AMERICAS
Apollo Global Management raises its bid for Great Canadian Gaming to $2.8bn. (FS)
Apollo Global Management agreed to acquire Great Canadian Gaming, an Ontario based company that operates 26 gaming, entertainment and hospitality facilities, for c $2.8bn. It represents a 15.4% increase to the previous offer. Investors holdings 50% of Great Canadian's outstanding common shares have already voted in favor of the deal.
"We are grateful for the strong shareholder support received in favour of the Transaction. Based on Apollo's considerable experience in the gaming space, we see significant opportunity for Great Canadian to grow the business and bring an enhanced experience to guests as a privately held company with a longer-term view of success. As sponsors, we're committed to providing Great Canadian with the financial and strategic flexibility to successfully manage COVID-19 challenges and accelerate future growth and innovation as the market leader in Canada," Alex van Hoek, Apollo Partner.
GCG is advised by CIBC World Markets, Scotiabank, Blake Cassels & Graydon and McMillan. Apollo is advised by Barclays, Canaccord Genuity, Deutsche Bank, Macquarie Group, RBC Capital Markets, Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld and Paul Weiss Rifkind Wharton & Garrison.
Landcadia Holdings II, a blank check company, has entered into an amendment to the Purchase Agreement relating to its proposed business combination with Golden Nugget Online Gaming, a US online real money casino, to modify the voting requirement for stockholder approval of the merger.
Pursuant to the amendment, the proposal to approve the business combination and certain related proposals must receive the affirmative vote of a majority of our outstanding shares of common stock that are voted at the special meeting, rather than a majority of the outstanding shares of Class A common stock held by disinterested stockholders, and the proposal to approve an amended and restated certificate of incorporation of the company must receive the affirmative vote of a majority of our outstanding shares of common stock, rather than a majority of the outstanding shares of Class A common stock held by disinterested stockholders.
Golden Nugget is advised by Haynes and Boone. Landcadia is advised by Houlihan Lokey, Jefferies & Company and White & Case. Financial advisors are advised by Sullivan & Cromwell.
Stillfront Group, a global group of gaming studios, agreed to acquire Super Free Games, a US-based gaming company focusing on market-leading casual games, for $150m.
“The acquisition of Super Free is a highly attractive opportunity for Stillfront to broaden our portfolio of casual games into the popular niches of word and trivia games addressing a broader audience of “non-gamers”. Super Free has proven great success in developing and scaling multiple top-grossing titles in several genres, they have a strong company culture and a dedicated team of mobile game experts which makes an excellent fit with Stillfront. The game portfolio including Word Collect, Word Nut and Trivia Star has shown rapid growth during the past two years and we see a promising growth potential going forward, including a strong pipeline of new games,” Jorgen Larsson, Stillfront CEO.
Stillfront is advised by Carnegie Investment Bank, Ernst & Young and DLA Piper. Super Free Games is advised by Oakvale Capital and Latham & Watkins.
Arlington-backed BlueHalo, a provider of advanced engineering solutions and technology to the national security community, completed the acquisition of Base2 and Fortego, providers of complex, mission-critical cyber and SIGINT solutions that serve the most demanding missions in national security. Financial terms were not disclosed.
"Base2 and Fortego are highly differentiated companies that will establish BlueHalo as a leading provider of cutting-edge cyber and SIGINT solutions to the most demanding national security customers. As long-time investors in these markets, we have followed each company's success closely and are excited to now be able to bring them together with BlueHalo to accelerate their exceptional growth potential," David Wodlinger, Arlington Partner.
Fortego was advised by Eureka Strategic Consulting, Robert W Baird and Miles & Stockbridge. Base2 was advised by Aronson Capital Partners and Miles & Stockbridge. BlueHalo was advised by Sheppard Mullin Richter & Hampton.
Rent-A-Center, an omnichannel lease-to-own provider, agreed to acquire Acima, a provider of virtual lease-to-own solutions, for $1.65bn. Total consideration consists of $1.27bn in cash and approximately 10.8m shares of Rent-A-Center common stock currently valued at $377m.
"Founder Aaron Allred and his team have created a leading virtual LTO solution for retailers and consumers. We all share a common vision to expand the virtual LTO offering across a broader set of retail partners and to meet the needs of more customers through an integrated omnichannel strategy. Acima will help us strengthen our organization, accelerate growth and increase our virtual partner base, allowing us to better serve more consumers with the flexibility of LTO," Mitch Fadel, Rent-A-Center CEO.
