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AMERICAS

Abbott to acquire Exact Sciences in a $23bn deal.

Abbott, a global healthcare company, agreed to acquire Exact Sciences, a molecular diagnostics company, in a $23bn deal, according to press releases.

Abbott is advised by Morgan Stanley and Wachtell Lipton Rosen & Katz (led by David Lam). Exact Sciences is advised by Centerview Partners, XMS Capital Partners, and Skadden Arps Slate Meagher & Flom, according to press releases.

Dycom to acquire Power Solutions for $1.95bn.

Dycom, a provider of specialty contracting services, agreed to acquire Power Solutions, an electrical contractor for $1.95bn, according to press releases.

Power Solutions is advised by Source One Business Services and Miles & Stockbridge. Dycom is advised by Goldman Sachs and Weil Gotshal and Manges. Financial advisor is advised by Sullivan & Cromwell (led by Stephen M. Kotran), according to press releases and MergerLinks data.

Solventum to acquire Acera Surgical for $850m.

Solventum, an American health care company, agreed to acquire Acera, a bioscience company that develops fully synthetic, electrospun fiber-based scaffolds for regenerative soft-tissue repair, for $850m, according to press releases.

Acera Surgical is advised by Truist Securities and Hogan Lovells. Solventum is advised by Morgan Stanley and McDermott Will & Schulte, according to press releases.

Marquee Brands completes the acquisition of Stance.

Marquee Brands, a portfolio of established global brands across consumer products and channels from luxury goods to sports and active apparel, completed the acquisition of Stance, a lifestyle brand that redefined the sock and apparel industry through creativity, self-expression, and premium design, according to press releases. Financial terms were not disclosed.

Stance was advised by Solomon Partners and Jones Day. Marquee Brands was advised by RBC Capital Markets and Greenberg Traurig, according to press releases.

Agellus Capital completes the acquisition of HighGrove Partners.

Agellus Capital, a lower middle market private equity firm, completed the acquisition of HighGrove Partners, a provider of commercial landscaping services, according to press releases. Financial terms were not disclosed.

HighGrove Partners was advised by CCG Advisors. Agellus Capital was advised by Piper Sandler, Squire Patton Boggs, and Gregory FCA, according to press releases.

Coral Tree Partners led a Series B round in KERV.ai.

Coral Tree Partners, a growth-focused investment firm, led a Series B round in KERV.ai, a provider of AI-powered video analysis, performance, and monetization platform, according to press releases.

KERV.ai is advised by Needham & Co, Davis & Gilbert and Salient PR. Coral Tree Partners is advised by Morrison Foerster, according to press releases and MergerLinks data.

The Hershey Company completes the acquisition of LesserEvil.

The Hershey Company, a snacks company, completed the acquisition of LesserEvil, maker of organic, delectable snacks that combine bold flavors with better-for-you ingredients, according to press releases. Financial terms were not disclosed.

LesserEvil was advised by Jefferies & Company (led by Russ Shoemaker) and Winston & Strawn (led by Eva Davis). The Hershey Company is advised by Gibson Dunn & Crutcher (led by Saee Muzumdar), according to press releases and MergerLinks data.

Workday to acquire Pipedream.

Workday, a provider of enterprise cloud applications for finance and human resources, agreed to acquire Pipedream, a integration platform for AI agents, according to press releases. Financial terms are not disclosed.

Pipedream is advised by JP Morgan and Gunderson Dettmer Stough Villeneuve Franklin & Hachigian. Workday is advised by Orrick Herrington & Sutcliffe, according to press releases and MergerLinks data.

Palo Alto Networks to acquire Chronosphere for $3.35bn.

Palo Alto Networks, a global cybersecurity company, agreed to acquire Chronosphere, an observability platform built for control in the modern, containerized world, for $3.35bn, according to press releases.

Palo Alto Networks is advised by Morrison Foerster, according to press releases.

