Amer Sports' Board recommends $5.2bn offer from Chinese PE-led consortium. (Financial Sponsors)
The deal represents a premium of 13.6% to Amer’s last close and has been unanimously recommended by the board of the Helsinki-based firm. The consortium plans to operate Amer Sports independently from Anta, with a separate board of directors.
Amer Sports is being advised by Goldman Sachs, and White & Case. Anta is being advised by
Citigroup, Nordea Bank, Fangda Partners, Freshfields, Bruckhaus, Deringer,
Morgan Lewis & Bockius, and Roschier Attorneys. Fountainvest Partners are being advised by Citigroup, Fangda Partners, Freshfields, Bruckhaus, Deringer, Kirkland & Ellis, and Roschier Attorneys. Tencent is being advised by Paul Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison.
Growth Capital Partners made a strategic investment in Indigo Telecom. (FS)
Growth Capital Partners made an investment in Indigo Telecom Group, supporting the management team in a secondary MBO. Financial terms were undisclosed.
“Indigo has a long track record of exceptional delivery and differentiation through its commitment to flexible customer service, breadth of service offering and its wide geographic footprint. This enables the group to provide critical infrastructure support to an impressive roster of international network operators and technology enterprises. We are delighted to be partnering with the Indigo team and look forward to supporting the next phase of growth.” Richard Shaw, GCP Partner.
Indigo was advised by Cavendish Corporate Finance and Mills & Reeve.
Andreas Goss, head of Thyssenkrupp’s steel unit, is the front-runner to become chief executive of the combined entity, which will be Europe’s second-largest steelmaker after ArcelorMittal.
The joint venture of these two companies will have around 48k workers and about €17bn ($19.4bn) in sales, with production facilities in Germany, the Netherlands and Britain.
Tata is being advised by EY. Thyssenkrupp is being advised by Rothschild & Co.
Continental aims for software takeovers after Powertrain's IPO.
German car parts maker Continental is considering acquiring software makers after the flotation of its Powertrain unit expected in the second half of 2019.
“We want to expand our expertise in software. Today, already more than 60% of our automotive products are digitized or equipped with sensors” Wolfgang Schaefer, Continental CFO.
Proceeds from the planned Powertrain stock market listing, which is being carved out by year-end, would help Continental finance acquisitions.
Continental hired Bank of America, JP Morgan, and Deutsche Bank to help it organize the flotation, which is expected to be one of the largest 2019 IPOs in Germany.
German finance ministry considers scenarios of Deutsche Bank and Commerzbank merger.
The German government is ready to orchestrate a merger between Deutsche Bank and Commerzbank to ensure that Europe’s largest economy has at least one lender capable of backing its companies abroad.
The finance ministry was examining scenarios including one in which the state takes a stake in Deutsche Bank and then leads a merger of the two banks through a share swap. A second option being examined was to tap investors and possibly the German state to finance a takeover of Commerzbank by Deutsche, while a third would foresee creating a holding company as a vehicle for a merger.
Elliot acquired a stake in Bayer. (FS)
Activist investor Elliott has taken a position in Germany’s Bayer, adding to the slew of investments the fund has made in German companies.
News of the Elliott stake comes in the aftermath of Bayer’s $63bn takeover of
Monsanto. The German company faces thousands of lawsuits over a suspected cancer link to the US company’s Roundup weedkiller.
The largest coking coal producer in the EU, Polish JSW, wants to grow through acquisitions.
The European Union’s largest coking coal producer JSW could increase output by between 2.5 and 3m tonnes per year by acquiring assets, far exceeding its current plan to grow production to 18m tonnes by 2030 from roughly 15m now.
JSW is considering a bid for control of Australia’s Prairie Mining, which owns coking coal assets that adjoin its mines.
EU regulators approved Knauf’s purchase of Armstrong World Industries’ ceilings business.
EU antitrust regulators approved Knauf’s purchase of Armstrong World Industries’ ceilings business outside the Americas on condition the German building materials maker sells Armstrong’s tiles plants in Britain.
Both companies are two of Europe’s biggest suppliers of modular suspended ceilings, which are used in offices, hospitals, and schools.
Rheinmetall aims to take a majority in KMW + Nexter Defence Systems.
German tank maker and auto supplier aims to take a majority stake in Franco-German KMW + Nexter Defence Systems.
Rheinmetall’s executive board told analysts that is aiming for a stake that could go up to 75% if the company merges its own activities into KNDS, adding that alternatively, a cooperation agreement between the companies was an option.
Rheinmetall stated that it was in talks about buying a stake in KNDS, adding that the transaction depended on a variety of political, economic and regulatory factors.
Marlboro maker Altria buys 45% of cannabis producer Cronos Group for $1.8bn.
Altria Group acquired a 45% stake in Cronos Group, a leading global cannabinoid company, headquartered in Toronto, for $1.8bn.
