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AMERICAS
The EU Commission on August 1 said it had unconditionally approved the $14bn takeover of networking gear maker Juniper Networks by Hewlett Packard Enterprise, Reuters reported.
The commission said its investigation had shown the deal would not significantly reduce competition in the markets for wireless local area network equipment and access points, ethernet campus switches and datacentre switches.
Juniper Networks is advised by Goldman Sachs, Skadden Arps Slate Meagher & Flom (led by Amr Razzak), and Joele Frank (led by Jed Repko). Goldman Sachs is advised by Paul Hastings (led by Steve Camahort). Hewlett Packard Enterprise is advised by JP Morgan, Qatalyst Partners, Covington & Burling (led by J. D. Weinberg), Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer (led by Jennifer Mellott, Alan Ryan, Thomas Janssens, and Martin McElwee), Wachtell Lipton Rosen & Katz (led by Raaj Narayan, Benjamin M. Roth, Steven Green and Andrew Brownstein), and FGS Global (led by Drew Brown). Financial advisors are advised by Sullivan & Cromwell (led by Melissa Sawyer). Debt financing was provided by Citigroup, JP Morgan and Mizuho Securities.
TowerBrook, an investment management firm, and CD&R, an American private equity company, agreed to acquire R1 RCM, an American revenue cycle management company, for $8.9bn.
“TowerBrook has been an outstanding long-term investor and partner to R1 and shares our vision of being the automation platform of choice for the provider industry. Our agreement reflects TowerBrook’s and CD&R’s confidence in our team and the unmatched scale, technology and value we provide. We believe the transaction represents the best path forward for R1 at an attractive valuation to our stockholders that reflects the Company’s position as a leading provider of technology-driven solutions for its customers,” Lee Rivas, R1 RCM CEO.
TowerBrook is advised by Centerview Partners, Deutsche Bank, RBC Capital Markets, Wachtell Lipton Rosen & Katz (led by George Tepe, Steven A. Cohen and Victor Goldfeld) and Brunswick Group (led by Alex Yankus). CD&R is advised by Centerview Partners, Deutsche Bank, RBC Capital Markets and Debevoise & Plimpton (led by Kevin Rinker, Katherine Durnan Taylor and Christopher Anthony). R1 RCM is advised by Barclays, Qatalyst Partners, Kirkland & Ellis (led by Robert Hayward, Sarkis Jebejian, Brad Reed, and Steven Choi), Skadden Arps Slate Meagher & Flom (led by Faiz Ahmad, Graham Robinson and Laura Knoll) and Joele Frank (led by Andrea Rose). Financial advisors are advised by Sullivan & Cromwell (led by Stephen M. Kotran). Debt financing is provided by Deutsche Bank and Royal Bank Of Canada.
Apollo, an investment firm, completed the acquisition of U.S. Silica, a diversified industrial minerals company, for $1.85bn.
"The closing of this transaction with Apollo Funds begins an exciting new chapter in the storied history of U.S. Silica. In Apollo Funds, we have found an experienced partner who shares with us an aligned vision for future growth. Our ability to take this step from a position of strength is a testament to the Company's excellent foundation and the dedication of our employees. We look forward to executing on the growth opportunities in front of us," Bryan Shinn, U.S. Silica CEO.
Crop trader Bunge Global said its $8.2bn acquisition of Viterra will be delayed as the company is still awaiting regulatory approval from several governments, including China, Canada and the European Union, Bloomberg reported.
The St. Louis-based trader, which had set a goal to finalize the deal by mid-year, said the transaction would be completed in the next several months. News from earlier this month revealed that the deal faced a risk of being delayed.
AbbVie, a global biopharmaceutical company, completed the acquisition of Cerevel Therapeutics, a biopharmaceutical company focused on developing new therapies, for $8.7bn.
