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AMERICAS
Thoma Bravo, a software investment firm, completed the investment in Bluesight, a medical firm, and Medacist, a pioneer in drug diversion monitoring. Financial terms were not disclosed.
"More than 25 years ago, we embarked on a mission to revolutionize healthcare with a new approach to identifying and preventing drug diversion. Since its inception, Medacist has been a trailblazer, helping to identify potential cases of drug diversion across thousands of healthcare organizations. Medacist is thrilled to partner with Bluesight and Thoma Bravo to accelerate our impact," David Brzozowski, Sr., Medacist President and CEO.
Medacist was advised by Provident Healthcare Partners and Robinson+Cole. Bluesight was advised by Piper Sandler and Taft Stettinius & Hollister. Thoma Bravo was advised by Kirkland & Ellis and FGS Global. Debt financing was provided by Monroe Capital.
Constellation Software, a Canadian diversified software company, agreed to acquire the Optimal Blue business of Black Knight, a software, data and analytics company, for $700m.
ICE and Black Knight entered into the divestiture agreement in connection with efforts to secure regulatory clearance of ICE's proposed acquisition of Black Knight. The divestiture transaction is subject to the closing of ICE's acquisition of Black Knight, the closing of Constellation's acquisition of Black Knight's Empower loan origination system business previously announced earlier this year in March, and other customary closing conditions.
LLCP-backed Capsa Healthcare, a provider of workflow products, completed the acquisition of MASS Medical, an innovative designer, manufacturer and assembler of medical storage cabinets and carts. Financial terms were not disclosed.
"We are excited about joining forces with Capsa. Combining our strengths and resources will enable us to better serve our customers, drive innovation, and deliver exceptional value. Capsa's expertise in both software and hardware engineering will support portfolio evolution and advance the storage and processing of endoscopes, as well as optimize workflows in related procedure areas of the healthcare facility," Dave Guezuraga, MASS Medical CEO.
LLCP was advised by Gasthalter & Co (led by Mark Semer).
Entain, a sports betting and gambling company, agreed to acquire Angstrom Sports, a provider of next generation sports modelling, forecasting and data analytics, for £122m ($160m).
“We are delighted that Angstrom will be joining Entain, enabling us to accelerate the development of the Entain Platform. Their next-generation forecasting, pricing and risk management capabilities will unlock significant opportunities across BetMGM’s US sports betting offering, particularly in the fast-growing markets of parlay and in-play wagering. This acquisition will provide our customers with an unrivaled sports betting experience underpinned by enhanced in-house data analytics, a global platform and market leading brand,” Jette Nygaard-Andersen, Entain CEO.
Clearlake Capital-backed BBB Industries, a sustainable manufacturer serving automotive, industrial, energy storage, and solar markets, completed the acquisition of Hydraulex, a provider of critical, need-it-now hydraulic solutions serving the industrial aftermarket. Financial terms were not disclosed.
"We are thrilled to welcome Hydraulex into the BBB enterprise. This acquisition opens opportunities to provide our customers with additional product and service options. Our goal is to continue to spread the power of sustainable manufacturing at scale to deliver even greater value to our customers, and we are excited about the opportunities that lie ahead," Duncan Gillis, BBB CEO.
Tinicum, a private equity firm, completed the acquisition of Greene Group, a company that specializes in metal fabrication. Financial terms were not disclosed.
"We believe a partnership with Tinicum is the best path to achieving our growth objectives. Tinicum's long-term approach, global expertise in building businesses focused on industrial technologies and engineered products, and alignment with our strategy will enable us to serve the growing demands of our customers,"Alexis Willingham, Greene Group Co-Founder and CEO.
Phreesia, a provider of patient intake, outreach and activation, completed the acquisition of MediFind, a health technology company. Financial terms were not disclosed.
"I'm incredibly proud that our platform can help sift through the noise and identify doctors at the forefront of their fields. With Phreesia's size, scale and experience, we're now going to be able to reach many more people, which is very exciting," Patrick Howie, MediFind CEO.
