AMERICAS
Carl Icahn decided to move ahead with his effort to replace Occidental Petroleum's entire board by submitting nominations for as many as 14 directors. The candidate slate is designed to replace all ten members of the current board as well as fill new seats that might be created under Occidental’s bylaws. Icahn argued Occidental should launch a strategic review, including a potential sale of the combined company, once the Anadarko deal was completed.
Anadarko Petroleum was advised by Innisfree M&A, Evercore, Goldman Sachs, JP Morgan, Jefferies & Company, Vinson & Elkins, Wachtell Lipton Rosen & Katz, Joele Frank, and Sard Verbinnen & Co. Occidental was advised by MacKenzie Partners, Bank of America Merrill Lynch, Citigroup, Cravath Swaine & Moore, Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer, Brunswick Group, CBRE, and Moriah Real Estate.
Knight Therapeutics, a specialty pharmaceutical company, completed the acquisition of a 51.25% stake in Grupo Biotoscana, a Brazilian pharmaceutical company, from Advent and Essex Woodland for $144m. The price implies a 22.2% premium to GBT’s 30-day volume-weighted average share price as of October 18, 2019.
“We are happy to welcome the GBT team into the Knight family and are excited to begin working with them to become the partner of choice for biotech and pharmaceutical companies looking for a pan-American (ex-US) one-stop commercial solution,” Samira Sakhia, Knight President.
Knight was advised by RBC Capital Markets and Davies Ward Phillips & Vineberg.
Tech Mahindra, an information technology services and business process outsourcing provider, completed the acquisition of BORN Group, a digital transformation agency with a focus on customer experience and enterprise commerce solutions. Financial terms were not disclosed.
"We're delighted to welcome BORN Group to the Tech Mahindra family. The acquisition reinforces Tech Mahindra's focus on Digital and enhances our expertise in the Creative, Content, and Commerce space and establishes us as a significant player in the rapidly growing Electronic and Mobile Commerce segment globally," CP Gurnani, Tech Mahindra, Managing Director, and CEO.
L’Oréal, a cosmetic products manufacturer, is set to invest in Functionalab Group, an operator of aesthetic clinics. Financial terms were not disclosed.
"This strategic partnership with L’Oréal not only validates our leadership position in Canada, but also the unique positioning and attractiveness of our concepts and brands in the field of aesthetic medicine clinics. We are proud to be able to count on the support of L’Oréal to continue executing and accelerating our growth plan, including geographic expansion," Francis S. Maheu, Functionalab Group Co-Founder, and CEO.
AHIP to acquire 12 Premium Branded hotels for $191m. (RE)
American Hotel Income Properties REIT is set to acquire a portfolio of 12 well-maintained Premium Branded hotels for $191m. The transaction is expected to close during December 2019, at which point AHIP's portfolio will consist of 79 Premium Branded hotels.
The 12 hotels, totaling 1.2k guestrooms, are located across the United States and will significantly strengthen AHIP's geographic presence in Texas and the Midwest.
"We're very excited to complete a significant component of our 2019 capital recycling program by adding these 12 high-quality, mostly all-suite focused, recently built select-service hotels to our portfolio of Premium Branded hotels," John O'Neill, AHIP CEO.
Elephant VC looks to raise $350m for its third fund. (FS)
Elephant Partners returned to the fundraising market as it eyes $350m for its Fund III.
The Boston-based VC registered Elephant Partners III in regulatory documents submitted to the United States Securities and Exchange Commission.
The venture firm picked up $250m from 85 investors for its sophomore fundraise last year. Elephant typically targets businesses operating in the enterprise software, consumer internet, and mobile markets sectors.
BNDES to delay divestment of JBS shares.
Brazilian development bank BNDES delayed the sale of about $1.9bn worth of shares it holds in meatpacker JBS until January due to unspecified bureaucratic difficulties.
Hedge funds control 35-45% of the shares of German lighting group Osram, posing a headache for Austrian suitor AMS, as the investors may press for the $5bn offer to be sweetened, Reuters reported. An initial bid by AMS stumbled last month when it fell short of the necessary shareholder backing. Since then AMS lowered the acceptance threshold to 55% to try to get the deal over the line without raising the price.
“It appears that a number of hedge funds have acquired shares with the aim of selling them at a later date and at a higher price,” Olaf Berlien, Osram CEO.
Osram is advised by Lazard, Perella Weinberg Partners, Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer, Gleiss Lutz, and Hengeler Mueller. AMS is advised by PwC, Bank of America Merrill Lynch, HSBC, UBS, Herbst Kinsky, Linklaters, Allen & Overy, Schellenberg Wittmer, and Brunswick Group.
