Read on...
Scroll down to read deal descriptions. Your suggestions and comments support the democratisation of M&A data. If you'd like to contribute to the future editions, drop us a line.
AMERICAS
Searchlight, a global private investment firm, and BCI, one of the largest institutional investors in Canada, agreed to acquire the remaining stake in Consolidated Communications, an American broadband and business communications provider, for $2bn.
"We believe this transaction provides substantial value for our shareholders while also enhancing our flexibility to continue the execution of our fiber expansion strategy. We have been operating in a shifting economic environment over the course of this past year, resulting in higher operating costs and a challenging market for attractive financing options. While we are pleased with how we have managed the business despite these headwinds, several factors recently necessitated that we delay our estimated fiber build completion beyond 2026. As we navigate this environment, we will have increased flexibility as a private company and Searchlight will continue to be an outstanding partner as we advance our transformation to a leading fiber-first provider. We believe this continued partnership will create an outstanding outcome for the Company, our customers and our employees," Bob Udell, Consolidated Communications President and CEO.
Consolidated Communications is advised by Rothschild & Co, Cravath Swaine & Moore and Latham & Watkins (led by Ryan Maierson, Ryan Lynch, and David Miller). Searchlight is advised by Goldman Sachs, JP Morgan, Mizuho Securities, Morgan Stanley, RBC Capital Markets, TD Securities, Wells Fargo Securities and Wachtell Lipton Rosen & Katz (led by Steven A. Cohen and Victor Goldfeld). BCI is advised by Weil Gotshal and Manges.
Czechoslovak Group, a Czech industrial-technological holding company, agreed to acquire the Sporting Products business of Vista Outdoor, an American designer, manufacturer, and marketer of outdoor sports and recreation products, for $1.91bn.
"This is an important strategic step for our company in creating value through separating our Outdoor Products and Sporting Products segments. The previously announced plan to separate our businesses has positioned us to execute seamlessly on this transaction, which we believe is the best path to maximize value for our stockholders, while better positioning Sporting Products and Outdoor Products for future success," Gary McArthur, Vista Outdoor Interim CEO.
Czechoslovak Group is advised by JP Morgan and Clifford Chance. Vista Outdoor is advised by Moelis & Co, Morgan Stanley, Cravath Swaine & Moore and Gibson Dunn & Crutcher.
Blue Wolf, a private equity firm, and Stonepeak, an investment firm, agreed to acquire LOGISTEC, a container cargo handling company, for $1.2bn.
"Since my father started this business more than 70 years ago, we have grown into industry leaders," Madeleine Paquin, LOGISTEC President and Chief Executive Officer.
Blue Wolf is advised by Rothschild & Co, McCarthy Tetrault, and Willkie Farr & Gallagher. LOGISTEC is advised by TD Securities, Fasken, and K&L Gates.
Arcline Investment Management, a private equity firm, agreed to acquire Hartzell Aviation, an aerospace company, from Tailwind Technologies, a transportation company. Financial terms were not disclosed.
"Our family has been blessed to be the stewards of Hartzell Aviation for 37 years. As we look to the future, we believe Arcline fully embraces our core value – Built on Honor – and will bring the skills and resources to build on over a century of excellence and innovation," Jim Brown, Hartzell Aviation President.
Arcline Investment Management is advised by BMO Capital Markets and Joele Frank (led by Tim Ragones). Hartzell Aviation is advised by RBC Capital Markets.
Tourmaline Oil, a Canadian energy company engaged in the exploration, development, and extraction of crude oil and natural gas, agreed to acquire Bonavista Energy, an intermediate, dividend-paying Canadian oil and natural gas producer, for $1.06bn.
Bonavista is the ninth largest natural gas liquids weighted producer in Western Canada and has assets in the Deep Basin which straddles the provinces of Alberta and British Columbia.
Bonavista is advised by Perella Weinberg Partners. Tourmaline Oil is advised by Peters & Co.
Gauge Capital-backed EMSAR, a provider of equipment services, completed the acquisition of Omnicor Biomedical Services, an asset management, compliance and biomedical services company. Financial terms were not disclosed.
