AMERICAS
Securityholders of Corvus Gold, a North American gold exploration and development company, voted in favour of the acquisition by AngloGold Ashanti, a gold mining company. The deal is expected to close on or around January 18, 2022.
Following completion of the transaction, Corvus expects to be delisted from the Toronto Stock Exchange and Nasdaq Capital Markets.
Corvus Gold is advised by Fort Capital Partners, BMO Capital Markets, Blake Cassels & Graydon, Cassels Brock & Blackwell and Dorsey & Whitney. BMO Capital Markets is advised by White & Case. AngloGold is advised by Standard Bank of South Africa, RBC Capital Markets, Cravath Swaine & Moore, Hogan Lovells and Stikeman Elliott.
Dave, a banking application developer, went public via a SPAC merger with VPC Impact Acquisition Holdings III, a special purpose acquisition company sponsored by Victory Park Capital, in a $4bn deal. The deal included a $210m PIPE investment led by Tiger Global Management, with participation from Wellington Management, Alameda Research and Corbin Capital Partners.
“We are thrilled to partner with VPCC and our new board of directors as we continue our mission to build products that level the financial playing field. This new influx of capital will allow us to invest in our business and in turn, help more people living paycheck to paycheck who traditional banking system has failed to support. We’re looking forward to hitting the ground running," Jason Wilk, Dave CEO.
Dave was advised by Centerview Partners and Orrick Herrington & Sutcliffe. VPC Impact Acquisition III was advised by Morrow Sodali Global, Citigroup, Jefferies & Company, White & Case and Edelman. Financial advisors were advised by Latham & Watkins.
ICU Medical, a developer of a temporary pacemaker, completed the acquisition of Smiths Medical, a global manufacturer of specialty medical devices, from Smiths Group, a British multinational diversified engineering company, for $2.7bn.
"We look forward to working together to continue providing quality, innovation, and value to our clinical customers worldwide. The addition of Smiths Medical fits well with ICU Medical's existing business and creates a scaled US-based global competitor that increases the stability of the medical supply chain and can grow as clinical care models evolve," Vivek Jain, ICU Medical Chairman and CEO.
Smiths Group was advised by Gleacher Shacklock, Goldman Sachs, JP Morgan, Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer, White & Case and FTI Consulting. ICU Medical was advised by Barclays and ICR.
Franklin BSP Lending and Franklin BSP Capital, two business development companies, agreed to acquire Encina Equipment Finance, a non-bank equipment finance platform providing secured leases and loans to middle-market companies, from Encina Capital Partners, a provider of specialized lending and leasing solutions, and Oaktree Capital Management. Financial terms were not disclosed.
"EEF represents a compelling investment opportunity for our two BDCs. The Encina Equipment team has built a best-in-class equipment finance platform that is well positioned for continued growth. EEF complements our core private debt business and broadens the suite of financing solutions across our platform. We are excited to partner with Rick and the rest of the EEF team," Richard Byrne, BSP President and FBLC and FBCC CEO.
Encina Equipment Finance is advised by Wells Fargo Securities, Reed Smith and Skadden Arps Slate Meagher & Flom. Benefit Street Partners is advised by Dechert, Hogan Lovells and Ropes & Gray. Franklin BSP Lending and Franklin BSP Capital are advised by Bank of America.
Blackstone agreed to invest c.$3bn in CDPQ-backed Invenergy Renewables, a private renewable energy company.
Blackstone's investment will provide capital to accelerate Invenergy's renewables development activities.
"Blackstone is committed to investing behind the energy transition and Invenergy is the clear independent leader in the renewable energy sector. We look forward to a long-term partnership with the Invenergy and CDPQ teams and are excited to invest alongside them to support the accelerated build-out of Invenergy's clean energy portfolio," Sean Klimczak, Blackstone Global Head of Infrastructure.
Invenergy is advised by Sidley Austin and White & Case. CDPQ is advised by Mayer Brown. Blackstone is advised by CIBC, Lazard and Kirkland & Ellis.
Shareholders of Alcanna, a private liquor retailer, approved the $346m acquisition by Sundial Growers, a licensed producer of cannabis.
