AMERICAS
CCI and Tokyo Gas-backed Castleton Resources, a Houston-based oil company, agreed to acquire Terryville upstream assets in Northern Louisiana from Range Resources, a petroleum and natural gas exploration and production company, for $245m.
"We are very pleased to be able to purchase quality assets at a low-point in the commodity-price cycle. The company is well-positioned to enhance the value of these assets through further operational enhancements, among other activities. We remain focused on strategically growing and diversifying our upstream and midstream assets, and broadening our portfolio with attractive opportunities that complement our long-term business strategy," Craig Jarchow, Castleton Resources President and CEO.
Castleton Resources is advised by Greenhill & Co, Kirkland & Ellis and Hill+Knowlton Strategies. CCI is advised by Bracewell. Tokyo Gas is advised by K&L Gates.
"PersonalizationMall's extensive product offering and industry-leading personalization capabilities will be an excellent addition to our growing family of popular gifting brands. The broad assortment of customizable products and processes that have made PersonalizationMall.com a premier provider of keepsake items will help us further our company's vision to inspire more human expression, connection and celebration while enhancing our position as the leading one-stop destination for all our customers' celebratory and gifting occasions," Chris McCann, 1-800-Flowers CEO.
1-800-Flowers was advised by Citigroup and Cahill Gordon & Reindel. PersonalizationMall was advised by Goldman Sachs and Proskauer Rose.
Edgewell Personal Care, a pure-play consumer products company, agreed to acquire Cremo, a premier men's grooming company, for $235m. The transaction, which is expected to close by the end of the fiscal 2021 first quarter, is subject to customary closing conditions.
"We are excited to announce this agreement to acquire Cremo. The men's grooming category remains a strategic focus for Edgewell, and this acquisition will help us accelerate growth and strengthen our position in the fastest-growing categories in men's grooming. We are acquiring a profitable, growing business with an established presence that is well diversified across grooming categories, yet has significant opportunities for expansion. We are extremely impressed with the Cremo brand and its positioning and expect it to continue to resonate over the long term with consumers. The organization's consumer-centric brand-building capabilities will also be an important addition for Edgewell as we leverage the expertise of the Cremo team," Rod Little, Edgewell President and Chief Executive Officer.
Cremo is advised by Goldman Sachs and Latham & Watkins. Edgewell is advised by Perella Weinberg Partners and Wachtell Lipton Rosen & Katz.
GI Partners, a private equity investment firm, agreed to invest in Clinical Ink, a global clinical trial technology company. Existing investor NovaQuest will continue as a minority investor in the company. Financial terms were not disclosed.
"GI Partners' acquisition is a powerful validation of our eSource vision for clinical trials and will add to our growing momentum in the marketplace. We are the undeniable leader in delivering eSource solutions across all phases and therapeutic areas. This transaction will help accelerate the adoption of our business model at a time when the weaknesses and frailties of the current clinical technology landscape are so starkly apparent. I'm excited to work with GI Partners as we launch our latest innovations later this year and expand into Asia-Pacific and Europe to support our customers' global operations," Ed Seguine, Clinical Ink CEO.
Clinical Ink is advised by Robert W Baird, Wyrick Robbins Yates & Ponton and SCORR Marketing.
Turnspire Capital Partners, a special situations-focused private equity firm, agreed to acquire Goodyear Air Springs, a provider of air springs for trucks, trailers, buses, and speciality vehicles, from EnPro Industries, an American industrial conglomerate. Financial terms were not disclosed.
"We look forward to continuing the Goodyear® Air Springs legacy as an independent company by leveraging an extensive product portfolio and bringing innovative technology solutions to leading OEM partners and aftermarket customers. Turnspire will build on the foundation of its legendary brand name, unparalleled reputation for quality, best in class reliability, and superior service. Our agreement to acquire Goodyear® Air Springs is the culmination of a highly integrated diligence process in which we utilized Turnspire's extensive experience executing corporate carve-outs, and knowledge of the transportation and manufacturing industries, to deliver speed and certainty to EnPro," Abel S. Osorio, Turnspire Partner.
Turnspire is advised by Chapman and Cutler and Kekst CNC.
