AMERICAS
Occidental Petroleum is considering a sale of the majority stakes in Western Midstream Partners, the pipeline operator that it's confident of inheriting through its Anadarko Petroleum acquisition.
According to Bloomberg, Occidental is working with financial advisors to solicit offers for half of Anadarko's interest in Western Midstream and Western Midstream's general partner or management entity. The potential buyer of those stakes would also seek to acquire the 45% of Western Midstream that is traded publicly.
The following are the advisors for Anadarko-Occidental deal: Evercore, Goldman Sachs, Vinson & Elkins, and Wachtell Lipton Rosen & Katz are advising Anadarko. Credit Suisse, Paul Weiss Rifkind Wharton & Garrison, and Shearman & Sterling are advising Chevron. Bank of America Merrill Lynch, Citigroup, and Cravath Swaine & Moore are advising Occidental.
Onex's $2.6bn acquisition of Canada based WetJet Airlines receives approval from Canada's Transport Minister, clearing the first regulatory approval.
The deal still needs several other regulatory approvals, WestJet shareholder nod and final approval by the Court of Queen’s Bench of Alberta.
Bank of America Merrill Lynch, CIBC, Blake Cassels & Graydon, and Norton Rose Fulbright are advising WestJet. Barclays, Morgan Stanley, RBC Capital Markets, DLA Piper, Fried Frank Harris Shriver & Jacobson, Goodmans, and Longview Communications are advising Onex.
LongueVue Capital has partnered with Eli Mechlovitz, the Founder and CEO of Soho Studio and TileBar, to acquire the Company and provide capital for growth. Soho is a leading provider of high quality and price-competitive mosaic, tile, and specialty interior products. Financial terms were not disclosed.
Soho is disrupting the highly fragmented and staid flooring and wall coverings industry with unparalleled innovation, sophistication, and customer service.
“Soho is a proven market disruptor. From its proprietary, on-trend designs to its omnichannel approach, Soho is building more than just a specialty flooring and wall coverings business; they’re building a lifestyle brand. Leveraging decades of experience and capitalizing on shifts in consumer and builder preferences for ceramic tile and stone, the Soho management team has created a unique value proposition around high-quality, differentiated, and competitively priced products sold through innovative channels and supported by superior customer service. We believe that with a committed partner, Soho can further expand its portfolio and reach to become a top-tier specialty interiors company.” Ryan Nagim, LVC Partner.
Katten Muchin Rosenman is advising Soho. Cadence Bank, Jones Walker, and Norton Rose Fulbright are advising Longuevue.
Norwest Equity Partners, a leading middle market investment firm founded in 1961, has made a significant investment in Arteriors, a founder-owned, internationally recognized designer and supplier of premium, decorative lighting fixtures, furniture, and accessories. NEP’s investment marks the first time Arteriors has partnered with an institutional investor, marking a significant milestone for the Company. Financial terms were not disclosed.
“After 30-plus years as a founder-owned business, our entire team is excited for our investment partnership with NEP, which will help us prioritize and resource our strategic initiatives and provide capital for growth. Providing superior service and value to our customers will remain our top priority, as will our efforts to launch new and innovative, design-driven products. I have never been more excited about our prospects for growth and the future.” Moussa, Arteriors Founder.
Arterios is advised by PJ Solomon and Baker Botts. Norwest Equity Partners is advised by Jones Day. Bank of Ireland, Hancock Capital Management, Norwest Mezzanine Partners acted as debt providers.
Trax, the leading provider of computer vision and analytics solutions for retail acquires Shopkick, the leading shopping rewards app in the US. Financial terms were not disclosed.
Combining Trax’s best-in-class technologies and solutions and Shopkick’s full path-to-purchase offering accelerates Trax’s vision of digitizing the physical world of retail, bridging the mobile and physical retail worlds for global and regional retailers.
“I am truly excited to welcome Shopkick to the Trax family. Bringing together shelf and shopper data will deliver new and powerful insights to CPG brands and retailers,” Joel Bar-El, Trax CEO.