"AbbVie's acquisition of Cerevel strengthens our foundation in neuroscience and positions us to deliver sustainable long-term performance into the next decade and beyond. Our new Cerevel colleagues share our commitment to deliver meaningful change for patients living with neurological and psychiatric conditions. We are excited to welcome the talented Cerevel team to AbbVie," Robert A. Michael, AbbVie CEO.
Silvercorp Metals, a mining company producing silver, gold, lead, and zinc, completed the acquisition of Adventus Mining, a copper-gold exploration and development company, for $145m.
"This transaction will create a new globally diversified green metals producer. It presents the opportunity for us to leverage our technical expertise and strong balance sheet to unlock value for all shareholders by constructing the El Domo project. We look forward to working with the Government of Ecuador and local communities, as well as leveraging the existing Adventus and Curimining teams, to grow our business in Ecuador which will generate sustainable economic, social, and environmental value for all stakeholders. We would also like to acknowledge the hard work and contributions to the El Domo project by our future partners at Salazar Resources. Silvercorp will continue to work collaboratively with Salazar as El Domo is advanced into construction and ultimately operations," Rui Feng, Silvercorp Chairman and CEO.
Silvercorp Metals was advised by BMO Capital Markets, FBPH Abogados and McCarthy Tetrault (led by Roger Taplin). Adventus Mining was advised by Cormark Securities, AVL Abogados and Bennett Jones.
Arch Insurance North America, a property, casualty and specialty insurer arm of Arch Capital, completed the acquisition of the US MidCorp and Entertainment insurance businesses from Allianz Global Corporate & Specialty, the carrier for large corporate and specialty insurance of Allianz Group, for $450m.
“We are thrilled to welcome these talented individuals to Arch and look forward to earning the trust of their existing clients and distribution partners. Under Mark’s leadership, we will continue to drive growth, deliver exceptional value to customers, create opportunities for our new colleagues and Pursue Better Together as a united team,” Matt Shulman, Arch Insurance CEO.
Arch Capital was advised by Goldman Sachs, JP Morgan and Willkie Farr & Gallagher (led by Laura Delanoy). Allianz Global was advised by Morgan Stanley.
Southern California Bancorp, the holding company for Bank of Southern California, completed the merger with California BanCorp, the holding company for California Bank of Commerce, in a $234m deal.
“We are excited to announce the completion of this merger of two highly compatible banking institutions and begin this new chapter. We look forward to building a franchise with greater scale and an expanded suite of products and service offerings which will allow us to deliver exceptional service to our clients and generate significant value to our shareholders,” Steven Shelton, California BanCorp CEO.
Southern California Bancorp was advised by MJC Partners and Stuart Moore Staub. California BanCorp was advised by Keefe Bruyette & Woods (led by Joseph Gulash and Jeffrey Wishner) and Sheppard Mullin Richter & Hampton (led by Joshua Dean).
Medline, a private healthcare company, completed the acquisition of surgical solutions business from Ecolab, a company that develops and offers services, technology and systems that specialize in treatment, purification, cleaning and hygiene of water in a wide variety of applications, for $950m.
“We are pleased to have the opportunity to acquire a leading portfolio of operating room products with such a strong reputation for protecting patients and healthcare workers. With our commercial capability and focus on operational excellence, we believe that Medline is best positioned to grow this critical business and provide enhanced services to support our customers. This acquisition brings us proven innovation, expanded service offerings, and a shared legacy of highest quality products," Jim Pigott, Medline President and CEO.
Medline was advised by Simpson Thacher & Bartlett (led by Elizabeth Cooper). Ecolab was advised by Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton and De Brauw Blackstone Westbroek (led by Reinier Kleipool).
Merck-backed MilliporeSigma, a life sciences company, completed the acquisition of Mirus Bio, a transfection reagents, electroporation solutions and related products company, from KKR-backed Gamma Biosciences, a life sciences tools platform, for $600m.
