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AMERICAS
Microsoft-Activision deal poised to close later than planned.
Microsoft and Activision Blizzard are nearing the finish line on their $69bn deal, but aren't likely to close it by a July 18 deadline, Bloomberg reported.
The UK's Competition and Markets Authority said it would push back a July 18 deadline for it to block the deal until August 29, after receiving a "detailed and complex submission from Microsoft". The company argued that the agency should re-examine its conclusions due to "material changes in circumstance and special reasons". That timetable could allow Microsoft to complete the merger more quickly than the CMA had suggested earlier this week, when the agency said a restructured deal would trigger a new investigation, likely taking several months.
Activision Blizzard is advised by Allen & Company (led by Nancy Peretsman), Morgan Stanley (led by Anthony Armstrong), Skadden Arps Slate Meagher & Flom (led by Sonia Nijjar and Kenton J. King), Brunswick Group (led by Jonathan Doorley) and FGS Global (led by Paul Verbinnen). Financial advisors are advised by White & Case (led by Denise A. Cerasani). Microsoft is advised by Goldman Sachs (led by Sam Britton), Osler Hoskin & Harcourt, Sidley Austin (led by C. Frederick Beckner, Christopher T. Shenk and Robert Keeling), Simpson Thacher & Bartlett (led by William Allen, Anthony Vernace and Alan Klein), Weil Gotshal and Manges (led by Mike Moiseyev) and Assembly Media.
Neurogene, a clinical-stage company, agreed to merge with Neoleukin Therapeutics, a biopharmaceutical company. Financial terms were not disclosed.
“This merger with Neurogene reflects the continued commitment of our management team and Board of Directors to deliver value to stockholders and, importantly, meaningfully improve patients’ lives. Neurogene has an innovative genetic medicines portfolio, in-house product design and manufacturing capabilities, an impressive management team, and will be well positioned to deliver multiple data readouts in the next 18 to 24 months. We are grateful to our current and former employees who contributed to Neoleukin’s efforts and look forward to the combined company’s continued progress and success,” Donna Cochener, Neoleukin Interim CEO and General Counsel.
Neoleukin Therapeutics is advised by Leerink Partners and Fenwick & West. Neurogene is advised by Stifel, TD Cowen, Gibson Dunn & Crutcher and Argot Partners (led by David Rosen and Melissa Forst). Financial advisors are advised by Cooley.
Johnson Controls, a producer of fire, HVAC, and security equipment for buildings, completed the acquisition of FM:Systems, a digital workplace management and internet of things solutions provider, from Accel-KKR, a private equity company, for $455m.
"FM: Systems' powerful, predictive workplace management platform will build on our best-in-class building automation services, OpenBlue, to offer a one-stop solution that helps customers accelerate their digital transformation journey, improve building efficiency and reduce operational costs," George Oliver, Johnson Controls Chairman and CEO.
FM:Systems was advised by Moelis & Co, Raymond James (led by Brendan Ryan), and Goodwin Procter. Johnson Controls was advised by Centerview Partners and Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton. Accel-KKR was advised by Kekst CNC (led by Todd Fogarty).
Lee Equity Partners and Twin Point Capital completed the acquisition of TESSCO for $161m. (FS)
Lee Equity Partners, a private equity firm, and Twin Point Capital, a principal investment firm, completed the acquisition of TESSCO, a technology distributor, manufacturer, and solutions provider, for $161m.
“This deal is a win for Tessco shareholders and our customers. The transaction price and premium reflect the success of our considerable turnaround efforts over the past three years, as well as Tessco’s current growth trajectory. Moreover, our customers will benefit from a greater breadth of products and service options as we team with two companies that are true leaders in serving the wireless industry, and that share our commitment to innovation and customer service,” Sandip Mukerjee, Tessco President and CEO.
TESSCO was advised by William Blair & Co, Ballard Spahr (led by Michael R. Kuhn and Douglas M. Fox) and Sharon Merrill Associates (led by David Calusdian). Lee Equity was advised by DLA Piper, Harter Secrest & Emery and Weil Gotshal and Manges (led by Douglas P. Warner).
