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AMERICAS
Kelso-backed BradyIFS, a foodservice disposables ditributor, agreed to merge with FEMSA-backed Envoy Solutions, a JanSan, foodservice, packaging, and marketing services provider. Financial terms were not disclosed.
"This transformational partnership will enable us to expand our market reach and further improve our collective capabilities. Envoy Solutions is an impressive business that is highly complementary to BradyIFS. As important, it has great leadership. Mark Fisher and his team are first-class, and we are fortunate to partner with their incredible team of associates. Our two companies are like-minded as we share similar values, culture, and a passion for delivering the best to our customers," Kenneth D. Sweder, BradyIFS Chairman and CEO.
Envoy Solutions is advised by BDO, Allen & Company and Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton. Warburg Pincus is advised by PricewaterhouseCoopers and Kirkland & Ellis. BradyIFS is advised by Ernst & Young, Goldman Sachs, Harris Williams & Co and Debevoise & Plimpton (led by Emily F. Huang and Michael Diz).
Sagewind-backed GCOM to merge with OnCore Consulting. (FS)
Sagewind-backed GCOM, a technology company, agreed to merge with OnCore Consulting, an IT consulting services provider. Financial terms were not disclosed.
“This is an important step in both deepening and widening our mission to help governments create healthier, safer and more prosperous communities. The merger builds upon our decades of experience partnering with government agencies to deliver positive outcomes for their constituents. Our customers will now benefit from broader solution sets, greater scale, and unmatched domain expertise,” Kamal Bherwani, GCOM CEO.
GCOM is advised by REQ and Paul Weiss Rifkind Wharton & Garrison (led by Edward Ackerman and Robert Balis).
AgeX Therapeutics, a biotechnology company, agreed to merge with Serina Therapeutics, a clinical-stage biotechnology company. Financial terms were not disclosed.
"We are delighted to announce the proposed merger with Serina. The AgeX team thoroughly reviewed and evaluated numerous strategic alternatives for creating stockholder value, and we believe this transaction with Serina presented the most compelling option for our stockholders. We see exciting potential to generate novel drug candidates with the POZ Platform delivery technology," Joanne M. Hackett, AgeX Chairperson and Interim CEO.
Serina is advised by Bradley Arant Boult Cummings. AgeX is advised by Gibson Dunn & Crutcher.
Macquarie, a global asset manager, and Ares, an alternative investment manager, completed a $600m investment in altafiber, a telecommunications service provider.
"Gigabit connectivity is essential to access educational, employment, and healthcare opportunities. Robust fiber networks are also powerful economic development tools for business attraction and retention in growing municipalities. The combination of our operational expertise and this new funding will allow us to continue to invest in fiber, expand our geographic reach, and help to create digital equity in many rural and suburban communities," Leigh Fox, altafiber President and CEO.
Modaxo, a global technology organization, completed the acquisition of the critical Infrastructure division of Civix, a public sector software and services firm. Financial terms were not disclosed.
"This is a major leap forward in our ongoing mission to transform the public sector and strengthens our ability to help government agencies deliver on theirs," Tom Amburgey, Civix CEO.
Grupo Globo, a media conglomerate, completed the acquisition of a minority stake in Eletromidia, an out-of-home media company, from HIG Capital, a global alternative investment firm. Financial terms were not disclosed.
"This acquisition takes Globo closer to a highly complementary segment of its advertising market. We are impressed with the digitalization evolution which Eletromidia has undergone. The company is well positioned and has a strong synergy with Globo's business portfolio," Paulo Marinho, Globo CEO.
Canada's competition bureau ordered to pay nearly $10m to Rogers and Shaw.
Canada's merger court asked the competition bureau to pay about $10m to Rogers Communications and Shaw Communications for the lengthy court battle after its failed attempt to block the telecom firms' $15bn merger, Reuters reported.
The Competition Tribunal, Canada's merger court, in a ruling dated August 28, said the Commissioner of Competition Matthew Boswell's approach to block the deal was "unreasonable." The companies maintained that Boswell "adopted an unnecessarily contentious approach throughout the litigation, which significantly increased the costs that they were required to incur," the tribunal said.