ALLO Communications secures $650m in sustainable financing. (FS)
Calix, a telecommunications company that specializes in providing software platforms, systems, and services to support the delivery of broadband services, announced that longtime customer ALLO Communications secured $650m in sustainable financing, driven in part by their investment in the Calix broadband platform—Calix Intelligent Access EDGE, Calix Cloud, and Calix Revenue EDGE.
"Our partnership with Calix has been our engine for growth and innovation, enabling us to stand apart from the competition by offering compelling managed services and transforming the communities that we serve. By leveraging the unique sustainability benefits of the Calix broadband platform combined with our fiber investment, support of nonprofits, and overall business values, we've secured sustainable financing that will fuel our next era of growth. This is a huge endorsement of our ESG strategy and will support our continued innovation as we deliver exceptional broadband experiences to our subscribers," Brad Moline, ALLO President and CEO.
SK Signet signs electric vehicle charger deal with Francis Energy.
SK Signet, a charging equipment maker, has signed a deal to supply 1k electric vehicle chargers to Francis Energy in a move to tap federal funding on charging stations nationwide.
The two are among several companies which were selected by Ohio state to receive more than $18m in combined federal funds to build 27 electric vehicle fast charging stations along some of its interstate corridors.
Ohio was the first state to release a request for charging station proposals last year. The Biden administration is distributing $5bn to states to build charging stations nationwide to address consumer concerns about EV driving range, one of the major hurdles for its ambitious goal to have 50% of all new vehicle sales be electric by 2030, Reuters reported.
Citigroup says it 'significantly' curbed lending to buyout firms. (FS)
Citigroup has heavily cut back on its business of lending to buyout firms as part of the Wall Street giant's broader push to improve returns across its institutional business.
The Wall Street giant "pretty significantly" reduced its portfolio of subscription credit facilities, CFO Mark Mason said. The moves came after New York-based Citigroup took a close look at the profitability of some of the facilities it had extended and the fact that some of the clients weren't using the bank's other products.
Chatbot startup Character.AI reportedly in fundraising talks.
Character.AI, a technology that creates characters and talks to them, is in discussions with investors about raising an additional round of funding.
The talks come about four months after Character.AI, which allows users to create artificial intelligence–powered chatbots modeled after celebrities and historical figures, said it had raised $150m at a $1bn valuation.
EMEA
Searchlight Capital Partners, a private equity firm, agreed to acquire Gresham House, a specialist alternative asset manager, for £440m ($576m).
"We are excited to invest in Gresham House and partner with Tony Dalwood and his highly talented management team. Their achievements in building Gresham House over the past eight years to its position as a leading Natural Capital and Sustainability focused asset manager have been hugely impressive," James Redmayne, Searchlight Partner.
Private equity house Silver Lake is looking to raise about €1bn ($1.12bn) of debt to fund its takeover of German technology group Software, Reuters repoted.
Banks including JP Morgan, Citigroup and Banco Santander are marketing the seven-year loan to investors. Last year rising interest rates left banks unable to profit from selling debt underwritten during the preceding era of cheap money, forcing them to apply heavy discounts to attract investors.
While conditions have improved since then, banks are now battling to regain market share lost to private credit funds, which have become a regular source of funding even for large leveraged buyouts.
Moscow takes control of Russian subsidiary of Danone and Carlsberg's stake in brewer.
The Russian state has taken control of French yoghurt maker Danone's Russian subsidiary along with beer company Carlsberg's stake in a local brewer.
The decree said that foreign-owned stakes in Danone Russia and Baltika Breweries were being put under the "temporary management" of government property agency Rosimushchestvo.
It comes after the Russian subsidiaries of Germany's Uniper and Finland's Fortum were taken under state control in April, Reuters reported.
UBS is the sole successor to Credit Suisse's CDS, panel rules.
