AMERICAS
REIT Northview Apartment announced that it would close Starlight and KingSett's $4.8bn acquisition of the company on the week of November 2, 2020.
The bidders have waived material closing conditions, including consents from Canada Mortgage Housing and lenders. Northview has suspended its October distribution payable to unitholders, making the September 2020 distribution in the amount of $0.1358 per trust unit – payable on October 15, 2020 to holders of trust units of record at September 30, 2020 – the final regular monthly distribution.
Northview Apartment is advised by National Bank Financial, Scotiabank, Borden Ladner Gervais, Goodmans, and Longview Communications. Kingsett is advised by RBC Capital Markets and TD Securities. Starlight Group is advised by CIBC World Markets, Blake Cassels & Graydon, Bloom Lanys Professional, Osler Hoskin & Harcourt, and Stikeman Elliott.
Arch and Peabody scrap their coal venture after judge blocks it.
The US coal mining industry was dealt a double blow, with seven power plants slated for closure and a planned joint venture between two mining giants abandoned.
Vistra, one of the biggest independent power producers, it would permanently shutter seven coal-fired generating plants, erasing 6.8 gigawatts of potential demand. Hours later, Peabody Energy and Arch Resources scrapped a planned JV aimed at cutting production costs so they could better compete against cheap natural gas and renewables.
The moves underscore the economy’s inexorable shift away from coal, despite President Donald Trump’s efforts to to revive the industry. Democratic challenger Joe Biden, meanwhile, has laid out a $2trn energy and infrastructure plan that calls for 100% carbon-free power system.
Graf industrial, a blank-check company, completed the merger with Velodyne Lidar, a maker of sensors for self-driving vehicles, in a $1.8bn deal.
The transaction supported by a $150m committed PIPE and is expected to leave Velodyne with approximately $200m of cash on its balance sheet.
"We are tremendously excited by the opportunity to partner with David Hall and Velodyne. The leadership team, led by Dr. Anand Gopalan and Drew Hamer, has done an outstanding job in preparing the company for the inflection point of lidar and becoming a public company. We're especially excited by Velodyne's potential to greatly improve vehicle safety by augmenting ADAS systems and help leading e-commerce companies and others realize autonomous last-mile delivery," James Graf, Graf CEO.
Velodyne Lidar was advised by Bank of America Merrill Lynch and Gunderson Dettmer Stough Villeneuve Franklin & Hachigian. Graf Industrial was advised by EarlyBirdCapital, Oppenheimer & Co, and White & Case.
Anheuser-Busch, a manufacturer of alcoholic beverages, completed the acquisition of Craft Brew Alliance, an operator of production breweries, for $321m.
In connection with the closing, CBA shareholders will receive $16.5 in cash per share of Craft Brew Alliance common stock, as previously announced. As a result of the completion of the expanded partnership, CBA's common stock will cease trading on the NASDAQ Global Select Market.
"Connecting with consumers through our brands is at the forefront of everything we do. After a successful partnership that spans more than 25 years, we are excited to now fully welcome CBA into the A-B family and continue to work together to bring more consumers, in more communities, even more choices for every occasion," Michel Doukeris, Anheuser-Busch CEO.
Craft Brew was advised by Goldman Sachs and Wachtell Lipton Rosen & Katz. Anheuser-Busch was Lazard, Skadden Arps Slate Meagher & Flom, and Sullivan & Cromwell.
Colony Capital-backed DataBank, a provider of enterprise-class colocation, connectivity, and managed services, agreed to acquire zColo, including certain US and European data center assets, from Zayo Group, a provider of communications infrastructure services, including fiber and bandwidth connectivity, colocation and cloud infrastructure. Financial terms were not disclosed.
"Simply put, this highly complementary acquisition will allow us to serve customers better. The strategic rationale is fully aligned with our core 'Data Center Evolved' strategy built around providing customers broad geographic reach as they move their content and applications closer to the edge. We look forward to integrating zColo into our portfolio while elevating our existing level of service to meet the increasingly diverse workloads of our enterprise customers," Raul K. Martynek, DataBank CEO.
DataBank is advised by DH Capital and Jones Day. Zayo Group is advised by JP Morgan and Skadden Arps Slate Meagher & Flom.
