AMERICAS
Hennessy Capital Acquisition IV, a special purpose acquisition company backed by Hennessy Capital, agreed to merge with Canoo, a company developing breakthrough electric vehicles, in a $2.4bn deal. Upon closing of the transaction, the combined operating company will be named Canoo and will continue to be listed on the Nasdaq Stock Market.
"Today marks an important milestone of Canoo's effort to reinvent the development, production and go-to-market model of the electric vehicle industry. Our technology allows for rapid and cost-effective vehicle development through the world's flattest skateboard architecture, and we believe our subscription model will transform the consumer ownership experience. We are excited to partner with Hennessy Capital and we are energized to begin our journey through a shared passion to deliver an environmentally friendly and versatile vehicle development platform to the market," Ulrich Kranz, Canoo Co-Founder and CEO.
Canoo is advised by Bank of America Merrill Lynch, Cooley and ICR. Hennessy Capital is advised by Nomura, Stifel and Sidley Austin.
Wind Point-backed A&R Logistics, a provider of supply chain services for the chemical industry, completed the acquisition of L.T. Harnett, a provider of bulk liquid transportation and logistics services to the chemical industry. Financial terms were not disclosed.
"We are very happy to welcome the LTH team to A&R and we congratulate Dr. Harnett and his team on the strong business they have built at LTH. Our recent acquisition of FCL was very well received among A&R's customer base, who urged us to complement our best-in-class dry bulk services with liquid chemical capabilities for many years, and we have been eager to continue building scale in this critical segment of the chemical supply chain. We are delighted to expand our liquid chemical capabilities, geographic coverage, and scope of services with the acquisition of LTH," Mark Holden, A&R CEO.
L.T. Harnett was advised by Livingstone Partners and Ice Miller. A&R Logistics was advised by KPMG and Kirkland & Ellis.
A group of investors led a $106m financing round in Chinook Therapeutics, a privately-held clinical-stage biotechnology company focused on the discovery, development and commercialization of precision medicines for kidney diseases. The round includes EcoR1 Capital, OrbiMed, Rock Springs Capital, Avidity Partners, Surveyor Capital, Ally Bridge Group, Monashee Investment Management, Northleaf Capital Partners, Janus Henderson Investors, Sphera Biotech, Versant Ventures, Apple Tree Partners and Samsara BioCapital.
"We're thrilled to have such a high-quality group of investors support our goal of building a leading kidney disease company to advance multiple clinical programs for IgA nephropathy and other rare, severe chronic kidney diseases with large unmet medical needs. Upon close of our proposed merger with Aduro Biotech, Chinook will be well-capitalized to move its pipeline programs forward towards its objective of providing meaningful results for patients and to prepare pre-commercialization strategies," Eric Dobmeier, Chinook President and CEO.
Chinook Therapeutics is advised by Evercore, SVB Leerink, William Blair & Co and Canale Communications.
Strategic Value Partners, a global investment firm, agreed to acquire OmniMax International, a manufacturer of aluminium, steel, vinyl and copper building products. Financial terms were not disclosed.
"Over the last five years, OmniMax has undergone a significant transformation on our journey towards long-term profitability and sustainable growth. Following a thorough review of strategic alternatives, SVPGlobal is the right partner to help enhance our competitive position, as we provide our customers with industry leading building products. SVPGlobal's support will allow us to further invest in expanding our markets and developing our product portfolio, while we continue to provide our customers the best-in-class products and service for which we are known," Richard Brown, OmniMax President and Chief Executive Officer.
OmniMax is advised by Joele Frank. SVPGlobal is advised by Greenbrook and Kekst CNC.
American Express, an American multinational financial services corporation, agreed to acquire Kabbage, a financial technology company providing cash flow management solutions to small businesses in the US. Financial terms were not disclosed.
"At Kabbage, we have always made the success of America's small businesses our primary objective. We have built a technology and data platform that provides them with the kind of capabilities and insights often reserved for larger businesses. By joining American Express, we can help more small businesses succeed with a fully digital suite of financial products to help them run and grow their companies," Rob Frohwein, Kabbage CEO.
American Express is advised by Sullivan & Cromwell.
Insight Partners, a global venture capital and private equity firm, completed a $60m investment in Keeper Security, a provider of a cybersecurity platform for preventing password-related data breaches and cyberthreats.
"The past four months have resulted in history's most pervasive cybersecurity challenge. As businesses have shifted their operations online and people have adapted to remote work and social distancing, cybercriminals have executed their attacks at record rates. It's forcing a rapid transformation and growth in the cybersecurity industry – one that is essential to safeguard people and businesses. With the support of Insight Partners and the planned synergy, we're well-positioned to bring new, unique and increasingly critical cybersecurity solutions to new and existing customers, globally," Darren Guccione, Keeper Security CEO and Co-Founder.