Platinum Equity, an investment firm, agreed to acquire The HC Companies, a manufacturer of horticultural containers. Financial terms were not disclosed.
"HC has built an impressive business, with a strong leadership team, dedicated employees and one of the most comprehensive product lines in the industry. We look forward to working with the leadership team to help the company continue investing in growth while navigating a dynamic market," Jacob Kotzubei, Platinum Equity Co-President.
The HC Companies is advised by Lincoln International and Haynes and Boone. Platinum Equity is advised by Alston & Bird and Willkie Farr & Gallagher.
Berry, a company primarily engaged in hydrocarbon exploration, agreed to acquire Macpherson Energy, a privately-held, family-owned and operated energy producer, for $70m.
"The acquisition of these high-quality, low decline oil producing properties meets the criteria of our disciplined capital returns strategy – it will be near- and long-term accretive across key financial metrics and increase future free cash flow generation. These assets, which are a natural fit with our existing rural Kern County portfolio, will enable us to optimize our 2023 production plans with greater capital efficiency and enhance future capital allocation flexibility," Fernando Araujo, Berry Chief Executive Officer.
Berry is advised by Guggenheim Partners and Vinson & Elkins.
BioIVT, a global provider of research models and value-added research services for drug discovery and development, completed the acquisition of PrecisionMed, a supplier of human biological material for research. Financial terms were not disclosed.
"We are thrilled to announce BioIVT's acquisition of PrecisionMed. Our vision is to lead the biospecimen industry through expertise and innovation and our acquisition of PrecisionMed pushes us even closer to this goal. We are excited about the possibilities that lie ahead as we expand our supply network and inventory and strengthen our capacity to meet the increasing customer demand for CSF and liquid biopsy products. Together, we will drive even greater value for our customers and further our mission of enabling smarter science," Richard Haigh, BioIVT CEO.
BioIVT was advised by Rana Healthcare Solutions (led by Lisa Osborne).
Buyout firm THL agrees $1.6bn deal for Standish Management. (FS)
Private equity firm Thomas H. Lee Partners has agreed to acquire a majority stake in Standish Management in a deal that values the US-based fund administrator at about $1.6bn, Reuters reported.
THL prevailed in an auction for the company over other private equity firms because its bid was favored by Standish's management, which currently holds a roughly 45% stake in the business.
Record Miami land sale collapses amid the slowdown. (RE)
The collapse of a record Florida land sale leaves a billion-dollar hole of prime waterfront real estate in downtown Miami, WSJ reported.
In the spring, Genting Malaysia, a Southeast Asia casino operator, cut a deal to sell the 15.5-acre assemblage for $1.2bn in what would have been the most expensive Florida land sale on record. That deal collapsed in June when the buyer, a group led by Miami developer Terra, was unable to agree on terms and timing with Genting, which has owned the property for more than a decade.
McKinsey partners with startup Cohere to help clients adopt generative AI.
Consultancy giant McKinsey said it had struck a partnership with artificial intelligence startup Cohere in an effort to provide AI solutions to its enterprise clients, Reuters reported.
This is the first partnership with a large language model provider that McKinsey has announced as it joins other global consulting firms to tap into the global AI frenzy kicked off by the popular Microsoft-backed OpenAI's ChatGPT.
Angelo Gordon raises $1bn for asset-based specialty private credit opportunities. (FS)
Angelo Gordon, a $73bn alternative investment firm focused on credit and real estate investing, announced the final close of the AG Asset Based Credit Fund, with over $1bn of equity commitments, exceeding its $800m target. The fund received significant support from existing Angelo Gordon clients, as well as new institutional investors attracted to the firm's demonstrated ability to generate value through private credit strategies globally.
"This fundraise furthers Angelo Gordon's commitment to strategically scaling our all-weather credit platform with diversified strategies across the liquidity spectrum. We are grateful for the strong support we received from new and existing investors and look forward to providing them with another way to gain exposure to the tremendous opportunities that exist across private credit markets globally," Josh Baumgarten, Angelo Gordon Co-CEO, Co-CIO, and Head of Credit.
