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AMERICAS
Vistra, an integrated retail electricity and power generation company based in Irving, Texas, agreed to acquire Energy Harbor, an electric utility company in Akron, Ohio, from Avenue Capital Group, an investment firm, and Nuveen, an American asset manager, for $3.43bn.
"We are excited to announce this unique combination and the many benefits it brings to our key stakeholders – customers, employees, communities, and shareholders. Vistra has been focused on responsibly transitioning our power generation profile, and though we've made significant progress over the past several years, there are few opportunities to grow a reliable and dispatchable zero-carbon generation portfolio at scale this quickly. As our country navigates a massive energy transition to cleaner sources of electricity, nuclear energy provides the unique capability of being both carbon-free and a dependable, always-on source of reliable power. With the enactment of the zero-emission nuclear production tax credit, nuclear power generation now has downside protection against lower power prices, resulting in tremendous upside opportunity compared to other generation with similar attributes," Jim Burke, Vistra President and CEO.
Altria to acquire NJOY for $2.75bn.
Altria, a producer and marketer of tobacco, cigarettes and related products, agreed to acquire NJOY, a company that manufactures and distributes electronic cigarettes and vaping products, for $2.75bn.
"We believe we can responsibly accelerate US adult smoker and competitive adult vaper adoption of NJOY ACE in ways that NJOY could not as a standalone company. We believe the strengths of our commercial resources can benefit adult tobacco consumers and expand competition. We are also excited to welcome NJOY's talented employees to Altria at closing," Billy Gifford, Altria CEO.
NJOY is advised by Moelis & Co and Weil Gotshal and Manges (led by
Michael Lubowitz and Brian Gingold). Altria is advised by Morgan Stanley, Perella Weinberg Partners, Arnold & Porter Kaye Scholer and White & Case. Debt financing is provided by Morgan Stanley.
Sun Pharma, the world's fourth largest specialty generic pharmaceutical company, completed the acquisition of Concert Pharmaceuticals, a late-stage clinical biopharmaceutical company, for $427m.
"We are pleased to enter into this exciting transaction with Sun Pharma, which delivers substantial value to our shareholders and is the outcome of a thorough review process overseen by the Concert Board. Our mission at Concert has always been to translate innovative science to clinical solutions in order to meaningfully improve patients' lives. We are proud to see our team's accomplishment – creating a valuable new drug candidate for a major, underserved disease – appropriately recognized and valued by Sun Pharma as a means to expand their ongoing, international commitment to dermatology. I am confident that this transaction will maximize value for our shareholders and enhance access to deuruxolitinib for patients with Alopecia Areata," Roger Tung, Concert President and CEO.
Kelso & Co, an American private equity firm, agreed to invest in LMP-backed Pathstone, an independent family and partner owned advisory firm. Financial terms were not disclosed.
"Our success over the years has placed us in a position to be the destination of choice for employees, families, and firms who have done great things but realize they want and need more support and better advice. With this new capital and partnership, we will continue to build a best-in-class firm delivering industry-leading service while remaining true to our values of Innovation, Caring, Proactivity, Humility, and Passion," Kelly Maregni, Pathstone President.
Pathstone is advised by Ardea Partners and Alston & Bird. Kelso is advised by William Blair & Co and Debevoise & Plimpton. LMP is advised by Republic Capital Group and Kirkland & Ellis.
TPG Rise Climate, the climate investing strategy of TPG, completed a $150m investment in Palmetto, a technology enabled clean energy platform.
"Palmetto's digitally enabled end-to-end platform creates efficiencies along every step of the residential solar ownership process, from sales and financing to installation and service and maintenance. As a result, customers benefit from cost effective home solutions, accelerated project timelines, and more reliable and affordable energy. Our investment in Palmetto underscores our belief in the growth of residential clean energy solutions over the coming decade in the US and Palmetto's ability to leverage its unique platform to further expand its market position," Steven Mandel, TPG Rise Climate Business Unit Partner.
Palmetto was advised by Bank of America. TPG was advised by Latham & Watkins.