Validity, the most trusted name in customer data quality, acquired AppBuddy, the leader in grid-based SaaS applications. The addition of AppBuddy to the portfolio of Validity solutions greatly expands Validity’s growth potential across sales, marketing, and customer success teams that rely on customer data. Financial terms were not disclosed.
“Poor data quality is a barrier to growth. And yet, one of the key contributors to poor data quality is the underlying CRM user experience. AppBuddy makes it far easier to interact with customer data, resulting in the faster follow-up of marketing leads, more accurate sales forecasts, and an overall increase in CRM adoption. AppBuddy is a truly unique product, one that we cannot wait to introduce to our tens of thousands of Validity customers.” Mark Briggs, Validity CEO.
VillageMD, a leading provider of healthcare for organizations moving toward a primary care-led, acquires Memorial Clinical Associates (MCA). Financial terms were not disclosed. VillageMD will also acquire its IPA/MSO, which includes an additional 15 primary care providers.
"We are pleased to welcome MCA to the VillageMD family, both organizations are committed to primary care led, value-based care," Clive Fields, VillageMD co-founder.
CIE Automotive, an industrial group specializing in supplying components for the automotive market acquires Maquinados de Precision de Mexico and Cortes de Precision de Mexico. Financial terms were not disclosed.
The closing of the transaction is subject to the fulfillment of the usual conditions in this type of transactions, including the authorization of the antitrust Mexican authorities.
"The rationale of this integration is mainly the use of the productive assets, which complement the Group's machining activities in Mexico and which will allow us an important future physical and commercial expansion in this and other technologies. This transaction also reinforces CIE Automotive's commitment to the Mexican automotive market." Jesus Maria Herrera, CIE Automotive.
Blue Racer to consider $2.5bn IPO. (FS)
Blue Racer Midstream, a private equity-backed natural gas pipeline owner, is considering an initial public offering that could be valued at $2.5bn, Bloomberg reported ( here link - https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2019-06-24/pipeline-company-blue-racer-is-said-to-weigh-2-5-billion-ipo?srnd=deals).
The Dallas-based company, which is a 50/50 joint venture between private equity firm First Reserve and Caiman Energy II, is working with advisers to evaluate an IPO.
Weed leader Canopy Growth is done with buying smaller producers.
The biggest of Canada’s booming pot growers, Canopy Growth, has further to go on a string of acquisitions that has seen it suck up at least 12 smaller firms in a year, but it is done buying other producers, Chief Executive Officer Bruce Linton said.
Powered by a deal with Corona-maker Constellation Brands that has left it with $4.5bn to invest, Canopy is in pole position to cash in on Canada’s legalization of marijuana for recreational use as well as expectations that the United States may follow.
Constellation is betting in part on the promise that federal legislation might eventually follow moves by state governments in the United States to legalize, opening the door to legal production countrywide, and there have been tentative signs that others may follow.
Carbon Raises Over $260m in Growth Funding Round. (FS)
Carbon, the world’s leading digital manufacturing platform, had raised over $260m in growth funding co-led by Madrone Capital Partners and Baillie Gifford. New investors-Temasek and Arkema joined the round with participation from existing investors including Sequoia Capital, Johnson & Johnson Innovation – JJDC, Fidelity Management & Research Company, Adidas Ventures, and JSR. This brings Carbon’s total fundraising to more than $680m.
"With the Carbon Platform, powered by our Digital Light Synthesis™ technology, companies are finally breaking free of the constraints of traditional polymer manufacturing methods to make what’s next now, and at speeds and volumes never before possible,” Dr. Joseph DeSimone, Carbon’s CEO and Co-Founder.
AbbVie, a leading researcher and developer of pharmaceutical products acquired Allergan, a manufacturer of specialty pharmaceuticals for $83bn.
Allergan Shareholders will receive 0.87 AbbVie Shares and $120 in cash for each Allergan Share, for a total consideration of $188 per Allergan Share.