"Alcanna's regulated product distribution platform will strengthen Sundial's operations, portfolio, and cash flow profile. We are humbled by the support of Alcanna shareholders and look forward to working with the team at Alcanna to create a best-in-class company focused on delighting consumers and delivering value to all stakeholders," said Zach George, Chief Executive Officer of Sundial.
Alcanna is advised by Cormark Securities, Bennett Jones and Clark Wilson. Sundial Growers is advised by ATB Capital and McCarthy Tetrault.
The New York Times to acquire The Athletic, a digital subscription-based sports media business, for $550m. The transaction is expected to close in the first quarter of 2022.
"Acquiring The Athletic puts us in a position to be a global leader in sports journalism and offer English speakers around the world another reason to turn to the Times Company to meet their daily news and life needs. The Times already provides distinctive sports coverage for a general interest audience as part of our core report. As a stand-alone product, The Athletic will enable us to offer much more - extensive coverage for fans who seek a deep connection to and understanding of their favorite teams, leagues and players. With one of the largest dedicated teams of reporters covering sports globally and a commitment to everyday reporting, The Athletic is a great complement to The Times," Meredith Kopit Levien, The New York Times President and CEO.
The Athletic is advised by LionTree Advisors and Gunderson Dettmer Stough Villeneuve Franklin & Hachigian. The New York Times is advised by Allen & Company and Morgan Lewis & Bockius.
Alteryx, an analytics automation company, agreed to acquire Trifacta, a cloud company, for $400m. The transaction is expected to close during the first quarter of 2022 and is subject to customary closing conditions.
"Together, Trifacta and Alteryx expand our total addressable market with additional opportunities to target new data and cloud transformation initiatives for Global 2000 customers. With Trifacta, our combined cloud platform will serve the needs of entire enterprises from data analytics teams and IT/technology teams to line of business users," Mark Anderson, Alteryx CEO.
Trifacta is advised by JP Morgan and Gunderson Dettmer Stough Villeneuve Franklin & Hachigian. Alteryx is advised by Goldman Sachs and Fenwick & West.
Lakeland Bancorp, the parent company of Lakeland Bank, completed the acquisition of 1st Constitution Bancorp, the parent company of 1st Constitution Bank, for $244m.
"We are delighted to be combining with 1st Constitution and expanding Lakeland's presence into central New Jersey. This business combination provides attractive financial attributes to shareholders of both Lakeland and 1st Constitution. This merger is consistent with our recent initiatives to expand into desirable markets. We look forward to working with 1st Constitution in delivering a broad array of business and consumer products into our expanded marketplace," Thomas J. Shara, Lakeland President and CEO.
1st Constitution was advised by Raymond James and Day Pitney. Lakeland was advised by Keefe Bruyette & Woods and Luse Gorman.
CVB Financial-backed Citizens Business Bank, a provider of the financial tools that small to medium-sized businesses need to thrive, completed the merger with Suncrest Bank, the California Central Valley's premier business bank, for $204m.
"We would like to welcome Suncrest Bank's customers, associates and shareholders to Citizens Business Bank and CVB Financial. This merger is an exciting opportunity for Citizens Business Bank to expand our presence northward to the Sacramento area and to bolster our already strong position in the important Central Valley region of California. We look forward to building on the strong customer and community relationships established by Suncrest Bank with our expanded branch network and wider array of products and services," David Brager, CVB Financial and Citizens Business Bank President and Chief Executive Officer.
Suncrest Bank is advised by MJC Partners and Sheppard Mullin Richter & Hampton. CVB Financial is advised by Piper Sandler and Manatt Phelps & Phillips.
Stonepeak, a private equity firm, agreed to acquire Rinchem, a specialty warehousing and logistics company. Financial terms were not disclosed.
“We are thrilled to partner with Stonepeak and expect that their support will accelerate our ability to meet customer growth requirements, enter new markets, and provide synergies with their portfolio and experience within cold chain warehousing and transportation,” Chuck Breinholt, Rinchem CEO.
Rinchem is advised by Guggenheim Partners and Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck. Stonepeak is advised by Barclays and Simpson Thacher & Bartlett.
