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AMERICAS
Antarctica Capital, an international investment firm, completed the acquisition of Midwest, a technology-driven life and annuity platform, for $100m.
"Today marks the beginning of a new chapter for Midwest, and we are excited to work with the Antarctica team to fully capitalize on our market opportunity and drive future growth. This transaction was made possible by the outstanding contributions of our employees and partners, and we look forward to collaborating with Antarctica to grow and create further value for policyholders," Georgette Nicholas, Midwest CEO.
Midwest was advised by Insurance Advisory Partners, RBC Capital Markets, Fried Frank Harris Shriver & Jacobson, Lamson Dugan & Murray, Primmer Piper Eggleston Cramer and Reevemark (led by Paul Caminiti). Antarctica Capital was advised by Frohman Law Office and Kirkland & Ellis (led by Lauren Colasacco, Rajab Abbassi and Michael Amalfe).
Monomoy, a private equity firm, agreed to acquire Waupaca Foundry, an iron foundries company, from Proterial, a material manufacturer. Financial terms were not disclosed.
“Waupaca Foundry is excited to start a new chapter with Monomoy, an experienced, operationally-focused investment group, to continue to invest and grow our commitment to our customers, suppliers, and employees. The Waupaca leadership team looks forward to a bright future and the opportunities that can stem from this partnership. We are thankful for Proterial’s support and welcome the resources and partnership Monomoy will bring. Together, we will focus on capitalizing on opportunities to expand and grow the business in a wide range of sectors in the Americas, including the automotive, industrial machinery, agricultural machinery, and construction machinery sectors, while building upon our legacy of success,” Michael Nikolai, Waupaca Foundry President, CEO, and COO.
Monomoy is advised by BMO Capital Markets, Kirkland & Ellis and MiddleM Creative (led by Jan Morris). Debt financing is provided by BMO Capital Markets. Waupaca Foundry is advised by JP Morgan, Moelis & Co and Ropes & Gray. Proterial is advised by Stanton PRM (led by Charlyn Lusk).
JC Flowers, a private investment firm dedicated to investing globally in the financial services industry, completed a $125m investment in CFG Bank, a bank that provides financing and banking solutions to the national healthcare and multifamily industries.
"We are pleased to partner with JC Flowers and welcome Louis and Tom to our board of directors. As our business continues to grow, this investment will support our trajectory and enable us to maintain our big bank capabilities and expertise, coupled with our relationship-driven boutique bank service, that differentiate us in the market. For 30 years, we have embraced our entrepreneurial and personalized approach that has allowed us to execute creative, unique solutions to help our clients reach – and exceed – their goals. Through this partnership, we look forward to continuing our track record of consistent, profitable growth," Jack Dwyer, CFG Bank Chairman.
ShoreView Industries, a private equity firm, completed the acquisition of P&F Industries, a manufacturer and importer of air-powered tools and accessories sold principally to the aerospace, industrial, automotive, and retail markets, for $50m.
"The closing of this transaction represents the beginning of a new chapter for P&F, and we are excited for what the future holds. We are proud of the leadership position we have built and believe we are well prepared to advance our business and continue delivering high value tools for our customers with the expertise of the Shoreview team," Richard Horowitz, P&F Industries Chairman of the Board, CEO and President.
ShoreView was advised by Sidley Austin. P&F Industries was advised by East Wind Advisors, Ruskin Moscou Faltischek and Skadden Arps Slate Meagher & Flom (led by Richard Grossman).
Hub Group, a logistics company, completed the acquisition of Forward Air Final Mile, a trucking company, from Forward Air, a provider of surface transportation and related logistics services, for $262m.
“The FAFM team is excited to join Hub Group. FAFM and Hub Group share similar values and goals: striving to be the logistics provider of choice through reliability, integrity, and innovation. We believe Hub Group’s middle-mile and final-mile expertise, combined with our unique appliance delivery capabilities, will unlock significant value for our combined customers and through this combination we expect to accelerate our growth versus what we have each done individually in the past,” Scott Robider, FAFM Senior VP.
