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AMERICAS
Altas Partners, a North American private equity firm, completed the $1bn investment in Carlyle and Stone Point-backed Sedgwick, a claims management, loss adjusting and technology-enabled business solutions provider.
"Today marks a significant milestone for Sedgwick as we embark on our journey that brings together a strategic vision building on our global footprint, comprehensive service capabilities and new service offerings for decades to come. We are grateful to our team of investors for their continued support of our work," Mike Arbour, Sedgwick CEO.
Coterra Energy, a company engaged in hydrocarbon exploration, agreed to acquire Franklin Mountain Energy, a CO based company focused on investments & operations in the upstream and midstream sectors of O&G, and Avant Natural Resources, a privately funded oil and gas company, for $3.95bn.
“We are thrilled to announce the pending acquisition of two high-quality Permian Basin asset packages. These highly accretive acquisitions create an expanded core area in New Mexico that plays to Coterra’s organizational strengths. In addition to adding significant oil volumes in 2025, the acquired assets provide inventory upside to established and emerging oil-weighted formations,” Tom Jorden, Coterra Chairman, CEO, and President.
Coterra is advised by JP Morgan, PNC Financial Services, TD Securities and Gibson Dunn & Crutcher. Franklin Mountain Energy is advised by Jefferies & Company and Kirkland & Ellis. Avant Natural Resources is advised by Petrie Partners Securities, Tudor Pickering Holt and Kirkland & Ellis (led by John , P.C. Kaercher) .
Golden Gate, a private equity firm, completed the investment in Lovell Minnick-backed oneZero Financial Systems, a multi-asset enterprise trading technology solutions provider. Financial terms were not disclosed.
"Golden Gate Capital’s investment is a seamless extension of our beneficial relationship with LMP. This next stage investment, alongside LMP’s continued support, validates the clear opportunity we see to expand our role as a leading technology partner in the global OTC asset trading market. We're excited to partner with Golden Gate Capital, whose extensive resources and deep industry expertise will help us accelerate investment in our team and our organic product roadmap, while also expanding opportunities to grow the business through M&A," Andrew Ralich, oneZero Co-Founder.
oneZero was advised by Houlihan Lokey and Gunderson Dettmer Stough Villeneuve Franklin & Hachigian. Golden Gate was advised by Broadhaven Capital Partners, Paul Weiss Rifkind Wharton & Garrison (led by Jeremy M. Veit) and FGS Global. Lovell Minnick was advised by Prosek Partners.
Lynx Software Technologies, a software company, completed the acquisition of Core Avionics & Industrial, a provider of development tools, software libraries, and deployable software packages. Financial terms were not disclosed.
“Lynx’s vision is to build an ecosystem of IP that aligns with market-established open standards and partner-enabled capabilities to address the software challenges of the most demanding customers. With CoreAVI, we are taking a critical step toward the future of high-assurance computing as we expand into the GPU computing market for safety- and security-critical systems. By adding CoreAVI’s leading technologies for high-performance computing and graphics systems to the LYNX MOSA.ic suite of edge computing solutions, we are now able to provide a comprehensive suite of software solutions and services that enable our customers to deploy next-generation, certified technologies that include real-time safety control, cybersecurity, AI, autonomy, and computer vision capabilities,” Tim Reed, Lynx CEO.
Lynx was advised by Lincoln International, Skadden Arps Slate Meagher & Flom, Womble Bond Dickinson and Stanton PRM (led by Charlyn Lusk). Core Avionics & Industrial was advised by Fairmount Partners and Troutman Pepper.
Charter Communications, an American telecommunications and mass media company, agreed to acquire Liberty Broadband, a media company. Financial terms were not disclosed.
"We are pleased to announce this agreement today with Liberty Broadband. I am grateful for Liberty Broadband's strategic partnership since 2013, and particularly for the support of John Malone, Greg Maffei and our Liberty Broadband nominated board members. We look forward to their continued partnership and support in the coming years in driving value for our shareholders," Chris Winfrey, Charter President and CEO.
Charter is advised by JP Morgan and O'Melveny & Myers. Liberty Broadband is advised by Centerview Partners, Citigroup and Wachtell Lipton Rosen & Katz (led by Steven A. Cohen).
Wonder, a food delivery company, agreed to acquire Grubhub, a food ordering and delivery platform, from Just Eat Takeaway, a global online food delivery marketplace, for $650m.