"Novel modalities like cell and gene therapies offer tremendous potential for bringing new curative treatments to patients. Mirus Bio’s advanced technology, combined with our bioprocessing expertise and broad portfolio, will enable us to deliver integrated solutions across the viral vector value chain and help meet the growing demand for these life-saving therapies,” Sebastian Arana, Merck Head of Process Solutions.
Gamma Biosciences was advised by Jefferies & Company and Sidley Austin. KKR was advised by FGS Global (led by Daniel Schäfer).
Otsuka Pharmaceutical, a pharmaceutical company, agreed to acquire Jnana Therapeutics, a biotechnology company, for $1.1bn.
"I am gratified that Otsuka has entered into an agreement with Jnana. The addition of Jnana's drug discovery technology and small molecule pipeline in PKU and autoimmune diseases will strengthen our R&D in the Boston area of the US, one of the most important bioclusters in the world, and in a combined form will have a synergistic effect on Otsuka Pharmaceutical's global expansion,” Makoto Inoue, Otsuka President and Representative Director.
Jnana Therapeutics is advised by Centerview Partners and Latham & Watkins.
Garda World Security, a security and patrolling services provider, completed the acquisition of OnSolve, a provider of critical event management. Financial terms were not disclosed.
"Along with Crisis24's existing critical event management platforms, TopoONE by Crisis24 and Crisis24 Horizon, the addition of the OnSolve Platform will enable Crisis24 to offer the most advanced and comprehensive risk management services in the industry, ensuring greater resilience and security for organizations and businesses worldwide," Stephan Crétier, GardaWorld CEO.
TransDigm, a global designer, producer and supplier of highly engineered aircraft components, completed the acquisition of Raptor Scientific, a global manufacturer of complex test and measurement solutions primarily serving the aerospace and defense end markets, from L Squared Capital Partners, a private equity firm, for $655m.
"We are excited about the acquisition of Raptor Scientific. The Company's comprehensive proprietary and highly engineered product portfolio of aerospace and defense testing and instrumentation solutions fits well with our value generation strategy. Raptor Scientific's test and measurement solutions are used on a diverse range of new and existing aircraft platforms, and the Company has an outstanding reputation with its customers. As with all TransDigm acquisitions, we expect this acquisition to create equity value in-line with our long-term private equity-like return objectives," Kevin Stein, TransDigm President and CEO.
Raptor Scientific was advised by Harris Williams & Co.
Reddit, a social sharing and aggregation website, completed the acquisition of Memorable AI, a large AI foundation model that allows advertisers to strategize ad creative according to their branding and conversion goals. Financial terms were not disclosed.
“Memorable AI has a proven track record for optimizing ad creative to drive the best possible results before advertisers run a single ad. This acquisition allows Reddit to accelerate our work in optimizing, generating, and selecting ad creative to deliver even better results for advertisers. We are thrilled to welcome the Memorable AI team to Reddit,” Jen Wong, Reddit COO.
Musk denies report xAI is considering acquiring Character.AI.
US businessman Elon Musk's artificial intelligence startup xAI has discussed acquiring artificial intelligence chatbot startup Character.AI as it looks to test its Grok AI models, Reuters reported.
The discussion may not result in a deal, as on July 31 Musk denied takeover rumors. Instead, an internal debate at xAI points to the types of pairings that are likely to become more common as smaller AI startups face the high costs of training and running their models.
Robot software maker Covariant gets takeover inquiry from Amazon.
Covariant, a maker of artificial intelligence software used in industrial robots, received recent takeover interest from Amazon, Bloomberg reported.
Covariant's software's ability to provide a unified platform for managing robots from different manufacturers presents an appealing acquisition opportunity for Amazon, as it would allow to consolidate automation processes under one platform.
Jefferies weighs opening brokerage in Brazil and plans more hiring.
Jefferies Financial Group, which opened its first office in Brazil last year, plans more hiring there and is exploring whether to open a brokerage in the nation to support local distribution of equity and debt offerings, Bloomberg reported.