Acima is advised by Financial Technology Partners and Wachtell Lipton Rosen & Katz. Rent-A-Center is advised by Credit Suisse, JP Morgan and Sullivan & Cromwell. Debt financing is provided by Credit Suisse, HSBC and JP Morgan.
ImmunityBio, a privately-held immunotherapy company, agreed to merge with NantKwest, a clinical-stage, natural killer cell-based therapeutics company. Upon completion of the transaction, on a fully diluted basis, ImmunityBio shareholders will own c. 72% of the combined company and NantKwest shareholders will own c. 28% of the combined company, on a fully diluted basis.
“With the integration of ImmunityBio’s pipeline, cutting-edge R&D capabilities, talented employees and clinical expertise, we expect to accelerate the delivery of new treatments for patients with unmet needs. Together we can unlock the combined potential of our assets, and look forward to building on our continued success as one company," Rich Adcock, NantKwest Chief Executive Officer.
NantKwest is advised by Barclays, Goodwin Procter, Joele Frank and LifeSci Public Relations. ImmunityBio is advised by Goldman Sachs, Lazard and Fried Frank Harris Shriver & Jacobson.
Thoma Bravo agreed to acquire RealPage, a global provider of software and data analytics to the real estate industry, for $10.2bn, including net debt.
"We believe this transaction will provide immediate and substantial value to RealPage stockholders, reflecting the tremendous work that our employees have done to build this company. I am immensely proud of that work and also pleased that the transaction will provide us the opportunity to work with Thoma Bravo, a firm with tremendous software investment and operational capabilities. This will enhance our ability to focus on executing our long-term strategy and delivering even better products and services to our clients and partners," Steve Winn, RealPage Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer.
RealPage is advised by Bank of America Merrill Lynch and Wachtell Lipton Rosen & Katz. Thoma Bravo is advised by Goldman Sachs, Kirkland & Ellis and Finsbury. Debt financing is provided by Goldman Sachs.
Diamondback Energy, a company engaged in hydrocarbon exploration, agreed to acquire QEP Resources, an independent crude oil and natural gas exploration and production company, for $2.2bn, including $1.6bn net debt. The consideration will consist of 0.05 shares of Diamondback common stock for each share of QEP common stock, representing an implied value to each QEP stockholder of $2.29 per share based on the closing price of Diamondback common stock on December 18, 2020.
"The acquisition of QEP also checks every box of Diamondback's corporate development strategy. The business combination with QEP and the Guidon transaction are accretive on all relevant 2021 financial metrics including free cash flow per share, cash flow per share and leverage, even before accounting for synergies. Most importantly, the addition of this Tier-1 resource competes for capital right away in Diamondback's current portfolio, and we will now be able to allocate most of our capital to the high-returning Midland Basin for the foreseeable future," Travis Stice, Diamondback CEO.
QEP is advised by Evercore and Latham & Watkins. Diamondback is advised by Goldman Sachs, Moelis & Co, Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld and Gibson Dunn & Crutcher.
The Jordan Company, a middle-market private equity firm, agreed to acquire a majority stake in Specialty Building Products, a distributor of specialty building products in North America, from Madison Dearborn Partners, a Chicago-based private equity investment firm. Financial terms were not disclosed.
"As it has become a national-scale distributor of building materials in North America, Specialty Building Products has become one of the most reliable and trusted names in the business. We have closely followed the company's exciting expansion and we are pleased to partner with the SBP team to build on this strong momentum and pursue new opportunities for growth," Mike Denvir, TJC Partner.
SBG is advised by Bank of America Merrill Lynch, RBC Capital Markets and Kirkland & Ellis. TJC is advised by Nomura and Winston & Strawn.
Servier, a global pharmaceutical company, agreed to acquire oncology business of Agios Pharmaceuticals, a public American pharmaceutical company, for $2bn. The deal value includes upfront payment of $1.8bn and a potential $200m in regulatory milestone, plus royalties.
"The strategic acquisition of Agios' oncology business, including its precision medicine portfolio and pipeline, is aligned with our ambition to become a recognized player in oncology and further supports our commitment to provide innovative treatments to cancer patients with unmet medical needs. It is a key step for the Servier Group as it will significantly strengthen our position in the U.S. and reinforce our R&D capabilities in oncology," Olivier Laureau, Servier President.