Atairos, an independent strategic investment company focused on supporting growth-oriented companies, agreed to acquire LifeLabs Learning, a provider of manager and team upskilling programs. Financial terms were not disclosed.
"Our founders created a programmatic model, focused on tipping points skills - the small changes that make the biggest impact - that has delighted more than 440k learners and served as a magnet for HR and learning & development leaders around the globe. With Atairos as our partner, we will be able to accelerate our growth even further by investing in our vision and capabilities, including combining our uniquely impactful learning with new, proprietary digital tools. We are thrilled to partner with Atairos and look forward to their expertise and support as we continue to grow our business and positively impact our clients' lives," Priscila Bala, LifeLabs CEO.
LifeLabs Learning is advised by Jefferies & Company. Atairos is advised by Houlihan Lokey.
Silver Lake, a private equity firm, and Canada Pension Plan Investment Board, an investment management company, offered to acquire Qualtrics, an experience management company, for $12.4bn.
Qualtrics and Silver Lake entered into an exclusivity agreement for the deal talks, which ends on March 15.
Qualtrics is advised by Morgan Stanley.
Thompson Street Capital-backed Vector Laboratories, a proteomic and glycomic research company, completed the acquisition of Click Chemistry Tools, a manufacturer of click chemistry linkers and labeling reagents, and Fluoroprobes, a fluorescent probes and dyes manufacturer. Financial terms were not disclosed.
"Vector Laboratories is excited about these acquisitions because it's the first to contribute to our long-term strategic vision of accelerating the pace of protein detection innovation. This is an investment to expand our capabilities and technology set for labeling, detecting, and conjugating products for our current customers and expands our ability to serve broader industrial segments such as biopharma and therapeutics," Lisa V Sellers, Vector Laboratories CEO.
Thompson Street was advised by BackBay Communications.
Curql Collective, a fintech strategic investment capital firm, led a funding round in Bankjoy, a digital banking provider. Financial terms were not disclosed.
"As we see interest rates continue to rise, competition for deposits will likely intensify over the next 12 months among financial institutions and these trends will influence the digital transformation strategies for community banks and credit unions. Online and mobile banking apps have a serious impact on member and account holder satisfaction. Research from Deloitte reveals that frequent mobile banking users, defined as individuals who accessed mobile banking at least once in every two weeks in the last year, are more satisfied with their primary financial institution than non-users, demonstrating that the digital banking experience plays an important role in helping financial institutions retain and grow deposits," Michael Duncan, Bankjoy CEO.
Bankjoy was advised by York Public Relations.
International Petroleum, an oil and gas exploration and production company, completed the acquisition of Cor4, an oil and gas company, for $62m.
"We are very pleased to announce today the complementary acquisition of almost 16 MMboe of 2P reserves adjacent to our Suffield property in Alberta, Canada, through the proposed acquisition of Cor4, a private company. The producing assets to be acquired are complementary not only to our Suffield assets but in addition, to a recent land acquisition that IPC concluded in the fourth quarter of 2022. Following these acquisitions, we now have over 25 drilling inventory locations on the Ellerslie play fairway that extends from the west of our Suffield asset, to our new land acquisition and into the Cor4 property. IPC plans to drill a total of six wells on this exciting new play in 2023," Mike Nicholson, IPC CEO.
Perceptive Advisors, a life sciences investment firm, led a $100m Series D round in Kindbody, a technology-driven fertility clinic network and family-building benefits provider for employers.
"Infertility is widespread, more common than diseases like cancer or diabetes. Yet, for far too long, high-quality fertility care has been available to only a privileged few," Gina Bartasi, Kindbody Founder and Chairwoman.
Transcarent, a health and care experience company, agreed to acquire 98point6, an AI-powered virtual care platform and care business of on-demand primary care company. Financial terms were not disclosed.