"Wonder's acquisition of Grubhub continues our mission to make great food more accessible. As we enhance our customer experience with selection, speed, and variety, we're excited to soon offer a curated selection of Grubhub's restaurant partners directly in the Wonder app, alongside our owned and operated restaurants and meal kits. Bringing Wonder and Grubhub together is the next step in our vision to create the super app for meal time, re-envisioning the future of food delivery," Marc Lore, Wonder Founder and CEO.
May River Capital, a private equity firm, completed the acquisition of Cashco, a provider of highly-engineered pressure management solutions such as regulators, control valves, and tank safety equipment. Financial terms were not disclosed.
"This strategy represents our fourth platform in the flow control sector, our deepest area of experience. Cashco's leadership has built a tremendous foundation from which we plan to grow through further investments in new products, new markets, and complementary add-ons. We are excited to partner with Rahul, Clint, and the balance of the team to better serve Cashco's loyal base of global customers," Phil Ramsbottom, May River Principal.
Cashco was advised by Houlihan Lokey. May River was advised by BMO Capital Markets and Paul Hastings. Debt financing was provided by BMO Capital Markets.
Lone View Capital, a private equity firm, completed the acquisition of a majority stake in CargoSprint, a provider of innovative solutions for the cargo industry. Financial terms were not disclosed.
“I’m honored to step into the role of CEO and build on the incredible work that Joshua and the CargoSprint team have accomplished over the past 12 years. With this investment and partnership from Lone View, our customers can expect enhanced innovation and tangible value that improves their ability to serve shippers, importers and beneficial cargo owners globally," Caro Krissman, CargoSprint CEO.
Lone View was advised by Paul Weiss Rifkind Wharton & Garrison (led by Austin Pollet) and Edelman. CargoSprint was advised by Morris Manning & Martin.
Periscope Equity, a private equity firm, completed the investment in Reservoir Communications, a health care consultancy. Financial terms were not disclosed.
“The Periscope team shares our mission and vision in delivering best-in-class strategy, counsel and execution to our clients. They also embody the Reservoir culture and believe in the value of bringing our purpose-driven work to scale. They are the ideal partners for this next exciting chapter,” Robert Schooling, Reservoir Founder and President.
Reservoir Communications was advised by Clearsight Advisors and Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman. Periscope Equity was advised by Houlihan Lokey.
Stonepeak, an alternative investment firm specializing in infrastructure and real assets, agreed to acquire Boundary Street Capital, a specialist private credit investment manager focused on the digital infrastructure. Financial terms were not disclosed.
“We continue to see compelling investment opportunities within the credit space, especially as it relates to digital infrastructure, which has long been one of Stonepeak’s most active sectors. Over the last several years, we’ve made thoughtful investments to further build out our credit platform, including the addition of Michael Leitner as a Senior Managing Director in 2023. As we have built out the broader credit organization and successfully deployed capital across the capital stack into world-class infrastructure portfolio companies, the team has continued to excel. The acquisition of Boundary Street is a natural next step in the growth of the firm and the evolution of Stonepeak Credit. We are excited for what this transaction means for our limited partners and look forward to having the Boundary Street team onboard," Jack Howell, Stonepeak Co-President.
Boundary Street is advised by Hogan Lovells. Stonepeak is advised by Paul Weiss Rifkind Wharton & Garrison (led by James King) and Simpson Thacher & Bartlett.
DemandScience, a B2B revenue intelligence and demand generation company, completed the merger with Terminus, an account-centric platform for revenue growth. Financial terms were not disclosed.
“We helped thousands of marketers and sellers across the globe exceed their goals and drive meaningful, predictable revenue growth. As a result of this strategic combination, we are bringing to market the most powerful B2B revenue marketing platform available to support the entire buyer’s journey from top of funnel to successful close. To date, both companies have succeeded independently in large part due to their respective dedicated team members and exceptional customers, and now that we have combined forces, we will strive to scale rapidly to meet market demands," Peter Cannone, DemandScience CEO.
Terminus was advised by Raymond James. DemandScience was advised by JP Morgan.
The Select Group, a North American technology consulting firm, completed the acquisition of Bluehawk Consulting, a Washington-based technology and business consulting firm. Financial terms were not disclosed.
“Bluehawk’s talented leadership team has built a premier technology consulting business that has a remarkable reputation with its enterprise clients. Bluehawk’s approach mirrors our own dedication to delivering deep expertise and a consultative partnership to ensure our clients achieve project success. Importantly, the acquisition diversifies our portfolio, bolsters our industry footprint, and accelerates our growth trajectory,” George Karakostantis, TSG CEO.