"We are extremely excited to welcome Omnicor Biomedical to EMSAR. Omnicor has earned the reputation as a trusted biomedical service provider throughout the state of New York. This acquisition complements EMSAR's national footprint and expertise in the healthcare space," Dave Elario, EMSAR CEO.
The Timken Company, a global company in engineered bearings and industrial motion products, agreed to acquire Engineered Solutions Group, an integrated design, engineering, construction, and maintenance company. Financial terms were not disclosed.
"The acquisition of iMECH allows us to build on our global leadership in engineered bearings by increasing our product breadth and providing exciting cross-selling opportunities," Andreas Roellgen, Timken Executive Vice President and President of Engineered Bearings.
Atlantic Utility Trailer Sales, a trailer dealership business that offers rental and leasing services, completed the acquisition of Utility Trailer Sales of New Jersey, a company offering used trailer, parts and services, from Utility Trailer Manufacturing, trailer manufacturing company. Financial terms were not disclosed.
“Atlantic leadership extends a warm welcome to the Dwyer family and the entire Utility Trailer Sales of New Jersey team, to the new Atlantic Utility Trailer Sales, Inc. as we start this new chapter together,” Tom Barton, Atlantic Utility Trailer Sales CEO.
Drug retailer Rite Aid files for bankruptcy amid rising debt, opioid litigation.
Rite Aid filed for bankruptcy protection on Sunday and said it would close underperforming stores, as the drugstore chain comes under pressure from lawsuits alleging that it helped fuel the US opioid crisis, Reuters reported.
The filing will allow it to resolve litigation claims in an "equitable manner", the company said, adding it has received a commitment for $3.45bn from some lenders, which will provide liquidity during the bankruptcy process.
Hipgnosis shareholder plans to derail music catalogue sale. (FS)
A shareholder of Hipgnosis Songs Fund is looking to scuttle the company's $465m deal to sell some of its music catalogues to a group backed by private equity firm Blackstone, Reuters reported.
In a letter to shareholders on Monday, Asset Value Investors said it would vote against the deal and asked fellow investors to do the same, citing "uncompetitive nature" of the process and lack of an "up-to-date valuation" that made it unlikely to be the best deal for them.
ABS Capital closes first continuation fund. (FS)
ABS Capital, a growth equity firm with over 30 years of experience scaling software and tech-enabled B2B businesses, has completed a GP-led secondary continuation fund transaction for portfolio companies, LabConnect and Viventium Software.
The transaction supports the significant continued growth opportunity for both companies, providing additional time and capital for growth initiatives, while offering liquidity to existing limited partners. ABS fund investors were provided a choice to receive liquidity or continue their investment.
The transaction is capitalised by a consortium of new and existing ABS investors, who subscribed to a new partnership managed and controlled by ABS. The transaction was led by Kline Hill Partners and Five Arrows.
Tech-focused Astira Capital closes initial fund at $675m. (FS)
Private equity firm Astira Capital Partners announced the final closing of its debut fund with $675m of institutional capital commitments, exceeding its original target of $500m.
The Boston-based firm focuses on buyouts of North American software businesses and technology enabled services companies, Bloomberg reported.
The firm seeks to invest $50m to $200m in total equity per investment in companies generating $10m to $30m of earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization.
EMEA
Liberty Global, a British-Dutch-American multinational telecommunications company, completed the acquisition of Telenet Group, a provider of cable broadband services, for €965m ($1bn).
“We believe an offer of €22 ($23.6) per share provides a good opportunity for Telenet shareholders to monetize their investment at an attractive premium. We welcome the unanimous decision of Telenet’s board of directors to support and recommend this offer. We are proud of how Telenet has evolved in recent years, and we are fully committed to Belgium and all the company’s stakeholders,” Mike Fries, Liberty Global CEO.