Stefanini Group-backed Topaz Venture, a private equity firm, completed the acquisition of a majority stake in Cobiscorp, a banking software platform. Financial terms were not disclosed.
"We are very excited about the opportunities generated by teaming with Topaz, as they will catalyze our ability to enhance the development of our employees, expand our product and service offering, serve our customers better, and venture into new markets. Our companies and their solution sets are synergistic; they will enable us to equip financial institutions with more agility and efficiency, accelerating their transformation and adding real value to their network of businesses and customers," William Moss, Cobiscorp CEO.
Cobiscorp was advised by Rothschild & Co and Venable. Stefanini Group was advised by BK & Partners and DFREIRE Communications y Business.
Hunter Point Capital, a private equity firm, completed the acquisition of a minority stake in Iron Park Capital, a private equity firm. Financial terms were not disclosed.
All proceeds of the investment will go to IPC’s balance sheet. IPC’s investment process, management and day-to-day operations will remain unchanged.
“The HPC team shares our focus on alignment with institutional investors and partners, our long-term orientation and our conviction that the highly experienced IPC team can unlock value to generate superior risk-adjusted returns," Tripp Smith, IPC Founder and CEO.
Iron Park Capital was advised by Houlihan Lokey and Kirkland & Ellis. Hunter Point Capital was advised by Fried Frank Harris Shriver & Jacobson and Prosek Partners.
American Pacific Group-backed Wellbeam Consumer Health, a provider of vitamin and mineral nutritional supplements, agreed to acquire BioTRUST Nutrition, an eCommerce nutrition brand. Financial terms were not discosed.
"With the addition of BioTRUST to the portfolio, Wellbeam Consumer Health not only adds a fast-growing, differentiated brand and leader in the healthy aging space, but also offers a best-in-class data-driven DTC eCommerce competency on top of current deep expertise in eCommerce marketplace and brand management. The addition of BioTRUST is another significant step to building the leading eCommerce-focused consumer wellness company with a mission to help consumers live healthier lives," Chris Marschall, Wellbeam Consumer Health CEO.
BioTRUST Nutrition is advised by Sage Group and Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner. Wellbeam is advised by Jones Day.
Thoma Bravo-backed Foundation Software, a software developer, completed the acquisition of Estimating Edge Software, a developer of commercial construction estimating, project management tracking, and takeoff software. Financial terms were not disclosed.
“We are excited to have Estimating Edge join the Foundation Software family of companies. The addition of their commercial construction estimating and takeoff products will allow us to move closer to the goal of becoming an all-in-one back-office solution for contractors. We’re looking forward to working with the Edge team and learning from their years of experience serving commercial specialty trade contractors. Together, we’ll be able to provide leading and proven software tools to both our clients and the industry as a whole," Mike Ode, Foundation Software CEO.
Estimating Edge Software was advised by Raymond James. Foundation Software was advised by Kirkland & Ellis.
TricorBraun, a packaging company, completed the acquisition of Zuckerman Honickman and Vessel Packaging, two beverage packaging makers. Financial terms were not disclosed.
"Our acquisitions of Zuckerman Honickman, a name synonymous with best-in-class beverage packaging, and Vessel Packaging, a leading Canadian value-added distributor of aluminum cans, bolster our ability to serve beverage customers with expanded offerings and services across North America. We are incredibly excited to welcome the ZH and Vessel teams to the TricorBraun family and look forward to investing in their continued growth," Court Carruthers, TricorBraun President & CEO.
Vessel Packaging was advised by KPMG. Zuckerman Honickman was advised by JP Morgan.
Highway 89, a gigabit internet service provider, completed the acquisition of internet services providers Broadband Holdings, Digital Home Lifestyles, Mereo Networks and Vicidiem, from Freedom 3 Capital, a private equity firm. Financial terms were not disclosed.
“With a proven history as a reliable critical-service provider, Highway 89 has been successful in growing our business portfolio by adding significant value for developers through a robust product offering that drives revenue and improves resident satisfaction across multi-family units. We look forward to the future of Mereo and its expansion across current and future markets with the support of Freedom 3 Capital," Thomas Wilky, Highway 89 Founder and CEO.