The panel which oversees the credit-default swap market has ruled that UBS Group will become the reference entity for Credit Suisse Group contracts.
The Credit Derivatives Determinations Committees said that UBS Group is the "sole successor" to Credit Suisse. Credit-default swaps tied to the debt of the two banks have been converging in recent months as investors bet on this outcome.
Czech billionaire Kretinsky closes in on Casino as rivals drop bid. (FS)
Czech billionaire Daniel Kretinsky stepped closer to taking over debt-laden French retailer Casino after rival bidders pulled out of the race.
The move would bring an end to the 30-year reign of veteran entrepreneur Jean-Charles Naouri as France's traditional retail sector adapts to the rise of e-commerce and hard-discount supermarket chains.
Naouri, 74, controls Casino via his listed holding Rallye Kretinsky has been vying to take control of Casino against the 3F Holding, led by telecoms entrepreneur Xavier Niel, investment banker Matthieu Pigasse and businessman Moez-Alexandre Zouari, Reuters reported.
Top Nigerian bank eyes more deals after buying StanChart assets. (FS)
Nigeria's biggest lender is seeking more acquisitions in a bid to expand outside its home market, days after snapping up some African assets of Standard Chartered. Access Bank, a Nigerian commercial banking service, announced the purchase of the British giant's entire operations in Angola, Cameroon, Gambia and Sierra Leone — countries where it's already present.
The Lagos-based lender is also taking over StanChart's consumer, private and business banking division in Tanzania, widening its footprint to at least 17 markets. The parties didn't disclose a value for the deals.
Italy's Banco BPM enters payments deal with Gruppo BCC Iccrea and FSI. (FS)
Italy's third-largest bank Banco BPM said it agreed with Gruppo BCC Iccrea and domestic private equity fund FSI to create the country's second largest player in the payments business.
FSI, founded by former Merrill Lynch banker Maurizio Tamagnini, and unlisted bank Iccrea jointly run the BCC Pay payments business.
Banco BPM partners with NEXI, Europe's biggest payments company by volume of transactions, Reuters reported.
Lord Coe's sports agency sprints towards takeover by Wasserman.
The sports marketing agency where Lord Coe, one of Britain's most famous Olympians, has spent more than a decade is close to changing hands in a transatlantic takeover. The deal could be struck as soon as this week, although the talks could yet fall apart. Key details of the deal including its price and structure were unclear.
A tie-up between Wasserman and CSM would build scale in a rapidly growing global sports marketing industry in which new sources of financial power are fast-emerging.
It would also be logical because both Chime Communications, CSM's parent company, and Wasserman, have a common shareholder in the form of Providence Equity Partners, the global buyout firm.
Greece to begin selling bank stakes this autumn.
Greece will this autumn start selling stakes in its four largest banks, sector officials and bankers said, marking the latest milestone in the country's recovery from the financial meltdown it suffered in previous decade.
State-controlled bank bailout fund HFSF will sell the stakes in National Bank of Greece, Piraeus Bank, Alpha Bank, and Eurobank separately it acquired in turn for injecting about €50bn ($56.2bn) to recapitalise the lenders during the country's financial crisis, Reuters reported.
German fintech Raisin to boost channeled deposits to €50bn.
Raisin, a German financial technology firm that helps savers find better rates, is betting that the end of cheap central bank cash will prompt lenders to seek alternate funding, boosting the amount of money sourced via its platforms.
The Berlin-based company, which counts Goldman Sachs, Deutsche Bank, and PayPal among its investors, expects deposits for which it acts as intermediary to increase above €50bn ($56bn) this year, from €43bn ($48bn) currently. More than half of the growth will come from outside the euro region, mainly the UK and US.
Israel's Oddity seeks higher valuation in US IPO.
Oddity Tech said it was targeting a valuation of $1.92bn in its US initial public offering, more than 13% higher than what it was previously seeking.