"Our clients asked us to open an office in Brazil, and we are pleased with the presence we built here since April last year. Jefferies is actively exploring the possibility of adding a brokerage to its operations in South America's biggest economy," Alejandro Guevara, Jefferies Senior Country Officer for Brazil.
Ackman's Pershing Square pulls IPO after slashing target. (FS)
Billionaire Bill Ackman's Pershing Square has withdrawn an initial public offering for a US closed-end fund, after sharply downsizing a $25bn fundraising target and facing difficult questions from investors, Bloomberg reported.
Pershing Square will reevaluate its structure based on investor feedback and report back once it is ready to launch a revised transaction. The billionaire-backed fund had expected to price the offering on August 5.
Ares Management closes record-breaking $34bn private credit fund. (FS)
Global alternative asset manager Ares Management, has closed its latest private credit fund at $34bn, making it the largest private credit fund ever raised, and reflecting a high level investor demand for the asset class.
The new fund, Ares Private Credit Fund VI, which surpassed its initial fundraising target, will focus on providing flexible and innovative financing solutions to middle-market companies across North America and Europe, emphasising senior secured loans, subordinated debt, and other private credit instruments.
Silver Hill Energy Partners closes oversubscribed $1.13bn fund for fourth venture. (FS)
Silver Hill Energy Partners announced the closing of its fourth partnership and second institutional private equity fund, Silver Hill Energy Partners IV, which is focused on direct investments in oil and gas basins across the US.
Silver Hill IV was oversubscribed at closing, with total capital commitments of $1.13bn from a group of institutional investors comprised of endowments, pension funds, medical and family foundations and family offices.
venBio raises $528m venture capital fund focused on life science companies. (FS)
venBio announced the closing of venBio Global Strategic Fund V, its fifth life sciences venture capital fund initiated in mid-April, exceeding its target and closing on approximately $528m in capital commitments.
Limited partners of Fund V include a broad range of institutional investors comprising sovereign wealth funds, corporate pensions, financial institutions, university endowments, medical institutions, foundations, family offices and funds-of-funds.
EMEA
Bending Spoons, an Italian technology company, completed the acquisition of WeTransfer, a Dutch internet-based computer file transfer service company. Financial terms were not disclosed.
“WeTransfer is a highly respected name in the technology and creative spaces. We’re enthusiastic about becoming its new owner, and we feel a strong sense of responsibility to help the brand and the business thrive for many years to come,” Luca Ferrari, Bending Spoons Co-Founder and CEO.
WeTransfer was advised by Allen & Company and Loyens & Loeff. Bending Spoons was advised by BNP Paribas, Banco BPM, Barclays, Ernst & Young, Intesa SanPaolo, A&O Shearman and Latham & Watkins. Debt financing was provided by BNP Paribas, Banco BPM and Intesa SanPaolo. Debt providers was advised by Legance and Milbank.
Palladium Equity-backed Kymera International, a specialty materials and surface technologies company, completed the acquisition of Fiven, a company specialized in silicon carbide, a material used a variety of industrial applications, from OpenGate Capital, a private equity firm. Financial terms were not disclosed.
“Thank you to the OpenGate team for their tremendous partnership throughout the entire process and to the hardworking team at Fiven for their contributions. Our close collaboration with OpenGate propelled Fiven’s position as a global leader within the industry, and we are excited about the company’s future with Kymera,” Falk Ast, Fiven CEO.
Interconnected Ventures, an investment company founded by Kylian Mbappé, agreed to acquire a majority stake in Stade Malherbe Caen, a French professional football team, from Oaktree Capital Management, an American global asset management firm. Financial terms were not disclosed.
"As the lead investor in this project, we are very excited to continue the development of Stade Malherbe Caen, alongside PAC Invest. Our shared vision with the club of sporting excellence and community engagement is at the heart of our approach. We are determined to create an environment where young talents can flourish and where the club can defend its identity with strength and ambition," Ziad Hammoud, Interconnected Ventures CEO.
