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AMERICAS
Talos Energy, an independent oil and gas company primarily involved in offshore exploration and production, completed the acquisition of EnVen Energy, an operator of an energy exploration company, for $1.1bn.
"The acquisition is financially attractive, expanding our operating margins and increasing Free Cash Flow per Share while immediately improving our credit profile before accounting for significant expected cost synergies. The enhanced cash flow profile will provide us with increased capital allocation optionality, including additional high-impact subsea tie-back opportunities, opportunistic acquisitions, accelerating our low-carbon initiatives and positioning Talos for a potential shareholder return of capital program in the future," Timothy S. Duncan, Talos President and CEO.
EnVen is advised by Intrepid Partners and Davis Polk & Wardwell (led by William J. Chudd). Intrepid Partners is advised by Gibson Dunn & Crutcher (led by Hillary Holmes). Talos Energy is advised by JP Morgan, KeyBanc Capital Markets and Vinson & Elkins (led by Lande Spottswood). Financial advisors are advised by Cravath Swaine & Moore (led by Minh Van Ngo and Andrew Wark).
B2Gold, a Canadian mining company that owns and operates gold mines in Mali, Namibia and the Philippines, agreed to acquire Sabina Gold & Silver, a Canadian precious metals company, for $824m.
"The acquisition of Sabina represents an exciting opportunity to develop the significant gold resource endowment at the Back River Gold District into a large, long-life mining complex. B2Gold has strong construction expertise and experience to successfully develop the fully permitted Goose project and unlock considerable value for the shareholders of both Sabina and B2Gold. The Back River Gold District has multiple high-potential mineralized zones which remain open, and we are confident that the district has strong untapped upside with numerous avenues for resource growth," Clive Johnson, B2Gold President and CEO.
Sabina Gold & Silver is advised by BMO Capital Markets, Cormark Securities, Blake Cassels & Graydon and Skadden Arps Slate Meagher & Flom (led by June Dipchand). B2Gold is advised by National Bank Financial, Dorsey & Whitney and Lawson Lundell.
Ouster, a provider of high-resolution digital lidar, completed the merger with Velodyne, a global player in lidar sensors and solutions, in a $400m deal.
"Ouster's cutting-edge digital lidar technology, evidenced by strong unit economics and the performance gains of our new products, complemented by Velodyne's decades of innovation, high-performance hardware and software solutions, and established global customer footprint, positions the combined company to accelerate the adoption of lidar technology across fast-growing markets with a diverse set of customer needs. Together, we will aim to deliver the performance customers demand while achieving price points low enough to promote mass adoption," Angus Pacala, Ouster CEO.
The investment firm of John Doerr, the billionaire chairman of Kleiner Perkins, will put $10m into Complete Solaria, the solar company that’s merging with the blank-check vehicle started by Tidjane Thiam, a former CEO at Credit Suisse Group.
The investment from Doerr’s firm, Foris Ventures, into the Fremont, California-based company could be announced this week, Bloomberg reported.
Mill Rock Packaging, a growth and operations-oriented private investment firm, completed the acquisition of Keystone Paper & Box Company, a specialty packaging company that manufactures custom folding cartons for consumer and healthcare end markets. Financial terms were not disclosed.
"I am very proud of what we've achieved at Keystone since our founding by my grandfather. Through our partnership with Mill Rock Packaging, our customers will gain access to high-quality production facilities in the Midwest and West Coast. I am delighted that Mill Rock Packaging shares our commitment to quality, integrity and service, and I look forward to future growth leveraging our combined resources," Jim Rutt, Keystone President.
Keystone Paper & Box Company was advised by The Markens Group (led by Ben Markens). Mill Rock was advised by Alvarez & Marsal, FINNEA Group, White & Case and Lambert & Co (led by Joanne Lessner).
Bernhard Capital-backed United Utility Services, a utility contractor, completed the acquisition of BHI Power Delivery, a power distribution company, from Brookfield-backed Westinghouse Electric Company, a nuclear power company. Financial terms were not disclosed.
"This transaction positions us for continued growth in key strategic markets, while solidifying United Utility as one of the leading power transmission and distribution services provider in the industry. We look forward to building on this momentum together and continuing to execute on our long-term growth strategy," Ali Azad, United Utility Services CEO.
Monroe Street Partners, a private equity firm, completed the acquisition of VigilNet, a producer of monitor devices. Finnacial terms were not disclosed.