CI Financial, an independent company offering global asset management and wealth management advisory services, agreed to acquire Balasa Dinverno Foltz, a private wealth management firm. Financial terms were not disclosed. The transaction, which is subject to regulatory approval, is scheduled to close in the third quarter of this year.
"The purchase of BDF, a large and incredibly well-run RIA, significantly accelerates the growth and development of our US wealth business. We are very excited that the BDF team will be joining CI to help execute our wealth management strategy. BDF, with its client-centric approach, scale and experienced leadership, will be a strong foundation for continued expansion," Kurt MacAlpine, CI Financial Chief Executive Officer.
Balasa Dinverno Foltz is advised by Raymond James.
EDBI, a global Asian-based investor, completed an investment in Vesta, a fintech pioneer in fraud protection and fully guaranteed payment technologies. Financial terms were not disclosed.
"We are excited to accelerate the execution of our strategy in APAC. The opportunity to partner with EDBI is exciting and this new investment really sets us up to go fast. Singapore is a natural spot from which to centralize our APAC operations. The combination of a dynamic business environment, first-class infrastructure and talent, and its central location for accessibility to the entire region, coupled with EDBI as our partner, made Singapore an easy choice," Ron Hynes, Vesta CEO.
Vesta was advised by Finn Partners.
Steel Dynamics, a steel producer based in Fort Wayne, Indiana, completed the acquisition of Zimmer, a ferrous and nonferrous scrap metals recycling business. Financial terms were not disclosed.
"We sincerely welcome the Zimmer team into the Steel Dynamics family. Combined with our existing metals recycling presence in Mexico, the acquisition of Zimmer expands our commercial presence in the region and strengthens our raw material supply strategy, allowing for cost-effective ferrous scrap procurement for our new Texas flat roll steel mill. Zimmer provides a platform to grow our metals recycling presence in Mexico and represents a meaningful achievement in our raw material sourcing strategy for our Texas flat roll steel mill," Mark D. Millett, Steel Dynamics President and CEO.
Astec Industries, a manufacturer of specialized equipment for asphalt road building, aggregate processing and concrete production, agreed to acquire Concrete Equipment Company and BMH Systems, two full-line concrete batch plant manufacturers. Financial terms were not disclosed.
"We are very pleased to welcome CON-E-CO and BMH Systems to Astec. The addition of these highly regarded brands, along with our existing RexCon brand of concrete products will significantly strengthen our ability to serve our customers' needs - Rock to Road. By bringing these product lines together, our global customers will have access to the most robust line of concrete products in the infrastructure industry. Both organizations are an excellent cultural fit with Astec, as they are customer-focused, innovative and performance-oriented. These acquisitions also reflect our disciplined capital allocation process, and we maintain significant financial flexibility as we continue to effectively manage our operations in this unprecedented environment," Barry A. Ruffalo, Astec CEO.
Tension about Microsoft's possible acquisition of TikTok rise.
Donald Trump abandoned his opposition to Microsoft buying TikTok's American operations, but now wants a cut of the deal for the US Treasury in exchange for approving the acquisition of the Chinese-owned video app,
Financial Times reported.
"The US should get a very large percentage of that price, because we're making it possible. It would come from the sale, which nobody else would be thinking about but me, but that's the way I think, and I think it's very fair," Donald Trump.
A deal, which is likely to run to several billion dollars, apart from facing endless technical and political challenges, will also have to satisfy Zhang Yiming, the app's founder and his powerful investors both in China and the west.
ByteDance founder Zhang Yiming told employees there were misunderstandings on Chinese social media about TikTok's situation in the United States and that the company could face more difficulties as anti-Chinese sentiment rose abroad. However, some Chinese TikTok users reacted badly on the possible deal news.
Kio Networks considers up to $1bn sale. (FS)
Kio Networks, a Mexican data center operator, is exploring a potential sale that could fetch as much as $1bn,
Bloomberg reported.
The company, backed by billionaire Maria Asuncion Aramburuzabala’s family office, Tresalia Capital, is working with an adviser to solicit interest from prospective buyers. Kio’s dependence on the Mexican government as a client might dampen investor interest and reduce its potential valuation.