D1 Capital Partners, a global investment firm that deploys capital in both public and private markets, led a $200m Series G round in Robinhood, an American financial services company headquartered in Menlo Park, California. The round gave Robinhood an $11.2bn valuation.
"We believe investing at its core is a democratic concept — it allows people to take part in the success of a company or sector they believe in. With our latest round of funding, we'll continue empowering people in their financial lives and enabling a more democratic financial system," Robinhood.
Goldman Sachs Merchant Banking Division and Everstone Group, a private equity firm, agreed to acquire a stake in Infostretch, a digital engineering services firm. Financial terms were not disclosed.
"We're very pleased to partner with Goldman Sachs and Everstone Group to continue our aggressive growth and expansion. The expertise and reputation we have built over the last fifteen years has put us in the position to advance the digital initiatives of some of the world's leading companies and brands. This investment will enable us to build on those strengths and take advantage of the growing need for more innovative digital solutions in verticals like healthcare, financial services and technology," Rutesh Shah, Infostretch Co-Founder and CEO.
Warner Music Group, an American multinational entertainment and record label conglomerate, completed the acquisition of IMGN Media, a digital media company. Financial terms were not disclosed.
"WMG not only offers us greater investment and support, but an entrepreneurial environment to continue growing our business, with the people running our accounts having editorial independence. We're excited to partner with them as we take our company into the future," Barak Shragai, IMGN Media CEO.
Core & Main, a US distributor of water, sewer and fire protection products, completed the acquisition of Water Works Supply, a New Jersey-based waterworks distributor, serving industrial and municipal customers. Financial terms were not disclosed.
"This acquisition will allow us to expand our customer base in New Jersey and grow our reach to better serve customers throughout the state. We look forward to combining our teams and welcoming the folks at Water Works Supply into the Core & Main family upon closing the transaction," Jack Schaller, Core & Main President.
SoftBank makes big bets on Amazon, Netflix, Tesla and 23 other tech stocks.
SoftBank Group has unveiled a $1.2bn worth stake in the e-commerce giant Amazon, as the tech conglomerate expands its investing activities beyond its recent focus on unlisted startups.
Apart from the Amazon stake, SoftBank also built a stake of $475m in Alphabet and $249m worth of stake in Adobe. Other big bets include Netflix, Microsoft, and Nvidia, all between $180m and $190m, with nine other stockholdings around $100m, including Tesla, Shopify, PayPal, DocuSign, Zoom Video Communications, Square, Spotify, Paycom, and ServiceNow.
While SoftBank's investments were well-timed, the decision to put the cash in stocks shows an eye-opening appetite for risk that some SoftBank investors are likely to find worrisome. The cash from SoftBank's asset sales has been earmarked for stock buybacks and debt paydown. Stocks are a risky place to put those funds, Barrons reported.
Oracle weighs bid for TikTok's US business.
Oracle has entered the race to acquire TikTok, the popular Chinese-owned short video app that President Donald Trump has vowed to shut down unless it is taken over by a US company by mid-November, FT reported.
The tech company co-founded by Larry Ellison had held preliminary talks with TikTok’s Chinese owner, ByteDance. It was seriously considering purchasing the app’s operations in the US, Canada, Australia and New Zealand.
The entry of Oracle into the race provided ByteDance with a credible alternative to Microsoft’s offer. Microsoft has also seriously considered a bid to take over TikTok’s global operations beyond the countries it outlined this month.
Starboard Value seeks $300m for blank-check acquisition. (FS)
Starboard Value plans to raise $300m through a blank-check acquisition vehicle, becoming the latest major hedge fund to jump on this year’s frenzy for such deals, Reuters reported.
Starboard, which has $5.8bn in assets under management, said the new vehicle would be called the Starboard Value Acquisition. It will use the money it raises in an initial public offering to acquire a company that it has not identified in advance.
Apollo abandons talks to acquire Big Lots. (FS)
Private equity firm Apollo Global Management abandoned its talks to acquire Big Lots, an American retail company headquartered in Columbus, Ohio.
The talks collapsed due to terms tied to Big Lots' agreement to sell and lease back some distribution centres to Oak Street Real Estate Capital. The talks with Apollo are unlikely to be revived.
Amazon in talks to invest in Apollo-backed Rackspace. (FS)
Amazon is exploring a minority stake in the Apollo Global-backed Rackspace Technology, a cloud service provider.
A potential investment would strengthen the e-commerce's standing in cloud computing, and build on its partnership with Rackspace, which helps companies migrate their data to Amazon Web Services.
Canyon Capital raises stakes in Navient again after settling 2019 boardroom battle. (FS)
Canyon Capital Advisors have established a new position in the student loan servicer Navient, which could become the foundation for a second boardroom battle, after the two sides halted a proxy fight in 2019.