Highway 89 was advised by Houlihan Lokey and Gordon C. James PR.
One Equity Partners, a private equity firm, completed the acquisition of a majority stake in Rosboro Holdings, a manufacturer of engineered wood products, from Wynnchurch Capital, a private equity firm. Financial terms were not disclosed.
“Rosboro represented an opportunity to invest in a company with a leading market position, differentiated product offering and long-standing customer relationships. We are proud of the management team’s accomplishments during our ownership period and are excited to continue our partnership with management during Rosboro’s next phase of growth," Brian Crumbaugh, Wynnchurch Partner.
Wynnchurch Capital was by Houlihan Lokey and Perkins Coie.
MG Properties Group, a real estate investor and operator, agreed to acquire 3300 Tamarac Apartments, a 564-unit community, from Gelt, a real estate investment firm, for $141m.
"MG is delighted to add 3300 Tamarac to our portfolio, which further scales our Denver presence. We believe this submarket is ideally positioned to benefit from Denver's continued growth," Mark Gleiberman, MG Properties Group Founder & CEO.
Gelt is advised by NorthMarq.
Benson Hill, a food tech company, agreed to acquire ZFS Creston, an established food grade white flake and soy flour manufacturing facility, for $102m.
“The acquisition of ZFS Creston, combined with our proprietary Ultra-High Protein soybean varieties, positions Benson Hill to deliver a portfolio of improved ingredients as an innovative unlock to bottlenecks in the rapidly growing but capacity-constrained plant-based movement. This acquisition advances our integrated business model as a more efficient route to market with a smaller footprint that better aligns with consumer preferences, enabling us to harness the genetic potential of plants and help scale the growth of plant-based markets," Matt Crisp, Benson Hill CEO.
Benson Hill is advised by Joele Frank.
Percheron Capital, a private equity firm, completed the acquisition of a majority stake in Animal Dermatology Group, a group of veterinary dermatology specialists services providers. Financial terms were not disclosed.
"We are excited to partner with ADG to continue to expand the largest veterinary dermatology group in the country. There is significant demand among pet owners for specialty dermatology care and ADG has built a preeminent network of the industry's leading dermatologists to meet this need. We look forward to supporting ADG's talented team as they continue to expand, innovate and deliver the highest quality care to pets nationwide," Chris Collins, Percheron Co-Founder and Managing Director.
Percheron Capital was advised by Joele Frank.
Grupo Argos, a Colombian industrial conglomerate, will not take part in an offer from Grupo Gilinski, a financial conglomerate, to acquire 31.68% of shares of investment heavyweight Grupo SURA, Reuters reported.
Argos stated that Grupo Gilinski's offer price of $8.01 for each SURA share, which would make the transaction worth over $1bn, is "considerably inferior" to the fundamental value of the company.
XP, a technology-driven platform and a trusted provider of low-fee financial products and services, agreed to acquire Banco Modal, an investment banking firm, for c.$529m.
"XP's ecosystem has already demonstrated its cross-sell capabilities. Given the immaterial overlap between XP and Modal's clients, we expect that interesting revenue synergies and client experience enhancements will be captured. Furthermore, with increased scale and pricing power, we will strengthen our purpose of better serving our clients with great products at lower prices, as we recently did with online brokerage fees," Bruno Constantino, XP CFO.
David Blitzer and Smith Entertainment Group, a boutique full-service entertainment company, completed the acquisition of Real Salt Lake, a soccer club, for c.$400m.
"My family and I are thrilled to partner with Ryan Smith and his SEG team on the acquisition of Real Salt Lake. Ryan's track record with Qualtrics as a technology innovator and leader in the state of Utah made his SEG group the ideal partner. Together, we look forward to leveraging our experiences to take Real Salt Lake to even greater heights," David Blitzer.
Gemspring Capital, a private equity firm, completed the acquisition of a majority stake in Security 101, a provider of commercial security system solutions. Financial terms were not disclosed.
"We are excited to partner with Gemspring during this next phase of growth and look forward to collaboratively pursuing the tremendous market opportunity ahead of us. This partnership puts Security 101 in a position to rapidly expand our footprint while continuing to provide national and local customers the security industry's finest customer service through our proven approach," Steve Crespo, Security 101 Founder and CEO.
