EMEA
Deutsche Bank-Commerzbank merger puts pressure on Olaf Schulz.
The nationalization of Privatbank, Ukraine’s biggest lender was unlawful, court says.
Italian court dismisses appeals concerning Vivendi's de-facto control over TIM. (FS)
Brembo family tightens grip with loyalty share scheme for M&A. (FS)
Conoco sells UK North Sea oil assets to Chrysaor for $2.7bn.
Pernod in talks with Elliot to improve profit margins and corporate governance.
Bain Capital and Carlyle continue talks on the acquisition of Osram. (FS)
Atlantia Group can't afford to get involved in Alitalia's rescue.
AMERICAS
Pinterest valued at $17bn in IPO.
Blackstone to shift from partnership to a corporation. (FS)
T. Rowe Price divests most of its Tesla shares.
Zoom closed first day of trading reaching $18bn valuation.
BlackRock's plan for Italy's Carige sees higher cash injection. (FS)
Uber nears investment deal for a self-driving unit, expected to be valued at $7.3bn. (FS)
Cerberus closes $5.1bn commitments for Global NPL Strategy. (FS)
APAC
GIC-backed Luckin Coffee raises $150m from BlackRock. (FS)
Mahindra signs deal with Ford Motor to make midsize SUVs in India.
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Latest Deals
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EMEA
Private equity firms HG Capital and CPPIB increased their stake in Visma, a leading provider of business-critical software to private and public enterprises in the Nordic, Benelux and Baltic regions, valuing the company at €6.5bn. Cinven, the global private equity firm, will sell its entire shareholding in Visma as part of this transaction.
"Working closely with Øystein Moan and his team over the last 13 years has been a pleasure. Quite simply they are a world-class team, and great fun to work with. They have built Europe's leading SMB SaaS business. This is a testament to their technical competence and willingness to invest early and consistently for the long-term in new technologies that, in turn, bring great benefits to their nearly 1m customers. Hg was able to recognize the potential of SaaS well ahead of most investors because of our longevity and focus on the sector. We are proud to have been by Øystein and Visma's side every step of the way on this exciting journey for the last 13 years and many more in the future." Nic Humphries, Hg Saturn Fund Senior Partner, and Head.
HG Capital is advised by Brunswick Group. Cinven is advised by Freshfields.
LVMH Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton and Belmond, owners, part-owners or managers of 46 luxury hotel, restaurant, train and river cruise properties, completed a definitive agreement for LVMH to acquire Belmond for $3.2bn.
“Belmond delivers unique experiences to discerning travelers and owns a number of exceptional assets in the most desirable destinations. Its heritage, its innovative services, its excellence in execution and its entrepreneurship resonates well with the values of the Group and is complementary to our own Cheval Blanc Maisons and the Bvlgari hotels' activities. This acquisition will significantly increase LVMH’s presence in the ultimate hospitality world.” Bernard Arnault, LVMH Chairman, and CEO.
Belmond was advised by Goldman Sachs, JP Morgan, Weil Gotshal & Manges, and Sard Verbinnen & Co. LVMH is advised by Credit Agricole, Baker McKenzie, DGM Conseil, Kekst & Company, Montfort Communications, and SEC and Partners.
NPM Capital, which supplies risk capital to medium to large-sized Benelux companies, acquired 35% stake in Ohpen, the first SaaS core banking engine in the world that runs entirely in the cloud, from Amerborgh, first and long-time investor. Financial terms were not disclosed.
Ohpen is the world’s first cloud-native core banking provider and became a market leader in the Dutch midsize banking market over the past few years. In the near future, Ohpen will extend its services to large banks and the pension market.
“The technology sector is an increasingly important focus point in our investment portfolio. Already, we have had Ohpen insight as one of the most promising technology companies that we have seen in the past few years. We are impressed with their achievements over the past ten years: a cloud-native core banking engine, an impressive customer base and a wonderful foundation for further growth. We are very enthusiastic about now being part of their future.” Rutger Ruigrok, NPM Capital, managing director.
The Dutch investment company Wagram Equity Partners acquired Creamy Creation, the new owner of cream liqueur manufacturer from Royal FrieslandCampina. Financial terms were not disclosed.
Creamy Creation has developed itself into a successful player in the segment of alcoholic cream liqueurs. The company has 84 employees. Creamy Creation will continue to develop and sell distinguishing cream liqueurs.