Interconnected Ventures is advised by Deloitte and Bredin Prat. Oaktree Capital Management is advised by Tifosy Capital & Advisory and Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer. PAC Invest is advised by Grandeur Company (led by Iris Alameddine), Jeausserand Audouard, and Mayer Brown.
UK's John Wood Group on July 31 extended the deadline by which Dubai-based engineering and consulting firm Sidara would need to make a firm offer for the company to not later than August 9, Reuters reported.
Sidara had previously approached Scotland-based Wood Group thrice across May and June, taking the offer from £0.205 ($0.263) to £0.230 ($0.295), which it had said would be its final offer. The first three offers were rejected by Wood over concerns around valuation and future prospects. Sidara had received a deadline extension twice over June and July to make a final offer for Wood Group.
SEB Kort Bank, a corporate payment solutions provider, completed the acquisition of AirPlus, a provider within corporate payment services, from Lufthansa, a company that provides passenger and cargo air transportation services worldwide, for €450m ($487m).
“We are pleased to have found a strong new owner for AirPlus from the financial industry. SEB Kort brings along a great amount of experience in the payment business and has the full support of the AirPlus management. AirPlus is perfectly positioned in the market and, as part of a larger financial group, will be able to realize its potential better than in the Lufthansa Group. In turn, it enables us to focus even more on further improving the profitability and capital return of the Lufthansa Group core business. My thanks go to the employees of AirPlus. They have made their company a global leader in B2B payment services,” Remco Steenbergen, Lufthansa CEO.
Blackstone and Rivean Capital-backed Enstall, a rooftop solar mounting solutions provider, agreed to acquire Schletter Group, a solar mounting systems provider.
Financial terms were not disclosed. “On behalf of the Enstall team, I would like to welcome all Schletter employees to the Enstall family. Schletter is the long-standing solar mounting champion of Germany, with a strong reputation for quality and innovation. We are looking forward to combining our expertise to achieve our shared vision of accelerating solar adoption to deliver solar, sooner,” Stijn Vos, Enstall CEO.
Brookfield, an investment management company, agreed to acquire the thermal management business of nVent, an electrical connection and protection solutions provider, for $1.7bn.
“Thermal Management is a leader in electric heat management solutions with a strong, experienced team that is focused on delivering innovative solutions to customers. Consistent with our strategy, the sale represents a significant step to nVent becoming a higher growth and more focused electrical connection and protection leader, well positioned with the megatrends of electrification, sustainability and digitalization,” Beth Wozniak, nVent Chairman and CEO.
nVent is advised by Goldman Sachs and Foley & Lardner.
Buyout firms circle Carlyle's €2bn Forgital. (FS)
Bain Capital and Cinven are among buyout firms studying Forgital Group, an Italian manufacturer of forged components mainly for the aerospace sector, Bloomberg reported.
Blackstone and Warburg Pincus are also among the interested parties for the business, which could be valued at as much as €2bn ($2.2bn) in a sale. The asset could also attract other companies in the same industry.
Hedge fund tycoon Marshall closes in on deal for Spectator. (FS)
Hedge fund tycoon Paul Marshall is closing in on a deal to buy the Spectator magazine from Abu Dhabi-backed RedBird IMI, which is selling the title as well as the Telegraph newspapers, Reuters reported.
A deal with Marshall, via his fund Old Queen Street Ventures, could be wrapped up this month, while the sale of the Daily Telegraph and Sunday Telegraph will likely take longer as there is a broader field of potential bidders.
Fosun's Fidelidade weighs new attempt at hospital operator IPO.
Fidelidade-Companhia de Seguros, an insurer controlled by Fosun International of China, is evaluating a possible new attempt at doing an initial public offering of its Portuguese hospital operator unit Luz Saude, Bloomberg reported.