Hub Group was advised by Stephens and Winston & Strawn.
Anthelion Capital, a private equity firm, led a $135m Series D round in GreyOrange, an AI-driven fulfilment automation company, with participation from Mithril, 3State Ventures and Blume Ventures.
“GreyOrange’s technical and commercial advances reinforce our shared mission to bring game changing automation and productivity to retail. GreyOrange’s thoughtful implementation of their pioneering technology has earned the trust of the world’s largest retailers and logistics partners. GreyOrange is leading a major shift in productivity, safety, and novel forms of convenience that will benefit hundreds of millions of consumers,” Ajay Royan, Mithril Founder and Managing General Partner.
GreyOrange was advised by LeadCoverage.
Klabin, a paper producing, exporting and recycling company, agreed to acquire forestry business from Arauco, a wood pulp, engineered wood and forestry company, for $1.16bn.
“This is a great opportunity in operational and financial terms, which will reduce the need to purchase third-party wood, increase the competitiveness of the Company's costs, and create value for its shareholders,” Marcos Ivo, Klabin CFO.
Lightspeed Venture, a private equity firm, led a $125m Series D round in Vestwell, a software company, with participation from Fin Capital, Primary Venture Partners, FinTech Collective, Blue Owl and HarbourVest.
"We are deeply impressed by Vestwell for its groundbreaking infrastructure-first approach to solving the systemic savings problem in the US. Their commitment to the thoughtful execution of its plans assures us of its stability and growth potential in the workplace savings and investment space. The platform is already transforming the financial futures of countless Americans, demonstrating not only a strong, healthy enterprise SaaS business model but also a clear, decade-long vision. They're undeniably the dominant player and a true disruptor when it comes to the savings landscape – Lightspeed is excited to invest, and I'm proud to be joining the board and look forward to working closely alongside Aaron and his team to accelerate this company together," Justin Overdorff, Lightspeed Venture Partner.
H.I.G. Capital, a private equity firm, completed the acquisition of Penhall Company, a construction company. Financial terms were not disclosed.
“Penhall has a long track record of continuously delivering high-quality solutions to customers across both small local jobs and larger national projects alike, while successfully expanding the Company’s geographic footprint and portfolio of services and continuing to reinforce the strong organizational culture that is foundational to our success. We are excited to work with H.I.G, which will enable us to further grow our offerings for our customers,” Greg Rice, Penhall CEO.
GMS, a specialty building products distributor, agreed to acquire Kamco Supply, a supplier of ceilings, wallboard, steel, lumber, and other related construction products. Financial terms were not disclosed.
“Kamco is a long-established leader in the building materials industry with an experienced and successful team. They are known for exceptional service and have outstanding customer relationships and an impressive suite of products from numerous leading brands, including Armstrong, CertainTeed, National Gypsum, USG, Owens Corning and others. This acquisition represents a unique opportunity to advance GMS’s strategic priorities, including expanding share in our core product categories and continuing to develop our presence in the New York metropolitan market, the largest remaining MSA where we do not have a significant presence," John C. Turner, GMS President and CEO.
Paramount in talks to sell BET network to management group. (FS)
Paramount Global is in talks to sell its Black Entertainment Television network to a management-led investor group, Bloomberg reported.
The potential buyers include BET CEO Scott Mills and Chinh Chu, a former Blackstone executive who runs New York-based CC Capital Partners. A price of a little under $2bn has been discussed.
Warner Bros Discovery, Paramount Global met to discuss potential deal.
Warner Bros Discovery CEO David Zaslav met with Paramount Global CEO Bob Bakish to discuss a potential deal between the two companies, Reuters reported.
Zaslav has also spoken to Shari Redstone, who owns Paramount's parent company, about a deal, adding the meeting between Zaslav and Bakish lasted several hours.
Take-Two bet $12bn on Zynga, just as mobile games tumbled.