US Steel starts due diligence after entering agreements with 'numerous third parties'.
US Steel has entered into confidentiality agreements with "numerous third parties" and started to review multiple unsolicited proposals ranging from partial acquisition to an entire buyout, Reuters reported.
Chairman David Sutherland and CEO David Burritt said that the company will start to share due diligence information. Cleveland-Cliffs, which has made a $7.3bn cash-and-stock offer, demanded US Steel to provide the company and the United Steel Workers union with information about all the proposals it has received so far as a part of its strategic review.
Denbury entertained 28 potential buyers prior to Exxon deal.
Executives and their advisers spoke with more than 28 parties, from international oil majors to pipeline operators, signing confidentiality agreements with 17 of them over a two-and-a-half-year period. Eventually, Exxon's third proposal won out after months of negotiations and due diligence by Dan Ammann, the former General Motors executive now running the oil giant's low-carbon solutions business.
JP Morgan increases stake in C6 to 46%.
JP Morgan has increased its stake in Brazilian digital bank C6 to 46% from 40%, without disclosing the financial terms. The banks said C6 had expanded its number of clients to 25m from 8m since June 2021, when JP Morgan bought its initial stake, and had added products such as auto loans, Reuters reported.
Sanoke Viswanathan, JP Morgan's CEO of international consumer banking, said the investment in C6 Bank was an important part of the lender's global strategy. The credit portfolio of C6 had increased to $8.2bn when JP Morgan first invested.
Terreva Renewables has raised $417m in the RNG Platform.
CIM Group's portfolio company Terreva Renewables, a renewable natural gas projects developer, is announcing that it has raised $417m from corporate and institutional investors to advance the growth of this RNG platform.
"Terreva is delivering on our expectations for the platform and, alongside our co-investors, we are expanding Terreva to meet the increasing interest from communities across the country seeking its expertise to develop and operate RNG facilities," Avi Shemesh, CIM Group Co-Founder and Principal.
CIM Group is advised by Diehl Communications (led by Karen Diehl).
CNN taps former New York Times CEO to lead struggling network. (People)
CNN's parent company named Mark Thompson, a former top executive of the New York Times and the BBC, to lead a news network facing a multiyear ratings slump in an attempt to turn around a news organization that has burned through two leaders and bled viewers over the past two years, WSJ reported.
Mark Thompson was appointed as chair and CEO of CNN by David Zaslav, head of the network's parent company, Warner Bros. Discovery, which made the announcement on August 30. Thompson replaces Chris Licht, who was fired in June, and a four-person team that had been running CNN in the interim. Thompson, who left the Times in 2020 after eight years as that company's president and CEO, is credited with transforming it to a digital-first organization more dependent on paid subscribers than the collapsing advertising market that has doomed many newspapers.
EMEA
ARCHIMED, an investment firm, agreed to acquire Instem, an information solution and scientific insight services provider, for £203m ($256m).
"The offer from Bidco represents an attractive valuation and offers shareholders the certainty of cash today, while also fairly reflecting the exceptional quality of the Instem business, its people and its future prospects. Under Bidco's private ownership, without the costs and regulation of a listed company, Instem will be able to pursue its organic growth strategy, while benefiting from the expertise and capital to accelerate its successful acquisitive growth plan," David Gare, Instem Chairman.
GTCR, a private equity firm, completed the acquisition of Once For All, a compliance and supply chain management software provider, from Warburg Pincus, a global private equity firm, headquartered in New York City. Financial terms were not disclosed.
"Once For All has grown into a true market leader in the GRC space. We are excited to welcome David to the Company and believe he, along with the group of fantastic leaders at the Company today, are well positioned to accelerate the Company's growth trajectory," Mark Anderson, GTCR Managing Director and Head of Technology, Media & Telecommunications.
Novo Nordisk, a global healthcare company, completed the acquisition of Embark Biotech, a Danish biotech company, for €471m ($510m).