ViacomCBS and WarnerMedia explore the sale of the CW Network.
Media giants ViacomCBS and WarnerMedia are exploring strategic options, including the sale of CW Network, a television broadcasting company.
Viacom and WarnerMedia have been considering a sale of all or part of the network for months. Among the possible buyers is Nexstar Media Group, a large TV station owner with many CW affiliates, Bloomberg reported.
Shockwave Medical is weighing a deal following a takeover approach.
Shockwave Medical, a cardiovascular medical device company, is weighing a potential deal after receiving takeover interest.
The company has been working with an adviser to study possibilities, including a merger or partnership with another healthcare company. Shockwave Medical’s deliberations are ongoing, and there’s no certainty they will lead to a transaction, Bloomberg reported.
Legacy Reserves seeks buyers for shale oil and gas assets.
Legacy Reserves, a shale producer, searches for a buyer for its oil and gas assets in the Permian and Haynesville basins.
Legacy Reserves has hired an investment bank to run the sale process for the assets and is valuing them at around $800m at current commodity prices.
Reddit taps Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs for its $15bn IPO.
Reddit, a social media company, is working with Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs to go public as soon as March. Reddit could be valued at as much as $15bn in its IPO.
Reddit announced in December that it had confidentially submitted listing documents to the US Securities and Exchange Committee for an IPO. It didn’t mention timing or advisers in a statement at the time.
C5 Acquisition announces pricing of $250m IPO.
C5 Acquisition, a special purpose acquisition company, announced the pricing of its initial public offering of 25m units at a price of $10 per unit.
Each unit consists of one share of Class A common stock of the company and one-half of one redeemable public warrant. Each whole public warrant entitles the holder thereof to purchase one share of Class A common stock of the company at a price of $11.50 per share. Once the securities comprising the units begin separate trading, the shares of Class A common stock and public warrants are expected to be listed on NYSE under the symbols “CXAC” and “CXAC WS,” respectively.
C5 Acquisition is advised by Cantor Fitzgerald and Moelis & Co.
CinCor Pharma raised $194m in an upsized IPO.
CinCor Pharma, a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company, has raised $194m in an upsized IPO on the Nasdaq Global Market under the symbol “CINC”.
Morgan Stanley, Jefferies and Evercore acted as joint book-running managers for the offering. Oppenheimer & Co acted as a lead manager for the offering.
Amylyx Pharmaceuticals raises $190m in an IPO.
Amylyx Pharmaceuticals, a clinical-stage pharmaceutical company, raised $190m in an upsized IPO on the Nasdaq Global Select Market under the ticker symbol “AMLX”.
Goldman Sachs, SVB Leerink, and Evercore acted as joint book-running managers for the offering. H.C. Wainwright acted as a lead manager for the offering.
EMEA
Ergon Capital Partners, a private equity firm, completed the acquisition of Satlink, a marine telecoms specialist, from Arta Capital, a midmarket private equity firm. Financial terms were not disclosed.
"We are thrilled to start this new phase alongside Ergon and will continue to focus on our success factors to-date: relentless innovation, uncompromised quality and continued technology-driven increase of ocean sustainability. We are profoundly grateful for Artá Capital's continued support over the last five years, which contributed to the company's further professionalization, international expansion and build-up strategy. We have grown the company profitably and, more importantly, increased client satisfaction," Faustino Velasco, Satlink Founder and Chairman.
Ergon Capital is advised by AZ Capital. Arta Capital is advised by PJT Partners.
ParentPay, a provider of school payment and parental engagement services, completed the acquisition of BlueRunner Solutions, a web and mobile based meal ordering solutions for schools. Financial terms were not disclosed.
“ParentPay’s leading position in the school payments market and its continued strong growth, present a compelling opportunity for BlueRunner. By combining with ParentPay’s significant customer base and leveraging its highly successful national field sales operation we will be able to bring the benefits of BlueRunner solutions to a larger number of clients," Chris Schroeder, BlueRunner Founder and Managing Director.