"In healthcare, complexity is the problem and simplicity is the answer. Transcarent is committed to creating an easy-to-use health and care experience that people love, that improves care, and that reduces the cost of that care. By combining the 98point6 AI-powered virtual care technology and an affiliated group of world class physicians with Transcarent's comprehensive care platform, we will deliver consumers and employers what they really want and need. Leveraging AI to drive personalization and access to care will revolutionize the virtual care experience, for the first time combining best-in-class technology with human touch. That's a winning combination," Glen Tullman, Transcarent CEO.
Digital Wave Technology, a full service digital agency, completed the acquisition of GoalProfit, a SaaS provider of a low-code retail optimization platform. Financial terms were not disclosed.
"We've made significant progress in a relatively short period of time, aided by our domain-experienced team. At the same time, we're acutely aware that positioning for the next major step in growth requires world-class acumen in data science and low-code, no-code analytical architecture. The combination of Digital Wave's management and enterprise technology team with GoalProfit's strong data sciences and analytical architectural team provides us with a rapid development platform and solutions for omnichannel leadership. The teams' expertise and culture are very complementary. Together, we're confident we can offer unparalleled value," Lori Schafer, Digital Wave Technology CEO.
Angelo raises $1.3bn for its second public market dislocation fund. (FS)
Angelo Gordon, a $53bn alternative investment firm focused on credit and real estate investing, announced the final closing of the Annex Dislocation Fund 2 with $1.3bn of equity commitments.
The fund received strong support from existing investors of the flagship Credit Solutions strategy, as well as a significant level of commitments from institutional and retail investors new to Angelo Gordon. The fund was raised in an expedited timeframe of less than seven months from the first to final closing.
EMEA
Capital & Counties Properties, a United Kingdom-based property investment and development company, completed the merger with Shaftesbury, a British real estate investment trust, in a £3.5bn ($4.2bn) deal.
"Today we are delighted to complete the merger, bringing together two highly complementary portfolios to create the leading central London mixed-use REIT, Shaftesbury Capital. We look ahead with confidence, with an experienced and talented team, to deliver long-term economic and social value for stakeholders and contribute to the success of the West End," Ian Hawksworth, Shaftesbury CEO.
Shaftesbury was advised by Blackdown Partners (led by Peter Tracey and Tom Fyson), Evercore (led by Edward Banks), JP Morgan (led by Paul Pulze), Liberum Capital (led by Richard Crawley), Hogan Lovells (led by Nicola Evans), MHP Communications (led by Oliver Hughes) and RMS Partners (led by Simon Courtenay). Capital & Counties Properties was advised by Peel Hunt (led by Carl Gough and Capel Irwin), Barclays (led by Omar Faruqui), HSBC (led by Anthony Parsons), Jefferies & Company (led by Philip Noblet), Rothschild & Co (led by Alex Midgen), UBS (led by Hew Glyn Davies), Herbert Smith Freehills (led by Alex Kay), Hudson Sandler (led by Michael Sandler) and Instinctif Partners (led by Frédéric Cornet). Financial advisors were advised by Latham & Watkins (led by James Inness and Chris Horton). Debt financing was provided by BNP Paribas, Barclays, HSBC and Java Capital.
White Bridge, an investment holding specialized in private equity transactions, completed the investment in Tikedo, a European platform in the label sector. Financial terms were not disclosed.
"We are excited to join forces with White Bridge and take Tikedo to the next level. With the support of White Bridge extensive experience in buy-and-build strategies, we are confident that we can further accelerate our growth. The full pipeline of potential targets for M&A, combined with our technological capabilities and our expertise in pressure-sensitive labels, make us confident to successfully pursue the opportunity to create a leading label company in Europe. Overall, our confidence regarding the growth potential of Tikedo is underlined by our reinvestment and commitment as shareholders and managers," Vito Giurazza, Tikedo CEO.
Tikedo was advised Ernst & Young, Jamieson, Mediobanca, Alma Società tra Avvocati, DWF and Giliberti Triscornia e Associati. White Bridge was advised by New Deal Advisors, Bain & Co, Willis Towers Watson, Proj.Eco, Ethica Corporate Finance, Vitale & Co and Giovannelli e Associati. Debt financing was provided by BPER Banca, Banca IFIS and Banco BPM. Debt providers were advised by Simmons & Simmons. Mistral was advised by Wepartner and Gatti Pavesi Bianchi Ludovici.
