AMERICAS
Hyzon Motors, a mobility and clean energy company, is set to merge with Riverstone Holdings-backed Decarbonization Plus Acquisition, a special acquisition company, in a $400m deal. Additional investors include BlackRock, Fidelity Management & Research and Wellington Management.
Hyzon already has more than 400 commercial vehicles on the road using its fuel cell technology. It expects to deliver about 5k fuel cell-powered trucks and buses by 2023 and is targeting annual capacity of around 40k fuel cell-electric vehicles by 2025.
Decarbonization Plus Acquisition is advised by Citigroup, Alvarium Investments, Credit Suisse, Kekst CNC and Vinson & Elkins. Hyzon Motors is advised by Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, Sullivan & Cromwell, Cannings Purple, Hill+Knowlton Strategies and ICR. Financial advisors are advised by Ropes & Gray.
MKS Instruments, a global provider of instruments, systems, subsystems and process control solutions, made a superior offer to acquire Coherent, a laser maker, for $6bn. MKS' offer represents a premium of 16% to Lumentum’s proposal and includes a cash component of $115 compared to $100 in Lumentum’s offer. The transaction is subject to Coherent's stockholders, receipt of regulatory approvals and other customary closing conditions.
“We believe this transaction would create a global photonics leader with a world-class technology portfolio, proven operational capabilities, deep customer relationships and a track record of sustainable and profitable growth, uniquely positioned to solve our customers’ most difficult challenges. We believe the combination of MKS and Coherent would drive growth and shareholder value through increased technology investment that creates new solution platforms and accelerates innovation within the industry, as well as meaningful synergies”, John T.C. Lee, MKS President and CEO.
MKS Instruments is advised by Barclays, Lazard and WilmerHale. Lumentum is advised by Deutsche Bank, Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati and Joele Frank. Debt financing for Lumentum is provided by Deutsche Bank. Coherent is advised by Bank of America Merrill Lynch and Skadden Arps Slate Meagher & Flom.
Electronic Arts to acquire Glu Mobile for $2.1bn.
Electronic Arts, a provider of interactive entertainment, agreed to acquire Glu Mobile, a global developer and publisher of mobile games, for $2.1bn. The transaction is anticipated to close in the quarter ending June 30, 2021, subject to approval by the Glu stockholders, the receipt of required regulatory approvals and other customary closing conditions.
“Our acquisition of Glu combines amazing teams and deeply-engaging products to create a mobile games leader with proven expertise across many fast-growing genres. Mobile continues to grow as the biggest gaming platform in the world, and with the addition of Glu’s games and talent, we’re doubling the size of our mobile business. With a deep IP portfolio and an expanding global audience, we’ll deliver more exciting experiences for our players and drive further growth for Electronic Arts,” Andrew Wilson, Electronic Arts CEO.
EA is advised by JP Morgan and Simpson Thacher & Bartlett. Glu Mobile is advised by Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, UBS, Fenwick & West, Ellipsis and Sard Verbinnen & Co.
Metromile, the digital insurance platform and pay-per-mile auto insurer, completed the merger with Cohen-backed INSU Acquisition, a publicly-traded special purpose acquisition company, in a $956m deal.
“Dan and his top-notch team of technologists and insurance veterans have built a business that has a clear competitive advantage and is on the forefront of the digital insurance evolution. This business combination provides Metromile with the capital necessary to execute on multiple growth opportunities successfully, and to help bring the era of fixed-price auto insurance to an end," Daniel Cohen, INSU Chairman of the Board of Directors.
INSU Acquisition is advised by Cantor Fitzgerald, Northland Capital Partners, Wells Fargo Securities and Ledgewood. Financial advisors are advised by Latham & Watkins. Metromile is advised by JP Morgan, Cooley and ICR.
Helbiz to merge with GreenVision Acquisition in a $408m deal.
Helbiz, a provider of dockless intra urban transportation solutions, is set to merge with GreenVision Acquisition, a blank-check company, in a $408m deal.
“We believe that the access to capital from this transaction will allow us to turn the page to the next chapter in our company’s journey, which will push technological boundaries and explore services for the future of transportation. Through this transaction, we’re committed to fulfilling our vision in revolutionizing transport by using micro-mobility to become a seamless last mile solution," Salvatore Palella, Helbiz Founder and CEO.