"The combination of AbbVie and Allergan increases our ability to continue to deliver on
our mission to patients and shareholders. With our enhanced growth platform to fuel industry-leading growth, this strategy allows us to diversify AbbVie's business while sustaining our focus on innovative science and the advancement of our industry-leading pipeline well into the future." Richard A. Gonzalez, AbbVie CEO.
Morgan Stanley, Kirkland & Ellis, and McCann FitzGerald advised Abbvie. J.P. Morgan, Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz, and Arthur Cox are advising Allergan.
Capgemini, a global leader in consulting, IT services, and digital transformation acquires Altran Technologies, the global leader in Engineering and R&D services for $4.1bn cash trade.
Capgemini would pay $13.6 per Altran share, payable in cash. Total cash consideration would amount to $4.1bn, excluding financial debt of $1.6bn. The transaction will be accretive to Capgemini’s normalized EPS by more than 15%, before synergies from the combination.
"By joining forces, we are positioning ourselves as a clear strategic partner to assist our clients in taking full advantage of the revolution created by the developments of the cloud, Edge computing, IoT, artificial intelligence and 5G. I am delighted to welcome to Capgemini the talents and leaders of Altran, who share our beliefs and corporate culture.” Paul Hermelin, Capgemini CEO.
Karo Pharmacy, a specialty pharma company acquires Trimb Holding, a leading consumer healthcare company for $365m from Avista Capital.
The Transaction is expected to contribute positively to Karo Pharma’s market position and create a strong platform for Karo Pharma’s continued growth.
“Trimb is a distinguished company within over-the-counter pharmaceuticals and consumer healthcare products. Over the past years, the company has successfully built a Nordic business and a growing presence in Northern Europe. Trimb complements Karo Pharma well, both in terms of geographical presence, distribution channels and product offering. I look forward to continuing this journey in a combined company,” Christoffer Lorenzen, Karo Pharma CEO.
SEB Corporate Finance and White & Case are advising Karo Pharma. Rothschild & Co and Ropes & Gray are advising Avista Capital.
Nanometrics Incorporated, a leading provider of advanced process control metrology and software analytics and Rudolph Technologies, a leading provider of semiconductor process control systems, lithography equipment, and software for wafer fabs and advanced packaging facilities enter into a definitive merger.
The merged company will be a premier end-to-end metrology, inspection, process control software, and lithography equipment provider for the semiconductor industry and other advanced markets. Under the terms of the agreement, which was unanimously approved by the Boards of Directors of both companies, Rudolph stockholders will receive 0.8 shares of Nanometrics common stock for each Rudolph share. Upon completion of the merger, current Nanometrics stockholders will own approximately 50% and current Rudolph stockholders will own approximately 50% of the combined company.
“This strategic transaction brings together two successful and complementary teams and product portfolios. Nanometrics’ metrology portfolio is a strong strategic fit with Rudolph’s current diversified product lines including software, inspection, metrology, and lithography." Michael Plisinski, Rudolph Chief Executive Officer.
Barclays and Cooley advised Nanometrics. Morgan Stanley and WilmerHale advised Rudolph.
French fashion group SMCP acquires De Fursac, a famous men's luxury clothing company. Financial terms were not disclosed.
“With De Fursac in our group, we have a unique opportunity to accelerate our strategy, by tapping into a new segment in the fast-growing men’s accessible luxury market,” Daniel Lalonde, SMCP CEO.
BNP Paribas and Clifford Chance are advising SMCP. AyacheSalama is advising De Fursac.
Melco Resorts & Entertainment, a developer and owner of casino gaming and entertainment casino resort facilities in Asia acquire 75% stake in ICR Cyprus Holdings from Melco International Development for $375m.
ICR Cyprus and its subsidiaries are developing the City of Dreams Mediterranean integrated destination resort project in Cyprus. The City of Dreams Mediterranean project is currently under development and scheduled to open in 2021, upon which it is expected to be the largest and premier integrated destination resort in Europe.
