EMEA
MS&AD Insurance Group spent $398m on increasing its stake in ReAssure.
ATM Automation Tooling Systems acquired 45% stake in Comecer from Principia. (Financial Sponsors)
Banca Monte dei Paschi di Siena is close to finalizing the sale $2.4bn of bad loans.
Greencore launched a share buyback worth up to £509m.
AMERICAS
Altria acquired a 35% stake in Juul for $12.8bn.
3M acquired M*Modal's technology business for $1bn.
Zwift raised $120m for an esport league.
Brookfield and Stonepeak consider buying a Tallgrass Energy. (FS)
APAC
Hillhouse Capital, Sequoia Capital and GIC invested $320m in Woowa. (FS)
Tencent joined Naspers in a $1bn investment into Swiggy.
Indian government invests $330m in Air India.
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Latest Deals
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EMEA
MS&AD Insurance Group spent $398m on increasing its stake in ReAssure.
Swiss Re has agreed on a deal with Japan’s MS&AD Insurance Group under which MS&AD will invest a further $398m into Swiss Re’s closed-book business ReAssure.
The deal will increase MS&AD’s stake in the British closed-book business to 25% from current 15%. Swiss Re, the world’s second-largest reinsurer, prepares ReAssure for a possible IPO next year.
Societe Generale has agreed to sell its bank in Serbia to Hungary’s OTP Bank, as SocGen continues its retreat from parts of eastern Europe while OTP gradually increases its presence in the region. SocGen did not disclose the amount of the transaction, although it said the sale would have a €108m ($123m) negative hit on its fourth-quarter earnings.
ATS Automation Tooling Systems acquired 45% stake in Comecer from Principia. (FS)
ATS Automation Tooling Systems, an industry-leading automation solutions provider, announced it will acquire Comecer, a leader in the design, engineering, manufacture, and servicing of advanced aseptic containment and processing systems for the nuclear medicine and pharmaceutical industries. The total cash purchase price for the acquisition will be $129m.
“Comecer is a proven, high-quality business that brings new and complementary capabilities, customer relationships and specialized talent to ATS. Its addition will strengthen our customer offering in both pharma and biopharma, while adding an innovative new platform in radiopharmaceuticals. These are growing markets with desirable characteristics including stringent quality standards and regulations and where there is a high consequence of failure. We look forward to welcoming Comecer to the ATS family.” Andrew Hider, ATS CEO.
CVC Capital Partners will take a minority stake in Premier Rugby Limited, the commercial manager of Premiership Rugby, which is the top league in the English Rugby Union system. Financial terms were undisclosed.
"We are delighted to have partnered with CVC, a company which has a very impressive track record of helping to grow sports businesses such as Premiership Rugby. Further developing the global appeal and following for the Gallagher Premiership through investment in the product and fan experience is one of the main priorities for the partnership.” Mark McCafferty, Premiership Rugby CEO.
Banca Monte dei Paschi di Siena is close to finalizing the sale $2.4bn of bad loans.
The package, dubbed Project Merlino, includes four portfolios of mostly unsecured loans. Ifis and Credito Fondiario are among firms that submitted binding offers for portions of the debt. An announcement may come as earlier as next week.
Greencore launched a share buyback worth up to £509m.
Greencore Group announced its intention to return up to approximately £509m ($643m) to shareholders by way of a tender offer, including the pricing at £1.95 ($2.46) per ordinary share.
The maximum number of ordinary shares that may be acquired under the tender offer is 261k, representing approximately 37% of Greencore's issued ordinary share capital.
Share by back follows disposal of Greencore’s US operations earlier this year.
AMERICAS
Altria acquired a 35% stake in Juul for $12.8bn.
Tobacco giant, Altria invested $12.8bn in Juul, taking a 35% stake in the e-cigarette maker that valued it at $38bn as they begin to embark on a new path that relies less on traditional cigarettes.
“We are taking significant action to prepare for a future where adult smokers overwhelmingly choose non-combustible products over cigarettes by investing $12.8bn in Juul, a world leader in switching adult smokers,” Altria CEO Howard Willard.
Juul, which split from parent company Pax in 2017, captured 75% of the e-cigarette market in just three years, with most of the growth coming in the past year. Juul has about $1.5bn in revenue.
Altria also agreed to pay a $2bn bonus to Juul. The e-cigarette company plans to share it with its 1,5k workers, averaging about $1.3m each.
Perella Weinberg Partners, JP Morgan, Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz, and Hunton Andrews Kurth LLP advised Altria. Goldman Sachs, Pillsbury, and Cleary, Gottlieb, Steen & Hamilton advised JUUL. Financing of the deal was provided by $14.6bn loan from JP Morgan Chase Bank.