Fiat Chrysler Automobiles and the United Auto Workers agreed on a tentative agreement for a four-year labor contract, boosting the automaker as it works to merge with France’s Groupe PSA, Reuters reported.
The tentative deal with Fiat Chrysler is subject to ratification by the union members and follows contracts that UAW already settled with Ford Motor and General Motors.
Fiat Chrysler is advised by Goldman Sachs, d'Angelin & Co, Community Group, Image Sept, and Sard Verbinnen & Co. Bpifrance is advised by Willkie Farr & Gallagher. The Peugeot family is advised by Zaoui & Co. PSA group is advised by Messier Maris & Associes, Morgan Stanley, and Perella Weinberg Partners. EXOR is advised by Lazard.
The Unite Group, a student accommodation owner, completed the acquisition of Liberty Living, a student accommodation owner, from Canada Pension Plan Investment Board for $991m. CPPIB will retain a 20% shareholding in the combined group.
“Through this transaction, we are able to continue our investment in the student housing sector within the UK across a broader, more diverse, and stable portfolio and with additional development exposure, which fits well within our global real estate strategy. We look forward to working with Unite Students in combining these two excellent businesses to continue to provide affordable, high-quality student accommodation across the UK, and maintain strategic relationships with educational institutions,” Thomas Jackson, CPPIB Managing Director.
United Group was advised by JP Morgan, Numis Securities, Herbert Smith Freehills, and Powerscourt. CPPIB was advised by Morgan Stanley, Clifford Chance, and Finsbury.
Asterion, an investment management company, is set to acquire Aggregated Micro Power Holdings, a producer and supplier of electricity, for $82m.
"We are pleased to announce this recommended acquisition by Asterion, which represents the culmination of a successful journey for AMP Clean Energy. This transaction allows AMP Clean Energy shareholders to crystallize value through a cash offer at a premium to the current market value whilst providing AMP Clean Energy with the stable source of capital that it requires to move forward and achieve its ambitions," Neil Eckert, AMP Executive Chairman.
AMP is advised by Whitman Howard, finnCap, Evercore, and Travers Smith. Asterion is advised by KPMG and Herbert Smith Freehills.
Investment advisers ISS and Glass Lewis recommended shareholders to support the takeover of Eddie Stobart by private equity group Dbay Advisors.
Dbay offered to bail out the group with a high-interest loan of £55m ($71m), in return for a 51% stake in a subsidiary that runs Eddie Stobart’s haulage business. Eddie Stobart supported the Dbay offer, given its urgent need for capital during the busy Christmas period, FT reported.
Eddie Stobart is advised by Berenberg, Cenkos Securities, Rothschild & Co, King & Spalding, and FTI Consulting.
Codemasters, a video game developer, is set to acquire Slightly Mad Studios, a developer and publisher of racing video games, for $196m.
"We are delighted to bring such an incredible racing game developer to the Codemasters family, and this unequivocally establishes us as a global powerhouse in the development of racing titles," Frank Sagnier, Codemasters CEO.
Codemasters is advised by Jefferies & Company, Liberum Capital, and Alma PR.
The Italian broadcaster and the French media group could not reach a deal to end their long-running legal dispute before a court hearing on Friday. An Italian judge is set to decide on Vivendi's request to block Mediaset's pan-European project through MediaForEurope.
A Milan judge earlier this month gave the companies until November 29 to settle their disagreements over MFE after earlier attempts to reach an accord failed. Negotiations could resume, but the talks have been hampered by a deep mistrust between the two sides.
Mediaset is advised by Banca IMI, Citigroup, and Mediobanca.
Circle Health, a provider of medical and health care services, agreed to acquire BMI Healthcare, Britain’s most prominent private hospital chain. Financial terms were not disclosed.
The acquisition of BMI Healthcare, which is expected to be signed in December, is a significant expansion for the much smaller Circle Health, which has been owned by Toscafund and Penta Capital since it was delisted in 2017. The sale will create a UK private hospital giant with combined annual revenues of almost £1bn ($1.3bn) and 57 hospitals overall.
BMI is advised by Rothschild & Co. Circle is advised by Barclays.
Ethos Capital, a private equity firm, and Ethos Fund VII, a private equity fund, agreed to invest $91m in Brait, a company focusing on investments in privately owned businesses.