Agios is advised by Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley and Wachtell Lipton Rosen & Katz. Servier is advised by Lazard and Baker McKenzie.
Lockheed Martin, a global security and aerospace company, agreed to acquire Aerojet Rocketdyne, an American rocket and missile propulsion manufacturer, for $4.4bn. Per-share price stands at $56 in cash, which is expected to be reduced to $51 per share after the payment of a pre-closing special dividend. This represents a post-dividend equity value of $4.6bn and a total transaction value of $4.4bn including the assumption of net cash.
"This transaction enhances Lockheed Martin's support of critical U.S. and allied security missions and retains national leadership in space and hypersonic technology. We look forward to welcoming their talented team and expanding Lockheed Martin's position as the leading provider of 21st century warfare solutions," James Taiclet, Lockheed Martin President and CEO.
Rocketdyne is advised by Citigroup, Evercore, Gibson Dunn & Crutcher and Jenner & Block.
Viasat, an American communications company, agreed to acquire RigNet, a provider of ultra-secure, intelligent networking solutions and specialized applications, from KKR for $222m.
"This is a transformative merger with a company that is highly diversified across a number of important verticals, maintains a strong balance sheet, and is planning to expand its global satellite coverage significantly through its upcoming ViaSat-3 constellation. We believe the merger will create new opportunities for the combined companies to serve customers even better in energy and to expand more rapidly into other vertical markets. The combined companies will also be able to further accelerate the growth of RigNet's industry-leading AI-backed machine learning business, Intelie, and our other specialized apps, across a broader customer base than RigNet could have reached independently," Steven Pickett, RigNet's President and Chief Executive Officer.
RigNet is advised by Lazard and Baker Botts. Viasat is advised by LionTree Advisors and Latham & Watkins.
Janus Henderson Investors, a global active asset manager, led the $50m Series D round in Apartment List, a real estate marketplace.
"Apartment List's unique value proposition - at the intersection of an industry we find attractive, a supportive macroeconomic backdrop, and a huge market opportunity ahead - makes this a really unique and interesting investment for us," Denny Fish, Janus Henderson Portfolio Manager.
Apartment List was advised by Full Picture.
THOR Industries, an American manufacturer of recreational vehicles, completed the acquisition of Tiffin Motor Homes, a manufacturer of luxury recreational vehicles, for $300m.
"The Tiffin brand is synonymous with quality and customer satisfaction in our industry. For many decades, Tiffin has set the standard for the luxury class A market. Its strong presence in the luxury class A segment makes it very complimentary to THOR's current North American portfolio," Bob Martin, THOR President and CEO.
Magazine Luiza, a Brazil retailer, agreed to acquire Hub Prepaid, a payments firm, for $56m.
"After integration, MagaluPay customers - individuals and companies - will have one of the most comprehensive offerings of financial products and services in the market, free of charge and fully integrated with the Magalu SuperApp. With the digital account, customers will be able to make purchases, deposits, transfers (P2P, TED, DOC and PIX), payments (monthly utility bills and taxes as well as popular local payment methods such as Boletos and PIX), withdrawals (lottery agencies, ATMs and Magalu stores) and services such as prepaid cell phone refills and transportation vouchers. In addition, customers will have a prepaid card tied to their digital account balance, enabling transactions in the physical world," Magazine Luiza.
Evoqua Water Technologies, a mission-critical water treatment solutions provider, completed the acquisition of the industrial water business of Ultrapure & Industrial Services, a subsidiary of Driessen Water and industrial water treatment company. Financial terms were not disclosed
“For over 20 years, Ultrapure’s industrial operations has built a reputation as a trusted partner, providing reliable water solutions and services to their broad customer portfolio. We are delighted to welcome the Houston and Dallas Ultrapure team to the Evoqua family," Ron Keating, Evoqua CEO.
CriticalPoint Capital, a private investment firm, completed the acquisition of Agway Farm & Home, a farm supply distribution company, from Southern States, a farm supply retail and service cooperatives in the United States. Financial terms were not disclosed.
"We are excited about this next chapter in Agway's proud history, as it ensures our loyal base of long-standing customers continued access to quality products while enabling our talented team to continue doing what they do best. We are excited to welcome CriticalPoint Capital's strategic approach and operational expertise and look forward to partnering with them to execute our shared vision for Agway," Jay Quickel, Agway Farm & Home CEO.