GTCR-backed TerSera Therapeutics to acquire Xermelo. (FS)
GTCR-backed TerSera Therapeutics, a pharmaceutical company, agreed to acquire the Xermelo product portfolio from Lexicon Pharmaceuticals, a biopharmaceutical company, for $159m plus potential milestone payments based on development and commercialization of Xermelo in a new indication.
"With the addition of Xermelo, TerSera has become an even larger, more diversified speciality pharmaceutical business. We look forward to continuing to support Ed and the TerSera team as we further build out the franchise and portfolio of unique, growing products," Ben Daverman, GTCR Managing Director.
KKR raised $16bn for its funds in Q2. (FS)
KKR attracted a record amount of cash in the second quarter as investors looked to capitalize on the turmoil unleashed by the Covid-19 pandemic.
The New York-based alternative asset manager raised $16.4bn, surpassing its previous peak from the fourth quarter of 2017. The boost was driven by demand for buyout and infrastructure strategies in Asia, as well as real estate and credit dislocation funds.
Electric Capital raises $110m for its second fund. (FS)
Crypto venture capital firm Electric Capital closed its second fund at $110m. Of the money raised, 90% of it is institutional capital.
Electric's new fund will invest in startup equity, crypto tokens or a hybrid of the two. Checks will be in the $1m to $10m range and focus on seed and Series A rounds.
EMEA
Private equity firm ACON Investments completed the acquisition of a majority stake in Sola de Antequera, a producer, processor and distributor of preserved and canned vegetables in Spain and the United States under the "Alsur" brand. Financial terms were not disclosed.
"We are looking forward to working closely with Jorge Mañas, Mario Mustafá and the Jiménez Family to further expand Alsur's value proposition of high-quality, innovative and easy-to-serve vegetable products for consumption in households across Europe and the United States, which are increasingly focused on healthy living," Marcos Semmler, ACON Managing Partner.
Sola de Antequera was advised by BBVA Compass Bank, KPMG and Cuatrecasas Goncalves Pereira. ACON Investments was advised by Greenhill & Co and Hogan Lovells.
Euronext, a European stock exchange, completed the acquisition of a 70% stake in VP Securities, a Danish central securities depository, for c. €150m ($162m), from Danish Central Bank, Danske Bank, Nykredit, Nordea and Jyske Bank.
"Post-trade activities are at the heart of Euronext's growth strategy, and will be an even larger contributor to our revenue following the acquisition of VP Securities. Alongside Euronext VPS and Interbolsa, we will strengthen our positioning in this field, and continue to expand our footprint in the Nordic region with new and improved services to the benefit of the Danish economy and European capital markets," Stéphane Boujnah, Euronext CEO and Chairman of the Managing Board.
Euronext was advised by Ulveman & Borsting.
Private equity firm ECI Partners completed the investment in CSL Group, which provides M2M and IoT connectivity solutions in the Fire, Security and Telehealth sectors. Financial terms were not disclosed.
"We have followed this business for several years and we are excited by the opportunity that CSL has in the IoT and M2M market to further strengthen its market-leading position both organically and through M&A. As an experienced IoT investor, we're delighted to partner with Ed and the team to help CSL achieve its growth ambitions and look forward to supporting them over the next stage of its journey," Paul McCreadie, ECI Partner.
ECI Partners was advised by Rothschild & Co.
Britain's competition regulator cleared Amazon's purchase of a 16% stake in Deliveroo, an online delivery group, following a provisional nod in June,
Reuters reported.
The Competition and Markets Authority gave its original clearance in April on the basis that Deliveroo could go out of business without the investment. It changed approach to focus on the competition after criticism from rivals including Just Eat Takeaway and Domino's Pizza.
Amazon is advised by FTI Consulting.
Vetropack Group, a glass packaging company, agreed to acquire Glass Container Company, a glass, ceramics and concrete company, from Western NIS Enterprise Fund, a regional fund. Financial terms were not disclosed. The transaction is subject to customary regulatory approvals.