Participating in the Brait Equity Raise will provide Ethos Capital shareholders with access to a high-quality asset base that complements the company’s existing investments, adding sector, and geographic diversification. The potential unlocks of value through the Brait value realization strategy could provide strong capital flows to Ethos Capital over the medium term, which will have a positive impact on returns and liquidity.
Ethos Capital and Ethos Fund VII are advised by Rothschild & Co.
Daily Mail and General Trust, a newspaper publishing agency, is set to acquire The I newspaper from a multimedia company JPI Media for $64m.
The purchase from JPI Media will add a title with a weekday newspaper circulation of roughly 170k to Daily Mail and General Trust’s stable, which also includes the Mail on Sunday, Mail Online, and Metro.
“The ‘i’ has a different editorial style and tone to the Mail, and the audience has a different demographic. I want to make it absolutely clear that we will ensure that the editorial independence of the ‘i’ is preserved. Its readers value its distinctive style and politically neutral approach, and we are committed to maintaining that," Paul Zwillenberg, DMGT CEO.
Turkey’s banks and financial institutions agreed to acquire an 85.05% stake in JCR Eurasia, an international credit rating institution. Financial terms were not disclosed.
Borsa Istanbul will hold 18.5% of the company. Turkish private and state lenders, Ziraat Bank, GarantiBBVA, and Yapi Kredi, will also hold stakes. The Financial Institutions Association, Turkey’s Capital Markets Association, and the Insurance and Reinsurance Union will each hold 6% of the company.
EQT-backed Saur, a water services provider, completed the acquisition of a 51% stake in Riventa, a provider of industrial pump efficiency monitoring products. Financial terms were not disclosed.
“The combination of Saur vision and Riventa expertise promises a great deal in terms of successfully meeting the energy challenges faced by drinking water and wastewater systems. We look forward eagerly to working together on delivering immediately operational solutions to a diverse international customer base," Steve Barrett and Tom Clifford, Riventa Founders.
Clariant, a specialty chemical manufacturer is set to acquire a 10% stake in French cosmetics ingredients maker Plant Advanced Technologies. Financial terms were not disclosed.
The partnership brings PAT’s research strengths in discovering and producing precious compounds from plant roots together with the claim substantiation and the marketing and sales expertise of Clariant’s Active Ingredients business.
“We are delighted to join our forces with Clariant. Thanks to their vision, expertise, and knowledge, we will bring together new outstanding possibilities to the cosmetic market in terms of naturality, innovation, and performance," Jean-Paul Fevre, PAT President.
Koc, a holding company, agreed to acquire a 9% stake in Yapi Kredi, a Turkish bank, from UniCredit. Financial terms were not disclosed.
Under the deal, Koc will buy UniCredit’s 50% stake in Koc Financial Services, the joint venture which controls Yapi Kredi, to become the JV’s sole owner. At the same time, KFS will sell 31.93% of Yapi Kredi to UniCredit and 9.02% to Koc. KFS currently owns almost 82% of Yapi Kredi.
Cell C, a mobile network service provider in South Africa, rejected the takeover bid by Telkom, a semi-private network service provider. Financial terms were not disclosed.
“Telkom has received written notice from the Cell C board of directors rejecting its non-binding proposal. The Telkom Board continues to believe the offer is a compelling proposition that would have created significant value for all stakeholders, including Telkom’s shareholders,” Telkom.
Aramco IPO gets oversubscribed, reaching $44.3bn.
Saudi Aramco’s initial public offering attracted a total of $44.3bn so far from institutional and retail investors, about 1.7 times the amount the government is seeking to raise.
Institutional orders in the IPO included 54% from Saudi cooperates, 24.1% from Saudi funds, and 10.5% from non-Saudi investors.
The subscription period for institutional investors remains open to December 4.
Four insurers battle for Spanish market share with Caser takeover.
NN Group and Ageas, two insurance companies, are competing to obtain market share in Spain as they prepare final offers for controlling stake of domestic insurer Caser Seguros ahead of a December 3 bid deadline.
Switzerland’s Helvetia and Spain’s Santa Lucia are also striving for control of the 77-year-old company, which is backed by French insurer Covea and a series of Spanish banks.
The auction is expected to close before Christmas valuing the entire business at $1.3bn.
Investec expects £189m from asset management divesture.
Anglo-South African financial services group Investec expects to raise about £189m ($242m) from the divestment of ~10% of its asset management business, which will be renamed Ninety One when it is spun off in March, Reuters reported.
Investec, which manages more than £119bn ($154bn) in assets, announced plans for the separation last year, stating that the asset manager would be able to focus more on creating long term value away from Investec's banking and wealth operations.