According to the Share Purchase Agreement, Melco will acquire the Acquisition Shares in exchange for 55.5m ordinary shares of Melco, which are equivalent to approximately 18.5m American depositary shares of the Company, or 4% of Melco’s outstanding shares as of the date hereof, representing approximately $375m.
Stern Stewart Capital, an investment firm acquires Siteco, a provider of lighting solutions from Osram. Financial terms were not disclosed.
Separation from Osram gives Siteco entrepreneurial freedom. The cost situation is also improved with the elimination of previous Group structures. With the sale of the luminaires business, Osram is continuing its transformation to a high-tech company.
“Stern Stewart will be undertaking an entrepreneurial role and offers Siteco and its employees' good prospects. In this way, we can ensure strategic and operational continuity for Siteco, while Osram continues to sharpen its profile as a photonics champion.” Olaf Berlien, Osram CEO.
Stark Group, a leading retailer and distributor of the basic building materials in the Nordic region, though its Swedish business unit Beijer Byggmaterial acquires PoG Woody and Karl Ekesioo. Financial terms were not disclosed.
PoG Woody Bygghandel is a strong regional player operating six branches including a distribution center in Southern Sweden, which is an important growth center for the building materials supply industry.
Karl Ekesioo Bygghandel is operating two branches in attractive locations with substantial building activity in the metro-area of Stockholm.
The two acquired businesses are serving professional customers, of which approximately 85% being small and medium-sized professional builders fitting directly into the Stark Group strategy.
“I am very pleased to announce these two new acquisitions in Sweden and to welcome another 150 Swedish colleagues to the STARK GROUP family. The eight branches fit perfectly into our strategy, focused primarily on serving the small and medium-sized professional customers in the construction and renovation industry,” Soren Olesen, Stark Group CEO.
FDJ Gaming Solutions, the innovation, technology, and service hub have acquired Sporting Group, the world’s leader in sports betting technology and trading. Financial terms were not disclosed.
This acquisition strengthens FDJ Gaming Solutions’ existing B2B business by adding market-leading pricing, trading, and risk management capabilities to the Group. It allows FDJ Gaming Solutions to take full control of Sporting Solutions, the highly regarded B2B sportsbook services supplier and Sporting Index, the leading sports spread betting company.
"We are very pleased to have completed this acquisition, which underlines FDJ’s ambition in the B2B sports betting sector. FDJ recognizes the excellence that Sporting Group has in pricing and trading. That is why this operation is key for our B2B international development." Xavier Etienne, FDJ Gaming Solutions Executive VP Technology & International at FDJ Group and Chief Executive Officer.
Bellevue Group could sell the loss-making bank as revamping stalls. (FS)
Bellevue Group is weighing the sale of its Bank am Bellevue wealth management unit and has held talks with potential buyers, it said, adding that efforts to reposition activities lag internal expectations.
“Against this background, Bellevue Group is reviewing various strategic options for Bank am Bellevue,” the financial company said in a statement.
“In this context, it also has discussions with potentially interested parties about a sale of the bank. To date, no contract has been concluded.”
In recent years, there has been consolidation within Switzerland’s fragmented wealth management landscape, as the steady erosion of the nation’s famous banking secrecy made it less attractive for foreigners to stash cash in Switzerland, conspiring to shrink the customer base and hurt profits.
Monzo doubles valuation in 8 months as it raises £113m. (FS)
App-only bank Monzo is now worth over £2bn ($2.5bn), just eight months after hitting a valuation of £1bn ($1.27bn).
The new milestone came on Tuesday as Monzo announced it had raised £113m ($144m) at the latest valuation. Monzo last raised money in October 2018, when it was valued at £1bn ($1.27bn).
The new valuation makes London-headquartered Monzo one of Europe’s most valuable private tech companies.
Most of the new money raised came from Y Combinator Continuity, a venture capital fund that grew out of legendary Silicon Valley company incubator Y Combinator. Other funds involved in the investment round include Latitude, General Catalyst, Stripe, Passion Capital, Thrive, Goodwater, Accel, and Orange Digital Ventures.
CNT expands into the Benelux region.
