what a middle-aged decades-long recession looked like, to quit its Japanese bank habit. Lone Star and J.C. Flowers are still biding their time.

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