"Novo Nordisk has been engaged in obesity research for 25 years, and we continuously search for new ways to address this serious chronic disease. We are excited about the opportunity to advance Embark Biotech's lead program and look forward to co-creating novel treatments for cardiometabolic diseases with Embark Laboratories to complement our in-house R&D," Brian Finan, Novo Nordisk Vice President of Obesity Research.
Universal Music, a music-based entertainment company, agreed to acquire Chabaka Music, a music distribution and marketing agency. Financial terms were not disclosed.
"The MENA region is one of the fastest growing music markets in the world, representing untapped potential and opportunity. Chabaka is a unique collection of visionary leaders, artists and labels, and gives us both scale and opportunity, especially when combined with UMG's world leading global platform. I am particularly pleased that Ala'a Makki and his team will join us and drive the next chapter of Chabaka's success as part of the UMG family," Patrick Boulos, UMG CEO of MENA Region.
Lufthansa is exploring a sale of aviation insurance broker and insurer.
Deutsche Lufthansa, the German airline, is looking to sell its insurance brokerage unit Albatros and insurance business Delvag. The country's largest carrier is working with advisers to find a buyer for the two units in a push to streamline operations, Bloomberg reported.
Lufthansa has been selling non-core businesses in a bid to raise cash after Covid, as it focuses on consolidating Europe's aviation market. The company is in the process of selling a minority stake in its maintenance unit and has offloaded the remainder of its catering business to private equity group Aurelius. At the same time, Lufthansa agreed to buy a stake in Italy's ITA Airways in May.
Australia's Orora confirms talks to buy French glass bottles maker Saverglass.
Australian packaging firm Orora confirmed on August 30 that it was in advanced discussions regarding a potential acquisition of French high-end glass bottles manufacturer Saverglass, Reuters reported.
"The negotiations will take some days to finalise due to a number of factors, including the size and global nature of the target business," Orora said, while requesting a voluntary suspension of trading in its shares on the Australian bourse. Australian Financial Review reported that Orora was in late-stage negotiations to acquire Saverglass and that Citi and Macquarie Capital are advising the company on a $646m capital raising to fund the deal.
APAC
Cognex, an industrial machine vision company, agreed to acquire Moritex, a provider of optics components, from Trustar Capital, a private equity firm, for $275m.
"At Cognex, we provide manufacturers with the most advanced machine vision solutions. We have long admired, and sold, Moritex optics components as an important element of what we do. We often note that machine vision functions like the eye and brain of a human: Cognex vision systems are akin to the brain, and Moritex optics, the eye. Bringing these complementary technologies together will streamline the solution we provide our customers, enabling a more advanced and integrated offering. Expanding into the optics components segment with this acquisition will increase our served market and deepen our penetration of the Japanese machine vision market," Robert Willett, Cognex President and CEO.
Cognex is advised by Evercore.
India's ONGC to invest $24.2bn to meet net-zero emissions goal.
India's top explorer, Oil and Natural Gas, plans to invest $24.17bn on clean energy projects in order to meet its 2038 net-zero carbon emissions goal, chairman Arun Kumar Singh said on August 29. The company, which accounts for about two-thirds of India's oil production and about 58% of gas, is looking to boost its hydrocarbon output while strengthening its presence in the clean energy sector, Reuters reported.
Globally, companies are investing billions of dollars to cut their emissions to net zero. By 2030 ONGC hopes to own 10 GW of renewable energy capacity. It is building a 5 GW solar energy project in the desert state of Rajasthan and has plans to set up offshore wind energy plants.
GLP offers China Logistics $7bn in assets to pick from. (FS)
GLP has made about $7bn worth of assets in China available for state-backed China Logistics Group to choose from as due diligence for a potential deal continues. The assets under review come from multiple funds and projects. The deal could see China Logistics Group take a controlling stake in a portfolio of GLP's assets in the world's second-largest economy, Bloomberg reported.
Singapore-incorporated GLP has faced credit downgrades since last year due to falling earnings, rising debt levels and concerns over corporate governance. S&P Global Ratings and Fitch Ratings have put the logistics property operator under negative rating watch, threatening its investment-grade status.