Elior Group, a commercial catering, and food service company, agreed to acquire Derichebourg Multiservices, a France-based company that offers environmental services, for €450m ($478m).
"With the signing of the Derichebourg Multiservices acquisition agreement, we have taken a decisive step in our project to create a new leader in contract catering and multiservices. This project lays out a new ambition for the Elior Group, one that will create value for its employees, customers, and shareholders. I personally ensured that this project will be supported by a new governance structure that meets the highest standards in terms of balance and independence over the long term. This new structure will enable all stakeholders to benefit from Elior's development and success. I would like to thank Derichebourg and all the other shareholders who are supporting us in this process, particularly those who have already pledged their support at the upcoming General Meeting on April 18, where shareholders will vote on the transaction," Bernard Gault, Elior Chairman and CEO.
Elior is advised by Credit Agricole, Morgan Stanley, Rothschild & Co (led by Cyril de Mont-Marin and Francois de Breteuil), Actance Avocats and Darrois Villey Maillot Brochier (led by Alain Maillot). Derichebourg is advised by BNP Paribas, Centerview Partners, Hoche Societe D'Avocats and Plead.
HAL Investments, an international investment company, agreed to acquire an additional 16% stake in Prodrive Technologies, which designs and manufactures high-tech electronics, software and mechatronic products and systems. Financial terms were not disclosed.
Pieter Janssen, HAL Investments and management are confident and committed to proceed and invest into Prodrive Technologies' growth trajectory and business plan.
Prodrive Technologies is advised by De Brauw Blackstone Westbroek (led by Michael Schouten).
TotalEnergies, a global multi-energy company, agreed to acquire Polska Grupa Biogazowa, an energy company that generates renewable heat and power from biogas sourced from organic waste, and a 200-MW development pipeline of solar projects. Financial terms were not disclosed.
"These agreements illustrate TotalEnergies' commitment to developing its renewable activities in Poland, and in Europe as a whole, to support the European Green Deal. On the one hand, we are gaining a solid foothold in Poland's biogas market thanks to an existing company's proven track record, experienced teams, and broad asset base. On the other hand, we are developing our presence in renewable energies with a portfolio of solar projects. With these two transactions, we are pleased to be able support Poland in its ambition to develop renewable energies and strengthen its energy sovereignty. We hope we will also have the opportunity to provide Poland with our expertise in offshore wind, an area in which we have formed a partnership with KGHM," Stéphane Michel, TotalEnergies President of Gas, Renewables & Power.
Italian state lender CDP approved a non-binding offer for the fixed-line network of former phone monopoly Telecom Italia, an Italian telecommunications company with headquarters in Rome, Milan, and Naples. The company joined up with Macquarie, an Australian global financial services group.
The joint bid targets TIM's landline network and submarine cable unit Sparkle. US investment firm KKR has already presented an offer to buy a controlling stake in the same venture.
MYNE, a Berlin, Germany-based provider of a co-ownership platform, completed the acquisition of VillaCircle, a real estate rental agency in Düsseldorf, Germany. Financial terms were not disclosed.
With the acquisition, MYNE will increase its portfolio and strengthen itself in the market. The deal will see MYNE take over the real estate and customer care of VillaCircle, and existing operations will be transferred to its platform.
Ariel Re secures $270m of new capital.
Ariel Re, a global reinsurance business with offices in Bermuda, London and Hong Kong, secured $270m of capital from five new institutional and family office investors to support exciting growth opportunities in 2023.
"Given our proven expertise in lines of business undergoing significant change, such as property catastrophe and cyber, Ariel Re is well-positioned to help investors access what we believe to be very attractive underwriting opportunities. While many carriers are pulling out of these risks, we are able to grow backed by investors who understand the nuances of a cyclical reinsurance market. We are delighted that part of our new funding is the first successful example of investors coming to Lloyd's via the innovative LB2 structure; it was more efficient than ever to deploy meaningful capacity in Syndicate 1910," Ryan Mather, Ariel Re CEO.