Liberty Global was advised by BNP Paribas, JP Morgan, LionTree Advisors, Allen & Overy, Ropes & Gray, and Shearman & Sterling (led by George Casey). Telenet Group was advised by Goldman Sachs (led by Clif Marriott), Lazard, Baker McKenzie, and Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer (led by Sebastian L. Fain and Deborah Janssens). Financial advisors were advised by Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton.
KKR and Flerie, an investment firm, agreed to invest in Coriolis Pharma, a biotechnology company. Financial terms were not disclosed.
“This investment presents a pivotal growth opportunity for Coriolis to realize our strategy and vision. The ability to leverage Frontier’s collective skills and expertise will be invaluable as we revolutionize the development process of biopharmaceutical drugs. Together with a strong suite of industry advisors and KKR's global network and market knowledge, we will be able to position Coriolis for the future and move one step closer to our goal of making future therapies available to humankind efficiently and on time,” Michael Wiggenhorn, Coriolis Pharma Co-Founder.
Patria Investments, a global alternative asset manager, agreed to acquire the private equity solutions business of abrdn, a United Kingdom-based global investment company, for £100m ($122m).
"We are joining forces with a talented team that reflects Patria's entrepreneurial investment culture, and acquiring an established solutions platform that brings differentiated investment capabilities to serve our clients. I am excited to work with Merrick and his team to fully leverage Patria's platform as we grow together," Marco D'Ippolito, Patria Chief Corporate Development Officer.
abrdn is advised by Rothschild & Co and Macfarlanes. Patria is advised by Latham & Watkins and Ideal H+K Strategies (led by Fábio Martins).
Uncertainty over the prospects for a multibillion euro approach filed by US fund KKR for Telecom Italia's prized landline grid sent shares in the former phone monopoly down by 6%. The long-delayed binding offer from KKR came in with a different structure compared with the preliminary approach, wrongfooting investors, Reuters reported.
Heightening uncertainty, Economy Minister Giancarlo Giorgetti said Rome, which has effectively backed KKR's bid, would consider other options if the offer was rejected.
Grupo Calleja, a retail grocery store, agreed to acquire a minority stake in Casino Guichard-Perrachon, a French mass-market retail group, from Almacenes Exito, a supermarket chain, for $556m.
Exito investors will get $0.9 a share in the deal, which values the Colombian grocery store chain at $1.2bn. The transaction is expected to close around year end.
Novo Nordisk to acquire a hypertension drug for $1.3bn.
Novo Nordisk, a Danish multinational pharmaceutical company, agreed to buy ocedurenone, a drug for uncontrolled hypertension with potential application in cardiovascular and kidney disease, from KBP Biosciences for up to $1.3bn, Reuters reported.
"This deal is closely aligned with our strategic focus on expanding from our core in diabetes into other serious chronic diseases, including through novel drug modalities," Novo Nordisk.
Gold billionaire Sawiris eyes stake in $7bn Reko Diq mine.
Egyptian billionaire Naguib Sawiris, who has forged a fortune in telecom and gold, is eyeing an investment in Barrick Gold’s $7bn Reko Diq copper-gold project as he looks to expand his business in Pakistan, Bloomberg reported.
Reko Diq, in the Balochistan region that borders Afghanistan and Iran, is one the world’s largest undeveloped copper and gold deposits, capable of producing 200k tons of copper and 250k ounces of gold a year for more than half a century. The project is jointly owned by Barrick and Pakistan.
Metro Bank seeks bids within weeks for £3bn mortgage book.
Metro Bank wants rival high street lenders to submit offers by early November as it continues to repair its balance sheet, Sky News reported.
Metro Bank had become the subject of questions about its survival after Sky News revealed this month that it had drafted in City advisers to raise hundreds of millions of pounds of new capital.
In total, it is raising about £150m ($182m) of new equity and £175m ($212m) of new debt, while it is also refinancing £600m ($728m) of existing borrowings.
Italy's Acinque utility aims to grow via regional M&A deals.
Italian regional utility Acinque aims to grow by acquiring other peers and sees opportunities to boost its client base from the end of the regulated price market due next year, Reuters reported.