"With this acquisition, we continue to expand in a region with which we are very familiar – a region where we have almost three decades of glassmaking experience. Vetropack's unrivalled experience in the Central and Eastern Europe region makes it a natural choice to grow the existing Moldovan glassworks. Vetropack's strategy has always been to integrate its acquisitions within the wider Vetropack Group yet preserve their local characteristics and identity," Johann Reiter, Vetropack Group CEO.
Utico, a provider of water management and treatment solutions, agreed to extend a binding offer for Hyflux, a water treatment provider, until August 30. Utico has been pursuing Hyflux since last year and had previously said the binding offer it made last month was open for acceptance until July 31.
Utico said that its offer will remain open for acceptance whether a judicial manager is appointed or not.
A group of private equity investors considers acquiring a stake in AA. (FS)
AA, a British roadside recovery group, received three cash takeover offers from private equity groups and is also considering selling fresh equity as it tries to slash its debt pile.
The three bidders are Centerbridge Partners Europe and Towerbrook Capital Partners acting together, Platinum Equity Advisors and Warburg Pincus, AA said. The firm has $3.5bn of total net debt, of which $1.2bn is scheduled for repayment in the next two years.
“Debt reduction is therefore a key priority and the Group continues to seek to reduce its indebtedness well ahead of the upcoming maturity dates,” AA.
Samsung denies interest in Arm Holdings stake.
Samsung Electronics denied a media report that it is considering buying a small stake in SoftBank Group-backed chip company Arm Holdings,
Reuters reported.
Media reported Samsung’s interest in buying a minority stake of between 3% and 5% in the British chip designer as a way to reduce its royalty payment.
APAC
NZ Super, a sovereign wealth fund, and Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan, a pension fund, agreed to acquire the New Zealand pathology business from Healthscope, a private healthcare provider, for $391m.
"We're pleased to return this asset to part local ownership, and continue our strong investment into New Zealand. The super fund has been looking at opportunities to invest into the healthcare sector, where we can bring together our investment expertise and external partnerships to drive innovation and add long-term value to the business," Stephen Gilmore, NZ Super Fund CIO.
OTPP is advised by Cameron Partners and Rothschild & Co.
Intuit, an American business and financial software company, agreed to acquire TradeGecko, a software-as-a-service company that develops online inventory and order management software. Financial terms were not disclosed. The transaction is expected to close in September.
"We couldn't pass up the opportunity to accelerate our long-term mission of building the commerce platform to power millions of SMBs globally. Integrating TradeGecko's robust inventory and order management system with QuickBooks' suite of financial, payment, reporting and accounting tools will help product sellers run and grow their business, all in one powerful platform. Bradley and I are excited about the future - all of this has been made possible with the support of our amazing customers and our incredible team of Geckos. Partnering with Quickbooks is going to be an amazing opportunity to build the platform to power millions of SMBs," Cameron Priest, TradeGecko Co-Founder and CEO.
EC Design, a lifestyle brand, completed the acquisition of kikki.K, a design and stationery brand. Financial terms were not disclosed.
"We have long admired kikki.K for its unique design and functional products, and we are thrilled to welcome this incredible team into the EC Design family. The beautiful Swedish design aesthetic that is signature to the kikki.K brand will remain and will now be more readily accessible to US audiences," Tonia Misvaer, EC Design CEO.
Japan Post to divest Toll Holdings.
Japan Post Holdings, a postal and logistics company, decided to sell its Australian logistics arm Toll Holdings,
Reuters reported.
In 2015, Japan Post acquired Australia’s transport logistics firm Toll for $4.6bn, making an ambitious bet to diversify overseas. But two years after the deal, it had to write down the bulk of Toll’s value due to its weak performance.
DST Global nears $400m funding of Byju's.
DST Global, the investment firm headed by billionaire Yuri Milner, is close to investing as much as $400m in Indian online education startup Byju’s,
DealStreetAsia reported.
The deal values Byju’s at $10.5bn and could be signed as early as this week. The transaction would make Byju’s India’s second-most valuable startup after Alibaba Group Holding-backed financial payments brand, Paytm.
SoftBank-backed Oyo to merge Japan units.