Excitement over the upcoming release of Grand Theft Auto VI is letting publisher Take-Two Interactive Software deflect investor attention from a big problem: its $12bn foray into the shrinking mobile-games business, Bloomberg reported.
With just a small presence in the fastest-growing segment of video games — titles played on smartphones — Take-Two splurged last year on Zynga, known originally for Facebook games like FarmVille and Words With Friends. It was the biggest deal ever in video games and boosted revenue from mobile titles to half of Take-Two’s $5.3bn in annual sales.
EMEA
Rivean Capital, a private equity firm, completed the acquisition of Dataciders, a provider of data & analytics services, from AUCTUS Capital, a financial services and investment banking firm. Financial terms were not disclosed.
"Dataciders' vision is that no one will ever have to make bad business decisions again, but that data analysis will provide the appropriate basis for business success. According to current studies on digital infrastructure, Germany is falling further and further behind worldwide. For example, the IDM World Competitiveness Ranking puts our country in 49th place in the area of data & analytics. Dataciders wants to help strengthen our digital competitiveness and bring Germany back into the top 10," Dr. Gero Presser, Dataciders CEO and Co-Founder.
Rivean Capital was advised by Codex Partners, Alvarez & Marsal, and Paul Hastings (led by Frederik Muehl). Debt financing was provided by Herter. AUCTUS was advised by Altman Solon, Houlihan Lokey, KPMG and Ebner Stolz.
The Italian government is reviewing the planned acquisition of Prelios by Andrea Pignataro’s Ion group, as Rome steps up its scrutiny of the tycoon following a string of high-profile deals, Bloomberg reported.
Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni’s administration is weighing whether to invoke the “Golden Power” provision — which allows it to block or impose conditions on deals involving strategic assets — for Ion’s agreement to buy the Italian alternative asset manager.
Inflexion, a private equity firm, agreed to acquire a 39% stake in healthcare business of GlobalData, a data analytics and consulting company, for £434m ($549m).
"GlobalData is renowned for creating data and analytical insight for its clients across many verticals. We are really excited about our partnership with them to carve out and expand an independent Healthcare business. This is a tried and tested strategy we've successfully pursued many times and another example of Inflexion being the leading minority investment partner," David Whileman, Inflexion Head of Partnership Capital.
GlobalData is advised by JP Morgan.
Macquarie Asset Management, an asset manager, agreed to acquire a 50% stake in Last Mile, a business that designs, installs, owns and operates last mile electricity, gas, water and wastewater networks, from M&G-backed Infracapital, an investment company. Financial terms were not disclosed.
“We are delighted to announce this partnership with Macquarie Asset Management. As we continue to develop Last Mile alongside Macquarie we see significant opportunities to further grow the company, including the opportunity we have developed within the energy transition space. Macquarie is a deeply knowledgeable utilities investor, and we look forward to working together to build on the business’s strategy as a leading last mile multi-utility provider across the UK," Mark Chladek, Infracapital Head of Brownfield.
Infracapital is advised by DC Advisory (led by Neale Marvin).
KKR, an investment company, offered to acquire Greenvolt, an energy production from residual forest biomass company, for $1.3bn.
KKR’s Gamma Lux fund offered €8.3 ($9) a share for Greenvolt, an 11% premium on the company’s closing share price on December 20. The green energy firm’s stock jumped to the offer price when trading resumed after being suspended by Portugal’s stock market regulator earlier on December 21.
Energy Infrastructure Partners, a private equity firm, agreed to acquire a 9% stake in Plenitude, a utility company, from Eni, an oil and gas company, for €900m ($986m).