FIS and Global Payments eyed merger, but talks failed.
Fidelity National Information Services and Global Payments lately held unsuccessful talks for a merger deal valuing at around $70bn.
The companies, which make technology that facilitates merchant payments and banking, were in advanced talks and aiming to announce a deal soon before the negotiations broke down in the last few days, WSJ reported.
Blackwells makes offer for Monmouth REIT. (FS)
Blackwells Capital has made an unsolicited offer to acquire the stake in Monmouth Real Estate Investment that it doesn’t already own in a transaction valuing the company at about $3.8bn.
The all-cash offer at $18 a share was made and is the second time Blackwells has proposed acquiring the remaining stake in the industrial real estate investment trust. The offer price is a 6% premium to Monmouth’s closing share price, and about a 22% premium to the price on December 1 when Blackwells made the earlier proposal, which failed, Bloomberg reported.
Blackwells wants to acquire Monmouth, sell its money-losing REIT securities portfolio, and shrink its board size, so it would then grow the firm’s industrial real estate footprint from roughly 24m square feet today to 100m square feet in the next three years.
JBG SMITH acquires a prime development site across from Amazon’s HQ2. (RE)
JBG SMITH, an owner and developer of high-quality, mixed-use properties in the Washington, DC market, completed the acquisition of the former Americana Hotel situated across from Amazon’s future headquarters in National Landing.
“This location possesses all of the major ingredients for a successful project, including access to excellent public schools and close proximity to major transportation, retail, and employment opportunities. The potential for this development has only grown with the arrival of Amazon’s headquarters and the Virginia Tech Innovation Campus,” Ed Chaglassian, JBG SMITH Executive Vice President.
EMEA
Carmakers Fiat Chrysler Automobiles and PSA Group won European Union approval to merge their operations.
The European Commision stated that the pledge to manufacture vehicles at French and Spanish plants for another carmaker Toyota and grant access to its repair network to rivals eliminated anti-competitive concerns.
"Access to a competitive market for small commercial vans is important for many self-employed and small and medium companies throughout Europe. Their commitments will facilitate entry and expansion in the market for small commercial vans," Margrethe Vestager, EU Competition Commissioner.
Fiat Chrysler is advised by Bank of America Merrill Lynch, Barclays, Citigroup, Goldman Sachs, JP Morgan, UBS, d'Angelin & Co, Darrois Villey Maillot Brochier, De Brauw Blackstone Westbroek, Legance, Loyens & Loeff, Sullivan & Cromwell, Community Group, Image Sept, and Sard Verbinnen & Co. Financial advisors are advised by Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton and Macfarlanes. Bpifrance is advised by Willkie Farr & Gallagher. Peugeot Family is advised by Zaoui & Co. PSA Group is advised by China International Capital, Mediobanca, Messier Maris & Associes, Morgan Stanley, Perella Weinberg Partners, BonelliErede, Bredin Prat, Cabinet Bompoint, Clifford Chance, Cravath Swaine & Moore, Linklaters, NautaDutilh, and Stibbe. Exor is advised by Lazard.
Vodafone Group ended talks to sell its Egyptian business to Saudi Telecom, a deal that would have been valued at $2.39bn.
Vodafone didn’t explain a reason for quitting the negotiations to sell its 55% stake in Vodafone Egypt. The remaining stake in Vodafone Egypt is held by state-controlled Telecom Egypt. Saudi Telecom had offered to pay $2.39bn for the stake in January, and parties had extended talks because of delays to due diligence, amid coronavirus restrictions. Saudi Telecom had been negotiating to reduce its offer.
Egyptian market regulations would require Saudi Telecom to submit a mandatory tender offer for all of Vodafone Egypt, including the stake held by Telecom Egypt.
Vodafone Egypt is advised by Citigroup. Vodafone Group is advised by Goldman Sachs. Saudi Telecom is advised by Barclays.
Morgan Stanley Infrastructure Partners offered to acquire Tele Columbus, a cable provider in Germany, for $488m. United Internet, the top shareholder in the target agreed to divest its 29% stake for a stake in the MSIF. Rocket Internet, a European internet company and 13% shareholder said it would support the transaction.