Snow Phipps, a mid-market private equity firm, completed the acquisition of Prototek, a rapid prototyping service provider, from CORE Industrial Partners, a private equity firm. Financial terms were not disclosed.
“On behalf of the Prototek team, I’d like to thank CORE for the unwavering support and tireless efforts working with management to truly transform Prototek. Moving forward, the Prototek team sees considerable opportunity to continue expanding the business and is excited to partner with Snow Phipps in the next phase of our growth,” Bill Gress, Prototek CEO.
Snow Phipps was advised by Simpson Thacher & Bartlett. CORE Industrial Partners was advised by Lincoln International, Winston & Strawn, and BackBay Communications.
Mubadala Investment, a sovereign wealth fund, agreed to acquire a 5% stake in Silver Lake from Dyal Capital, a division of Neuberger Berman Group, seeks to acquire minority equity interests in institutional alternative asset management businesses, for $2bn.
“Mubadala’s support has enabled us to launch an innovative strategy that is unprecedented in its multi-decade time horizon, underscoring our long-term commitment to our portfolio companies and providing tremendous strategic advantages as we seek to generate exceptional results for many years to come. The creative structure of this new strategy provides significant added flexibility for Silver Lake to capitalize on a wide range of investment opportunities, including those outside the mandates of our existing funds. The launch of this new business builds on and expands the backbone of Silver Lake’s expertise throughout the technology eco-system and beyond. It also underscores how aligned our two organizations are in prioritizing partnership, talent development, and social responsibility,” Egon Durban and Greg Mondre, Silver Lake Co-CEOs.
Silver Lake is advised by Simpson Thacher & Bartlett.
Diageo, a British multinational beverage alcohol company, completed the acquisition of Aviation Gin, a brand of gin, and Davos Brands, an alcoholic beverages provider, for $610m.
"We are confident that Aviation American Gin will continue to shape and drive the growth of super premium gin in North America and we are looking forward to working with Ryan Reynolds and the Davos Brands team to accelerate future growth," Ivan Menezes, Diageo CEO.
Diageo was advised by Sullivan & Cromwell.
Ardian to acquire a majority stake in Acousti Engineering Company of Florida, a speciality contractor of complex interior systems for commercial and institutional buildings. Financial terms were not disclosed.
“Acousti is a market-leading interior finishing specialty subcontractor, ideally positioned to grow both within its existing geographic markets and to expand to new locations. Acousti’s highly capable leadership, blue-chip customer base, and broad capabilities give us great confidence in the company’s potential. We foresee significant further expansion opportunities for the company ahead,” Kevin Kruse, Ardian Managing Director of North America Direct Buyouts.
Ardian is advised by The Neibart Group.
Social Native, a marketplace technology company, completed the acquisition of Olapic, a visual marketing platform. Financial terms were not disclosed.
“Data is the critical ingredient that feeds artificial intelligence and ultimately drives results. Our combined machine-learning technologies benefit from millions of unique data points – from analysis of over a hundred thousand visual assets created by Social Native’s vast creator platform and the millions of visual assets sourced by Olapic over the last decade. As a result, Social Native will provide customers with a scalable cost-efficient content source, data-rich benchmarks for creative performance, and actionable insights on which attributes of their creative are influencing results for the brand,” David Shadpour, Social Native Founder and CEO.
Atlas Technical Consultants, a provider of professional testing, inspection, engineering, program management and consulting services, completed the acquisition of Alta Vista Solutions, a provider of transportation-related testing and inspection services. Financial terms were not disclosed.
“We at Alta Vista are pleased and excited about becoming a part of Atlas and having the advantage of their size, scale and diverse array of services to offer our clients. We look forward to leveraging our combined strengths as we unify with Atlas to grow and develop as a leader in our Industry,” Patrick Lowry, Alta Vista President.
Pod Network, a social networking application, completed the merger with STEMconnector, a k-12 education services provider. Financial terms were not disclosed.
"The technology capabilities of Pod Network will allow us to increase our collective reach and effectiveness at bridging the STEM talent gap and supporting the STEM talent needs of our members. The STEM talent gap is a critical issue for our country. The addition of Pod Network resources, fuels our ability to deliver scalable solutions that connect and strengthen the global STEM community," Amy Etten, STEMconnector Vice President.
OSI Systems-backed American Science & Engineering, provider of advanced X-ray technologies, completed the acquisition of Nucsafe, a manufacturer of nuclear security products and services. Financial terms were not disclosed.
