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AMERICAS
EQT, an integrated energy company, completed the acquisition of the upstream assets of Tug Hill, an operator of an oil and gas exploration company, and the gathering and processing assets of XcL Midstream, a developer and operator of natural gas assets, for $5.2bn. Tug Hill and XcL Midstream are backed by Quantum Energy Partners.
"We are excited to complete this strategic transaction and welcome the Tug Hill and XcL Midstream teams to EQT. These assets have among the lowest breakeven prices in Appalachia, and should reduce our pro forma NYMEX free cash flow breakeven price by approximately $0.15 per MMBtu, providing greater resiliency to our business moving forward. We also see the potential for more than $80m per year of synergies, which could drive additional reductions to our corporate cost structure over time," Toby Z. Rice, EQT President and CEO.
Thoma Bravo, a software investment firm, completed the acquisition of ForgeRock, a global digital identity company helping people simply and safely access the connected world, for $2.3bn.
“Identity-centric cybersecurity solutions are a critical enabler for businesses to digitally transform their operations, and ForgeRock’s solutions combine both the advanced security and customer usability needed in the market. We look forward to partnering with ForgeRock to leverage our deep sector expertise and support the company to capitalize on this tremendous market opportunity,” Chip Virnig, Thoma Bravo Partner.
Parsons, a disruptive technology provider in the national security and global infrastructure markets, completed the acquisition of Sealing Technologies, an engineering consulting firm, for $200m.
“The addition of SealingTech is a natural extension of our growth strategy, adding critical, mission-ready solutions for our Department of Defense and Intelligence Community customers. SealingTech’s defensive cyber capabilities complement our leading offensive cyber capabilities and increase our share in the full-spectrum cyber operations market, which is expected to receive more government funding because of accelerating and evolving cyber threats. Their mission-focused approach and passion for delivering impactful solutions for our nation’s most pressing security challenges aligns seamlessly with Parsons’ business and culture. I look forward to welcoming this talented team of employees into the Parsons’ family as we collectively imagine next,” Carey Smith, Parsons Chair, President, and CEO.
Parsons was advised by Barclays and Jenner & Block. Sealing Technologies was advised by Chesapeake Corporate Advisors and Nemphos Braue.
DC Capital-backed Michael Baker International, a provider of engineering and consulting services, completed the acquisition of Tidal Basin, a comprehensive emergency and disaster management consulting firm. Financial terms were not disclosed.
"We are excited to welcome Tidal Basin as a sister company to Michael Baker. This relationship is a tremendous opportunity for the two firms to work closely together to drive more value for a shared client base that encompasses more than 90 locations across the country. Both firms bring added strength to the market with complementary resources and capabilities to take on larger resiliency projects while delivering the exceptional client service for which they are known," Thomas J. Campbell, Michael Baker International Chairman.
DC Capital was advised by Arnold & Porter Kaye Scholer and White & Case. Tidal Basin was advised by The McLean Group and Davis Wright Tremaine.
Riverwood Capital, a private equity firm, led a $110m round in SpyCloud, a cybercrime analytics company, with participation from Silverton Partners, a venture capital investor.
“For the last seven years, we have proven that reacting quickly to identity and authentication exposures is the crucial factor in stopping the cycle of cybercrime. As authentication methods improve, businesses need to adjust their defenses to keep up with criminals’ new behavior. SpyCloud allows you to do just that – and we will continue to illuminate and resolve the most critical risks facing security teams today, stopping attacks they haven’t been able to see coming,” Ted Ross, SpyCloud CEO and Co-Founder.
Thrive Capital, a venture capital investment firm, and Sands Capital, an active, long-term investor, led a $300m funding round in Ramp, a finance automation platform.
"We believe Ramp is emerging as an enduring leader in the new category of finance automation. It is setting a new standard for what business should expect - transparency, value, efficiency, and tangible time and money savings," Ken Chenault, General Catalyst Managing Director.
Amancio Ortega, a Spanish billionaire and Zara founder, completed the acquisition of 727 West Madison apartment building in Chicago from Ares Management, a global alternative investment manager, and F&F Realty, a real estate development company, for $232m.
The 45-story building joins a growing list of Ortega-owned notable United States properties, including Meta’s headquarters in Seattle and Manhattan’s Haughwout building.
AeroVironment, a defense contractor, agreed to acquire Tomahawk Robotics, a company that is operating in AI-enabled robotic control systems sector, for $120m.
“The acquisition of Tomahawk Robotics will not only provide AeroVironment with strong new members of our team, but a quality brand and products that are widely respected in the industry. Tomahawk Robotics will become part of the small UAS business unit within AeroVironment’s Unmanned Systems segment. We intend to retain all of their workforce and existing facilities in Florida. We will support all existing Tomahawk Robotics customers and their products will remain platform agnostic to the market and within the industry. We also plan to introduce Tomahawk Robotics solutions to AeroVironment’s growing network of more than 55 allied nations,” Wahid Nawabi, AeroVironment CEO and Chairman.
Mill Point-backed International Designs, a supplier of top-quality slab and tile materials for the kitchen and bath industry, completed the acquisition of Trajus Surfaces, a distributor of engineered quartz and natural stone products. Financial terms were not disclosed.