HUMAIN led a $900m Series C round in Luma AI.

HUMAIN, a global artificial intelligence company, led a $900m Series C round in Luma AI, a multimodal general intelligence company, with participation from AMD Ventures, Andreessen Horowitz, Amplify Partners, and Matrix Partners, according to press releases.

Axalta investor Artisan Partners urges rejection of AkzoNobel deal. (Reuters)

Investor Artisan Partners has voiced strong opposition to Axalta Coating Systems’ proposed all-stock merger with AkzoNobel, which would create a paint industry leader with an enterprise value of $25bn.

“As an Axalta shareholder, we believe the only proper response to this proposed transaction is an absolute and resounding ‘NO,’” fund managers Daniel O’Keefe and Michael McKinnon of Artisan Partners wrote in a letter to Axalta shareholders.

Atkore explores potential sale amid pressure from activist Irenic. (Bloomberg)

Atkore is considering strategic options, including a potential sale, following pressure from activist investor Irenic. The electrical manufacturing company may provide an update on its plans when it reports quarterly earnings on the 20th of November.

Paramount spoke to Middle-East funds about investing in Warner deal. (WSJ)

Paramount has held early talks with Middle Eastern sovereign-wealth funds about backing a potential deal with Warner Bros. Discovery. The discussions, including with Saudi Arabia’s sovereign fund, are ongoing, though the funds won’t be named in Paramount’s nonbinding proposal this week.

Paramount’s bid is expected to match its latest unsolicited offer valuing Warner Discovery at $23.50 a share. Any foreign investors would likely participate only after the deal closes, if Paramount chooses to bring them in.

CapVest upstages PE titans with $3.8bn continuation fund. (Bloomberg)

London-based CapVest Partners is raising one of the world’s largest continuation funds after Europe’s biggest leveraged buyout earlier this year, targeting $3.8bn for its nuclear medicine business, Curium.

Investors in the vehicle include TPG, ICG, CVC Secondary Partners, Goldman Sachs Asset Management, Ardian, and Abu Dhabi’s Lunate.

Crypto exchange Kraken files confidentially for IPO next year. (Bloomberg)

Kraken, operating as Payward, has filed confidentially for a US IPO, preparing to go public as soon as next year. The company did not provide details on the size, valuation, or timing of the offering in its announcement on the 19th of November.

Central Bancompany raises $373m in US IPO. (Reuters)

Central Bancompany raised $373m in its US IPO, selling 17.78m shares at $21 each, valuing the Missouri-based lender at $5bn. The company will debut on Nasdaq under the ticker "CBC," with Morgan Stanley and Keefe, Bruyette & Woods as lead managers.

The IPO comes amid increased scrutiny of regional banks. Central Bancompany has $19.2bn in assets and serves clients across Missouri, Kansas, Oklahoma, Colorado, and Florida.

Argentine bond spree tops $3.4bn with Buenos Aires sale. (Bloomberg)

Argentina’s bond-issuance surge has now reached the public sector, as the City of Buenos Aires returned to international markets for the first time in nearly a decade. Its deal brings total foreign debt sales to roughly $3.5bn over the past three weeks, surpassing the combined volume of the previous five months.

Inditex founder Ortega buys Amazon-leased tower in Vancouver. (Bloomberg)

Inditex founder Amancio Ortega has agreed to buy The Post, a two-tower complex in downtown Vancouver leased to Amazon. Ortega’s investment firm, Pontegadea Inversiones, paid over CAD1.1bn ($780m), making him Amazon’s landlord in Vancouver for a second time after a recent warehouse purchase in Burnaby.

EMEA

Lufthansa throws hat in ring in bidding for TAP stake. (Reuters)

Germany’s Lufthansa has formally expressed interest in acquiring a minority stake in Portugal’s state carrier TAP, submitting a proposal to the government-owned Parpublica and offering a “long-term partnership”.