Bluehawk Consulting was advised by Houlihan Lokey. The Select Group was advised by ClearEdge Marketing (led by Michelle Meek).
Nihon Kohden, a provider of medical device innovation for high-precision patient monitoring and diagnostics, completed the acquisition of a 71.4% stake in NeuroAdvanced, a medical equipment manufacturing company. Financial terms were not disclosed.
“This acquisition represents a pivotal step in advancing critical solutions for epilepsy care. By uniting our strengths, we’re enhancing our ability to provide end-to-end support for epilepsy—from accurate diagnosis to advanced interventions,” Roy Sakai, Nihon Kohden President.
Nihon Kohden was advised by Beyond Fifteen Communications (led by Leslie Licano).
Herbert Smith Freehills, a global law firm, agreed to acquire Kramer Levin, a full-service law firm headquartered in New York. Financial terms were not disclosed.
"This is transformational. We have long been committed to expanding our offering in the US and Kramer Levin is the perfect fit. The combination delivers immediate growth for both firms from day one," Rebecca Maslen-Stannage, Herbert Smith Freehills Chair and Senior Partner.
Herbert Smith is advised by Brunswick Group.
Wren House, a global infrastructure investment firm, and QTS Realty Trust, a global data center services provider, formed a joint venture. Financial terms were not disclosed.
“We are excited to partner with QTS to support this high-quality data centre portfolio. This partnership marks our third investment in the digital space and highlights our strong conviction in the accelerating demand for data centre services. This fifth acquisition in the US furthers Wren House’s commitment to the North American market and further diversifies our growing global portfolio," Philippe Busslinger, Wren House CEO.
QTS Realty Trust was advised by Citigroup.
Russel Metals, a Canadian metals distribution and processing company, agreed to acquire Tampa Bay Steel, a steel distribution and metal processing company, for $79m.
"Our approach to acquisitions is to focus on opportunities that are complementary from a product mix and geographic perspective, but also aligned with our performance-based and decentralized culture. We believe that the transaction is a strong fit as it will allow us to extend our footprint into the Florida market with an experienced management team and a culture that is aligned with ours. In addition, Tampa Bay Steel has invested approximately $20m in value-added equipment and facility expansion over the past three years, and has a platform for further growth within the Florida market. We look forward to having the Tampa Bay Steel employees join the Russel family," John Reid, Russel Metals President and CEO.
Mucci Farms, a grower and marketer of fresh produce, completed the acquisition of Greenhill Produce, a state-of-the-art, nearly 150-acre greenhouse facility. Financial terms were not disclosed.
"We've had the privilege of working closely with Greenhill for many years, so we know firsthand the exceptional quality of both their facilities and their crops. Bringing Greenhill into the Mucci family enhances our supply chain to offer more reliable supply for our partners," Bert Mucci, Mucci Farms CEO.
Investment firm Aethon explores options for $10bn US natgas assets. (FS)
US energy-focused investment firm Aethon Energy Management is exploring options for its natural gas production and midstream assets that include a sale or an initial public offering at a valuation of about $10bn, including debt.
The deal deliberations come as the boom in artificial intelligence and data centers is driving up demand for power, which in turn is boosting the prospects of gas producers, Reuters reported.
ValueAct takes $1bn passive stake in Meta. (FS)
ValueAct Capital has taken a $1bn stake in Facebook parent Meta Platforms, Bloomberg reported.
The stake is passive and ValueAct currently has no plans to launch an activist campaign at the company. ValueAct could make the position public in a filing as soon as this week.
Microsoft’s gaming chief is still looking for acquisitions and sees future growth.
After a tough year, Microsoft’s video-gaming chief, Phil Spencer, is still looking at acquisitions and charting how to compete and partner in the markets for handheld game devices and mobile stores, Bloomberg reported.
Spencer noticed that deals adding geographic diversity, including in Asia, might be worthwhile. Buying another mobile company would add to titles Microsoft picked up in its $69bn acquisition of Activision Blizzard last year.
Citigroup CEO Fraser says it’s ‘game on’ for deals in the US.
Citigroup CEO Jane Fraser said that clients who’d been waiting on the sidelines to do deals are focused on moving forward with mergers and acquisitions as they see that scale is needed to compete, Bloomberg reported.
Clients were awaiting an “unlocking” before embarking on M&A and are now starting to ramp up plans in the wake of Trump’s election win. According to Fraser, it is a “scale game” across industries.
Klarna readies US IPO with valuation recovering from plunge.