"We support the Fiber Champion strategy and the management of Tele Columbus and are pleased that we can provide the funds for the implementation of the strategy and further fiber optic expansion. We see our participation as a long-term investment and will accompany Tele Columbus as an independent company in the future," Christoph Oppenauer, Morgan Stanley Infrastructure Partners Executive Director.
Tele Columbus is advised by Bank of America Merrill Lynch and Kirkland & Ellis. United Internet is advised by Hengeler Mueller.
Fresenius Helios, a healthcare company, agreed to acquire Eugin Group, a lucrative fertility company, from NMC Health, a healthcare chain and distribution business, for $525m.
“This transaction marks another important step towards a successful restructuring for NMC. Eugin Group is a high-quality, highly sought-after business, with an experienced management team and, following a robust process, we are pleased to have reached an agreement for its sale. The underlying business and financial performance of NMC Healthcare is strong and it continues to be a key operator in the UAE’s healthcare market. We are optimistic about the future of NMC as we head into 2021," Richard Fleming, NMC Joint Administrator.
NMC is advised by Allen & Overy, Hanover Communications and Headland Consultancy.
Investcorp, a provider and manager of alternative investment products, agreed to sell its significant minority stake in Banque Paris Bertrand, a private bank with headquarters in Switzerland, to Rothschild. Rothschild announced the deal to acquire 100% of the target on December 16, 2020.
“Our Wealth Management business has strong footholds across Europe and this acquisition is another step in developing our unique offering. We are delighted that the Banque Pâris Bertrand, an extremely reputable private bank in the important Swiss market, has agreed to join our group. This is a highly complementary acquisition for Rothschild & Co, with shared values and a like-minded approach to business. I am sure that together we will continue to meet our clients’ needs by providing an objective, long-term perspective to preserving and growing their wealth," Alexandre de Rothschild, Rothschild Executive Chairman.
Rothschild is advised by Open Up.
Daiwa House Industry, a homebuilder, specializing in prefabricated houses, agreed to acquire Flexbuild, which sells and rents modular building products. Financial terms were not disclosed.
"In Europe, where we are now entering the market for the first time, the population of its major countries continues to grow. On the other hand, the continent faces a shortage of housing. There are also issues such as a lack of craftsmen and the soaring building material prices. Under such circumstances, in March 2020 we decided to establish Daiwa House Europe in the Netherlands as it serves as an excellent base with access to neighboring countries. We have done this to be able to supply the housing needed in Europe by utilizing the expertise in industrialized housing, high-quality and short construction periods that we have cultivated over time," Daiwa House.
Daiwa House is advised by Nomura.
Two Swiss law firms Meyerlustenberger Lachenal and FRORIEP agreed to merge. Financial terms were not disclosed.
"In a highly competitive environment, one of the distinguishing features of both our current law firms and the new fully integrated law firm of the future is the strong team spirit. We specifically focus on cultural diversity and a dynamic approach, built upon entrepreneurial and interdisciplinary thinking. This enables us to achieve the high standards we aspire to in our daily legal practice and services for clients across the globe," Jean Marguerat, FRORIEP Co-Managing Partner.
Signature Aviation to accept a $4.3bn Blackstone offer. (FS)
Signature Aviation, an operator of private jet bases, said it would accept a $4.3bn buyout from Blackstone Group if the private-equity firm makes a solid offer.
The UK company would accept the $5.17-a-share price made in an approach by Blackstone. The offer represents the US firm’s sixth proposal to buy Signature Aviation, the world’s leading operator of private jet bases, Bloomberg reported.
According to Signature, discussions between the parties are ongoing and there is no certainty an offer will be made or on what terms.
Co-op Bank concluded takeover talks.
Talks between the Co-Op Bank’s majority shareholders and a potential buyer of the British lender have now concluded.
The Co-op Bank got a non-binding offer from an unnamed third party known as “financial sponsor with knowledge and experience of investing in European financial services businesses” last month.
The Co-op Bank remained committed to delivering its strategy and to returning to sustainable profitability without disclosing any reason for the discussions falling through.
Omantel considers $500m bids for its tower network sale.
Oman Telecommunication is weighing plenty of offers for its tower network, which the state-owned firm expects to raise over $500m.
Bids from “specialized companies” are undergoing technical, commercial and legal evaluation, according to Omantel. The transaction is still at an evaluation stage, and it is not yet possible to determine its full financial impact on the company.