BlueRunner Solutions was advised by DC Advisory. ParentPay was advised by Farrer Kane.
Smartly, a social advertising SaaS platform, completed the acquisition of Ad-Lib.io, a creative optimization platform. Financial terms were not disclosed.
With the acquisition, Smartly's SaaS solution for social advertising will now be augmented by Ad-Lib.io's enterprise suite of creative tools for YouTube, DV360 and Google Ads campaigns.
"With brand marketers and agencies increasingly uniting their social and programmatic teams into integrated digital creative and media investment teams, this is a natural next step for both companies," Oli Marlow-Thomas, Ad-Lib.io Founder and President.
Smartly was advised by Debevoise & Plimpton.
Northland Power and RWE, two renewable energy companies, agreed to form a joint venture to develop offshore wind clusters off the German coast.
“The formation of the cluster aligns with our offshore wind ambitions and strategy of growing our position as a global leader in offshore wind. We are proud to enhance our partnership with RWE to form the cluster to further strengthen our position in the North Sea. This cluster will provide us with significant size and scale and allows us to support the decarbonization efforts in Germany," Mike Crawley, Northland President and CEO.
General Atlantic led a €254m ($287m) Series E funding round in PayFit, a payroll and HR management solutions provider, valuing the company at €1.82bn ($2.05bn). The round was joined by Eurazeo, Bpifrance and Accel Ventures.
PayFit plans to use the funds to recruit additional top talent, accelerate the development of innovative new products, and increase its market share across Europe.
"PayFit's expansion beyond France into the UK, Spain and Germany demonstrated further validation of our innovative offering and our capacity to scale up. As we look ahead, we plan to use these new funds to deepen our presence in our existing markets, where we have significant growth potential. At PayFit, we are proud to have built a company with strong foundations, where people are happy to work and that can have a real impact on our clients. This Series E funding will allow us to maintain the rapid growth we have achieved since our founding," Firmin Zocchetto, PayFit CEO and Co-Founder.
SoftBank VF2 led a $150m funding round in Gousto, a British meal kit retailer, valuing the company at $1.7bn.
"2022 is set to be another impressive year for Gousto, as we capitalise on the accelerated mega trends driving change in the grocery market: convenience, health, sustainability. This successful raise is further testament to the relevance and appetite for our recipe box solution. I'm delighted to welcome our new shareholders on board and look forward to working with them as we embark on our next stage of growth and get closer to achieving our vision of becoming the UK's most loved way to eat dinner," Timo Boldt, Gousto Founder & CEO.
M&C Saatchi, a British advertising group, rejects a takeover from Vin Murria, a director and biggest shareholder of M&C Saatchi.
M&C Saatchi stated the proposal did not reflect the value of the business. Director Vin Murria's investment vehicle AdvancedAdvT offered M&C investors 1.86 new shares in exchange for each M&C share they own.
BayernLB weighs options for Deutsche Kreditbank.
BayernLB, one of Germany’s biggest regional lenders, is in the early stages of exploring strategic options for its retail bank Deutsche Kreditbank that could include a sale.
The Munich-based bank has held preliminary talks with potential advisers as it explores options for DKB. DKB could be valued at about $3.4bn in any sale.
BayernLB is also weighing options for its investment management arms, which include BayernInvest. Deliberations are ongoing and BayernLB may decide to keep all or parts of the businesses, Bloomberg reported.
Carige to pick suitor as Credit Agricole seen vying with BPER.
The owner of Carige said it could decide on Monday which bid for the ailing Italian lender to pursue, following reports of an offer by Credit Agricole that pits the French bank against Italy's BPER, Reuters reported.
Italy's FITD depositor protection fund, which owns 80% of Carige following a 2019 rescue, said it would not comment on the reports nor "rectify incorrect quantitative indications."
It confirmed it had received non-binding offers for Carige that were subject to a due diligence analysis during an exclusive negotiation period.
Averda in talks to go public via a SPAC merger with Better World Acquisition.
Averda, a Dubai-based provider of waste-disposal services, is in talks to go public through a merger with Better World Acquisition, a blank-check firm.
The transaction’s size couldn’t immediately be learned. A deal, if reached, could be announced in coming weeks, Bloomberg reported.