“We are very excited to announce our partnership with Surfaces, and look forward to embarking upon our next chapter of growth. This strategic move is an exceptional opportunity to expand beyond the Southeast into the Mid-Atlantic and Northeast regions. We believe that the acquisition secures IDG’s footprint in the kitchen, bath and construction industry across the Eastern United States. We look forward to partnering with Surfaces and its leadership team,” Mitch Hires, International Designs CEO.
Dycom, a provider of specialty contracting services to the telecommunications infrastructure and utility industries, completed the acquisition of Bigham Cable Construction, a provider of telecommunications construction services. Financial terms were not disclosed.
"The acquisition strengthens Dycom’s customer base and geographic scope and expands its ability to further address growth opportunities in rural broadband deployments," Dycom Industries.
Goldman to join TDR’s Subway bid to rival frontrunner Roark. (FS)
TDR Capital and Sycamore Partners have brought in Goldman Sachs Group’s asset management arm and a sovereign wealth fund as they make a last-ditch effort to beat out frontrunner Roark Capital Group in the bidding for sandwich chain Subway, Bloomberg reported.
TDR has also drafted in the sovereign wealth fund Abu Dhabi Investment Authority. Final bids were submitted by Roark and the TDR-led group on Tuesday and a decision on the winner could come in the coming days.
SentinelOne looking for PE buyer. (FS)
Publicly-traded cybersecurity specialist SentinelOne is considering a sale to a private equity investor and has hired investment bank Qatalyst Partners to assist in finding a suitable purchaser.
SentinelOne has seen an 80% drop in its market capitalisation over the past two years making it a potential PE takeover target, although its stock price was up about 15% to $16.64 a share.
SoftBank-backed Arm uses Raine to help steer IPO.
Raine Group shows up as the financial adviser on the front cover of Arm’s filing for its initial public offering, one line above the 28 banks that will be underwriting the listing.
Raine racked up $2.5m for its services for the year ended March 31. Arm said the work already done by Raine entitles it to 5% of the underwriting discounts and commissions in what is expected to be the year’s biggest IPO—and the bank could earn an additional 5% of those discounts and commissions, Bloomberg reported.
EMEA
Kesko, a Finnish retailing conglomerate, agreed to acquire a 90% stake in Davidsen Koncernen, a Danish building materials retailer, for €170m ($185m).
"An important part of Kesko’s strategy is to grow our building and technical trade business in Northern Europe, especially in B2B trade. We have executed this strategy consistently and acquired many companies in Scandinavia. Acquiring Davidsen and entering the Danish market is perfectly aligned with our growth strategy. Our target is to consolidate the building and technical trade market further in Northern Europe and to be among the leading players in B2B trade in each operating country. The downturn is affecting the business, but at the same time it offers consolidation opportunities for an industrial operator like Kesko,“ Mikko Helander, Kesko President and CEO.
The US Federal Trade Commission is expected to open an in-depth probe on Wednesday of Qualcomm’s purchase of Israeli auto-chip maker Autotalks, Reuters reported.
In May, Qualcomm had said it would acquire Israel's Autotalks, a maker of chips used in crash-prevention technology in vehicles, but had not disclosed the terms of the deal.
Datasite, a SaaS-based technology provider for global mergers and acquisitions professionals, completed the acquisition of MergerLinks, a London-based financial data platform used by finance professionals to find deal information, promote credentials and connect with investors, companies, and advisors for capital transactions. Financial terms were not disclosed.
"Providing global dealmakers with innovative technology to facilitate deals faster and more effectively is core to Datasite’s mission. With MergerLinks’ vetted deal and relationships data, Datasite can now help facilitate the ideation phase of a transaction. Combined with our other deal pipeline, marketing, preparation, diligence and acquire applications, dealmakers now have a unique, single place where they can generate and manage their deals end to end to reduce deal friction and optimize outcomes," Rusty Wiley, Datasite CEO.
Jadwa Investment, an investment management and advisory firm, completed the acquisition of a 35% stake in Gissah Perfumes, a perfume manufacturer. Financial terms were not disclosed.
“We are pleased to announce our latest private equity investment in Gissah. The company’s rapid expansion in just a few years has been truly remarkable, and we look forward to working with Gissah’s founding entrepreneurs towards unlocking its next phase of growth and institutionalization,” Tariq Al-Sudairy, Jadwa Investment Managing Director and CEO.
BASF weighs €3bn sale of catalyst assets.
BASF has hired Morgan Stanley to help it explore options for its business-making catalysts for combustion engines, including a possible sale, Bloomberg reported.
The German chemicals company is considering options for its recently carved out Environmental Catalyst and Metal Solutions unit, which also includes catalyst recycling and associated precious metal services. A sale could value ECMS at about €3bn ($3.3bn).
PE firm Hg considers options for €1.5bn insurance broker GGW. (FS)
Hg, a private equity firm that primarily targets technology buyouts in Europe and the US, is weighing options for GGW Group, including a sale that could value the German insurance broker at about €1.5bn ($1.6bn).