In acquiring Nucsafe, AS&E acquires a leading portfolio of radiation monitoring and nuclear detection technologies, Nucsafe’s management and development team headquartered in Oak Ridge, TN, and Nucsafe’s patent portfolio, which includes US Patent 8,300,763, “Spatial Sequenced Backscatter Portal”, an important patent relating to the inspection of vehicles and other objects.
NextEra Energy made a takeover approach to Duke Energy.
NextEra Energy recently made a takeover approach to Duke Energy, according to people familiar with the matter, testing the waters for what would be a $60bn-plus combination of two Southern utilities, WSJ reported.
Duke rebuffed the approach but NextEra is still interested in pursuing a deal, some of the people said. There is no guarantee NextEra will do so and if it does, that a deal would result.
Should there be one, it would be big. Duke, based in Charlotte, has a market value of roughly $61bn following a 14% decline in its share price this year, and an acquisition of the company could be the largest utility deal ever and the biggest merger so far this year.
SK Capital exploring a sale of Niacet for up to $1bn. (FS)
SK Capital Partners is considering a sale of food-preservative and drug-ingredient maker Niacet, Bloomberg reported.
The New York-based buyout fund is working with advisers on a possible auction of Niacet, said the people, who asked not to be identified because the matter is private.
The asset generates about $70m in earnings, putting the potential value at up to $1bn. No plans are final and SK Capital could still opt to keep the business.
StepStone Real Estate has announced the final closing of the fourth real estate fund. (FS)
StepStone Real Estate has announced the final closing of StepStone Real Estate Partners IV, its fourth in a series of funds focused on special situations secondaries and recapitalizations of real estate vehicles. SREP IV’s $1.4bn final closing exceeded the $1bn target for the fund and notably, approximately $870m of the commitments closed after the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Latham & Watkins advised StepStone Real Estate on the fund formation with an international deal team across Latham’s US and European offices led by partners Nadia Sager in San Diego, Amy Rigdon, and Michael Haas in New York.
Northern Star Acquisition aims to raise $300m in US IPO.
A blank-check company that is one of only a small number of female-led special purpose acquisition companies is looking to raise $300m in a US initial public offering, Reuters reported.
The firm, Northern Star Acquisition, led by Joanna Coles, a former Hearst Magazines editor and chief content officer, is looking to sell 30m units at $10 apiece. Coles, the chairperson and chief executive of the company, is also on the board of Snap.
Jon Ledecky, the majority owner of the NHL team New York Islanders, is the firm’s president and chief operating officer. Valerie Jarrett, an adviser to former US President Barack Obama, is on the board of Northern Star.
Activist Litt files for shareholder vote on Apartment Investment & Management split.
Activist investor Jonathan Litt filed with regulators to call a special meeting at Apartment Investment & Management so shareholders can have a say on its plans to split its business into two parts.
The move to seek support for a vote comes after Aimco ignored the investor’s request to hold a shareholder vote on the matter, which will see the company broken up into a real estate investment trust and a development company.
“We also believe that a substantial majority of our fellow shareholders share these views. Unfortunately, instead of listening to the voices of its shareholders, sell-side analysts and industry experts, AIV and its board have seemingly chosen to double down by moving forward with the spinoff without putting it to a shareholder vote,” Litt.
M&A spikes in record third quarter as boards go on virus deal spree.
Mergers and acquisitions came back with a bang in the third quarter as executives rushed to revisit deals left on hold at the height of the coronavirus pandemic and boardrooms regained confidence after a roller-coaster year.
A deal frenzy in September led to a record third quarter with more than $1trn worth of transactions around the world, mostly focused on coronavirus-resilient sectors such as technology and healthcare, Reuters reported.
EMEA
Veolia, a resource management company, increases bid for a 29.9% stake in Suez, a French waste and water management company, to $4bn from $3.5bn.
The company has been trying to persuade Engie to sell the stake as prelude to launching a full takeover bid for Suez, arguing the two would form a global waste and water champion better equipped to take on rivals, including from China.
Veolia is advised by Citigroup, Messier Maris & Associes, Perella Weinberg Partners, Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton, Flichy Grange Avocats, Gide Loyrette Nouel, Hogan Lovells, Patrice Gassenbach, Peltier Juvigny Marpeau & Associes and Xavier Boucobza.