“We are delighted to partner with Jake and the Vigilnet management team, as the company has established itself as a leading electronic monitoring services provider in the United States. As one of a select few service providers with significant scale and a growing national presence, this partnership will enable us to support key growth initiatives, with a particular focus on strategic acquisitions,”
Alex Foshager, MSP Managing Partner.
MSP was advised by Ice Miller. Debt financing was advised by Oxer Capital.
Horizon Air Freight, a forwarding services provider, completed the acquisition of Transmarine Navigation, an US tramp ship agency. Financial terms were not disclosed.
"In the spirit of Horizon and Transmarine, we began our partnership with a focus on our customers and the quality of our services. Now it is time to share the big news with the public. Our acquisition of Transmarine allows us to better coordinate critical services for our customers' vessels calling North and South America. Together, we'll get everything they need to their ports of call and manage all their in-port logistics too, all with our shared commitment to excellence in the service of our customers. It's a simpler and more streamlined solution for our clients, all provided by two companies the industry has trusted for generations," Steve Leondis, Horizon CEO.
Horizon was advised by Lenz Marketing.
Sensis, an advertising agency, completed the acquisition of Sharp & Company, a full-service communications consultancy firm. Finnacial terms were not disclosed.
“At Sensis, public engagement work is extremely important to us. We are thrilled to expand our services and grow our East Coast presence. It’s an exciting opportunity to merge with Sharp & Co. and build upon their transportation efforts with both state and local government,” Robyn Loube, Sensis Executive Vice President.
Sensis was advised by The Tag Experience.
Pioneer Square Brands, a producer of accessories for mobile technology devices completed the acquisition of Vault, a manufacturer of mobile device enclosure solutions. Financial terms were not disclosed.
“VAULT’s enterprise products and manufacturing capabilities create an opportunity to accelerate our momentum. We are thrilled to strengthen the PSB family of brands beyond our well-established education business into new markets like retail, restaurants, manufacturing, and healthcare," Michael Ferren, PSB CEO.
Citi nears sale of Mexican bank Banamex despite state interference.
Citigroup is nearing the sale of its Mexican retail bank in a deal that could value it at up to $8bn despite government interference scaring off potential bidders and driving down the price of the unit, FT reported.
Billionaire Germán Larrea, who owns Mexico’s largest mining company Grupo México, is in exclusive talks to purchase Banamex. Larrea’s offer is likely to value Banamex at between $6bn and $8bn, depending on how the deal is structured, below the $10bn or more predicted by some of the more bullish analysts.
Kainos Capital raises over $1bn for Fund III. (FS)
Kainos Capital, a private equity firm focused on the food and consumer products and services sectors, has closed Kainos Capital Partners III with over $1bn in capital commitments, making it the largest investment vehicle in Kainos’ history.
Kainos says existing investors provided a significant amount of Fund III’s capital and also referred many new investors to the fund. Consistent with Kainos’ approach over the past decade, Fund III will primarily target family-owned businesses and corporate carve-outs in the food and consumer products sectors with at least $10m in EBITDA. Fund III can commit in excess of $300m of equity, and potentially more with the firm's Limited Partner co-investment programme, in any single transaction.
EMEA
Unikmind, a company incorporated in the Isle of Man, wholly-owned by Mr. Teddy Sagi, agreed to acquire the remaining 45% stake in Kape Technologies, a United Kingdom-based company, which develops and distributes a variety of digital products in the online security and privacy, for $683m.
"The last decade has witnessed the rapid growth of digital services with the expansion of e-commerce. Kape has, with our support as the majority shareholder, transformed through several strategic acquisitions, into a truly global leader in the digital privacy and security space. Having weighed the pros and cons of a public listing under the current macro uncertainties and thin stock market trading as well as new growth avenues, we are firm in our view that Kape's next chapter in its corporate journey should be within the private arena. We are committed to Kape's further growth within our group of companies, enabling it to exploit operational synergies and to access capital for its continuous growth, especially as the convergence of technologies is gaining momentum. Recognising that not all Kape Shareholders may wish to continue with us in a non-listed Kape, our cash offer represents a compelling proposition for fellow shareholders to realize their investment," Teddy Sagi, Unikmind Owner.
TDR Capital-backed BPP Education Group, a United Kingdom-based provider of professional and academic education, completed the acquisition of Digital Marketing Institute, a provider of digital marketing training and certifications, from Spectrum Equity, a private equity firm. Financial terms were not disclosed.