3M acquired M*Modal's technology business for $1bn.
3M acquired the technology business of M*Modal, for a total enterprise value of $1bn. M*Modal is a leading healthcare technology provider of cloud-based, conversational Artificial Intelligence (AI)-powered systems that help physicians efficiently capture and improve the patient narrative.
“This acquisition builds on our strategic commitment to invest in our Health Information Systems business and expands the capabilities of our revenue cycle management and population health priority growth platform. Together, we will enable doctors to improve the patient experience, while enhancing documentation accuracy and operational efficiency for both providers and payers.” Mike Vale, 3M Executive Vice President.
Goldman Sachs and Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton advised 3M. TripleTree and Latham & Watkins advised M*Modal.
Stagecoach Group agreed to sell its North America Division to an affiliate of Variant Equity Advisors, for an estimated $271m. The Stagecoach Board believes that the Disposal represents an opportunity to realize an attractive valuation for the business whilst refocusing Stagecoach's portfolio on the UK.
"During our two decades in the North American transportation market, our success included reinvigorating the inter-city coach sector and delivering growth with our innovative megabus.com brand. The sale of our North American operations will allow management to focus more closely on the significant opportunities for growth in the UK. We have strong bus and rail operations in the UK where public transport has good prospects as the clear solution to the challenges of increasing road congestion and poor air quality." Martin Griffiths, Stagecoach Chief Executive Officer.
RBC Capital Markets, Covington & Burling LLP advised Stagecoach on the deal. Sidley Austin LLP acted as adviser to Variant on the disposal.
Zwift raised $120m for an esport league.
Zwift, the creator of a multiplayer online training and racing platform for cyclists and runners, has secured a $120m Series B led by Highland Europe. The app enables users to complete structured workouts in virtual environments, either on their own or in groups. Founded in 2014, the company raised $27m at an estimated valuation of $180m in 2016.
The funding is led by Highland Europe, with Europe’s True, Causeway Media and Novator participating — comes on the heels of very rapid growth for Zwift.
Brookfield and Stonepeak consider buying a Tallgrass Energy. (FS)
An investor group that includes Stonepeak Infrastructure Partners and Brookfield Asset Management is considering a deal to buy oil and gas pipeline company Tallgrass Energy.
The consortium is holding talks with the Leawood, Kansas-based company. A final deal hasn’t been reached and negotiations may fall apart.
APAC
Masii.com, a Bangkok-based comparison site for financial products, has diversified into online event ticketing through the buyout of One Place for an undisclosed sum. The acquisition will give Masii.com a new platform to serve its banking customers.
“Events ticketing is one of the highest conversion points of sale for a credit card. They also help build brand loyalty for existing credit card customers – if buying a ticket with your CIMB Thai credit card gets you special access to seating and promotions on our site, you’ll be an even happier customer.” Max Meyer, Masii.com’s CEO and Co-Founder.
Hillhouse Capital, Sequoia Capital and GIC invested $320m in Woowa. (FS)
The operator of South Korea’s largest food delivery app has secured a $320m investment from Hillhouse Capital, Sequoia Capital, and GIC, it said on Thursday, in a deal that values the startup at about $2.6bn.
Woowa Brothers, which owns the “Baedal Minjok” food delivery service, said the cash will help drive expansion to overseas markets, and the development of autonomous robots. The investment was led by Hillhouse Capital, which had already invested $50.7m in the firm in 2016, with equity participation by U.S.-based Sequoia Capital and Singapore sovereign wealth fund GIC, Woowa Brothers said.
Tencent joined Naspers in a $1bn investment into Swiggy.
Tencent Holdings joined Naspers in a $1bn investment in Indian food delivery service Swiggy, which gains a potentially valuable ally in China’s largest social media and gaming company.
Naspers led the financing, which snagged new backers Hillhouse Capital and Wellington Management in addition to existing investors DST Global, Meituan Dianping and Coatue. The funding round, which Bloomberg reported on in October, marks Swiggy’s third for 2018 and largest to date. Naspers, Africa’s most valuable company, said it put up $660m.
Indian government invests $330m in Air India.
The government of Prime Minister Narendra Modi sought Parliament’s approval for an equity infusion of 23bn rupees ($330m) in Air India, effectively ruling out an immediate revival of its plan to sell the ailing carrier.
Modi’s bid to turn the airline profitable under his watch comes after the government failed to find any takers for its ambitious plan to privatize the national airline. Air India, which was offered along with $5bn of its debt, is surviving on taxpayer bailouts after losing money for years.
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