G4S, a British multinational security services company, rejected a cash offer by smaller Canadian rival GardaWorld that valued the British company at $3.81bn, weeks after it turned down a similar proposal.
“The unsolicited 190p Offer launched today by GardaWorld is unchanged from the proposal that has already been carefully considered and unanimously rejected by the G4S Board as significantly undervaluing the Company and its prospects. Since rejecting GardaWorld’s last proposal, G4S has announced continuing resilience in its trading with underlying earnings ahead of the prior year for the first eight months of 2020,” John Connolly, G4S Chairman.
G4S is advised by Citigroup, JP Morgan, Linklaters and Brunswick Group. GardaWorld is advised by Barclays, Simpson Thacher & Bartlett and Montfort Communications. BC Partners is advised by Kirkland & Ellis.
The Competition and Markets Authority is considering whether it is or may be the case that Mitie, Interserve transaction will result in the creation of a relevant merger situation under the merger provisions of the Enterprise Act 2002 and, if so, whether the creation of that situation may be expected to result, in a substantial lessening of competition within any market or markets in the United Kingdom for goods or services. The CMA has a deadline of November 24, 2020, for its phase 1 decision.
Mitie is advised by Barclays, Evercore, JP Morgan, Jefferies & Company, Santander and Linklaters. Interserve is advised by Lazard, Slaughter & May and Tulchan Communications.
Atlas Holding, a private investment and equity firm, completed the acquisition of Permasteelisa, a global contractor in the engineering, project management, manufacturing, installation and after-sales services of advanced building facades, architectural envelopes and interiors, from Lixil, a Japanese manufacturer of building materials. Financial terms were not disclosed.
“We could not have found a better partner to strengthen our company today and build a brighter future than Atlas Holdings. Our clients trust us to get the job done quickly and flexibly, wherever a project demands, and Atlas’ global footprint and directly relevant experience in the construction and manufacturing arenas is a perfect fit. Most importantly, they have a long-term focus and share our core values; a commitment to environmental stewardship, employee safety and delivering superior customer service. Our team is thrilled to begin working with Atlas," Klaus Lother, Permasteelisa Group Chief Executive Officer.
Atlas Holdings was advised by KPMG, Willkie Farr & Gallagher, and Mercury. Lixil Group was advised by Alvarez & Marsal, Barclays, Clifford Chance, and Finsbury Glover Hering.
Hg Capital agreed to acquire a minority stake in Hyperion Insurance Group, the international insurance intermediary, for $1.5bn.
“I am thrilled to welcome Hg as a long-term partner. During our conversations on A-Plan Group it was clear that Hg and Hyperion share an understanding of what building a business to last means for employees and clients. This, the quality of the Hg team, their support for our core employee ownership and our culture of empowerment, and the desire of the Hg partners to contribute to our digital and data strategy, makes them an excellent partner to join General Atlantic and CDPQ as we continue our journey,” David Howden, Hyperion Chief Executive Officer.
Hg is advised by Brunswick Group and Skadden Arps Slate Meagher & Flom.
Singapore fund GIC and US insurer Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance agreed to acquire a 36% stake in Rothesay Life, an insurance company, from Blackstone for $7.37bn. Under the terms of the transaction, GIC and MassMutual will each become equal 49% shareholders. Completion of the transaction is subject to regulatory approvals.
“I am delighted that GIC and MassMutual will be substantially increasing their investment in Rothesay. This is a strong expression of confidence in the company and provides the business with exceptional long-term support from two of the world’s leading institutional investors. Rothesay will continue to differentiate itself by providing a full range of solutions on a large scale, as well as by taking full advantage of strategic prospects with a value and risk-driven approach to underwriting," Addy Loudiadis, Rothesay Life Chief Executive Officer.
Blackstone is advised by Temple Bar Advisory.
EnterpriseDB, a provider of software and services based on the open-source database PostgreSQL, completed the acquisition of 2ndQuadrant, a provider of solutions for mission-critical PostgreSQL databases. Financial terms were not disclosed.
“Postgres is experiencing unprecedented growth and so is EDB. The 2ndQuadrant team, led by their CEO, Simon Riggs, has built an incredibly talented team of PostgreSQL specialists who, like us, are obsessed with serving customers. Together, we’re perfectly positioned to deliver even greater value to the market. Customers have access to the deepest bench of Postgres experts in the world, with faster outcomes and better solutions,” Ed Boyajian, EDB CEO.