Helbiz is advised by Ladenburg Thalmann and Ortoli Rosenstadt. GreenVision Acquisition is advised by Colliers, I-Bankers, Becker & Poliakoff, Agent of Change and Blueshirt Group.
Appgate, a cybersecurity company, is set to merge with Newtown Lane Marketing, a development stage company, in a $100m deal. BC Partners and Medina Capital will remain Appgate’s majority shareholders and control approximately 74.4% of Newtown’s common stock.
“Appgate is displacing outdated, easily compromised, traditional network security, such as VPNs and firewalls, by using cutting-edge software designed around the principles of Zero Trust. Appgate is the partner of choice for forward thinking enterprises and federal customers who recognize the importance of adopting a Zero Trust strategy and preventing damaging attacks like ransomware," Barry Field, Appgate CEO.
Appgate is advised by DBO Partners, Greenberg Traurig, Gasthalter & Co and ICR. Newtown Lane Marketing is advised by Canaccord Genuity and Graubard Miller. BC Partners is advised by Prosek Partners.
Cornell Capital and Trilantic North America, two private investment firms, completed the acquisition of trustaff, a provider of travel nurse and allied healthcare staffing services, CardioSolution, a managed services offering providing cardiologists and support personnel to hospitals, and Stella, a VC-backed, AI-driven online marketplace for employers and job seekers. Financial terms were not disclosed.
"trustaff and CardioSolution are leaders in the healthcare staffing industry, and we are thrilled to partner with both teams as we successfully build this combined company. As demand for healthcare staffing solutions continues to increase, their scalable model, entrepreneurial cultures and strong relationships position the combined company for continued geographic expansion and accelerated growth, both organically and through additional acquisitions," Stephen Trevor, Cornell Capital Partner.
trustaff is advised Citizens Bank and Dinsmore & Shohl. Trilantic North Americaa is advised Kirkland & Ellis and Prosek Partners. Cornell Capital is advised by UBS, Davis Polk & Wardwell and Joele Frank.
Price Chopper, a grocery store chain, agreed to merge with Tops Markets, a storied independent grocery chain. Financial terms were not disclosed.
"This merger marks a major step forward and collectively elevates our ability to compete on every level. It leverages increased value for our customers; advances shared opportunities for innovation; fortifies the depth of our workforce, community and trade partnerships; and ultimately accelerates our capacity to deliver a distinctively modern and convenient shopping experience," Scott Grimmett, Price Chopper President and CEO.
Tops Markets is advised by Deutsche Bank, Hogan Lovells, Paul Weiss Rifkind Wharton & Garrison and Joele Frank. Price Chopper is advised by PJ Solomon, Harter Secrest & Emery and Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati.
Philips completed the acquisition of BioTelemetry, the remote medical technology company, for $2.8bn.
“The acquisition of BioTelemetry fits perfectly with our strategy to be a leading provider of patient care management solutions for the hospital and the home. BioTelemetry’s leadership in the large and fast growing ambulatory cardiac diagnostics and monitoring market complements our leading position in the hospital. Leveraging our collective expertise, we will be in an optimal position to improve patient care across care settings for multiple diseases and medical conditions,” Frans van Houten, Philips CEO.
BioTelemetry was advised by Raymond James. Philips was advised by Evercore, Greenberg Traurig and Sullivan & Cromwell. Raymond James was advised by McGuireWoods.
Blue Water Energy-backed Kentech, which designs, engineers, constructs, maintains, modifies, and procures industrial projects and buildings, agreed to acquire an oil and gas business of SNC-Lavalin, a fully integrated professional services and project management company. Financial terms were not disclosed.
"Following the introduction of our new strategy in July 2019, we have significantly improved our operating cash flows and demonstrated that our Engineering Services line of business is resilient and can deliver strong results. The sale of the Oil & Gas business further simplifies and de-risks our business and allows us to enhance our focus on growing our high potential core Engineering Services business. I would like to thank all of our Oil & Gas employees for their contributions over the years and wish them well in the next stage of their journey," Ian L. Edwards, SNC-Lavalin Group President and CEO.
Blue Water is advised by Deloitte and White & Case. SNC-Lavalin is advised by PricewaterhouseCoopers, RBC Capital Markets and Norton Rose Fulbright.
Thomas H. Lee Partners, an American private equity firm, completed the investment in Ashling Partners, a service provider for intelligent automation market. Financial terms were not disclosed.