IFC mulls $150m investment in Vietnamese property developer BIM Land's bonds. (FS)
International Finance Corporation, a member of the World Bank Group, is weighing an investment of up to $150m in the sustainability-linked bonds of Vietnam's BIM Land Joint Stock Company and Thanh Xuan Joint Stock Company, DealStreetAsia reported.
IFC said about $100m of the said SLBs will be issued by BIM Land while Than Xuan Joint Stock Company will issue the other $50m. IFC is proposing to be the sole subscriber to the SLBs. BIM Land builds, sells, and operates properties like hotels, residences, and retail spaces in Vietnam that cater to both domestic and international tourists.
Sogo & Seibu sale to go ahead, triggering rare workers' strike in Japan. (FS)
Seven & i will sell department store unit Sogo & Seibu on September 1, triggering a plan for a walk-out at a flagship store in what would be Japan's first major strike in decades. Japan-based Seven & i, operator of the world's largest convenience store chain, agreed last year to sell loss-making Sogo & Seibu to US fund Fortress Investment Group, but the deal has been delayed amid opposition from workers, Reuters reported.
The union intends to carry out its threat for a strike at the flagship Seibu Ikebukuro store in Tokyo on August 31. Labour disputes are extremely rare in Japan, and strikes even more so. The last time workers walked out on a major department store was 61 years ago, and for less than a day.
Hollysys investors ramp up pressure on board to entertain offers.
A group of shareholders in Hollysys Automation Technologies is exploring ways to ramp up pressure on the Chinese industrial company's board to formally consider alternative takeover offers. The group, which includes hedge funds and other institutional investors, is considering pushing for an extraordinary general meeting of shareholders, Bloomberg reported.
It may seek to nominate new directors to replace some current board members. Hollysys gets fresh bid from investor consortium this month.
China steel website Zhaogang nears Hong Kong's first SPAC merger.
Chinese steel trading website Zhaogang.com is nearing a deal to merge with a Hong Kong-listed blank-check company backed by China Merchants Bank's overseas asset management arm. The Shanghai-based company is in advanced talks to combine with special purpose acquisition company Aquila Acquisition, Bloomberg reported.
An announcement may come as soon as in the coming days. While deliberations are advanced, they could still be delayed or fall apart. A deal would see the first Hong Kong-listed SPAC successfully identify a target for combination, leading to a so-called de-SPAC merger, since the city's stock exchange announced blank-check company rules in 2021 in a bid to chase the $245bn US fad that flared and fizzled in less than two years.
Singapore's Vertex Growth Fund bets on Japan's cloud software sector. (FS)
Singapore-based venture capital firm Vertex Growth Fund is looking to invest in more Japanese software developers as corporations in the world's third-largest economy increasingly embrace cloud-based services, DealStreetAsia reported.
Vertex Growth's general partner Tam Hock Chuanm noted that an untapped or under-tapped area in the country is software-as-a-service, which provides software such as accounting and human resources management via the cloud.
Chinese EV start-up Hozon raises $960m in pre-IPO financing.
Hozon New Energy Automobile has raised $960m in pre- initial public offering financing as the Chinese electric vehicle start-up gears up to tap the Southeast Asia market.
Hozon, also known as Neta Auto, is seeking to raise $1bn via a Hong Kong IPO to fund its expansion in the domestic and overseas markets, DealStreetAsia reported.
PE firms InvAscent, Quadria, Somerset Indus raising capital to invest in Indian healthcare. (FS)
Several private equity firms are in the market raising capital to ramp up investments in Indian healthcare, a sector that remains grossly underpenetrated. Healthcare-focused InvAscent, a backer of cancer care provider HCG and Ankura Hospital, is understood to have raised $150m so far for its fourth investment vehicle, joining Quadria Capital and Somerset Indus Capital Partners, both healthcare-focused firms, that are also on the road looking to close their funds, DealStreetAsia reported.
While InvAscent has set a target corpus of $300m-400m for its latest healthcare fund, Somerset Indus has already received soft capital commitments of $70m from existing limited partners for its third fund. Meanwhile, Quadria, headquartered in Singapore with an establishment in India, is looking at a size of $800m for its third fund focused on healthcare segments in developing Asia, excluding China.
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