EnterpriseDB was advised by Octopus Group.
Sun Capital-backed Coveris Holdings, a packaging solutions provider, completed the acquisition of HLB|SFV, a paper bags manufacturer. Financial terms were not disclosed.
“With the acquisition of HLB|SFV we are now able to quickly fulfill all requests, including large volume from international key accounts for these bag solutions. Our combined expertise about paper bag production in Firminy, Neuwied and now HLB|SFV is turning Coveris into a sustainability powerhouse for food, pet-food and industrial markets. Coveris total turnover is now equally distributed between paper-based solutions, films and flexibles. This is the ideal portfolio to cooperate with our customers and to develop optimized and sustainable packaging solutions,” Jakob A. Mosser, Coveris CEO.
Coveris was advised by BMH Brautigam & Partner.
Covestro, a German company which produces a variety of polyurethane and polycarbonate-based raw materials, agreed to acquire Resins and Functional Materials business from Royal DSM, a Dutch multinational corporation active in the fields of health, nutrition and materials, for $1.88bn. Closing of the transaction is expected for the first quarter of 2021 and is subject to regulatory approvals, including antitrust clearance.
“The acquisition is strategically and financially a perfect opportunity for us to pursue our long-term growth strategy at highly attractive conditions and tangible synergies. With the chosen financing structure, we are striking the right balance between equity and debt. We look forward to welcoming our new colleagues under the Covestro roof soon. Together, we will work towards bringing our joint potential to life,” Thomas Toepfer, Covestro CFO and Labor Director.
Toscafund Asset Management, a London based investment firm, completed the acquisition of a minority stake in Oaknorth Bank, a UK bank for small and medium-sized companies, from Indiabulls Housing Finance, an Indian conglomerate, for $85m.
The sale proceeds will be accretive to the regulatory net worth and the capital-to-risk weighted assets ratio of Indiabulls Housing Finance.
Valmet seeks merger with Neles, challenging Alfa Laval.
Valmet, Neles’ largest shareholder with a 29.5% stake, said it wanted to start talks with Neles over a deal that it said would create a strong platform for further business growth, “especially in automation systems and valves”.
Neles said in a statement that a letter it had received from Valmet “does not include a proposal for the specific terms of the merger, such as an exchange ratio”, adding its board would assess the letter and consider potential further actions.
Lonza launches sale of $3.5bn specialty chemicals unit.
Swiss contract drug maker Lonza is launching the sale of its Lonza Specialty Ingredients unit, Reuters reported, adding it could be worth $3.25-3.79bn.
The sources said UBS is expected to send out information packages on LSI to peers such as Lanxess or Clariant as well as to private equity groups in October.
LSI has annual earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation of about $323m and may be valued at 10-12 times that in a potential deal
Border to Coast secures $1.3bn in PE investment commitments. (FS)
Border to Coast Pensions Partnership, has secured $1.3bn of commitments to Private Equity investments as it continues to develop new investment opportunities for its eleven local government pension schemes, which collectively have assets of c.$59bn.
Border to Coast has completed $641m of private equity investments from its first offering in line with expected timescales. The portfolio consists of nine investments with high quality managers providing exposure to Border to Coast’s targeted themes within private equity.
Mubadala in advanced talks to invest up to $1bn in Reliance Retail. (FS)
Abu Dhabi state fund Mubadala Investment is in advanced talks to invest up to $1bn in the retail division of India's Reliance Industries, Reuters reported.
Reliance Retail is on a fund raising spree and has secured around $1.8bn in the past few weeks from KKR & Co and Silver Lake Partners.
Reliance, controlled by Asia’s richest man Mukesh Ambani, has approached investors, who collectively pumped more than $20bn into its Jio Platforms digital business this year, to take stakes in its retail business, which has nearly 12k stores and sells everything from groceries and electronics to fashion and shoes.
Charterhouse rumoured to put Funecap up for sale. (FS)
Charterhouse has put French funeral company Funecap up for sale, with DC Advisory leading the sale. The company will be marketed based on EBITDA of approximately €70-80m ($81-93m).