EJF Capital and Rocade raise approximately $470m for credit-focused litigation finance platform. (FS)
EJF Capital, a global alternative asset management firm, announced the successful close of its fourth installment of litigation finance investment vehicles, Rocade Capital Fund IV and Rocade Capital Offshore Fund IV with approximately $220m in investor subscriptions and commitments.
Previously, EJF Capital and funds affiliated with Barings, one of the world's leading investment managers, formed a joint venture specialty finance company, Rocade, with $250m of committed capital designed to invest alongside the funds. The combined capital commitments raised across Rocade and the funds totals approximately $470m.
Westlake Village BioPartners launches $450m fund. (FS)
Westlake Village BioPartners has launched its third fund of $450m to incubate and grow early stage next-generation biotechnology companies in the Los Angeles region and beyond.
"This new fund will enable us to continue to do what we do best – build great companies from the ground up that make a difference for patients and generate outsized returns for investors regardless of market conditions," Beth Seidenberg, Westlake Village BioPartners Founding Managing Director.
SMBC and LarrainVial announce first close of $200m Colombian fund. (FS)
Sumitomo Mitsui Banking, a member of SMBC Group, and LarrainVial, an independent Latin American financial services company, announced the first close of a new debt fund that will provide Colombian peso-denominated loans for infrastructure and renewable energy projects in Colombia. The total fund size is approximately $200m.
"SMBC is committed to enabling the growth of infrastructure and renewable energy projects across Latin America. With the close of this fund, we are pleased to provide local market funding capacity for Colombian institutional investors that helps bring these projects to life," Luis Fernando Perdigon, SMBC Head of Latin America Corporate and Project Finance.
EMEA
Sartorius, a biotechnology company, completed the acquisition of Polyplus, an upstream solutions provider for advanced biologic and cell and gene therapy, from Warburg Pincus, a global growth investor, for €2.6bn ($2.8bn).
"This contemplated acquisition is a major milestone in the history of Polyplus, and a recognition of its innovative upstream market leadership position and our highly talented Polyplus teams around the world. We would be excited to join forces with a world class bioprocess market leader as Sartorius. Our combined portfolios would create a unique ability to optimize the total process workflow to deliver unparalleled value for cell/gene and DNA/RNA therapy customers, in a strong effort to make these critical needed therapies more affordable," Mario Philips, Polyplus CEO.
Kingspan Group, a high performance insulation and building envelope solutions provider, agreed to acquire a 51% stake in Steico, a company engaged in the construction industry, from Schramek, a management services provider, for €251m ($282m).
"The acquisition of a majority stake in Steico represents an exciting next step in our strategy to provide the full spectrum of insulation products. Its suite of wood-based building envelope solutions broadens our ability to enable our customers to meet their sustainability and energy performance needs. Kingspan's global routes to market, paired with our drive to innovate and widen the applications of Steico's current technologies, are key to our plans to bring Steico bio-based solutions to the next level," Gene Murtagh, Kingspan CEO.
Valmet, a developer and supplier of process technologies, automation and services for the pulp, paper and energy industries, agreed to acquire the process gas chromatography business from Siemens, a multinational technology conglomerate, for €102m ($114m).
"Siemens' Process Gas Chromatograph Maxum II products, systems and services offering complements well Valmet's existing automation offering, industry reach and expertise. The Maxum brand is widely known in process industries and the products are used extensively by world's leading industrial customers. Also, the large installed base provides further service opportunities and business stability. The business is planned to form a globally-lead business unit within the Automation Systems business line and has a joint customer base also with Valmet's Flow Control business line. With this setup, supported by Valmet's strong functions, we see opportunities for further profitable growth in this business. We look forward to welcoming the new colleagues from Siemens to Valmet," Emilia Torttila-Miettinen, Valmet President of Automation Systems.
Logitech, a manufacturer of computer peripherals and software, completed the acquisition of Loupedeck, a creator of custom consoles and software. Financial terms were not disclosed.