HIG Capital acquires office building in Bloomsbury. (FS, RE)
HIG Capital, a global alternative investment firm, has completed the acquisition of an office building totaling approximately 60k square feet in Bloomsbury, central London.
HIG continues to add to its sizeable portfolio of real estate assets across Europe, consisting of both equity and debt investments, with a particular focus on its target market of value-added small and midcap opportunities.
WuXi Biologics to acquire drug substance facility in Wuppertal from Bayer.
WuXi Biologics, a company with leading open-access biologics technology platforms, and Bayer, announced the acquisition, under which WuXi Biologics will take over and operate the Drug Substance facility at Bayer's Wuppertal site. The transaction, subject to regulatory approval, is expected to close in the first half of 2021.
The companies also plan to enter into a long-term sublease agreement and a transition service contract. The volume of the transaction, including the sublease agreement, amounts to about €150m.
Together with the Drug Product facility, this new DS facility will be used for commercial manufacturing, allowing WuXi Biologics to meet clients' increasing demand for outsourced manufacturing services. As cornerstone of WuXi Biologics' European network, the two facilities are expected to be ready for drug substance and drug product manufacturing by 2021.
APAC
Arcadia Capital, a mid-market private equity firm, completed its investment in Orange Hire, a provider of Earthmoving and Traffic Management on the East Coast. Financial terms were not disclosed.
Leigh Oliver, Arcadia Capital Co-Founder, expected the business to benefit from tail-winds generated by increased government stimulus on infrastructure and construction projects in a bid to get the economy humming post-pandemic.
Arcadia Capital was advised by MinterEllison, Ernst & Young, PWC and Greenmount. Orange Hire was advised by Greenstone Partners, Allen & Overy and KPMG.
Investment firms CDC, NIIF, EverSource Capital, are set to invest $390m in Ayana Renewable Power, an Indian renewable energy platform. The proposed transaction envisages NIIF to become the majority shareholder in Ayana. CDC, NIIF, EverSource will invest $70m, $284m, $36m respectively.
“NIIF’s continuing support to Ayana demonstrates our belief in the large growth potential of the Indian renewable energy sector and our confidence in Ayana’s ability to generate stable risk-adjusted returns for our investors. With committed like-minded shareholders and a strong management team, we are confident that Ayana will become a leading player in this space, over the next few years," Sujoy Bose, NIIF Managing Director & CEO.
NIIF is advised by Adfactors PR.
Alimentation Couche-Tard, an independent convenience store operator, completed the acquisition of Circle K HK, a chain of convenience stores located in Hong Kong, from Convenience Retail Asia, an operator of convenience store chains, for $360m.
"Circle K Hong Kong is one of the best convenience store operators in Asia and will be an excellent fit within our company. We are pleased to have completed this transaction rapidly and are excited to work with our new teams to advance our growth strategy in the region," Brian Hannasch, Couche-Tard President and CEO.
Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan agreed to invest in BHC Group, a South Korea's fried chicken, in a $275m deal.
OTPP valued the unlisted BHC at $1.7bn, almost three times what the special purpose company paid two years ago. Elevation PE is fully exiting from the Korean franchise with hefty returns.
Lone Pine Capital, a US-based hedge fund, completed its investment in Pine Labs, a merchant commerce platform. Financial terms were not disclosed.
“We are thrilled to welcome Lone Pine as an investor during this exciting and transformative phase of Pine Labs’ growth journey. Small businesses and consumers are fast adopting to digital commerce and contactless checkout. We are also seeing tremendous uptake in Pay Later services and have now enabled nearly 150k outlets for this. It’s time to invest heavily in offline and online commerce across India and SEA,” B Amrish Rau, Pine Labs CEO.
Legend Capital, an independent venture capital firm, led a $107m Series E round in MicuRx Pharmaceuticals, which discovers and develops novel antibiotics to combat drug-resistant bacterial infections.
MicuRx attracted a slew of investors including China Merchants Securities, Korea Investment Partners, Yingke PE, Founder H Fund, Zhongtai Ventures, and Detong Capital.
The fresh proceeds will be used for new drug development, global clinical trials, pipeline advancement and drug commercialization in China.