"The acquisition of Digital Marketing Institute introduces a new vertical of programmes into the BPP portfolio. We are seeing an ever-increasing demand from our clients and customers that want to expand their skills in digital marketing. The acquisition of DMI will allow our customers to access market-leading certified programmes, whilst allowing the BPP Education Group to expand into new geographies and markets. The highly experienced team at DMI are a great cultural fit for BPP, and we look forward to welcoming them into the BPP Education Group," Graham Gaddes, BPP CEO.
Digital Marketing Institute was advised by Raymond James (led by Ian O'Neal and Laura Maddison). BPP was advised by Houlihan Lokey.
Kenya seen raising more than $800m from asset sales.
Kenya can raise as much as KES110bn ($879m) by selling stakes in state-owned companies to help reduce its fiscal deficit, Bloomberg reported.
The sales could generate about KES30bn ($238m) annually in the medium term, depending on the method of the asset sales, targeted companies and response from potential buyers.
EQT sets €21bn hard cap for EQT Infrastructure VI. (FS)
EQT, a private investment firm focussed on energy, environmental, transportation and telecommunications investments, has set the hard cap for investor commitments to its latest global infrastructure fund at €21bn ($22.4bn).
EQT had previously announced that it was expecting to raise €20bn ($21.35bn) for the EQT Infrastructure VI fund, which according to the firm will follow an investment strategy materially in line with its predecessor fund, EQT Infrastructure V. That fund closed in November 2021 with €15.7bn ($16.76bn) in capital commitments.
APAC
Yuexiu Industrial Fund, an investment company, and Amnon Shashua, an Israeli computer scientist, led a $750m funding round in Zeekr, an electric car brand.
Zeekr, which sells two purely electric car models, said that proceeds from the funding round will be used to support technology research and the global expansion of the Zeekr brand.
Nissan, Renault line up $600m to make six new models in India.
Nissan Motor and Renault would invest $600m to make six new models in India, one of three markets in which the two automakers plan to coordinate closely in a revamped alliance, DealStreetAsia reported.
“This investment is very significant not only on products but on technologies like EVs to really capture the growing Indian market, which is the third-largest market in the world, and also to use India as a base for export,” Ashwani Gupta, Nissan COO.
Khazanah unit UEM weighs sale of $230m cement firm. (FS)
A subsidiary of Khazanah Nasional, Malaysia’s sovereign wealth fund, is considering selling its cement unit, Bloomberg reported.
UEM Group, an infrastructure and services conglomerate, is working with financial advisers on the potential sale of Cement Industries of Malaysia. UEM is seeking a valuation of about MYR1bn ($230m) for CIMA, as the cement maker is known, and companies in the industry have shown interest.
Billionaire’s Kotak Mahindra Bank weighs insurance unit stake sale.
Kotak Mahindra Bank, backed by billionaire Uday Kotak, is considering selling a minority stake in its general insurance unit, Bloomberg reported.
The lender is working with Morgan Stanley on the potential sale of a stake in Kotak General Insurance which could raise as much as a few hundred million dollars. The process could draw potential strategic partners as well as financial investors.
IFC proposes $100m senior loan to IIFL Home Finance. (FS)
The International Finance Corporation, a part of the World Bank Group, has proposed to make an investment of $100m in Gurugram-headquartered IIFL Home Finance, per a disclosure.
The proposed investment will be in the form of a senior secured loan for a tenor of up to six years. Once approved, the funding proceeds will be used to provide retail buyers with financing for affordable housing with a focus on the low-income group, DealStreetAsia reported.
Air India seals record order for about 500 jets from Airbus, Boeing.
Air India has sealed a jumbo deal for about 500 new planes worth more than $100bn at list prices, in what could become the single largest order by any airline as it seeks to reinvent itself under its new owners.
The deal, split equally between France's Airbus and rival planemaker Boeing, was first reported in December and could finally be announced as early as next week, Reuters reported.
Grocery delivery app shelves Seoul IPO on valuation frustration.
Oasis, a South Korean grocery delivery app that competes with US-listed Coupang, decided to withdraw what was expected to be the nation’s largest initial public offering in five months amid difficulty in reaching expected valuation.
After finishing the book building for an offering expected to be as large as KRW207bn ($162m), the startup cited difficulty in obtaining proper value of the company as the reason to pull the deal, according to a filing, Bloomberg reported.
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