CNT Management Consulting, a leading SAP consultancy in Austria and Germany, is expanding its business activities into the Benelux region. For that reason, Advisum, a
Belgium consulting company located in Hasselt, was acquired. CNT Belgium will be headed by Kurt Huysmans, founder of Advisum and Michael Tschernko. The new office will focus on Life Sciences (pharmaceuticals, medical devices, biotechnology).
APAC
TOPPAN Printing, a leading global provider of integrated solutions in the fields of printing acquires Interprint, a leading decor printer from Wrede Industrieholding. Financial terms were not disclosed.
“We are pleased to have achieved our top priority of finding a financially strong and reliable new shareholder for Interprint. I am convinced that with Toppan by its side, Interprint is well-positioned to continue its success story of international expansion,” Thomas Wrede, Wrede Chairman of the Advisory Board.
Tokio Marine, that spent $17bn on acquisitions says more to come.
Tokio Marine Holdings is seeking acquisition opportunities in Asian emerging markets and elsewhere as it aims to double profits from those regions, according to the new chief of Japan’s largest property-and-casualty insurer.
“We have group companies in Southeast Asia, but they’re small,” Satoru Komiya, who became president on Monday, said. “If we have a chance to make a further leap in the Philippines, Indonesia, and Malaysia, we’d like to expand our business.”
South Korea to sell entire stake in Woori Financial Group by 2022.
South Korea said it would sell its entire stake in Woori Financial Group within three years, in a move to recoup taxpayers’ money spent to bail out the company two decades ago.
The Financial Services Commission (FSC) said in a statement that it had decided to sell the 18% stake owned by the state-funded Korea Deposit Insurance from 2020 to 2022.
In the aftermath of the 1997-1998 Asian financial crisis, the government spent 12.8tn won ($11.1bn) to bail out the bank and has since then gradually sold stakes to recoup the public funds.
Australian super fund Rest takes over Collgar wind farm from UBS. (FS)
Australian super fund Retail Employees Superannuation Trust (Rest) announced that it has agreed to take full ownership of Collgar Wind Farm in Western Australia by acquiring the 60% stake held by UBS Asset Management’s Real Estate & Private Markets Infrastructure business.
Rest, which already owns a 40% stake in the project, did not disclose the financial details of its acquisition but an IPE report pegged the deal valued at around A$250m ($174m), making the super fund the sole owner of Collgar.
MINISO to consider a $1bn IPO.
MINISO, a Chinese budget household, and consumer good retailer, is planning an initial public offering that could raise about $1bn, Bloomberg reported. The company is inviting banks to pitch for roles on the proposed offering, the people said, asking not to be identified because the information is private. The share sale could take place in Hong Kong or the US, while the timeline is yet to be decided.
Disney to invest in Indonesia's largest media firm.
Media Nusantara Citra is not in talks with Disney over-investment in one of the Indonesian media group’s companies, president and founder Hary Tanoesoedibjo said.
“If the two companies can agree, Disney would invest $200m for ten years,” the executive said, Reuters reported.
Haihang Investment Group extended the disposing of 16% equity of Shenzhen Biteli Battery on Beijing Property Rights Exchange. (FS)
Haihang Investment Group publicly listed and transferred 16% equity of Shenzhen Biteli Battery held by the Beijing Property Rights Exchange and authorize The chairman of the company fulfills the relevant procedures required for listing and signs the related legal documents for listing.
As of the expiration of the listing announcement on June 25, 2019, the listing failed to collect the intended transferee. The company entrusted the Beijing Stock Exchange to extend the listing announcement period of the 16% stake in Shenzhen Betley to July 2, 2019, with a listed reserve price of 879m yuan ($128m).
Petronas Chemicals budgets $6bn for specialty portfolio deals.
The chemicals arm of Malaysia’s state energy firm Petronas plans to spend roughly $6bn over the next 15 to 20 years to expand its specialty chemicals portfolio through acquisitions and partnerships, the unit’s chief executive said yesterday.