Acinque is based in Lombardy, Italy's wealthy northern region, particularly in the provinces north-west of Milan. It is 41.3% owned by Italy's largest regional utility A2A, while local authorities have a stake of around 48.5%.
The Milan-listed company has recently acquired 70% of multi-utility Agesp Energia, which will boost its client base to an overall 34k approximately.
"We work on territories that present many opportunities", Stefano Cetti, Chief Executive, said pointing to the Lombardy provinces of Monza, Como, Lecco, Varese and Sondrio.
Australia's IFM eyes expansion in Spanish renewables, telecoms. (FS)
Australian fund IFM Investors is looking at businesses in the Spanish renewables and telecom industries as it seeks to expand its presence in the country, Reuters reported.
The fund has already invested around €8bn ($8.4bn) in Spain, including a 14.5% stake in power utility Naturgy, its flagship investment in the country.
"Our teams analyse all the infrastructure assets in the world in search of investment opportunities, and Spain will receive investments from IFM," David Neal, Chief Executive.
Former Telegraph owners table blockbuster £1bn bid to retake control.
The Barclay family has enlisted financial backing from Abu Dhabi investors to lodge a £1bn ($1.2bn) offer that they hope will derail an auction of the newspapers, Sky News reported.
The Barclay family has lined up financing from Abu Dhabi investors to lodge a knockout offer that would repay the debt owed by their companies to Lloyds Banking Group, Britain's biggest high street lender.
The Barclay family's latest proposal had been lodged in the last few days, in an attempt to derail an auction of The Daily Telegraph, The Sunday Telegraph and The Spectator current affairs magazine that was due to get underway as early as Monday.
PATRIZIA plugs in to ultrafast EV charging sector. (FS)
PATRIZIA, a private investment firm focused on real assets investments has entered into a binding agreement for a transaction of over €140m ($147m) in an EV charging rollout programme in Germany, through its flagship European Infrastructure Fund series.
The deal significantly diversifies PATRIZIA’s infrastructure platform by sector and country, marking the company’s entry into EV charging as well as the first investment in Germany for its European Infrastructure Fund series.
Saudi Savola weighs $5.4bn Almarai stake sale.
Almarai’s top investor is exploring options for its $5.4bn holding in the Middle East’s largest dairy firm, in what could be one of the region’s biggest merger and acquisition deals, Bloomberg reported.
Stakeholders at Saudi Arabian food-processing firm Savola Group are working with US investment bank Moelis & Co. to find potential suitors for part or all of its 35% stake in Riyadh-based Almarai.
Shares in Savola jumped almost 10%, the most since March 2020. Almarai stock fell more than 2% to the lowest level since June.
Deloitte director in Netherlands quits over exam fraud. (People)
The Dutch arm of accounting firm Deloitte said on Monday its Chief People and Quality Officer Rob Bergmans had quit after an internal investigation showed some employees had cheated in professional exams and learning modules.
Bergmans' decision comes just three months after a similar move by two directors at KPMG Netherlands, who quit their jobs after an investigation there showed more than 100 employees had shared the answers to required exams, Reuters reported.
Dutch financial markets watchdog AFM said it was "shocked" by the outcome of Deloitte's investigation and urged the company to reveal all the facts.
"Twice in a row, exam fraud is shown at the top of major accountancy firms, where exemplary behaviour should be expected. That makes it all the more painful," Hanzo van Beusekom, AFM Director.
Top banker Mustier takes over as crisis-hit Atos chairman. (People)
Jean-Pierre Mustier is taking over the helm of Atos' board of directors, the crisis-hit French IT consulting group said on Monday, driving the shares up as it seeks to secure a contested deal with Czech tycoon Daniel Kretinksy, Reuters reported.
Mustier, a former CEO of Italian bank UniCredit, is replacing Bertrand Meunier, who has recently been the focus of criticism by several minority shareholders after Atos dropped an initial plan to split up the company into two listed entities in favour of selling its largest division to Kretinsky.