"We're now assessing market conditions to see if it makes sense to, in a few months, go back to the market with a potential IPO. We're talking frequently to banks and advisers who come to us and basically give us their perspective of what they think is best," Rogerio Campos Henriques, Fidelidade CEO.
APAC
Alcoa, a global company specializing in bauxite, alumina and aluminum products, completed the acquisition of Alumina, a company that invests in bauxite mining, alumina refining and aluminium smelting, for $2.2bn.
“Alcoa is proud to announce the completion of our first major acquisition. The acquisition of Alumina Limited strengthens Alcoa's position as one of the world’s largest bauxite and alumina producers and is expected to result in long-term value creation from greater financial and operational flexibility. I want to thank both the Alcoa and Alumina Limited teams, and our advisors, for full cooperation and diligence in closing this transformational transaction on a very tight schedule,” William F. Oplinger, Alcoa President and CEO.
Renesas Electronics, a Japanese semiconductor manufacturer, completed the acquisition of Altium, an Australian-listed software maker, for $5.7bn.
"This is a pivotal moment for Altium and marks the beginning of an exciting future with Renesas. With Renesas’ support and expertise, we are looking forward to accelerating the cloud-enablement of all industry processes associated with electronics design and development. This will make electronics accessible to a broader market and lay the foundation for software defined products,” Aram Mirkazemi, Altium CEO.
Altium was advised by JP Morgan, King & Wood Mallesons, Reed Smith and GRACosway (led by Ben Wilson). Renesas Electronics was advised by Deutsche Bank, Covington & Burling, DLA Piper, Nagashima Ohno & Tsunematsu and Stikeman Elliott (led by D'Arcy Nordick).
Hong Kong WinHealth Pharma Group, a biotechnology company, providing novel therapies to patients with rare diseases, agreed to acquire the China business of Kyowa Kirin, a global specialty pharmaceutical company that applies biotechnologies to discover and deliver novel medicines, for $100m.
"Guided by our 'Story for Vision 2030', we have developed a strategy to continue delivering life-changing value and shape the future of Kyowa Kirin. We have defined our focus disease areas and identified opportunities to maximize the value of our products through in-house efforts and strategic partnerships. Recognizing the increasing challenges in the APAC region, we have made the difficult decision to restructure our APAC business, to ensure continued access to our medicines for patients, securing the future for as many of our employees as possible and ensuring sustainability. This transformation will enhance our efficiency and agility, empowering our team to make a great impact on patient lives and make people smile," Abdul Mullick, Kyowa Kirin Chief International Business Officer.
IFC proposes up to $150m investment in HDFC Capital's real estate fund. (FS)
World Bank Group member International Finance Corporation (IFC) is considering an investment of up to $150m in the latest real estate-focused fund of HDFC Capital, the real estate private equity arm of India’s HDFC Group, DealStreetAsia reported.
The IFC’s recent commitments to private real estate have focused on opportunistic and debt strategies in Asia-Pacific and sub-Saharan Africa.
Malaysian SPAC AEI CapForce II refiles for $100m US IPO.
AEI CapForce II Investment, a Kuala Lumpur-based special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) that targeting new economy in Asia, has refiled an application for an initial public offering (IPO) in the US, DealStreetAsia reported.
The company plans to raise $100m by offering 10m units for $10 apiece. Each unit consists of one share of common stock and one warrant, exercisable at $11.50. At the proposed deal size, AEI CapForce II Investment would command a market value of $129m.
Hunter Point Capital makes two senior hires in Asia. (FS, People)
Hunter Point Capital, an investment firm providing capital to alternative asset managers, has appointed SD Chu and Akira Takahashi as Managing Director, Singapore and Senior Advisor, Japan respectively.
Chu, who will focus on the Korean market, most recently served as Senior Relationship Manager at The Carlyle Group. Takahashi, who will focus on the Japanese market, previously held senior positions at Credit Suisse, where he built and managed Credit Suisse Asset Management in Japan for over two decades.
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