The transaction includes the production of cream liqueurs in Rijkevoort and sales office in Paramus. FrieslandCampina Ingredients wants to focus more on nutritional and functional solutions with its ingredients. It was also agreed between parties that Wagram will start producing canned cream for FrieslandCampina in Rijkevoort.
Wagram is advised by Deloitte, KPMG, Baker McKenzie, and De Brauw Blackstone Westbroek.
Deutsche Bank-Commerzbank merger puts pressure on Olaf Schulz.
Berlin’s political class calls it the “Scholz trap”: the predicament that Olaf Scholz, Germany’s finance minister, is in a month after the official start of merger talks between Deutsche Bank and Commerzbank.
Mr. Scholz is seen as instrumental in bringing about those talks, yet a tie-up could prove politically toxic for him. But with his talk last year of creating a “national banking champion” it was clear that — at the very least — the idea had his tacit support. In January, it was revealed that he and his deputy Jörg Kukies, a former Goldman Sachs banker, had spoken with Deutsche Bank representatives 23 times last year.
“I don’t understand how a Social Democrat can try to engineer such a merger when it’s clear it will cost at least 30k jobs,” Frank Schäffler, an MP from the liberal FDP party who is a member of the Bundestag finance committee.
The nationalization of Privatbank, Ukraine’s biggest lender was unlawful, court says.
The Ukrainian court stated that the process of nationalization of Privatbank, a bank with nearly 15m depositors was conducted in an unlawful way. Privatbank was nationalized by the Government of Ukraine in December 2016, after National Bank stated that the biggest lender is not solvent.
National Bank of Ukraine conducted 155.4bn hryvnias ($5.76bn) recapitalization Privatbank, after completing the process of nationalization. Nowadays, there is a big question about the future of this bank and the Ukrainian economy. As Privatbank ex-owner Ukrainian oligarch Igor Kolomoyskiy said: "I do not ask them (Ukrainian Government) to give back me Privatbank, but I will fight for my $2bn, that were "nationalized".
This could cause serious financial difficulties not only in the structure of Privatbank but, also, in the general economic situation in Ukraine, as the nationalization of Privatbank was one of the main requirements of IMF and EU to provide credit to Ukraine.
Italian court dismisses appeals concerning Vivendi's de-facto control over TIM. (FS)
An Italian administrative court confirmed a 2017 ruling by market regulator Consob which said French media group Vivendi was at the time exercising “de facto control” over Telecom Italia (TIM).
The court dismissed appeals submitted by both Vivendi and Telecom Italia challenging Consob’s decision. Vivendi, TIM’s top shareholder with a 24% stake, in 2017 controlled two-thirds of the Italian phone group’s board. Activist fund Elliott wrested board control away from Vivendi last May.
Brembo family tightens grip with loyalty share scheme for M&A. (FS)
Shareholders in Brembo approved a loyalty share scheme which would allow the family that owns the Italian premium brake maker to retain control as the company looks to expand through acquisitions.
Under the new scheme, investors will have two voting rights for each share held for at least 24 straight months.
“We consider this a useful instrument for an important acquisition,” Matteo Tiraboschi, Executive Deputy Chairman told the group’s annual general meeting, adding however that no deal was on the table at present.
Conoco sells UK North Sea oil assets to Chrysaor for $2.7bn.
US energy group ConocoPhillips has agreed to sell its oil and gas assets in the British North Sea to private equity-backed Chrysaor for $2.7bn, Conoco said, making Chrysaor the biggest producer in the region this year.
Reuters had reported that Chrysaor and Conoco were close to sealing the deal at up to $2.8bn. The North Sea has undergone a major transformation in recent years, as long-standing producers have sold assets to smaller players such as Chrysaor who say they can squeeze more money out of fields due to their nimbler operations.
Pernod in talks with Elliot to improve profit margins and corporate governance.
Drinks group Pernod Ricard is having regular and “courteous” talks with activist investor Elliott, which made pressure on the world’s second-biggest spirits group behind Diageo to improve profit margins and corporate governance.
“There is a regular dialogue between the teams, but we do not see them more than other shareholders. My ambition remains to deliver on our strategic plan, that’s my motto,” CEO Alexandre Ricard said in a telephone interview to Reuters.
Bain Capital and Carlyle continue talks on the acquisition of Osram. (FS)
German lighting group Osram said that talks with Bain Capital and Carlyle Group were continuing after Manager Magazin said the private equity firms could walk away from a possible takeover.