APAC
Lithium giant Albemarle has walked away from its AUD6.6bn ($4.2bn) takeover of Liontown Resources after Australia’s richest woman built up a blocking minority and effectively scuppered one of the largest battery-metals deals to date, Bloomberg reported.
Eager to add new supply, Albemarle had pursued its Perth-based target for months, eying its Kathleen Valley project — one of Australia’s most promising deposits. Liontown agreed to the US company’s “best and final” offer of AUD3 ($1.5) a share in September — a near 100% premium to the price before Albemarle’s takeover interest was made public in March.
MUFG plans to sell dollar AT1 bonds in first for Japanese banks.
Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group has mandated banks to sell dollar-denominated Additional Tier 1 bonds, in what looks set to be the first such offering in the US currency by any Japanese lender, Bloomberg reported.
The nation’s banks have long issued AT1 notes in yen because of lower borrowing costs. But they may consider selling such debt in dollars to help mitigate foreign-currency risk in their capital ratios, given they can get squeezed when the yen depreciates. About a third of MUFG’s assets are denominated in foreign currency, the BI analysts wrote.
For the MUFG deal, banks will arrange a series of investor meetings and calls in Asia, Europe and the US starting on October 16. It’s expected to be a benchmark-size offering of perpetual bonds that can be called after 5.25 years.
Vivriti raises over $200m in India private credit push. (FS)
Vivriti Asset Management raised INR17bn ($204m) from its three private credit funds, joining a growing number of its Indian peers in tapping the booming market for direct lending, Bloomberg reported.
The Chennai-based manager has deployed INR14bn ($168m) in sectors including airports, clean energy, roads, financial services and logistics, Chief Investment Officer Soumendra Ghosh said in an interview. The funds, which lured more than 570 investors, are targeting a pre-tax, annual INR return of 11% to 14%, he said.
Indian asset managers are following their global peers in stepping up direct lending to businesses struggling to raise funds amid high borrowing costs. The private debt market is also expanding in part because of rules that forbid local bank to disburse loans for mergers and acquisitions.
Hong Kong crypto exchange OSL weighs sale at HKD1bn valuation.
Hong Kong’s BC Technology Group is exploring the sale of its crypto platform OSL, one of only two exchanges licensed under digital-asset rules the city introduced in June. BC Technology has gauged interest in OSL from possible buyers such as industry players and funds, and a HKD1bn ($128m) valuation has been mooted.
OSL’s platform spans prime brokerage, exchange and custody services for crypto markets as well as a business providing infrastructure to financial institutions so that they can offer virtual-asset trading. BC Technology may decide to sell parts of OSL rather than the whole business, Bloomberg reported.
Japan chip tool maker Kokusai Electric raises JPY108bn in IPO. (FS)
Chip equipment maker Kokusai Electric has raised JPY108bn ($724m) after pricing its shares at the top end of their marketed range in Japan's largest initial public offering in five years, Reuters reported.
Kokusai, owned by US private equity firm KKR, set its IPO price at JPY1.8k ($12) per share, according to a filing on Monday, valuing the company at JPY424bn ($2.8bn).
The portion of the IPO available to foreign investors was more than 10 times oversubscribed.
Anime product maker Kayou said to tap CICC, Morgan Stanley for IPO.
Kayou, a Chinese maker of gaming cards and stationery with animation themes, is considering an initial public offering in Hong Kong as soon as next year, Bloomberg reported.
The company is working with China International Capital and Morgan Stanley on the preparations of the share sale. The company could raise as much as a few hundred million dollars in its first-time share sale, depending on the market condition.
Nomura plans private buyout fund for rich investors in Japan. (FS)
Nomura plans to offer a private buyout fund to rich investors in Japan as part of Chief Executive Officer Kentaro Okuda’s strategy to expand beyond traditional asset markets, Bloomberg reported.
The firm’s flagship Nomura Securities Co. will make the fund available from Monday for so-called specified investors, including wealthy individuals who are deemed to be more sophisticated than regular retail investors, Japan’s largest brokerage said. A third-party asset management firm will operate the fund that will place bets mainly on local unlisted firms.
|