“As much as intelligent automation and RPA has grown over the last few years due to many organizations recognizing the value and resilience that their automation program can drive, we believe the future will require even more breadth and innovation. The investment and partnership with THL not only enables our global scale, but it also helps to expand our broader intelligent automation capabilities and enables quicker time-to-market on creating reusable products and bringing concepts of leverage to life,” Marshall Sied, Ashling Partners Co-Founder.
Thomas H. Lee Partners was advised by Latham & Watkins, PricewaterhouseCoopers and Edelman. Ashling Partners was advised by Horwood Marcus & Berk and Ingenex Digital.
ION Investment Group, an application software provider, agreed to acquire DASH Financial Technologies, a provider of institutional brokerage services, from Flexpoint Ford, a private equity investment firm. Financial terms were not disclosed.
"Under ION's ownership, we will continue to invest in product innovation that drives value for our clients while also benefiting from ION's global reach and established network of relationships. We are incredibly grateful for the contributions and support we received from Flexpoint Ford and are thrilled about what this new partnership allows us to do for our clients," Peter Maragos, DASH Co-Founder and CEO.
DASH Financial Technologies is advised by Jefferies, Kirkland & Ellis and Forefront Communications. Flexpoint Ford is advised by Prosek Partners.
Private equity firm Bain Capital and Cinven agreed to acquire specialty ingredients business from Lonza, a producer of organic fine chemicals, biocides, active ingredients, and biotechnology products, for $4.7bn.
"The sale of the Specialty Ingredients business will allow Lonza to focus on its position as a leading partner to the healthcare industry, and the free cash flows resulting from the sale will allow us to accelerate our strategic priorities," Albert M. Baehny, Lonza Chairman.
Lonza is advised by UBS and Bank of America Merrill Lynch.
Western & Southern Financial-backed Touchstone Investments, an asset manager, agreed to acquire the mutual fund business of American International Group. Closing of the transaction is expected to occur in mid-2021, subject to customary closing conditions including the approval of AIG Retail Mutual Funds shareholders. Financial terms were not disclosed.
"We remain dedicated to our sub-advised mutual fund approach and are committed to offering investment solutions based on partnerships with premier institutional asset managers. This acquisition reflects Touchstone's continued commitment to providing investors with access to best-in-class investment management through our mutual funds," Blake Moore, Touchstone Investments President and CEO.
Touchstone Investments is advised by JP Morgan and K&L Gates.
LiveRamp, the data connectivity platform, agreed to acquire DataFleets, a cloud data platform that enables data silos to be unified without moving data or compromising privacy. The transaction is expected to be completed in LiveRamp’s fiscal fourth quarter. Financial terms were not disclosed.
“With the addition of DataFleets’ technology and their deeply experienced team of industry experts, LiveRamp is now even better positioned to expand our capabilities across geographies and industries. This transaction will support the expansion of LiveRamp’s offerings throughout Europe and in Asia-Pacific and the Latin American market in 2021, and help propel us into new addressable industries like healthcare and financial services, where the combination of DataFleets and LiveRamp together will power high-value use cases,” Warren Jenson, LiveRamp President and CFO.
LiveRamp is advised by Joele Frank.
Vy Capital, a venture capital firm, led a $250m funding round in Reddit, a social sharing and aggregation website. Additional investors include Andreessen Horowitz, a venture-capital firm, and Tencent Holdings, an internet conglomerate. Additional investors includes Advance Publications and Inclusive Capital.
“It’s a good market to fundraise. Valuations are very high right now. It never hurts to raise money when there’s an opportunity to do so and Reddit had a strong year," Steve Huffman, Reddit CEO.
DoorDash, an American on-demand prepared food delivery service, agreed to acquire Chowbotics, a developer robots for food service. Financial terms were not disclosed.
“We have long admired the work that Chowbotics has done to increase access to fresh meals, with its groundbreaking robotics product and vision. With the Chowbotics team on board, we can explore new use cases and customers, providing another service to help our merchants grow," Stanley Tang, DoorDash Co-Founder.
Vista Equity and Onex-backed PowerSchool plans IPO. (FS)
PowerSchool has filed confidentially for a US IPO that could value the education software provider at more than $6bn, including debt, Bloomberg reported.