The Munich-based group, which is grappling with weakness in the automotive industry and a broader economic slowdown, said that Bain and Carlyle were looking at whether to jointly bid for up to 100% of its shares.
“We are currently in good talks with Bain Capital and Carlyle. Nothing has changed there,” the spokesman told Reuters.
Atlantia Group can't afford to get involved in Alitalia's rescue.
Italian infrastructure group Atlantia cannot afford at present to deal with a difficult issue such as possible involvement in the rescue of ailing carrier Alitalia, Chief Executive Giovanni Castellucci said.
“We have many open fronts, we can’t afford to open a further - particularly complex - one,” he told the annual general meeting when asked about press reports saying the group could take part in the relaunch of Alitalia.
Atlantia, which operates Rome’s Fiumicino airport, hopes the airline will be rescued and restructured to be able to compete with rivals, Castellucci said.
AMERICAS
Canopy Growth and Acreage Holdings announced an agreement that grants Canopy Growth the right to acquire 100% of the shares of Acreage, with a requirement to do so at such time as cannabis production and sale becomes federally legal in the United States, subject to obtaining the requisite prior approval of the shareholders of each of Acreage and Canopy Growth, respectively, as well as the approval of the Supreme Court of British Columbia for $3.4bn.
“Today we announce a complex transaction with a simple objective. Our right to acquire Acreage secures our entrance strategy into the United States as soon as a federally-permissible pathway exists. By combining Acreage’s management team, licenses and assets with Canopy Growth’s intellectual property and brands, there will be tremendous value creation for both companies’ shareholders.” Bruce Linton, Canopy Growth Chairman, and co-CEO.
Canopy Growth is advised by Cassels Brock & Blackwell, Paul Hastings, PwC, EY, and Greenhill & Co. Acreage is advised by DLA Piper, Cozen O’Connor, Canaccord Genuity, INFOR Financial, and Stikeman Elliott.
Thoma Bravo, a leading private equity investment firm, closed the acquisition of Ellie Mae in an all-cash transaction that values target at an aggregate equity value of approximately $3.7bn.
Under the terms of the agreement, all Ellie Mae shareholders will receive $99 in cash per share. The price per share represents a 47% premium.
“Ellie Mae delivers powerful and innovative mortgage technology solutions across every channel of the residential mortgage sector, enabling lenders to originate more loans while reducing costs and driving efficiency, quality, and compliance throughout the mortgage process. Ellie Mae is leading the digital transformation of the residential mortgage industry and we look forward to building on the company’s successes and to our partnership through this next chapter of growth.” Holden Spaht, Thoma Bravo Managing Partner.
Ellie Mae is advised by JP Morgan, Cooley, and Skadden, Arps Slate Meagher & Flom. Thoma Bravo is advised by Jefferies & Company and Kirkland & Ellis.
Stifel Financial has acquired Mooreland Partners, a leading independent M&A and private capital advisory firm serving the global technology industry. Financial terms were not disclosed.
Mooreland Partners has successfully completed more than 250 M&A and capital raising transactions for mid-market clients principally in North America and Europe, across all major verticals in the technology ecosystem. Mooreland Partners has built a strong reputation with the private equity and venture capital community as a collaborative firm with deep domain knowledge and a strong track record of completing domestic and cross-border M&A transactions.
“Technology is a sector that has been, and continues to be, a cornerstone of Stifel’s investment banking platform. Through this combination, we are doubling the size of our overall technology practice and significantly enhancing our presence in Europe and Silicon Valley.” Brad Raymond, Stifel Global Head of Investment Banking.
Pinterest valued at $17bn in IPO.
Pinterest, the social media site based in San Francisco, priced its shares at $19 each, raising $1.4bn. Pinterest’s initial public offering set the online scrapbook company’s valuation at $17bn, above its expectations and a sign of strength for the tech IPO market after Lyft’s struggles.
Pinterest, where users save ideas for clothes, décor, and recipes, is due to start trading on the New York Stock Exchange. Its performance will be a key test of the tech IPO market after the Nasdaq debut of ride-hailing start-up Lyft at the end of last month.
Blackstone to shift from partnership to a corporation. (FS)
Blackstone said that it would convert to a corporation, ditching a partnership status that has shielded much of its income from corporate taxation after concluding that tax cuts meant the complex structure was no longer worth the trouble.
The world’s biggest private equity fund is following the lead of rival KKR, which enjoyed a share price pop and saw its stock added to a dozen index funds after making a similar move last year, Financial Times reported.
