Nihon M&A Center Holdings has launched AtoG Capital, a subsidiary fund management company designed to facilitate cross-border M&A transactions between Japan and the ASEAN region. AtoG Capital aims to help small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in ASEAN restructure their operations and foster successful partnerships with Japanese companies.

The fund’s first partnership is with CK MAC Global Sdn. Bhd. in Malaysia, a trading company specializing in CNC machinery. Through this initiative, AtoG Capital will focus on driving investment in high-growth ASEAN markets such as Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia, Thailand, and Vietnam, where Japanese companies seek to diversify and expand.

Yusuke Ojima, Head of ASEAN at Nihon M&A Center, emphasized that with Japan’s domestic market maturing, the ASEAN region offers promising growth opportunities. In 2023, Japan-ASEAN trade reached US$241.1 billion, and Japan’s investment in ASEAN totaled US$14.5 billion.

AtoG Capital’s two-phase exit strategy will support companies with internal restructuring and share sales, using Nihon M&A Center’s advisory services. The fund will ensure alignment with Japanese business standards and streamline Post-Merger Integration (PMI) to minimize costs and time.

With this new initiative, Nihon M&A Center aims to empower ASEAN mid-cap companies to thrive globally by leveraging strategic M&A opportunities.