"We have achieved an excellent transaction. Thanks to it we highlight the value of Plenitude within Eni; we strengthen Plenitude’s financial structure to further support its energy transition and growth path; and we establish a long-term partnership with a leading international financial investor capable of contributing to Plenitude's value creation. Finally, we also improve Eni's capital structure, reducing its consolidated net financial leverage and optimizing its capital base. Indeed, this is a major milestone in our satellite model development, a key strategic initiative aimed at enhancing our high potential businesses by creating the conditions for independent growth, accessing new pools of capital, and providing visibility into their market value. We have made an important step forward in the enhancement of one of our strategic companies, that, alongside our sustainable mobility company Enilive, is focused on the sale of increasingly decarbonized products and the abatement of our Scope 3 emissions in our energy transition pathway,” Claudio Descalzi, Eni CEO.
Keppel Infrastructure Trust, an infrastructural trust fund, agreed to acquire a 45% stake in a solar portfolio from Enpal, an energy company, for €109m ($119m).
“We are very excited to participate in the growing adoption of solar energy, and to expand our presence in Germany’s burgeoning renewable energy sector, which is propelled by the country’s ambition to achieve carbon neutrality by 2045. Our investment in Enpal’s substantial home solar portfolio marks KIT’s first acquisition in the solar energy sector and will expand our exposure to renewables beyond onshore and offshore wind," Kevin Neo, Keppel Infrastructure Trust CEO.
Visma shareholders in advanced talks to sell stake to new investors.
Shareholders in Norwegian software company Visma are in advanced talks to sell a minority stake to a group of new and existing investors that would value the company including debt at around €19bn ($21bn), Reuters reported.
The amount invested by the new group, which includes family offices and sovereign wealth funds, equates to more than €900m ($986m).
Polen Capital strikes deal for Somerset Capital’s UK funds. (FS)
Polen Capital, the $60bn US-based investment manager, will take over the UK funds of Somerset Capital Management — the collapsed emerging-markets boutique co-founded by Conservative MP Sir Jacob Rees-Mogg, Financial News reported.
Somerset, established in 2007, announced on 7 December that it was winding down, having lost a key mandate from UK wealth manager St James's Place that accounted for around two-thirds of its assets under management.
Covestro in 'open-ended' talks with ADNOC over higher bid.
Covestro is in open-ended talks with Abu Dhabi National Oil Company, a spokesperson for the German plastics and chemicals maker said on December 21, Reuters reported.
"We are in open-ended discussions with ADNOC. Open-ended refers to both the content and the timeframe," Spokesperson.
The statement follows ADNOC submitting a preliminary offer of around €60 ($66) per share for Covestro, which would boost it non-binding bid to about €11.3bn ($12.4bn).
Britain's Co-Operative Bank in exclusive talks with Coventry Building Society.
Britain's Co-Operative Bank said on December 21 it had entered a period of exclusive discussions with Coventry Building Society with a view to a possible merger, after kickstarting a strategic review on November 8, Reuters reported.
Following an undisclosed number of non-binding proposals from potential bidders, the lender said its formal discussions with Coventry would enable both parties to "better evaluate the merits of a combination".
EU's top court rejects UPS $1.9bn claim for blocked merger.
United Parcel Service, the world's No. 1 logistics company, lost its court fight for a record €1.74bn ($1.9bn) compensation claim from EU antitrust regulators for blocking its 2013 bid for Dutch rival TNT, Reuters reported.
The European Commission had stopped UPS' planned €5.2bn ($5.69bn) acquisition of TNT because it had not offered enough remedies to allay concerns that the deal would hurt consumers.
Russia lists around 30 state companies for possible privatisation.
The Russian state may reduce its shareholding in some large companies while maintaining a controlling stake, and has listed about 30 companies for possible privatisation, Russian Finance Minister Anton Siluanov said on December 21, Reuters reported.
Shunned by Western capital, Moscow is seeking ways to foster more domestic private investment, increase economic efficiency and, ultimately, bolster budget revenues as it ramps up spending to fund its war in Ukraine.
Euronext CEO rules out another Allfunds bid in acquisition hunt.
Euronext is unlikely to make another bid for Allfunds as it pursues acquisitions that can grow and diversify revenues, Reuters reported.
CK Hutchison eyes deals in fast-moving Italian market.