Canyon bought an additional 8m shares in Navient, crawling up to become Navient's fifth largest investor with a 4.13% stake.
Canyon is expected to raise its stake in Navient further, and might then use its renewed stake in the company to press on its issues from settling long-simmering lawsuits, to refreshing top management and even considering a sale of the company.
KKR's Academy Sports discretely files for IPO. (FS)
KKR-backed sporting goods retailer Academy Sports + Outdoors has confidentially filed paperwork for an initial public offering that could happen as early as this year. Along with the IPO, Academy Sports might also field any takeover interest.
In April, Moody's Investors Service downgraded Academy's rating deeper into junk territory to reflect "expectations that the company's approaching July 2022 term loan maturity, high leverage and expected Covid-19-driven earnings declines in 2020 would increase the likelihood of a transaction that Moody's could view as a default", Bloomberg reported.
Academy Sports is advised by Credit Suisse and KKR Capital Markets.
GTCR promotes Stephen J. Jeschke to Managing Director. (FS, People)
GTCR, a Chicago-based private equity firm, announced the promotion of Stephen J. Jeschke to Managing Director.
Mr Jeschke is currently a Director of Mega Broadband and CommerceHub. He was a Director of past GTCR investments AssuredPartners, Avention, Lytx and Rural Broadband Investments.
"Stephen's exceptional analytical skills, domain expertise and innate ability to develop strong relationships with management have contributed to his continued success at the firm. The firm's partners are excited to recognize his work and look forward to him playing an increasingly important role at GTCR," Dean Mihas, GTCR Managing Director.
EMEA
Veolia, a provider of optimized resource management, is set to acquire Osis, a sanitation networks maintenance firm, from Suez Group, a provider of environmental services, for $354m.
"The merger of SARP and Suez RV OSIS would position the Veolia Group as a major player in this field and would enable both entities to offer new services to their public, service and industrial sector customers and to cover the whole country," Veolia.
Suez Group is advised by DC Advisory and Racine.
Algeco, a modular space leasing business, agreed to acquire Temporary Space Nordics, a provider of temporary space solutions for public and private customers across the Nordic region. Financial terms were not disclosed.
"I am delighted to welcome TSN Group into the Algeco business. The Nordic market is particularly attractive to us and this adds significantly to our presence in Sweden, strengthens our positions in Norway and Finland and marks our entry into the Danish market," Mark Higson, Algeco CEO.
Gilde Equity Management-backed Raak Metals, a recycler of ferrous and non-ferrous metals, completed the acquisition of Stolwerk Metaal, a metal recycler in West-Brabant. Financial terms were not disclosed.
"In February 2020 we welcomed Gilde Equity Management as investor. Together we have embarked on a multi-year plan with the goal to grow the Raak Metals Group into one of the leaders in the Dutch metal recycling market. Joining forces with the well-known family business Stolwerk Metaal is a great step for us," Maarten van Raak, Raak Metals CEO.
Australia's Woodside matches Russia's Lukoil offer for Senegal oil project.
Australian petroleum exploration and production company Woodside Petroleum has exercised its right to match a $400m offer by Russia’s Lukoil to buy Cairn Energy’s entire stake in the Sangomar oil project in Senegal, Reuters reported. Woodside will make an upfront payment of $300m, along with contingent payments of up to $100m, funded from its current cash reserves.
The acquisition takes Woodside’s interest in the Rufisque, Sangomar and Sangomar Deep offshore joint venture to about 68%, making it the largest shareholder. It will remain as operator of the $4.2bn project.
Lukoil, which in July offered $400m for Cairn’s stake, is on a US list of sanctioned Russian firms, including for transactions related to deepwater oil projects. "The acquisition would remove the potential uncertainty of US sanctions applying to the Sangomar Field development,” Peter Coleman, Woodside CEO.
IHS Holding is exploring the biggest African IPO in the US.
Wireless towers operator IHS Holding is exploring a potential initial public offering, in a deal that could be the biggest listing ever by an African company in the US.
The timing, number of shares to be offered and price range of the proposed offering have not yet been determined. Any proposed offering would commence after the completion of a customary US Securities and Exchange Commission review process of a registration statement relating to the proposed offering and subject to market and other conditions.
IHS Holding is advised by Citigroup and JP Morgan.
APAC
Bain Capital, a private equity firm, agreed to acquire Nichiigakkan, a Japanese nursing-home operator, for $1.2bn.
Bain Capital closed its bid of $15 per share, neglecting interests of minority shareholders, as Baring Private Equity Asia offered to pay 20% more than Bain. After the completion, Nichiigakkan will be delisted.
Nichiigakkan is advised by Deloitte. Bain Capital is advised by Ropes & Gray. Debt financing is provided by Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group, Mizuho Securities, Nomura and SMBC Nikko.