The company, backed by private equity firms Vista Equity Partners and Onex, could IPO later this year. Folsom, California-based PowerSchool, has engaged Goldman Sachs to lead the share sale.
Vista Equity agreed to acquire PowerSchool for $350m in 2015 from Pearson after the education giant announced a carve-out plan earlier that year.
Hippo seeks to go public via a merger with SPAC.
Hippo, an insurance technology startup, is in talks to go public through a merger with a SPAC, Bloomberg reported.
The transaction with Reinvent Technology Partners, a special purpose acquisition company that counts Zynga founder Mark Pincus and LinkedIn co-founder Reid Hoffman as its lead directors, is set to value the combined entity at more than $5bn. Terms could change, or talks may fall apart.
Hippo announced in November that it had received a $350m investment from Mitsui Sumitomo Insurance, a subsidiary of MS&AD Insurance Group Holdings.
Xos seeks to go public via a $2bn merger with NextGen Acquisition. (FS)
Xos Trucks, a US electric vehicle maker, is in talks to go public through a merger with blank-check acquisition company NextGen Acquisition, which could value it around $2bn, Reuters reported.
NextGen is in discussions with investors about raising financing for the deal in the form of PIPE. If successful, an agreement could be announced as early as this month. NextGen is a so-called SPAC led by ex-Goldman Sachs Group banker George Mattson and Gregory Summe, who previously was managing director at Carlyle Group, a buyout firm. It raised $375m in an IPO on Nasdaq in October.
Bill Foley considers raising $1.5bn through two SPACs. (FS)
Bill Foley, a veteran investor, plans to raise two new blank-check acquisition vehicles, which will be named after a Napoleonic battle and seek around $1.5bn in total from their IPOs, Reuters reported.
Public filings related to Austerlitz Acquisition I and Austerlitz Acquisition II - both SPACs - could be published as soon as this week. The first Austerlitz vehicle will aim to raise around $500m from investors, with the second entity targeting around $1bn.
James Murdoch and Uday Shankar seek SPAC to acquire an Asian media firm. (FS)
James Murdoch's investment company Lupa Systems, and a former senior executive at The Walt Disney's Asia unit weigh a plan to raise funds through a SPAC, Bloomberg reported.
The former chief executive officer of 21st Century Fox and Uday Shankar, the former president of Walt Disney Asia Pacific, are seeking a blank-check vehicle to acquire Asian companies in sectors including media and technology. The joint venture is sounding out advisers and potential investors in the SPAC. They are considering listing the vehicle in the US.
Apollo-backed Sun Country files for US IPO. (FS)
Sun Country Airlines, an ultra-low-cost air carrier backed by Apollo Global Management, a private-equity giant, filed for an IPO, banking on a rebound in air travel as countries roll out vaccines against Covid-19, Reuters reported.
Minnesota-based Sun Country, which offers affordable flights and vacation packages to destinations across the United States and in Mexico, Central America, and the Caribbean, said it would list its stock on the Nasdaq under the symbol "SNCY".
"With the expectation that recently authorized Covid-19 vaccines will be widely distributed in 2021, we believe the airline industry will rebound in the back half of 2021 and normalize in 2022," Sun Country.
Quidel considers acquiring Qiagen.
Quidel, the US diagnostics firm, is weighing a combination with Qiagen in another sign of ongoing appetite for dealmaking in the medical equipment industry, Bloomberg reported.
Quidel, which makes several types of coronavirus tests, has made a preliminary approach to Qiagen to gauge interest in a potential deal.
"We continue to look at opportunities that would leverage our global infrastructure or that contribute to our interest in digital and telehealth. We've said that we will not enter into an agreement that isn't an obvious strategic fit. Beyond that, we will not comment on rumors and will not comment further," Doug Bryant, Quidel Chief Executive Officer.
Kingswood Capital Management raised $230m for its Kingswood Capital Opportunities Fund I. (FS)
Kingswood Capital Management, an operationally-focused lower-middle market private equity firm, announced the closing of Kingswood Capital Opportunities Fund I. The fund was oversubscribed and closed at the hard cap with total commitments of $230m. The fund received commitments from a balanced group of high-quality limited partners, including public pension funds, insurance companies, endowments, foundations, multi-manager funds, and family offices, Yahoo Finance reported.
