Japanese PE fundraising on the slow track

Formerly a popular destination for large buyout deals in Asia, Japan was the focus of an anticipated PE revival with the onset of Abenomics. But though the right elements are in place – liquid markets, availability of deal leveraging and attractive PE exits – limited partners (LPs) have become circumspect and adopted a wait-and-see stance. For its third Japan-focused buyout fund, Carlyle Group targets a peer-beating ¥100 billion, half of what some investors had been expecting. T…