Swedish payments firm Klarna has filed for an initial public offering in the US, ending months of speculation that the company was readying a stock market listing, Bloomberg reported.
Klarna confidentially submitted a draft registration statement to the Securities and Exchange Commission regarding the IPO. The number of shares to be offered and the price range have not yet been determined.
EMEA
Spanish bank BBVA is working on concessions aimed at securing regulatory approval for a takeover of rival Sabadell, Reuters reported.
Spain's competition watchdog CNMC said on November 12 that BBVA's hostile all-share bid for Sabadell, initially valued at €12.28bn ($13bn), must undergo a longer antitrust review that could extend the process well into 2025.
Volkswagen Group raised its investment in Rivian by 16% to $5.8bn, as the companies kick off their planned joint venture to develop electric vehicle architecture and software. Shares in the US EV maker, valued at over $11bn, rose nearly 9% in extended trading on November 12.
The companies said in June that VW would invest $5bn in Rivian - a lifeline for the loss-making EV startup that is gearing up to roll out a smaller, cheaper SUV called R2 amid high borrowing costs and slowing EV demand.
Alerion Clean Power, an electric industrial group, and Alperia, an energy provider, formed a joint venture. Financial terms were not disclosed.
Joint venture will develop and operate wind power plants with a total capacity of approximately 120 MW.
AviAlliance, an industrial airport investors and managers, agreed to acquire AGS Airports, a company that owns and operates the primary airports, from Macquarie, a diversified financial group, and Ferrovial, a company that operates in the infrastructure sector for transportation and mobility, for £1.53bn ($2bn).
"Over the past 10 years, Macquarie and Ferrovial have played a central role in unlocking our full potential. Their close partnership with the teams across our three airports ensured we had the support to invest in our passenger offering while improving our operations. We are grateful for their close stewardship and look forward to continuing to develop our services and beneficial impact on passengers and communities across the regions of Aberdeen, Glasgow and Southampton," Andy Cliffe, AGS Airports Chief Executive Officer.
Macquarie was advised by Credit Agricole.
Bitwise, a crypto index fund manager, completed the acquisition of Attestant, an institutional Ether staking service provider. Financial terms were not disclosed.
The deal brings Attestant’s team of 11 into Bitwise and marks a new venture for the Bitcoin ETF provider.
Thames Water confident over £3bn funding lifeline.
Thames Water signals progress in its efforts to stay afloat, but the water firm still has to win over investors in the face of regulatory opposition to its bill-raising plans.
The UK's biggest water firm revealed that those holding more than 75% of its less risky debt had agreed to the staged funding, saying that the deal should tide it over until at least October 2025.
Abu Dhabi’s $1tn fund rejigs strategy to speed up deals. (FS)
Abu Dhabi’s $1tn wealth fund is embracing an increasingly scientific approach to investing, leaning more on its own quant team to speed up decision-making as it seeks to bolster returns, Bloomberg reported.
Abu Dhabi Investment Authority is using a 125-person division of data scientists to guide in-house investing. As part of the broad changes, it’s also putting money more rapidly in private credit and has continued to ramp up allocations to private equity.
Germany says it can’t thwart potential hostile Commerzbank deal.
“A hostile takeover of a majority of Commerzbank shares could not be prevented by Germany given the bank’s public listing and its widely diversified shareholder base,” Jörg Kukies, German Federal Minister of Finance.
Starmer plans to leave scrutiny of Shein IPO to UK regulator.
The UK government plans to leave scrutiny of Shein’s pursuit of a stock listing in London to the country’s financial regulator, sparing the Chinese fast-fashion retailer the sort of in-depth review of its employment practices that some in the Labour Party want, Bloomberg reported.
Ministers intend to take a hands-off approach to the possible public offering on the London Stock Exchange, believing that the Financial Conduct Authority has robust enough processes to assess any concerns about labor practices in Shein’s operations and supply chain.
AshGrove Capital closes Fund II at €650m hard cap. (FS)
AshGrove Capital, an independent pan-European speciality lender, has held the final close of AshGrove Speciality Lending Fund II at its hard cap of €650m ($832m), surpassing its original target of €500m ($640m).
Fund II achieved a 107% re-up rate among existing limited partners as well as securing over €325m ($416m) in new capital commitments. In addition to strong European support, over 40% of Fund II capital comes from US-based investors.
AshGrove Specialty Lending Fund II was advised by Rede Partners and Weil, Gotshal & Manges.