Over 10.5m shares priced between $32 and $34 each will be offered. It had earlier expected to sell the shares between $27 and $30 each. Oddity's move points to a recovery in demand for newly listed shares, boosting an ailing IPO market, as investors expect the Federal Reserve to end its rate hike campaign soon.
Johnson & Johnson's consumer health business, Kenvue, and thrift store operator, Savers Value Village, are among the companies that pulled off strong market debuts in recent months, Reuters reported.
Credit Suisse announces management changes at Swiss bank. (People)
Credit Suisse Switzerland executive board member Daniel Hunziker will take over the leadership of the bank's corporate clients business. Hunziker will take on the new position in addition to his existing job as head of institutional clients at Credit Suisse with immediate effect. The move is the latest management change announced since UBS's takeover of Credit Suisse.
Credit Suisse also announced that Andreas Gerber, head of corporate banking and another member of the Credit Suisse Switzerland executive board, will leave the bank, Reuters reported.
APAC
Proximus, a mobile telecommunications operator, agreed to acquire a 58% stake in Route Mobile, a company that specializes in cloud communications, for $721m.
"The acquisition of a majority stake in Route Mobile is a transformational step for our international CPaaS and digital identity activities. With Route Mobile and Telesign, Proximus Group now holds two strong and highly complementary global assets, both from geography and product expertise standpoints. This will allow us to reap the benefits of scale, considerably reinforce the product suite of both brands and realize synergies generating substantial value for our shareholders. This acquisition perfectly fits in our bold2025 strategy, with focus on strengthening our leadership in the domestic market and continuing to grow our international activities," Guillaume Boutin, Proximus CEO.
Proximus is advised by Morgan Stanley, Linklaters and Shardul Amarchand Mangaldas.
Sheela Foam, a company that specializes in the manufacturing, exporting, and wholesaling of PU foam, agreed to acquire a 95% in Kurlon, a manufacturer of mattresses, for $262m.
Shares of the company, which makes the "Sleepwell" brand of mattresses, had jumped about 6%. They are still down about 7% since talks were first reported late in December.
CVC Capital, a private equity and investment firm, agreed to invest $275m in The Medical City, a health institution in the Philippines.
CVC Capital has an estimated $133bn worth of assets under management, including two other recent investments in the Philippines: a stake in Fast Logistics of William Chiongbian, acquired in 2020, and an investment in the Landers Superstore chain made in 2021.
Pakistan Refinery, Air Link look to buy Shell Pakistan stake.
State-owned Pakistan Refinery and Air Link Communication, a local firm, are seeking to buy a stake in Shell Pakistan. Last month, Shell Petroleum Company announced its exit from Pakistan with the sale of its 77% shareholding in the local business as Shell made several announcements about its global operations, in addition to the economic challenges within Pakistan, Reuters reported.
"We, Next Capital, hereby submit a Public Announcement of Intention by Pakistan Refinery and Air Link Communication to acquire 77.42% shares and control of Shell Pakistan," Next Capital.
Indian Oil signs long term LNG import deals with ADNOC, TotalEnergies.
Indian Oil, the country's top refiner, has signed long-term liquefied natural gas import deals with United Arab Emirates' s Abu Dhabi Gas Liquefaction and France's TotalEnergies.
The two deals were signed during Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Visit to France and UAE last week. Supplies under the two deals would commence from 2026.
ADNOC would supply up to 1.2m metric tonnes per year of LNG to IOC for 14 years, India's trade treaty with UAE enable it to import LNG without paying a 2.5% import tax, Reuters reported.
India's Zee Entertainment forms interim committee to run operations.
Zee Entertainment said it formed an interim committee to run operations after ex-chairman Subhash Chandra and CEO Punit Goenka failed to overturn the market regulator's ban on them holding board positions.
The interim committee will be under the supervision of Zee's board.
The Securities and Exchange Board of India in June banned Chandra and Goenka from holding board positions in publicly listed companies for a year, alleging they were actively involved in diverting funds to the group's other listed entities and firms related to founding shareholders, Reuters reported.
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