Established in 1758, GGW is engaged in offering insurance and risk management services and claims to be the oldest insurance intermediary in continental Europe. The Hamburg-founded company employs roughly 2k people and has operations in the Netherlands, Turkey, Switzerland, and Austria, besides Germany.
Northvolt raises $1.2bn convertible note.
As Northvolt assembles its first battery systems at Northvolt Dwa in Poland, the company announced the raising of $1.2bn to finance plans for its further European and North American expansion.
“I’m proud to see our continued effort being recognized by investors, as we are receiving significant interest from capital markets to support our mission. The commitment to global decarbonization is strong, and these milestones reinforces our position to meet the massive demand for sustainable battery solutions both in Europe and North America,” Peter Carlsson, Northvolt Co-Founder and CEO.
Stellantis weighs tie-up with EV maker to expand in China.
Stellantis is considering a tie-up with a Chinese electric vehicle company as Europe’s second-largest automaker by sales seeks to bolster its presence in the world’s biggest auto market, Bloomberg reported.
The carmaker has explored potentially working with Chinese EV makers including Zhejiang Leapmotor Technologies. Following in the footsteps of its rivals, Stellantis is weighing options such as investing in a local EV firm and a business partnership that would help it grow in China.
South Africa, China sign power deals during BRICS summit.
South Africa and China signed deals covering emissions technology, electricity transmission and distribution, and nuclear power on the sidelines of the BRICS summit, Reuters reported.
The agreements are part of the South African government's efforts to end record power cuts that are a major constraint on economic growth.
Loveholidays on journey to near £1bn valuation as auction looms. (FS)
Loveholidays, an online travel agent, is on a journey towards a valuation of close to £1bn ($1.3bn) as its owners plot a sale that could kick off in the first half of 2024.
Livingbridge, the private equity firm which has owned a big stake in Loveholidays since 2018, is preparing to kick off a formal auction of the company.
APAC
APA Group, a company which owns and operates natural gas and electricity assets, agreed to acquire Pilbara power assets from Alinta Energy, a company which focuses on the generation, transmission, and distribution of electric energy, for AUD1.7bn ($1.11bn).
“The acquisition of Alinta Energy Pilbara delivers APA a significant new growth platform in the attractive remotegrid energy sector. It’s consistent with our strategy to be the partner of choice in delivering infrastructure solutions for the energy transition and links directly with our focus on customers in the resources sector,” Adam Watson, APA CEO and Managing Director.
QIA to invest $1bn in Reliance Retail. (FS)
Qatar Investment Authority (QIA) has announced today an investment of $1bn into Reliance Retail Ventures, a subsidiary of Reliance Industries. QIA’s investment will translate into a minority equity stake of 0.99% in RRVL on a fully diluted basis.
“We are delighted to welcome QIA as an investor in the Reliance Retail Ventures Limited. We look forward to benefitting from QIA’s global experience and strong track record of value creation as we further develop Reliance Retail Ventures Limited into a world class institution, driving transformation of the Indian retail sector. The investment by QIA is a strong endorsement of a positive outlook towards Indian economy and Reliance’s retail business model, strategy and execution capabilities,” Isha Mukesh Ambani, Reliance Retail Ventures Director.
Goldman, KKR, and Blackstone join investor rush for Japan hotels. (FS)
A rapid tourism recovery in Japan, bolstered by the return of Chinese visitors, and the highest level of inflation in four decades are fueling a boom in hotel investment in the island nation, Bloomberg reported.
Foreign investors, including Goldman Sachs, KKR, and Blackstone, have spent a combined $2bn on hotel deals in Japan so far in 2023, the most compared with any other sector in Asian commercial property. That’s already more than the $1.4bn seen for all of 2022.
Shell taps Goldman Sachs to explore Singapore refinery sale.
Shell is considering a sale of its Singapore refining and petrochemical plants as part of a broader strategic review and has hired investment bank Goldman Sachs to explore a potential deal, Reuters reported.
The global energy major's new CEO, Wael Sawan, is targeting spending cuts over the next two years to boost profitability while remaining committed to achieving net zero emissions by 2050.
BYD, KG Mobility in talks on battery joint venture in South Korea.
China's BYD and South Korea's KG Mobility are in talks to jointly build an electric vehicle battery plant in South Korea, Reuters reported.
The Chinese battery and EV maker and the South Korean automaker hope to secure stable battery supplies through the venture.
Zeekr to start investor tour ahead of $1bn US IPO.
Zeekr, Chinese automaker Geely's premium electric vehicle brand, will meet global investors from August-end to test appetite for a $1bn US initial public offering.
It is hoping the share sale will yield a valuation of over $13bn, as achieved during a private $750m funding round in February, Reuters reported.
Infra-focused PE fund Neev set to close second fund at about $183m by October. (FS)
Infra-focused private equity fund Neev, backed by India’s SBICAP Ventures, is looking to make the final close of its second investment vehicle at about $183m by the end of September or early October, DealStreetAsia reported.
"We are in discussions with a couple of institutional investors, and we expect those approvals to come by over the next few months," Akshay Panth, Neev Fund CIO.
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