The fund will seek to make value-oriented control buyouts and structured debt and equity investments in companies that are headquartered in North America and characterized by operational, transactional, or structural complexity. The fund will generally seek to invest from $15-50m per investment, but in certain circumstances may invest less than $15m and, with the support of its limited partners, can invest up to $100m per investment.
"We are in the midst of an extraordinary market environment that presents both challenges and opportunities, but our experienced team of investment professionals and operators are prepared to support existing portfolio companies and source new compelling investment opportunities," Alex Wolf, Kingswood Managing Partner.
EMEA
Epiris-backed James Hay Holdings, a platform for retirement wealth planning, agreed to acquire Nucleus Financial Group, a provider of financial services, for $200m.
"The combination of the James Hay and Nucleus businesses is a compelling opportunity to create one of the largest adviser platforms in the UK wealth management sector. We are delighted to be supporting James Hay on this acquisition, a transaction which not only is transformational for the business, but also will deliver significant benefits to both James Hay's and Nucleus' advisers and clients. Following the acquisition, we believe the combined group will be well positioned to take advantage of further growth opportunities as the market continues to evolve," Bill Priestley, Epiris Chief Investment Partner.
James Hay is advised by Fenchurch Advisory Partners, Macfarlanes and TB Cardew. Nucleus Financial Group is advised by Craven Street Capital, Shore Capital & Corporate, Burges Salmon and Camarco.
A private equity consortium is threatening to abandon a £1.4bn ($1.92bn) deal to shake up Italian football's broadcast rights amid uncertainty over the intentions of some of the league's top clubs, Sky News reported.
Advent International and CVC Capital Partners wrote to Serie A's 20 clubs late last week to say that they would withdraw their offer without immediate ratification of the agreement.
If completed, the transaction would pave the way for a new approach to media coverage of players such as Juventus's Cristiano Ronaldo and Zlatan Ibrahimovic, who plays for AC Milan. The consortium would own roughly 10% of the new commercial entity.
CVC is advised by Ernst & Young, Barclays, Credit Suisse, and Rothschild & Co. Advent International is advised by Community Group. Serie A is advised by Lazard.
GlobalWafers, a silicon wafer manufacturing company, said that its bid for Siltronic, a supplier of silicon wafers, has been successful after it secured control over the required majority of shares with $5.3bn offer.
The Taiwanese company now controlls a 50.8% stake in Siltronic, clearing a reduced threshold for control under an improved takeover offer, Reuters reported.
The Federal Cartel Office has no objections to the deal to create the world’s second largest silicon wafer maker behind Japan’s Shin-Etsu.
Siltronic is advised by Credit Suisse and Hengeler Mueller. GlobalWafers is advised by Nomura, Linklaters, White & Case and Brunswick Group.
Siris, a private equity firm, offered to acquire Equiniti, a provider of administration and payment services supported by technology platforms, for $824m.
The private equity firm's interest is understood to pre-date the coronavirus pandemic, the onset of which triggered a sharp fall in its target's share price.
Equiniti is advised by Rothschild & Co and Tulchan Communications. Siris is advised by Goldman Sachs and Abernathy MacGregor Group.
TDR Capital, a British private equity firm, offered to acquire Arrow Global, a company offering debt purchase and management solutions, for $741m.
Zachary Lewy, Arrow Founder and CIO, confirmed that will vote his ordinary shares in the capital of Arrow in favour of any resolutions proposed to implement the offer.
TDR Capital is advised by Ashcombe Advisers, Citigroup and Powerscourt.
Proximus, a mobile telecommunications operator in Belgium, agreed to acquire a 42.4% stake in Belgacom International Carrier Services, a provider of communication solutions, from MTN, a mobile telecommunications company, and Swisscom, an operator of public telecommunications networks, for $261m.
"I am convinced we can unlock the next growth phase of BICS and leverage BICS’ potential to consolidate a scattered market, while continuing to invest in key growth areas. Furthermore, we want to support TeleSign’s fast growth as digital leader in programmable communications and digital identity services. I have full confidence in the capacity of Matteo Gatta and Joe Burton, as recently appointed CEOs of BICS and TeleSign, to guide this acceleration and ensure a bright future for both entities," Guillaume Boutin, Proximus CEO.
Proximus is advised by Linklaters and Perella Weinberg Partners. MTN and Swisscom are advised by Citigroup.