APAC
Pacific Smiles board recommends against Genesis' $207m revised offer. (FS)
Australia's Pacific Smiles recommended its shareholders reject Genesis Capital's "best and final" takeover offer of AUD316m ($207m), citing valuation concerns, Reuters reported.
US-based private equity firm Genesis, which is the top shareholder of Pacific Smiles with a 19.9% stake, increased its offer for the dental company earlier this week to AUD1.98 ($1.3) per share for all the shares it does not currently hold.
Pacific Smiles is advised by Greenhill & Co, Corrs Chambers Westgarth, Gilbert + Tobin, Citadel Magnus (led by Peter Brookes) and MorrisBrown Communications (led by Olivia Brown). Genesis Capital is advised by Jarden and Clifford Chance (led by David Clee). Crescent Capital is advised by A&O Shearman (led by Jamie Palmer).
BioNTech to acquire Biotheus for $950m.
BioNTech, a clinical-stage biotechnology company, agreed to acquire Biotheus, a Chinese cancer drugmaker, for $950m.
“The acquisition of Biotheus builds on our successful ongoing collaboration on BNT327/PM8002 and other investigational bispecific antibodies. We believe that BNT327/PM8002 has the potential to set a new standard of care in multiple oncology indications, surpassing traditional checkpoint inhibitors. We are committed to advancing its research and development in combination with our investigational mRNA vaccines, targeted therapies, and immunomodulators with the aim of enhancing outcomes for patients with solid tumors," Ugur Sahin, BioNTech CEO and Co-Founder.
Japan's Kansai Electric to raise up to $3.3bn including from issue of new shares.
Japanese utility Kansai Electric Power plans to raise JPY504.9bn ($3.3bn), which includes a public offering of about 148m new shares, DealStreetAsia reported.
The company plans to use JPY239.9bn ($1.56bn) to improve energy efficiency and for decarbonisation, while some other funds would be used for data centres, renewable energy and overseas investments, among other purposes.
Prosus gains $2bn on Swiggy investment with IPO value.
Tencent's top backer Prosus said it has made more than $2bn on its Swiggy investment as it continues to highlight the value of its portfolio outside of its stake in the Chinese tech giant, Bloomberg reported.
Prosus and its controlling shareholder Naspers invested $1.3bn building a 31% stake in Swiggy ahead of its stock market debut in India. The food delivery firm targeted an initial public offering valuation of up to $11.3bn.
Race for Japanese 7-Eleven owner heats up with founding family bid.
Japan's Seven & i has received a buyout proposal from a member of its founding Ito family, a potential $58bn white-knight bid as it weighs a rival offer from Canada's Alimentation Couche-Tard, Reuters reported.
The offer for Ito-Kogyo, a company linked to Vice President Junro Ito and a top shareholder in 7-Eleven owner, is non-binding and under review by the same special committee set up to assess Couche-Tard's takeover bid.
Bumi Armada is said to weigh buying MISC offshore energy assets.
Bumi Armada, an oil field services provider controlled by Malaysian tycoon T. Ananda Krishnan, is considering buying MISC's offshore energy business, Bloomberg reported.
Talks between the companies are at an advanced stage and a non-binding agreement may be signed as soon as this week. While details such as valuation are still being discussed, a potential transaction will likely involve a share swap that will give MISC a significant minority stake in Bumi Armada.
OCBC has enough capital for M&A and business growth.
Singapore’s Oversea-Chinese Banking Corporation has enough capital for both organic and inorganic growth according to CEO Helen Wong, Bloomberg reported.
OCBC has funds available for M&A opportunities as well as investing in its businesses from its wealth platform to artificial intelligence. The lender is also on track to maintain its 50% dividend payout ratio.
Swiggy’s India IPO defies weak market with 17% listing gain.
Swiggy's shares rallied in Mumbai on November 12 in one of the best debuts for a large initial public offering this year, driven by strong investor interest in India’s burgeoning quick-commerce space.
The food-delivery firm’s shares closed 17% higher than the offer price of INR390 ($4.6), despite a broader market selloff. The listing valued the company just over $12bn, Bloomberg reported.
CVC-backed FineToday to list on Tokyo’s prime market in December. (FS)
Japanese personal-care business FineToday will debut on the Tokyo Stock Exchange’s Prime Market in December, with an estimated market value of JPY219.4bn ($1.4bn) based on the indicative price, Bloomberg reported.
The CVC Capital Partners-backed company’s initial public offering may raise as much as JPY88.3bn ($573m) globally, including overallotment option, based on its indicative price of JPY2.15k ($14).
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