Lens Technology, a Chinese technology company, agreed to acquire Topo Technology, a manufacturer and distributor of electronic products, and Meeca Technology, a manufacturer and distributor of metals, from Catcher Technology, a manufacturer of aluminium and magnesium die casting products, for $1.43bn. The transaction is expected to close by the end of 2020.
Catcher will continue to focus on developing current products lines, such as notebook and tablet casings, through investing in R&D, optimizing manufacturing technologies and product cost structures.
Hillhouse Capital, a private equity firm, agreed to invest $830m in JD Health, the pharmaceutical e-commerce platform of JD.com.
By leveraging Hillhouse Capital’s industry expertise and resources, JD Health will further strengthen its pharmacy supply chain capabilities and explore additional healthcare services opportunities in the broader healthcare sector.
Mukesh Ambani is on a shopping spree in race against Amazon.
Mukesh Ambani, Asia’s richest man who spent the early few months of the pandemic raising more than $20bn by selling stakes in his technology venture, is now on a shopping spree.
The Indian billionaire is looking to acquire several local online retailers to help expand product offerings, as he races to build his e-commerce platform and compete against Amazon.
Reliance Industries, Ambani’s oil, retail and telecommunications conglomerate, is in various stages of negotiations to either buy out or purchase stakes in Urban Ladder, an online furniture seller, Zivame, a lingerie maker, and Netmeds, which delivers medicine. There’s no certainty the deliberations may result in a deal, Bloomberg reported.
Allianz Real Estate acquires Tokyo residential assets for $160m. (FS, RE)
Allianz Real Estate, the real estate investment unit of German insurer Allianz Group announced that it has agreed to acquire a portfolio of Prime multi-family residential assets in Tokyo for $160m.
AREAP Core I, which will pay for the latest acquisition, is a strategic partnership between Allianz and South Korean pension fund manager National Pension Services. The partnership comes as Allianz continues to expand its portfolio in Asia.
BGI considers a $1bn Shanghai IPO for its equipment unit.
BGI Group, a DNA-sequencing giant, is considering an initial public offering of its equipment unit on Shanghai's Star board as early as this year.
The Shenzhen-based firm could seek to raise about $1bn by selling shares in its subsidiary MGI Tech. Deliberations are at an early stage, and the size and timing of the IPO could still change.
China's Arctech Solar targets to raise $206m in STAR Market IPO.
Chinese solar tracking and racking systems developer Arctech SOlar Holding is targeting to raise $206m in an initial public offering on Shanghai's STAR Market.
Arctech will use the IPO proceeds to develop its manufacturing base and research centres.
JW Therapeutics files for Hong Kong IPO.
Chinese biotechnology company JW Therapeutics is planning an IPO in Hong Kong, joining the rush of pharmaceutical and biotech IPOs in the city.
JW Therapeutics, a joint venture between American biopharmaceutical company Juno Therapeutics and Chinese biotech WuXi AppTec, files a draft prospectus with the Hong Kong Stock Exchange.
Konka to launch a $1.4bn government-led fund. (FS)
Konka Group has partnered with the government of Yangcheng, a city in east China's Jiangsu province, to launch a $1.14bn industry fund.
Yangcheng authority and Konka will serve as its limited partners by pouring in 59% and 41% of the capital, respectively.
The fund will invest in emerging economy business such as electronic information, semiconductor, internet, artificial intelligence, internet of things, advanced equipment and new materials.
Taicang authority sets up a $721m fund of fund. (FS)
China's Taicang authority has set off a $721m fund of fund in a bid to accelerate the development of the local new economy.
Taicang authority aims to nurture businesses in the fields of advanced equipment, new materials and biomedicine, as well as facilitate the semiconductor, AI, aviation, and optoelectronics industries.
MDI Ventures closed $500m later-stage tech fund. (FS)
MDI Ventures, the venture capital arm of state-owned telecom firm Telkom Indonesia, has closed a new $500m tech investment fund to bolster the digital transformation agenda of Indonesia's state-owned enterprises.
DealStreetAsia reported, the fund is fully derived from the balance sheet of Telkom Indonesia. It will be cutting checks from $5m to up to $30m to back later-stage companies.
MDI Ventures will use the funds to invest in Indonesia-focused companies. It will then seek to plug its portfolio into not just one state-owned parent company but all SOEs in the nation.
Lightspeed raises $275m for third India-focused VC fund. (FS)
Silicon Valley venture capital firm Lightspeed Venture Partners has secured a $275m in commitments for its third India-focused, Lightspeed India Partners III.
The corpus raised was within the fund's $250-$300m target range. With the latest fund, Lightspeed India Partners will continue to focus on seed and Series A investments to support founders and entrepreneurs from inception through growth stages, DealStreetAsia reported.
|