The budget is part of Petronas Chemicals Group Bhd’s efforts to make high-margin specialty chemicals a central part of its business, Sazali Hamzah said in. “By doing that we are going to diversify our portfolio and our dependency on crude and gas will be a lot less,” he said.
Petronas Chemicals has been looking to overgrow in specialty chemicals, which are raw materials used to manufacture consumer products such as high-performance tires, medical gloves, and light-emitting diode televisions.
Mahindra Finance plans to tap overseas markets to raise $460m. (FS)
Mahindra and Mahindra Financial Services, the non-bank arm of the Mahindra group, is looking to tap the overseas markets to raise at least $460m through a mix of loans and bonds.
The company had raised $200m in FY19 through the external ECB route, and is in the process of building another $160m in overseas loans, said Ramesh Iyer, vice-chairman and managing director, Mahindra Finance.
The lender is also looking to raise another $300m through offshore bonds and is in the process of obtaining an international credit rating, Iyer added.
L Catterton Asia spin-out said to secure backing from SEA conglomerate. (FS)
A new private equity firm spun out of consumer-focused PE investor L Catterton Asia is set to secure the backing of a Southeast Asian conglomerate and a Middle East fund as its anchor investors, DealStreet Asia reported.
Budget airline AirAsia opens digital arm to investors ahead of possible IPO.
Budget airline pioneer AirAsia will open its digital business arm RedBeat Ventures to outside investors within the year ahead of a possible IPO, as it strives to become the “Amazon of travel.”
SEA set to witness more exits as unicorns show bigger buyout appetite. (FS)
The latest acquisitions in South and Southeast Asia – Indonesian e-commerce unicorn Tokopedia is buying wedding marketplace Bridestory and GOJEK doubling down on India by acquiring recruitment platform AirCTO – highlight how unicorns have emerged as the biggest drivers of exits in the region.
Indonesia’s Reliance Capital seeks additional underwriter for $300m IPO. (FS)
Indonesia-based diversified financial services group Reliance Capital Management (RCM) is seeking an additional underwriter for a planned $300m IPO on the local bourse, CEO Joel Hogarth DealStreet Asia reported
Fitness startup CureFit closes $120m funding round led by Chiratae, Accel. (FS)
Health and fitness startup Cure Fit Healthcare said it had closed its $120m Series D round by raising additional $45m this month, led by existing investors Chiratae Ventures (formerly IDG Ventures), Accel Partners, Kalaari Capital, and Oaktree Capital.
New investors in the round included Epiq Capital, Unilever Ventures, Innoven Capital, and Kotak Mahindra Bank. The startup had raised $75m at over $500m valuation as part of the Series D round led by Accel Growth last month. The round had also seen participation from existing investors Kalaari Capital and IDG Ventures India, along with a slew of new investors Anand Piramal Trust and Pratithi Investment Trust.
Temasek co-leads $130m Series E in US-based lending platform Blend. (FS)
Singapore’s state investment firm Temasek Holdings and global growth equity firm General Atlantic have co-led a $130m Series E funding round in Blend, a US-based digital lending platform.
Existing investors 8VC, Founders Fund, Greylock Partners, and Lightspeed Venture Partners also participated in the round. The fresh capital, which brings the company’s total external funding to $310m, will be used to continue growing its team of nearly 400 employees.
CureFit raises $120m funding from new investors like Unilever Ventures. (FS)
Health and fitness startup CureFit had closed a $120m funding round, in a mix of equity and debt, with new investors including Unilever Ventures, Epiq Capital, Innoven Capital, and Kotak Mahindra Bank coming on board.
The company has now been valued at more than $575m. CureFit has raised about $290m in the capital till date, including the latest round.
Amazon and Alibaba consider buying postal services.
Two giants of online sales - China's Alibaba and the US company Amazon - are quietly studying the purchase of postal services, DCI reported. In times of high demand for e-commerce, the federal company national delivery logistics could interest its potential future customers. The fact that the Post Office also works with the Postal Bank can fuel the banking sector.
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