Exxon seeks to unblock stalled sale in 'challenging' Nigeria.
Exxon Mobil hopes to get Nigerian government approval to allow the stalled sale of its shallow water oil production operations in the West African country, Reuters reported.
The largest US oil company will keep its deep-water assets in Nigeria despite a change in the government's leadership, Exxon Global Upstream President Liam Mallon said ahead of the CERAweek energy conference by S&PGlobal in Houston starting Monday.
SoftBank's Arm targets to raise at least $8bn in US IPO. (FS)
Arm, the British chip designer owned by Japan’s SoftBank Group, is likely to aim to raise at least $8bn from what is expected to be a blockbuster US stock market launch this year, DealStreetAsia reported.
Arm is expected to confidentially submit paperwork for its initial public offering in late April. The listing is expected to happen later this year and the exact timing will be determined by market conditions.
WANdisco plans to add a US listing.
Software group WANdisco has become the latest UK company to announce plans to list shares in the US. The company, which has headquarters in the UK and the US, said on it was “in the early stages of proactively exploring” an additional listing of its shares in New York, FT reported.
Its shares already trade on London’s Aim. WANdisco, which was founded in Silicon Valley in 2005, employs more than 180 people in Sheffield in the UK and San Ramon in California. Its customers include Google and Amazon.
Ex-JP Morgan bankers launch emerging market infrastructure investment firm. (FS)
Two former JP Morgan credit bankers launched a new impact investment advisory firm focused on emerging market infrastructure, with a minority stake by British insurer Legal & General’s alternative investments arm, DealStreetAsia reported.
The firm, ImpactA Global, aims to help address the World Bank’s estimated need for $1tn in annual investment in emerging market infrastructure to meet development goals.
APAC
Weststar Group, a highly diversified enterprise with businesses in the aviation, automobile, property and insurance sectors, completed the acquisition of the remaining 21% stake in Weststar Aviation Services, a provider of offshore helicopter transportation services, from KKR, a global investment firm. Financial terms were not disclosed.
"We take pride in our relationship with Weststar Aviation and Tan Sri Syed Azman Ibrahim, and our role in the evolution of the company, which is today very well-positioned for the future. On behalf of KKR, we wish the Weststar team continued success," Henry Kravis, KKR Co-Executive Chairman.
Carro adds Dubai-based EMPG to cap table.
Singapore-based used car marketplace Carro has added UAE-based classifieds player EMPG to its cap table, DealStreetAsia reported.
The Southeast Asian firm issued shares to the Dubai-headquartered unicorn last week for a nominal sum of $1. The token purchase price indicates that Carro may have acquired Thailand-based real estate, auto, and marketplace platform Kaidee from EMPG.
BTS label Hybe falls far short in bid to take over SM Entertainment.
Hybe, a South Korean multinational entertainment company, acquired only a fraction of the shares in rival SM Entertainment it hoped for, an embarrassing blow for the label behind global phenom BTS that's called its takeover attempt critical to preserving K-pop's global influence, Bloomberg reported.
Hybe bought 234k SM shares for a total of $22m, according to a regulatory filing. That's a far cry from the 5.95m shares it had aimed for, and suggests local investors are holding out for a higher price down the road. The stock surged when the tender offer was first disclosed and has been trading above it since then, though Hybe executives held firm on their pricing and expressed confidence they'd find willing sellers. SM's board and leadership urged shareholders not to sell to Hybe and have instead pursued a capital tie-up with Korean social media giant Kakao.
SoftBank-backed CloudMinds is said to weigh $500m HK IPO. (FS)
Artificial intelligence-powered robot developer CloudMinds is considering a Hong Kong initial public offering that could raise as much as $500m, Bloomberg reported.
The Shanghai-based firm is working with China International Capital and Haitong International Securities Group on preparations for the share sale. A listing could take place as early as this year.
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