“Empowering streamers, creators and gamers is a joint passion of Loupedeck and Logitech. Together we are focused on removing all barriers so they can create, edit and stream without limits. This acquisition augments Logitech’s product portfolio today and accelerates our software ambitions of enabling keyboards, mice and more to become smarter and contextually aware, creating a better experience for audiences across Logitech,” Ujesh Desai, Logitech General Manager.
Cornerstone, a private equity investor, and Kartesia, a specialist financing provider, completed the acquisition of Ecowipes Group, a producer of bio-degradable wet wipes. Financial terms were not disclosed.
"Our co-operation with Cornerstone and Kartesia will allow us to leverage our strong position across Europe and provide us with the financial backing to introduce more innovations in the future. We call ourselves the Earthchangers, and this partnership will put us closer to achieving our primary environmental goal, to supply consumers with hygiene products made only from natural-based materials at a reasonable price," Gabriel Kermiche, Ecowipes CEO and Co-Investor.
Bowmark Capital, a private equity firm, completed an investment in Lendscape, a technology provider to the global secured commercial finance market. Financial terms were not disclosed.
“Lendscape is a technology leader with an outstanding reputation for service excellence and technical expertise, and a track record of double-digit revenue growth. We look forward to working with the team to support the company’s next stage of growth through investment in product development, international expansion and strategic acquisitions,” Tom Shelford, Bowmark Partner.
Billionaire seeks to raise GAM stake in a spat with Liontrust. (FS)
A key group of investors in GAM said it intends to launch a partial public tender offer of $0.64 per share in cash for the troubled Swiss asset manager, in signs of mounting opposition to a takeover bid by Liontrust Asset Management, Bloomberg reported.
The NewGAMe and Bruellan shareholder group, which includes French billionaire Xavier Niel, said that the offer for as many as 28m GAM shares will be made on or around August 17. The investors have contested the Liontrust offer, arguing that it undervalues the company.
Novartis raises outlook, plans buyback of up to $15bn.
Global healthcare company Novartis raised its profit outlook and announced plans to buy back as much as $15bn in shares as it prepares to spin off its Sandoz generics unit, Bloomberg reported.
Operating profit excluding some items will likely grow by low double digits this year, the Swiss drugmaker said, raising its forecast for a second time from a prior estimate of high single-digits gains.
Dutch e-bike maker VanMoof bankrupt, administrators may sell assets.
Dutch e-bike maker VanMoof has been declared bankrupt and curators are researching whether it can sell assets and restructure, Reuters reported.
VanMoof, which raised $112m to expand internationally as sales boomed during the Covid-19 pandemic, had filed for protection from creditors last week.
Trading platform Robinhood plans UK hires in bid to target local investors. (People)
US retail trading platform Robinhood Markets is looking to fill key roles in the UK as it prepares to renew its push to win over local investors, Bloomberg reported.
The Silicon Valley-headquartered firm, which turbocharged buying and selling "meme stocks" during the pandemic, has opened up posts for UK-based regulatory experts and an operations lead with experience in securities and brokerage, listings on LinkedIn and the company's website show.
APAC
Rohm said it will invest $722m in the group led by Japan Industrial Partners, a private equity firm that is launching a tender offer for Toshiba, DealStreetAsia reported.
"The main purpose of this investment is to participate in the privatization of Toshiba and help to resolve their issues. There are no agreements with the investee regarding collaborations with or participation in the management of Toshiba," Rohm.
Toshiba is advised by JP Morgan, Mizuho Securities, Nomura, UBS, Morrison & Foerster, Nagashima Ohno & Tsunematsu, Nishimura & Asahi, White & Case and Kekst CNC (led by Jochen Legewie). JIP is advised by Crosspoint Advisors, Davis Polk & Wardwell (led by Ken Lebrun), De Brauw Blackstone Westbroek (led by Pete Lawley), Hengeler Mueller (led by Thomas Meurer), Shearman & Sterling (led by Etienne Gelencsér, Derek Kershaw and Simon Letherman), Slaughter & May (led by Richard Hilton) and TMI Associates.