Rivals Air France-KLM and IAG have also signaled interest. The Portuguese government plans to privatize 44.9% of TAP, with an additional 5% for employees, and expects the sale of the combined 49.9% stake to proceed smoothly.

Generali, BFF Bank and BPCE line up offers for Apax's insurer GamaLife. (Reuters)

Generali, BFF Bank, and France’s BPCE are in the second round of bidding for Apax Partners’ GamaLife, a European life insurance consolidator valued around €600m ($692m), with binding offers expected soon.

Founded in 2019, GamaLife acquired Zurich Insurance’s Italian life and pensions back book in 2022, covering €7bn ($8.01bn) in policies, while Generali and BPCE bring recent sector experience through Liberty Mutual’s Spanish unit and Novo Banco.

Vodacom in talks to add stake in $9bn Kenya telecom giant. (Bloomberg)

Vodacom Group is in discussions with Kenya to potentially increase its stake in Safaricom, East Africa’s largest listed company. The Johannesburg-based telecom already holds 39.93% of Safaricom, and while talks are ongoing, no final decisions have been made.

Unilever considers selling British brands Marmite, Bovril. (Reuters)

Unilever is considering selling British brands Marmite, Colman’s, and Bovril, as it shifts focus to beauty and wellbeing. The package, generating about £200m ($261m) in revenue, follows prior divestments like The Vegetarian Butcher and Kate Somerville.

Under CEO Fernando Fernandez, Unilever is prioritizing higher-margin premium products in personal care and beauty, mirroring competitors like Nestlé and Kraft Heinz in divesting long-held, non-core food assets.

Adobe, Qualcomm partner with Humain on generative AI for Middle East. (Reuters)

Adobe and Qualcomm have partnered with Humain, the Saudi sovereign wealth fund–backed AI firm, to develop generative-AI tools tailored for Arabic and the broader Middle East. Adobe will integrate Humain’s Arabic large language model, Allam, into its creative software, while Humain will use Adobe’s Firefly Foundry to build region-specific generative-AI systems.

The models will run in Humain’s data centers using Qualcomm’s new AI200 and AI250 chips. Qualcomm will also open an R&D center with Humain in Riyadh next month to support plans to deploy 200 megawatts of its data-center AI chips in 2026.

APAC

Pantages Capital to merge with MacMines Austasia in a $180m deal.

Pantages Capital, a publicly traded special purpose acquisition company, agreed to merge with MacMines Austasia, a geological exploration and mining company, in a $180m deal.

MacMines Austasia is advised by Winston & Strawn, Harney Westwood & Riegels, Clayton Utz, and FocalPoint Partners. Pantages Capital is advised by Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman, Robinson+Cole and McCullough Robertson, according to press releases.

China investment bank CICC to acquire two smaller rivals. (Bloomberg)

China International Capital Corp. plans to acquire two smaller brokerages to bolster its position in the securities industry and compete with global banking giants. The proposed share-swap merger involves Dongxing Securities and Cinda Securities, which together are valued at about CNY100bn ($14bn), though details on the swap and pricing were not disclosed.

Malaysian pharmaceutical chain Big Caring to explore IPO. (Bloomberg)

Big Caring Group is weighing an IPO in Kuala Lumpur next year. The pharmacy chain, partly owned by private equity firm Creador, is exploring a valuation of up to MYR20bn ($4.6bn). Such a valuation could allow the company to raise as much as MYR6bn ($1.3bn), which would make the offering one of Malaysia’s largest listings in recent years.

Geely-linked car electronics maker eager to shed Chinese roots. (Bloomberg)

Ecarx, the Geely-linked automotive electronics firm listed on Nasdaq, is working to reduce its reliance on China as US–China tensions complicate its expansion plans. The company aims to cut China’s share of revenue from 80% to about 50% by 2030.

Ecarx is accelerating its global push, particularly in Europe, where it plans to grow headcount from 200 today to 500 within three years and 1000 by 2030.

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