Permira, North Face owner to join bidding for Golden Goose. (FS)
VF, a US apparel and footwear conglomerate, and buyouts firms Permira and Advent, are joining indicative offers for Golden Goose, an Italian shoe brand, ahead of a mid-December deadline, Reuters reported.
Golden Goose, owned by The Carlyle Group, makes luxury sneakers priced at roughly $440 a pair, and is being sold as part of an auction process led by Bank of America.
Cboe in discussions with EuroCCP over a potential takeover.
Exchange operator Cboe Global Markets is in talks about a possible takeover of EuroCCP, as the clearinghouse examines options for allowing its existing shareholders to adjust their stakes.
The talks raise the prospect of another significant deal in Europe's financial infrastructure market, following recent activity involving the national stock exchanges of the UK, Switzerland, and Spain.
MONETA in talks to acquire Wuestenrot's Czech business.
MONETA Money Bank is in discussions to acquire the Czech building savings and mortgage business of Germany’s Wuestenrot & Wuerttembergische, a financial services provider. The deal is to be signed by the end of the year. The acquisition will be financed by MONETA's own capital.
“This acquisition fits with the bank´s long term retail banking growth strategy," Tomas Spurny, MONETA Chief Executive.
John Elkann interested in acquiring De Benedetti’s media company.
John Elkann is in discussions to acquire a controlling stake in one of Italy’s most famous publishers, GEDI Gruppo Editoriale, the owner of daily newspapers including La Repubblica and La Stampa.
The board of CIR, the De Benedetti holding company, will meet on December 2 to discuss a possible deal. Elkann already owns about 6% of GEDI through Exor.
BlackRock holds first close of European Middle Market Private Debt Fund II. (FS)
BlackRock held the close of first European Middle Market Private Debt Fund II, its European direct lending fund, with €1.5bn ($1.65bn) in commitments.
The first close of EMMPD II exceeded the end of the previous fund. The fund received €1.5bn ($1.65bn) from 24 investors, with commitments of €1.2bn ($1.3bn) with a further €300m ($330m) in segregated mandates. The previous strategy held its final close at €1.1bn ($1.2bn).
Thomas Cook’s rescue saves 347 jobs.
FT reported that a business that serviced Thomas Cook’s aircraft is to be turned down, and parts of its French subsidiary sold, as the fallout from the UK travel group’s collapse continues.
A French court ruled that parts of Thomas Cook France would be rescued by a group of five other travel companies, saving 347 jobs.
Daito Trust Construction, a construction and real estate company is set to invest $74m in JustCo, a co-working space operator. Daito Trust will invest up to $24m to form a new Japan joint venture with JustCo to build and operate flexible workspace business in Japan.
“The investment from Daito Trust is testament to the long-term growth potential of the flexible workspace industry and JustCo’s sustainable growth and leadership in the region. The scale of the Japanese market opportunity will contribute significantly to the growth of JustCo. Japan is one of the key growth markets for us. We are confident of the strategic partnership with Daito Trust, given their long history in Japan, trusted reputation and local expertise," Kong Wan Sing, JustCo Founder and CEO.
SoftBank-backed FirstCry, an online shopping store for kids and baby products, is set to acquire Oi Playschool, an operator of playschools. Financial terms were not disclosed.
“We are very happy with the accomplishments Oi Playschool achieved over the years. It was a pleasure to work with the Company’s management team and LoEstro team, and we wish them continued success,” Supam Maheshwari, FirstCry CEO.
Korea's $145b wealth fund to shift to fixed income assets. (FS)
South Korea's $145bn sovereign wealth fund plans to add allocation of bonds to its portfolio, and cut shares globally to protect double-digit returns this year, DealStreetAsia reported.
Korea Investment, which was founded in 2005 to invest some of the nation's foreign-exchange reserves offshore, is turning "slightly defensive" Choi Heenam, Korea Investment CEO stated.
The fund, known as KIC, is repeating a trend among sovereign wealth funds globally, which are shifting toward fixed income as their most valuable asset class, marking the end of a five-year trend that favored equities.
General Atlantic and Blackstone are looking for a minority stake in India's Syska LED. (FS)
US-based private equity firms General Atlantic, Blackstone, and TA Associates have
shown interest in Syska LED Lights, which plans to divest a significant minority stake.
Promoters of Syska, India's LED lighting solutions provider, are seeking to sell 40-49% stake in the company at a valuation of $488-558m.