The Spanish government is leaning toward blocking an attempt of IFM, an Australian asset manager, to acquire a significant stake in Naturgy Energy, a Madrid-based provider of gas and electricity, that’s deemed a strategic asset, Bloomberg reported.
Approving IFM’s $6bn bid to purchase a 22.7% stake in Naturgy would mean handing over control of a vital company to a group of foreign investors at a time of exceptional economic difficulty.
Naturgy is advised by Citigroup.
Panoro Energy, an independent E&P company, agreed to acquire assets Tullow Oil, a major supplier of oil, operating across Africa and South America, for $180m.
"These are important, value accretive deals for Tullow that will have a positive effect on our financial position as we look to further reduce our net debt and continue constructive discussions with our creditors. These transactions are also in line with our strategy of investing our capital on cash-generative, high return investment opportunities in our core portfolio," Rahul Dhir, Tullow Oil Chief Executive Officer.
Tullow Oil is advised by Murray Consultants.
The Carlyle Group-backed AlpInvest and Inflexion agreed to invest in British Engineering Services, an engineering testing, inspection and consultancy services specialist. Financial terms were not disclosed.
AlpInvest will become a shareholder alongside BES’ existing institutional backer, Inflexion Private Equity who is selling its stake from one of its funds to another.
AlpInvest is advised by Macfarlanes.
TA Associates, a global growth private equity firm, agreed to invest in DL Software, a France-based group of enterprise resource planning software providers. Financial terms were not disclosed.
“DL Software has become a leading B2B software player in France through a longstanding strategy of acquiring and growing highly-verticalized ERP vendors. We are pleased to announce this prospective investment and look forward to partnering with DL Software management and our fellow investors in actively seeking new growth opportunities for the company,” Maxime Cancre, TA Associates Principal who would join the DL Software Board of Directors.
EssilorLuxottica offers to sell stores to get approval for Dutch deal.
EssilorLuxottica, an eyewear maker, offered to sell assets in three European countries in a bid to allay EU antitrust concerns about its $8.7bn bid for GrandVision, a Dutch opticians group, Reuters reported.
EssilorLuxottica submitted the offer to the European Commission on January 9, 2021. The EU competition enforcer will decide by April 12, 2021 whether to clear or block the deal.
HeidelbergCement seeks to divest five assets.
HeidelbergCement has identified five assets to sell in a review of its business and has had an excellent start to 2021, as the world's No.2 cement maker enters the next phase of its plan to boost margins, Reuters reported.
"We're now shifting gears. And that's happening faster than we originally thought. There are no sacred cows. Everything was on the table," Dominik von Achten, HeidelbergCement CEO.
Von Achten said the first of the sales, which vary in size, were expected in the first half of the year. Brokerage Mainfirst has estimated the value of the group's weak assets alone is up to €2.5bn ($3bn).
Altrad in talks to acquire Bilfinger. (FS)
Altrad, French industrial services group, is in talks over a possible acquisition of Bilfinger, a German rival, Reuters reported. The discussions are not yet exclusive and an alternative deal led by Clayton Dubilier & Rice, a private equity fund, remains a possibility.
Both Altrad and CD&R have offered more than €30 ($36) a share for Bilfinger, which has a market value of €1.3bn ($1.57bn), adding that any deal could be several weeks away and negotiations could yet fall apart.
Bilfinger appointed Perella Weinberg, an investment bank, as an adviser after receiving calls from private equity funds following a deep sell-off during the first wave of the pandemic. Clayton Dubilier & Rice and others had expressed interest.
BPCE is in advanced talks on Natixis buyout.
BPCE, a French financial group, is in advanced discussions about a potential offer to buy out minority shareholders of its listed investment banking unit Natixis, Bloomberg reported.
BPCE is considering making a formal offer as soon as this week for the roughly 30% stake it does not already own in the Paris-based firm. Trading was suspended in Natixis.
The shares have risen 33% since the start of the year, giving Natixis a market value of about €11.7bn ($14.1bn). The bank is scheduled to report its annual results on Thursday. Minority shareholders own stock worth about €3.5bn ($4.21bn) based on Monday's closing price.
Golding Capital raised €375m. (FS)
Golding Capital Partners, one of Europe's independent asset managers for alternative investments, has held the final closing of its largest-ever buyout program, Golding Buyout 2018, with record commitments of some €375m ($451m).