Blackstone shares rose more than 8% in pre-market trade to $39 as investors, cheered by the restructuring, brushed off earnings numbers that came in below analysts’ expectations.
Stephen Schwarzman, Blackstone’s billionaire founder, said that opting to become a corporation rather than a partnership would free shareholders from “irksome” tax filing requirements, at the cost of adding to the group’s tax bill.
“The reason we're accepting [the higher taxes] is we think that the value for our shareholders of our stock appreciating should be much higher than that loss of current income,” Mr. Schwarzman.
T. Rowe Price divests most of its Tesla shares.
T. Rowe Price, once the second-largest investor in Tesla after Chief Executive Officer Elon Musk, has shed most of its stake in the electric carmaker in a series of transactions over the last two quarters.
Funds managed by T. Rowe Price Group owned a 10% stake in Tesla as of September. It sold roughly half of that stake in the quarter ended December and 92% of its remaining stake in the following quarter.
Tesla has been plagued with problems for the last several quarters, ranging from production hurdles for its Model 3 sedans to Musk’s brush off with securities regulators.
Zoom closed first day of trading reaching $18bn valuation.
Zoom Video Communications has priced its IPO at $36 a piece and is set to begin trading today on the NASDAQ. Shares in Zoom shot up 72% to end their first day of trading at $62. The closing prices valued Zoom at $18bn based on a full-diluted share count. The San Jose company initially planned to price shares at between $28 and $32 but upped its range earlier this week due to high demand.
The profitable tech unicorn was founded by Eric Yuan, who holds more than 18% of a company that had raised just over $160m in VC financing since it launched in 2011. Emergence Capital Partners, which holds a 12% pre-IPO stake, first invested in Zoom back in 2015. Zoom's business has been growing at breakneck speed and exceeded 5 billion monthly meeting minutes this year.
BlackRock's plan for Italy's Carige sees higher cash injection. (FS)
Troubled Italian bank Carige could need a larger-than-expected cash injection of at least €700m ($791m) under a rescue plan put forward by US asset manager BlackRock, Reuters reported.
Temporary administrators appointed by the European Central Bank to run Carige are trying to find a buyer for Italy’s 10th-largest bank by mid-May after its top shareholder derailed an industry-financed rescue by blocking a €400m ($452m) cash call in December.
Uber nears investment deal for a self-driving unit, expected to be valued at $7.3bn. (FS)
Uber Technologies is nearing a deal with a group, including SoftBank Group, to invest in its self-driving car unit to be valued at $7.25bn, the Wall Street Journal reported.
SoftBank, Toyota Motor and Japanese auto-parts supplier Denso are expected to invest a total of $1bn as part of the deal, which could be announced in the next few days.
Cerberus closes $5.1bn commitments for Global NPL Strategy. (FS)
Cerberus Capital Management, a global leader in alternative investing, announced the close of approximately $5.1bn of commitments for its global non-performing loan strategy.
Cerberus Global NPL Fund initially targeted $3.5bn in commitments and closed approximately $4.1bn of commitments from existing and new limited partners. In addition to the Global NPL Fund, Cerberus raised over $1bn of commitments in separately managed accounts for its global NPL strategy.
“We have built an industry-leading NPL platform with the expertise, resources, and scale to partner with leading banks and provide best-in-class servicing. We are uniquely positioned to benefit from the strong NPL opportunities around the world and we look forward to continuing to be a trusted, strategic partner to financial institutions.” Lee Millstein, Cerberus Global Investments President.
APAC
GIC-backed Luckin Coffee raises $150m from BlackRock. (FS)
China’s Luckin Coffee, a self-declared challenger to Starbucks, has raised $150m in its latest round of funding from investors including BlackRock, which values the company at $2.9bn.
The investment, $125m of which came from a private equity fund managed by BlackRock, follows a $200m funding round in November that had increased the company’s valuation to $2.2bn, Luckin said.
The up-and-coming coffee chain with ambitions to challenge Starbucks in China is backed by investors including Singapore sovereign wealth fund GIC and China International Capital.
Mahindra signs deal with Ford Motor to make midsize SUVs in India.
Automaker Mahindra signed a deal with Ford Motor’s Indian unit to jointly develop midsize sports utility vehicles in India.
Ford and affiliate companies will invest 6.8bn rupees ($98m) for the development of the vehicles over a period of 10 years, Mahindra said.
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