“Investing in Cronos Group as our exclusive partner in the emerging global cannabis category represents an exciting new growth opportunity for Altria. We believe that Cronos Group’s excellent management team has built capabilities necessary to compete globally, and we look forward to helping Cronos Group realize its significant growth potential.” Howard Willard, Altria Chairman and Chief Executive Officer.
Altria was advised by Perella Weinberg Partners, Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz and Goodmans, and Hunton Andrews Kurth. Cronos Group was advised by Lazard, Sullivan & Cromwell, and Cassels & Graydon. JP Morgan provided financing for the transaction.
India based HCL Technologies is set to acquire software assets from IBM for $1.8bn.
IBM and HCL Technologies announced a definitive agreement under which HCL will acquire select IBM software products for $1.8bn.
The software products in scope represent a total addressable market of more than $50bn and include: Appscan for secure application development, BigFix for secure device management, Unica (on-premise) for marketing automation, Commerce (on-premise) for omni-channel eCommerce, Portal (on-premise) for digital experience, Notes & Domino for email and low-code rapid application development, and Connections for workstream collaboration.
“We continue to see great opportunities in the market to enhance our Mode-3 (Products and Platforms) offerings. The products that we are acquiring are in large growing market areas like Security, Marketing and Commerce which are strategic segments for HCL. Many of these products are well regarded by clients and positioned in the top quadrant by industry analysts.” C Vijayakumar, HCL Technologies President and CEO.
Uber filled for an IPO.
Uber Technologies has filed paperwork for an initial public offering. Its filing sets the stage for one of the biggest technology listings ever. Uber’s valuation in its most recent private financing was $76bn, and it could be worth $120bn in an IPO.
Its listing next year would be the largest in what is expected to be a string of public debuts by highly valued Silicon Valley companies, including apartment-renting company Airbnb and workplace messaging firm Slack.
Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley were in pole position to secure top roles in Uber's IPO.
Embraer and Brazil's government will challenge an injunction blocking a merger with Boeing.
Brazil’s government would appeal an injunction blocking a proposed tie-up between planemakers Embraer and Boeing, joining Embraer, which has also said it will challenge the decision.
Embraer announced in July its intention to sell 80% of its commercial aviation business to Boeing for $3.8bn. Embraer has said the deal is crucial for its survival.
The Embraer deal has stalled since July partly because the Brazilian government, which has veto power over any significant business decisions, has been reluctant to approve it.
NBA player is the lead to acquire Sports Illustrated for $150m.
A former US basketball player who became a fast-food mogul is in the lead to acquire Sports Illustrated magazine from US media company Meredith for about $150m.
The deal would be the result of a review that Meredith is carrying out in its portfolio, following its $1.84bn acquisition of Time last year. It has already sold off its Time and Fortune magazines and is exploring a sale of Money Magazine.
APAC
Baring Private Equity Asia is set to acquire Pioneer for $900m. (FS)
Pioneer Corporation, the global car electronics company, and Baring Private Equity Asia, announced the Pioneer Revitalization Plan. The Plan comprises a ¥77bn ($683m) investment from BPEA in Pioneer and a cash offer from BPEA to existing Pioneer shareholders of approximately ¥25bn ($222m).
“I believe BPEA shares our vision for a return to growth, making it the best partner to implement the Pioneer Revitalization Plan. Mindful of my responsibilities as Pioneer’s leader, it was only after very careful consideration that I concluded that an alliance with BPEA is imperative to the success of the Pioneer Revitalization Plan. My mission is to help revitalize Pioneer as quickly as possible and return the Company to a position where it can deliver products and services that delight all of our customers." Koichi Moriya, Pioneer President and CEO.
Pioneer was advised by Nomura, and Nagashima Ohno & Tsunematsu. BPEA was advised by Bank of America Merrill Lynch, and Mori Hamada & Matsumoto.
Berkshire Hathaway is looking to acquire a 10% stake in Kotak Mahindra Bank. (FS)
Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway is looking to pick up a 10% stake in Kotak Mahindra Bank.
A stake acquisition by Berkshire Hathaway may be conducive to Uday Kotak, the billionaire head of Kotak Mahindra Bank, who has been asked by India's central bank to lower his holding in the private-sector lender to 20% by the end of this year, and to 15% by March 31, 2020.
Berkshire Hathaway is likely to invest between $4bn and $6bn in the private-sector bank by buying promoter stake or through a preferential allotment.
AirAsia Group signed a memorandum of cooperation with a Vietnamese partner.
Malaysia-based low-cost carrier AirAsia Group Bhd has signed a memorandum of cooperation with a Vietnamese partner to reaffirm its intention to set up operations in Vietnam.
“AirAsia is an Asean airline. And in Asean, Vietnam is one of the last remaining countries with a large population we’re not in. Today’s memorandum reaffirms our commitment to making AirAsia in Vietnam happen. Last year, when we announced this JV, we were bullish about Vietnam and we remain incredibly bullish about serving one of the most dynamic, fastest-growing economies in Asia." Tony Fernandes, AirAsia CEO.