Bloomberg reported that Oyo, the Indian hotel-booking startup backed by SoftBank Group, is merging its operations in Japan and appointing a new chief executive officer to oversee the combined entity.
The reorganization involves Oyo's hotel-booking and apartment-rental units coming together into a single company called Oyo Japan, to be led by Ryoma Yamamoto as CEO with Ryota Tanozaki as his deputy, both promoted from senior roles in the existing Oyo operations.
Bandhan Bank holding firm divests 20.95% stake to pass regulations. (FS)
Bandhan Bank met Reserve Bank of India’s promoter holding norms after its holding company Bandhan Financial Holdings sold a 20.95% stake in the bank to at least seven investors.
The buyer included Singapore’s state investors GIC and Temasek, which bought shares through their affiliates Caladium Investment and Camas Investment respectively and others such as Morgan Stanley, Bandhan Employees Welfare Trust, Copthall Mauritius Investment, Societe Generale and Credit Suisse.
STIC Investments considers entering South East Asia market with Grab funding. (FS)
South Korean private equity firm STIC Investments is looking to ramp up its exposure to Southeast Asia’s rapidly growing market with an investment in ride-hailing giant Grab.
The Seoul-based PE firm plans to invest about $200m in Grab. It plans to invest $100m from one of its funds and raise the remaining from other co-investors,
DealStreetAsia reported.
Alibaba increases investment in Xpeng before its New York IPO. (FS)
Xpeng Motors, a Chinese electric-car startup, is raising more funds from Alibaba Group Holding and other investors ahead of its planned IPO in New York,
Bloomberg reported.
Qatar Investment Authority also is one of the backers putting in another $300m total in Xpeng. That expands Xpeng’s pre-IPO funding round announced last month to $800m. The increased funding reflects investor demand.
Ant Group seeks to raise $30bn in IPO.
Ant Group, a fintech behemoth, will attempt the world’s largest-ever IPO by raising $30bn in Shanghai and Hong Kong, likely by October.
Ant is valued at roughly $200bn, and will aim to sell 10% of its shares on Shanghai’s Nasdaq-like STAR board and 5% on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange.
Blackbird Ventures raised $356m for fourth VC fund. (FS)
Australian venture capital firm Blackbird Ventures, which counts graphic design unicorn Canva in its portfolio, raised $356m for its fourth fund to invest in startups in Australia and New Zealand.
In a statement, the VC firm said the fund attracted local and international investors, including Future Fund, Australian Super, HESTA, institutional clients of Cambridge Associates, First State Super, Telstra Super, Cendana Capital, Greenspring Associations, and Pavilion Capital.
Blackbird said the fund is its largest to date. It raised $185m for its third fund in 2018, backed by Hostplus, First State Super, and Future Fund. Its maiden fund had raised $21m in 2013 while the second fund closed at $142m in 2015.
Yili Group launches $286m fund of funds. (FS)
Yili Group, a Chinese dairy products producer, and its subsidiary launched a fund of funds to invest $286m in private equity funds, fund management companies, and enterprises with high growth potential,
DealStreetAsia reported.
Yili Group, fully known as Inner Mongolia Yili Industrial Group, agreed to commit $285m to the fund, accounting for 99.5% of the total fund size. Its investment unit, Zhuhai Jianling Investment, will serve as the fund manager to invest $1m, or 0.5%.
The FOF, which typically holds a portfolio of investment funds rather than investing directly in stocks, bonds or other securities, was created to “realize the unified, professional management of Yili Group’s expanding portfolio of private equity funds and fund management platforms,” Yili Group.
Poly Developments and Country Garden hit the first close of realty fund at $215m. (FS, RE)
Poly Developments, a Chinese property giant, and its peer Country Garden hit the first close of their joint real estate fund at over $215m.
The development comes roughly two months after the two companies launched a $700m real estate fund. While a part of the corpus has been pumped in by their respective investment arms Poly Capital and Country Garden Venture Capital, the fund also saw the participation of government-led funds and listed companies, including JXCT Funds, Liuzhou Financial Investment Group, elevator manufacturer Canny Elevator, Oriental Yuhong and multinational lighting firm OPPLE Lighting.