Syska LED is advised by Edelweiss.
Baoneng is among bidders for a 50% stake in PSA Group's Capsa.
Peugeot maker PSA Group is eyeing to the sale of a 50% stake in Capsa, a manufacturer of luxury automobiles under the DS brand. Capsa is the eight-year-old joint venture of PSA Group with its Chinese partner Chongqing Changan Automotive.
Chinese group Baoneng is on a list of possible buyers. The partners planned to continue building DS-branded cars at the Shenzhen plant.
Regulators approve Amazon's minority stake acquisition in Future Retail.
India's antitrust body approves a deal that would give Amazon a 3.6% stake in Future Retail, one of the largest retailers in the country. Financial terms were not disclosed.
Reuters reported that the Competition Commission of India approved Amazon’s purchase of a 49% stake in Future Coupons, an entity that owns about 7.3% of Future Retail.
India's ONGC abandons the plan to sell stakes in its petrochemical unit.
Unable to attract a strategic partner for ONGC Petro Additions, ONGC abandoned its stake sale plans for the petrochemical unit.
For over four years, ONGC has maintained that it was in talks with Saudi Arabia's Saudi Basic Industries and Saudi Aramco for selling a 26% stake in OPaL, DealStreetAsia reported.
Yes Bank seeks to rise up to $2bn in preferential new share issue. (FS)
Yes Bank, an Indian lender, is in talks on a deal to sell shares worth $1.2bn to Canadian billionaire Erwin Singh Braich and Hong Kong-based SPGP Holdings. The rest will be bought by private equity investors, helping the bank overcome its financial difficulties. The plan is subject to regulatory approvals.
Yes Bank said other investors who have committed to buying shares include Discovery Capital, Aditya Birla Family Office from India, and Citax.
GLP to launch a new $2.1bn China fund. (FS)
GLP, a global logistics provider, teamed up with a group of institutional investors to launch a new China fund with $2.1bn for investment opportunities in stabilized, income-generating new logistics assets, DealStreetAsia reported.
GLP China Income Partners I will focus on modern logistics assets located in China as the firm seeks to capitalize on increasing consumption levels in the country.
BlueRun Ventures gathers $498m for tech-driven startups in China. (FS)
BlueRun Ventures, a global venture capital firm with operations in the US, China, and South Korea, raised $498m for early-stage investments in advanced technologies in 2019.
BlueRun said that the capital would be invested in startups between pre-A to Series A with an average duration of 10 years. New technologies such as IoT, autonomous driving, medical services, and smart manufacturing will be the focus of its investments.
Australia to launch a $352m business growth fund. (FS)
The Australian government launched a $352m growth fund that will provide longer-term equity funding to small businesses in the country, DealStreetAsia reported.
The Business Growth Fund received a government commitment of $68m. Australia's four biggest banks – Commonwealth, Westpac, NAB, and ANZ – have also committed to match the government's commitment towards the fund. HSBC will put another $13.5m.
Gojek to close Series F round by Jan 2020. (FS)
Indonesian ride-hailing giant Gojek is planning to close its Series F round in January 2020, said its co-CEO Andre Soelistyo. The unicorn is projecting to raise c. $2bn for the round.
The first round of funding in January was led by Google, JD.com, and Tencent, valuing the company at $9.5bn.
Thai Beverage plans a potential $3bn IPO of its brewery business.
Thai Beverage is considering an IPO of its brewery business, in what could be the biggest listing in Singapore in close to a decade. The IPO could raise as much as $3bn.
A Singapore IPO of just over $2bn would make it the biggest in the city-state in about six years, while an issue of more than $3bn would rank it as the largest since 2010.
Bain Capital to plan IPO of Chinese data center operator. (FS)
Bain Capital, a private investment firm, agreed to plan an IPO of ChinData Group, a Chinese data-center operator. The private equity firm asked investment banks to pitch for a role in the share sale, which could take place next year. Any deal would value the company at more than $1bn.
Bain invested in ChinData earlier this year and merged it with existing portfolio company Bridge Data Centres to form a pan-Asian data-center platform. The combined group has facilities in China, India, and Southeast Asia.
Renault-Nissan to appoint a new general secretary to help reboot joint operations. (People)
Renault, Nissan and Mitsubishi plan to appoint a new general secretary who would help them boost cooperation and reboot the joint operations after the exit of Carlos Ghosn.
This move comes in the wake of Renault trying to repair its relationship with its Japanese partners, which was shaken after Carlos Ghosn was arrested based on allegations of financial misconduct.
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