Existing LPs were joined by new investors in committing to this third-generation fund, which has a particular focus on the growth opportunities created by the digital transformation. Investors will be able to subscribe to the successor of the successful investment program in the second half of 2021.
"In this programme, we are particularly emphasizing growth strategies in the software and technology sector, which will be among the main winners as the digital transformation gathers pace. In recent months we completed two co-investments in European technology companies, for instance, which have continued to grow strongly even through the lockdown," Dr. Matthias Reicherter, Managing Partner and CIO.
APAC
Cellular Biomedicine Group announced that its stockholders approved the proposal to adopt the previously announced agreement and plan of merger, dated as of August 11, 2020. The merger agreement provides for the merger of merger sub with and into CBMG, with CBMG surviving the merger as a wholly-owned subsidiary of parent.
Upon the closing of the merger, CBMG's stockholders will receive $19.75 per share in cash for each share of CBMG common stock they own. The merger is expected to be completed in February, 2021, subject to satisfaction or waiver of the remaining closing conditions.
Cellular Biomedicine is advised by Jefferies, Gibson Dunn & Crutcher and White & Case. Bidders are advised Morgan Lewis & Bockius, Kirkland & Ellis and O'Melveny & Myers. Jefferies is advised by Covington & Burling.
Advent International to acquire ZCL Chemicals from MSPEA. (FS)
Advent International, a private equity firm, agreed to acquire a majority stake in ZCL Chemicals, a pharmaceutical company in India from Morgan Stanley Private Equity Asia, a private equity platform. Financial terms were not disclosed.
“In the last 12 years we have established ZCL as one of the leading pure-play API companies in the country, and today marks an important milestone in these efforts. We are very excited for the future of ZCL, and strongly believe Advent’s global expertise in the pharmaceutical space, combined with ZCL’s strong capabilities in manufacturing and R&D and a culture of customer centricity, will ensure that we keep up our tradition of delivering immense customer value,” Nihar Parikh, ZCL Chemicals Executive Director.
Advent International is advised by Finsbury Glover Hering, Ketchum Sampark and Tulchan Communications. ZCL Chemicals is advised by Deloitte, Jefferies and Bombay Law.
Sequoia Capital China, a venture capital firm, and Tencent, a holding company, led a $465m Series E round in Yuanxin Technology, a provider of digital healthcare and chain pharmacies. Additional investors include CITIC Securities, Qiming Venture Partners, Index Capital, Kunling Capital, CICC Capital, OrbiMed, Gopher Asset Management, and E Fund.
The company is currently making efforts to accelerate its digital medical insurance mechanism by bridging brick-and-mortal hospitals and internet insurances. Meanwhile, it also revamps the segment of online medical payment.
Blackstone, a hedge fund investor, is set to invest $150m in Lone Star Funds-backed ApaH Capital Management, a Hong-Kong-based hedge fund.
ApaH will concentrate on public and private market investments across Asia, including in Australia, China, India and Japan.
Razer co-founder to exit the stake in tobacco firm linked to Myanmar military.
Lim Kaling, co-founder, and director of Hong Kong-listed gaming group Razer, was a minority shareholder in Virginia Tobacco through RMH Singapore, which owns 49% of the Myanmar firm. The rest of Virginia Tobacco is owned by Myanmar Economic Holdings, one of two conglomerates run by the country's military, according to a 2019 United Nations report.
"Recent events there (in Myanmar) cause me grave concern," Lim Kaling, Razer Co-Founder, followed an online petition calling on him to cut his exposure.
SVF hires ex-Microsoft venture fund head as managing partner. (FS)
SoftBank Group's Vision Fund is hiring the head of Microsoft's venture capital business as managing partner, the first major addition to the investment arm following a spate of departures. Nagraj Kashyap, the outgoing global head of Microsoft's M12 fund, will join the Vision Fund in the US.
The Vision Fund has seen a number of recent changes among its senior roles after making a flurry of hires following its debut in 2017. Managing partner Colin Fan is leaving his position to become an adviser to SoftBank Investment Advisers, and Jeff Housenbold, the managing partner, involved in bets on startups including DoorDash and dog-walking app Wag, is also leaving.
SoftBank Vision Fund Chief Operating Officer Ruwan Weerasekera and Penny Bodle, a partner who headed investor relations, also departed late last year.
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