At the time of Charterhouse’s acquisition of a majority stake in the Funecap in 2018, financial terms were not disclosed, but Funecap had revenue of more than €200m ($233m), and EBITDA of €40m ($47m). Since its inception in 2010, Funecap had followed a buy-and-build strategy to complete more than 85 acquisitions and nearly as many openings.
Charterhouse continued its buy-and-build strategy. The statement at the time noted that France’s funeral industry was valued at €2.5-3bn ($2.9-3.5), with more than 3k operators.
TP ICAP in talks to buy Liquidnet.
TP ICAP, the world's biggest inter-dealer broker, said it was in advanced talks to buy electronic trading network Liquidnet for a total consideration of between $600m and $700m, Reuters reported.
TP said the consideration comprises about $550m upfront payment along with deferred non-contingent consideration of $50m and an earn-out of up to $100m.
Mediobanca weighed Banca Generali bid before abandoning plan.
Italy’s Mediobanca approached Assicurazioni Generali about acquiring the insurer’s private banking and wealth management unit before ultimately abandoning the plan, Bloomberg reported.
The Milan-based investment bank decided that conditions were unfavorable for a bid on Banca Generali, a listed unit of the Italian insurer that has a market value of $3.8bn.
Axel Springer rumoured to put LaCentrale up for sale.
German media giant Axel Springer has put up for sale LaCentrale, a French car-portal specialising in used cars and utility vehicles. LaCentrale is marketed off €35m ($40) EBITDA. The sale could attract both private equity funds and trade buyers.
Deutsche Bank CEO tells the board not to focus on mergers now.
Deutsche Bank chief executive officer Christian Sewing has told the lender’s supervisory board he is not focused on mergers at the moment and is instead concentrating on the bank’s overhaul until 2022, Reuters reported.
Sewing made the statement at an annual supervisory board meeting held to discuss strategy. It comes amid a growing sense of urgency in Europe about the need for banks to scale up as the coronavirus crisis deals a further blow to the industry after a decade of weak returns.
APAC
J-STAR, a provider of investment management services, completed the acquisition of DAINICHI, Japan's fish farming company. Financial terms were not disclosed.
"Given the heightened environmental awareness including the promotion of the SDGs, demand for farmed fish is increasing worldwide. In response to such a trend, it is expected that the exports of fish farmed in Japan will increase and that the major mass retailers and the restaurant industry will shift from natural fish to farmed fish. We believe that the role of DAINICHI will grow further in the aquaculture industry," Gregory Hara, J-STAR President & Representative Director.
J-STAR was advised by City-Yuwa Partners and Seafood Legacy.
Fortress Investment Group, an investment fund, agreed to invest $540m in Leoplace21, a real estate rental services provider.
The investment by Fortress comes as Leopalace21, which leases affordable apartment units for their owners. Leopalace21’s balance sheet had been squeezed by costs relating to repairing apartment buildings and falling rental income due to weaker demand due to the from the outbreak of the coronavirus.
Pfizer, an American multinational pharmaceutical corporation, agreed to acquire a 9.9% stake in CStone Pharmaceuticals, a biopharmaceutical company focused on developing and commercializing innovative immuno-oncology and precision medicine, for $200m.
“Pfizer’s investment in CStone is a statement of its confidence in the potential of our anti-PD-L1 treatment and recognition of our research and development capabilities. By joining forces with Pfizer and leveraging its commercialization infrastructure, we will ensure that patients across a vastly expanded number of markets in China have quicker access to our highly differentiated PD-L1 treatment. In addition, we have advanced our transformation into a full-fledged biopharmaceutical company by forging a collaboration that will enable us to accelerate development and commercialization of globally innovative therapies for Chinese patients,” Frank Jiang, CStone Chairman and Chief Executive Officer.
Amazon completed a $152m investment in Amazon Seller Services, an Indian unit.
The fresh infusion will provide more ammunition to Amazon to compete aggressively against Walmart-owned Flipkart and billionaire Mukesh Ambani-run Reliance Industries' JioMart in the upcoming festive season.
Chemical and carbon exploration and manufacturing companies, Fangda Carbon and C-Chem completed the acquisition of a 75% stake in Koppers Carbon Chemical Company, a tar distiller from Koppers, a provider of treated wood products, wood treatment chemicals and carbon compounds, for $107m.