Permira offloads a 6.5% stake in Dr Martens for £257m. (FS)
Permira Advisors, a private equity firm, offloaded a 6.5% stake in Dr Martens, a footwear company, allowing it to recoup $348m while retaining a significant 37% holding in the business.
Permira sold 65m shares, a year after it brought the bootmaker to market. It comes as retailers are facing rising costs and supply chain issues.
Sir Richard Branson to launch first SPAC on European stock exchange.
Sir Richard Branson will launch his first European blank cheque company as the Virgin Group tycoon continues to tap public market investors to find takeover targets.
Virgin Group is drawing up detailed plans to list a new special purpose acquisition company in Amsterdam in the coming months. Sir Richard's business is working with bankers on a listing, which could be announced as soon as the first quarter of 2022.
The Amsterdam-listed vehicle would probably seek to raise an initial sum of around $226m, although the final details have yet to be determined, SkyNews reported.
Sound Bioventures raises $124m for new biotherapeutics venture fund. (FS)
Sound Bioventures, a Scandinavia-based lifesciences venture capital firm, announced the first close of its first fund at $124m. The fund has a geographic footprint on both sides of the Atlantic and will invest in European and US-based private biotech companies supporting the clinical development of novel medicines for diseases of high unmet medical need.
Sound Bioventures is anchored by Novo Holdings, Saminvest, Vækstfonden, the European Investment Fund and Ramsbury Invest as well as the founders. The EIF investment is made possible under the European Guarantee Fund.
APAC
KKR and PAG bid for Apollo-backed IGT Solutions. (FS)
Private equity firms KKR and PAG are among preliminary bidders for Apollo Global-backed IGT Solutions, a call-center business. IGT Solutions has also attracted initial interest from Indian back-office manager WNS Holdings.
Apollo Global is seeking more than $700m for the asset. Apollo Global plans to seek final bids for the business next month. It aims to sign an agreement with a buyer as early this quarter, Bloomberg reported.
Tencent-backed Tuhu to move its planned US IPO to Hong Kong.
A Chinese online car-services platform backed by investors including Goldman Sachs and Tencent Holdings is shifting its proposed initial public offering to Hong Kong from the US.
The startup, which is formally known as Shanghai Lantu Information Technology Holding, is working with China International Capital and Goldman Sachs on the offering that could raise $300m to $400m this year. Deliberations are ongoing, and details such as timing and size could change.
Tuhu joins a slew of Chinese companies that are choosing to list in the Asian financial hub instead of the US after Beijing cracked down on overseas listings over data security concerns and American regulators started pushing for better risk disclosures, Bloomberg reported.
Temasek-backed Vertex Venture to raise $150m in an IPO. (FS)
Vertex Venture Holdings, a venture capital firm backed by Singapore state investor Temasek, plans to raise $150m from the IPO of its special purpose acquisition company on the Singapore Exchange.
According to a prospectus filed by the VC on Thursday, Vertex Technology Acquisition Corporation has so far secured the backing of 13 cornerstone investors. They will subscribe to 22.2m cornerstone units — approximately 55.5% of the post-offering share capital of the SPAC entity — at an offering price of $3.6 apiece.
VTAC will, therefore, raise an aggregate of $81m from the cornerstone investors, who comprise private equity funds, banks, and institutional investors.
INCE Capital closes second USD fund at nearly $700m. (FS)
INCE Capital, a venture capital firm with a focus on early to expansion stage startups, has made the final close of its second USD-denominated fund at about $700m across two funds. With the funds raised, INCE will continue with its investments in technology, internet and consumer industries.
In an official statement, the venture capitalist said that the two funds are dubbed INCE Capital Partners II, and INCE Opportunity Fund. With the two new funds, INCE Capital now manages over $1bn in assets under management.
Apart from its existing limited partners – university endowments, foundations, and funds of funds, a slew of new investors have made capital commitments in the new fund. These include names such as Duke University, Carnegie Mellon University, University of Pittsburgh, Kaiser Permanente, Dietrich Foundation, Commonfund, Unicorn Capital, Axiom Asia and Siguler Guff.
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