Ares Management, a global alternative investment manager, agreed to acquire Crescent Point Capital, an Asia-focused private equity firm. Financial terms were not disclosed.
“We are proud of the significant Asia Pacific presence that we have established over the years, and we believe that CPC is an excellent platform that will further enhance our footprint and capabilities in the region. We have enjoyed the opportunity to develop a great relationship with the Crescent Point team. They are experienced investors who we believe will bring impactful synergies to our existing Asia team,” Michael Arougheti, Ares CEO and President.
Crescent Point is advised by Kirkland & Ellis and Milbank. Ares is advised by Latham & Watkins.
Boyu agrees to buy $600m medical device maker Quasar. (FS)
Buyout firm Boyu Capital has agreed to acquire Quasar in a deal that values the medical device maker at more than $600m, marking another transaction in the health-care sector which has become a rare bright spot for dealmakers, Bloomberg reported.
Boyu has emerged as the buyer for Hong Kong-based Quasar after beating out other suitors including companies in the industry and other private equity firms. A transaction has the support of Quasar's global health-care customers and is expected to close soon.
Softbank trims stake in India's Paytm to 9.15%.
Japan's SoftBank Group has pared its stake in Indian digital payments firm Paytm by 2% in the last month, bringing its total holding in the company to 9.15%, DealStreetAsia reported.
The Japanese investment company sold a 2% stake in Paytm earlier in May. The stake sales in recent months have generated about $250-300m for Softbank.
China's Geely to invest $10b in Malaysian auto city.
Chinese automobile manufacturer Geely will invest $10bn to turn Tanjung Malim in the Malaysian state of Perak into a major auto-making hub, Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim said.
The company conveyed the information about investing in the Malaysian town of Tanjung Malim to him in a letter, Anwar said at an event in the Selangor state, DealStreetAsia reported.
Adani's go-to bankers at Barclays turn cautious after Hindenburg.
For more than a decade, Barclays has been the go-to bank for Indian billionaire Gautam Adani, leveraging a relationship forged when only a few global firms were working with the emerging conglomerate.
An explosive report by short-seller Hindenburg Research in January has changed all that, prompting the bank to pare its exposure, leaving a hole in an Indian business that's been a key driver of the firm's Asian growth for years, Bloomberg reported.
China AI chip firm targeting Nvidia seeks HK IPO in 2023.
Chinese chip startup Shanghai Biren Intelligent Technology is considering an initial public offering in Hong Kong as soon as this year, aiming to capitalize on a wave of local clients turning to its AI chips as an alternative to banned Nvidia silicon, Bloomberg reported.
The company is planning to file for the first-time share sale as soon as the coming weeks. Meanwhile, the startup is also in talks with investors including state-backed funds in Guangzhou for a separate funding round, which could raise about $279m.
Marcos signs bill creating Philippines' first-ever wealth fund.
Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr approved a bill creating the country's first sovereign wealth fund, which he touted as a key plank of his economic goals to modernise infrastructure and accelerate the country's growth, DealStreetAsia reported.
The bill, which has earlier raised concern, including from the central bank over transparency in its governance, has undergone revisions to address worries about how the fund would be managed and financed.
China SMIC chairman steps down, replaced by a chemical industry veteran. (People)
Semiconductor Manufacturing International said Chairman Gao Yonggang has resigned, marking the latest board level departure from China's largest chipmaker in recent years as it battles US pressure, DealStreetAsia reported.
Gao, appointed chairman in March 2022 and previously served as the company's CFO, resigned from his executive director role due to a "job adjustment", SMIC said.
NIIF CEO steps down; Centrum Wealth appoints new Managing Director. (People)
Indian government-backed investment platform National Investment and Infrastructure Fund's CEO Sujoy Bose has stepped down from the role, DealStreetAsia reported.
Separately, Centrum Group, a financial services company, has appointed Sandeep Das as Managing Director and CEO of Centrum Wealth.
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