"Our focus shifted significantly since the KJCC facility was built in the 2012-2014 time period. With our subsequent strategic pivot toward an emphasis on wood treatment technologies, it made sense to consider divesting this business at the right price so we can better focus on core markets and products. I am proud of the stellar safety and environmental record of KJCC employees who truly took our Zero Harm mindset to heart. I wish them the best and thank them for their contributions to Koppers success," James Sullivan, Koppers Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer.
The Competition Commission of India approves acquisition of 100% equity shareholding in CoWrks by Brookfield Asset Management, under Section 31(1) of the Competition Act, 2002.
The acquiring entity will be a newly formed company belonging to Brookfield Private Capital.
General Atlantic to invest $498m in Reliance Retail Ventures. (FS)
General Atlantic, a private equity firm, agreed to invest $498m in Reliance Retail Ventures, the retail unit of Reliance Industries. This investment values Reliance Retail at a pre-money equity value of $58.3bn. General Atlantic’s investment will translate into a 0.84% equity stake in RRVL on a fully diluted basis.
“I am pleased to extend our relationship with General Atlantic as we work towards empowering both merchants and consumers alike, and ultimately transforming Indian Retail. Like Reliance Retail, General Atlantic believes in the fundamental ability of digital enablement to drive progress, growth, and inclusion across India and the world. We look forward to leveraging General Atlantic’s extensive expertise at the intersection of technology and consumer businesses, and two decades of experience investing in India, as we create a disruptive New Commerce platform to redefine retail in the country,” Mukesh Ambani, Reliance Industries Chairman and Managing Director.
Reliance Retail is advised by Morgan Stanley, Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas and Davis Polk & Wardwell. General Atlantic is advised by Shardul Amarchand Mangaldas and Paul Weiss.
Baidu-backed Zuoyebang seeks new funding at $10bn valuation.
Baidu-backed Chinese online education startup Zuoyebang has started a new fundraising drive at a valuation of $10bn, as investor appetite for the sector continues to surge amid the Covid-19 pandemic, Reuters reported.
The company aims to raise around $650m in the new round. Existing investors including FountainVest Partners, SoftBank, Sequoia Capital China and Tiger Global Management are planning to invest in the latest round along with some new investors.
The fundraising comes as education technology is one of the few sectors that thrived in the pandemic as students were asked to take online classes from home after China and other countries imposed a lockdown.
FAW Group's talks to acquire Iveco held this year now on hold.
Chinese state-owned car maker FAW Group held talks to acquire Italian truck group Iveco earlier this year but these have now been put on hold, Reuters reported.
FAW made a preliminary offer in July, valuing Iveco at a bit more than $3.5bn. Iveco's parent CNH Industrial rebuffed it because it considered the valuation low.
Changchun-based FAW, which makes heavy duty trucks under its own brand, is now reluctant to make international deals so as not to be seen to take advantage of troubled companies during the Covid-19 pandemic.
Bain-backed Chindata to raise $540m in US IPO. (FS)
Chindata Group has raised $540m in its US initial public offering after pricing at the top of a marketed range, Bloomberg reported.
The Chinese data center operator, which is backed by private equity firm Bain Capital, sold 40m American depositary shares at $13.5 each. Chindata had set a price range of $11.5-$13.5 apiece.
Anil Agarwal seeks $5bn for turnaround fund. (FS)
Commodities tycoon Anil Agarwal is seeking at least $5bn for a fund targeting companies being sold off by the Indian government, marking a return to the strategy that made him wealthy.
Agarwal is targeting $1bn or more in an initial round of fundraising for the proposed India Direct Investment fund. He is already scouting for targets and could spend nearly $10bn on the first few acquisitions.
The billionaire is working with London-based Centricus Asset Management on the fund, which will have a 10-year life span and use a private equity-type strategy. He plans to buy companies over a five-year period and then boost their profitability before seeking an exit.
Goarong Capital plans to raise $1bn for its fifth dollar fund. (FS)
Goarong Capital, an early- and growth-stage venture capital firm, which targets investments in TMT, Internet, and tech firms, is looking to raise its fifth dollar-denominated fund for $1bn, DealStreetAsia reported.
The fund will be twice as big as its forth dollar fund that raised $500m - a $450m main fund and $50m side fund - from a group of undisclosed limited partners in December 2018. In 2017 it has also secured $400m for its third dollar fund.
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