CK Hutchison has been studying the possibility of combining its Italian mobile operations with a local competitor, as dealmaking accelerates in the highly competitive market, Bloomberg reported.
The company has held exploratory talks about a potential merger of its Wind Tre unit with either Swisscom's Fastweb business or the local operations of billionaire Xavier Niel’s Iliad.
Saudi’s Tabby gets $700m credit line from JP Morgan. (FS)
Saudi Arabia-based Tabby, one of the Middle East’s first fintech unicorns, bolstered its balance sheet with an asset-backed credit line of as much as $700m from JP Morgan Chase & Co, before a planned listing in the kingdom, Bloomberg reported.
The buy-now-pay-later firm also increased a recent funding round to $250m after adding Saudi Arabia’s Hassana Investment as an investor. It was also joined by US-based Soros Capital Management and Saudi Venture Capital.
Britain and Switzerland agree wide-ranging financial services trade deal.
Britain and Switzerland signed a wide-ranging financial services deal on December 21 granting reciprocal market access for their banks, insurers, asset managers and stock exchanges to boost trade and cut compliance costs, Reuters reported.
After two years of talks which began after Britain left the European Union, the deal - which will require British and Swiss parliamentary approval - is based on mutual recognition of rules and supervisors, easing regulatory burdens.
IPO hopes rise for new year after Fed's early holiday gift.
Bankers advising companies on stock market listings are hopeful that the new year will bring a recovery in initial public offerings after the US Federal Reserve signalled it may start reversing the fastest escalation in interest rates in decades, Reuters reported.
"The IPO markets will be much better in 2024 than they were this year, and my gut tells me that both volumes and breath of access will progress as we move through the year," David Ludwig, Goldman Sachs Global Head of Equity Capital Markets.
APAC
India's Zee Entertainment and Japan's Sony Group have a one-month headroom from the December 21 deadline to close the merger of their India operations, Bloomberg reported.
The merger pact, which would create a $10bn media and entertainment powerhouse, was signed in 2021 with a provision for a 30-day grace period after the deadline if either party sought more time.
M3, a company mainly engaged in the provision of services centering on the platform of healthcare, and Dai-ichi, a private insurance company, are bidding to acquire Benefit One, a company mainly engaged in the provision of corporate welfare agency services and other membership services, from Pasona Group, a Japanese employment and staffing solutions provider, for up to $2bn.
Japan’s Dai-ichi Life plans to raise the amount it is willing to pay to buy Benefit One, offering a roughly 6% premium to December 21 closing share price.
Fujitsu speeds aircon deal, sees AI helping $5bn sales.
Fujitsu aims to jumpstart stalled negotiations to sell a $730m stake in its air-conditioning business, a deal that may help propel its expansion into a hot nascent market for AI services, Bloomberg reported.
The Japanese icon, which is disposing of consumer-oriented businesses, remains in talks with multiple parties for a speedier sale of Fujitsu General, said Chief Executive Officer Takahito Tokita. The urgency to close has grown against the backdrop of escalating geopolitical and economic uncertainty, which is roiling company valuations. Fujitsu General’s shares reversed losses and gained as much as 3.4% in late Tokyo trading after Tokita’s comments.
India's Flipkart to get $600m from Walmart under new fundraise.
Indian e-commerce firm Flipkart's biggest shareholder Walmart is set to infuse about $600m in a new fundraise for the startup, Reuters reported.
New investors are also in talks to join the round and the latest funding is likely to value the Indian firm at a premium of about 5% to 10% to its current valuation of $33bn.
Adani Family plans $1bn investment in green energy arm.
Billionaire Gautam Adani and his family plan to inject $1bn into the conglomerate’s renewable energy unit, as the group races to reach ambitious green goals while facing maturing bonds next year, Bloomberg reported.
Adani Green Energy is looking to issue preferential shares to the company’s founders for meeting expansion and refinancing needs. Shares rose as much as 6.7% in Mumbai after the news broke, paring this year’s loss to 20%.
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