Global Infrastructure Partners, an independent infrastructure fund manager, agreed to acquire a 26.25% stake in Queensland Curtis LNG Common Facilities, which are owned by Shell, a multinational oil and gas company, and include LNG storage tanks, jetties and operations infrastructure. Financial terms were not disclosed.
This decision is consistent with Shell's strategy of selling non-core assets in order to further high-grade and simplify Shell's portfolio. The sale will contribute to Shell's expected divestment proceeds, without impact on people or the operations of the QCLNG venture, and aligns Shell's interest in the Common Facilities with its 73.75% interest in the overall QCLNG venture.
Fubon Financial plans to acquire controlling stake in Jih Sun Financial Holdings.
Fubon Financial, a financial investment holding company, plans to acquire a controlling stake in Jih Sun Financial, a bank holding company, through a tender offer with the potential value of $1.7bn, according to Fubon's statement.
The tender offer launches on Thursday and will remain active until February 1, 2021. The offer price would be $0.4 per share, representing a 24.8% premium to the average price over the past month.
Warburg Pincus to invest $202m in MedPlus. (FS)
Warburg Pincus, a global private equity firm, is in advanced talks to invest about $202m for a significant minority stake in MedPlus, an Indian online pharmacy.
MedPlus plans to use a mix of debt and equity to pay off existing lenders and also offer liquidity to smaller shareholders of the company, DealStreetAsia reported. If the deal goes through, Warburg will become the single largest shareholder in MedPlus.
SoftBank to file for $600m SPAC IPO.
SoftBank's Vision Fund is planning to raise $500-600m through an initial public offering of its first special purpose acquisition company.
SoftBank is said to be preparing for at least two additional SPACs. This move would see the Vision Fund buying a company SoftBank hasn’t previously invested in. The blank-check company will unite the Vision Fund’s expertise in tech startups with SoftBank’s relatively new emphasis on public stock trading, Bloomberg reported.
Goldman Sachs and Citigroup are managing the deal.
India to ease rules for non-Chinese investments from Hong Kong.
India may reduce the investigation of Hong Kong-based investors' deals as long as Chinese firms aren’t involved in the transactions.
The proposals under consideration include making it obligatory for profitable owners from nations sharing a state border with India to seek the government’s permission to acquire more than 10% stake in any local firm. The discussions are at a preliminary stage, Bloomberg reported.
The framework is expected to speed up the approval process and bring in much-needed clarity for both private equity firms and hedge funds and companies looking for foreign capital as they struggle amid the pandemic-generated economic shocks.
Jack Ma offers Ant to placate Chinese regulators.
As Jack Ma was trying to rescue his relationship with Beijing in early November, the Chinese billionaire offered to hand over parts of his financial-technology giant, Ant Group, to the Chinese government, WSJ reported.
The dispute between Ma and government officials was the cause for the cancellation of Ant Group's planned initial public offering earlier this year, that was expected to raise over $34bn. The Chinese government has been clamping down on companies that regulators conclude are amassing too much market share. President Xi Jinping ordered both the blocking of Ant's IPO and the initiation of an investigation into potential risks posed by Ant.
Tokopedia-SPAC deal may shorten the access to the bourses for Indonesian unicorns.
Tokopedia, an e-commerce marketplace has been the most zealous about executing the listing plan, since Indonesia’s unicorns desired the idea of an initial public offering some years ago, DealStreetAsia reported.
Earlier this year, the company admitted that it had made extensive preparations for an IPO, with plans to go public in three years. These plans may now be advanced as the e-commerce major has received acquisition interest from Richard Li and Peter Thiel-backed SPAC Bridgetown Holdings. Thus, Tokopedia may inspire fellow Indonesian unicorns to follow suit.
Traveloka considers public listing including SPAC option.
Traveloka, Southeast Asia’s largest online travel app, is looking to go public soon and is deciding on a merger with a special purpose acquisition company as a possible stock-market listing option.
Traveloka is still deciding between an IPO or a SPAC and eying a valuation of $5-6bn. “A SPAC is one of the options we are evaluating given we have been approached by a few,” Henry Hendrawan, Traveloka President.
KKR appoints a new PE chief in India. (FS, People)
KKR appointed a new chief for its private equity business in India as Sanjay Nayar, will become chairman for the buyout firm in the nation, Bloomberg reported.
Sanjay Nayar, currently chief executive officer for India, will take over the position to advise and assist business in the country. The transition will take effect December 31. Gaurav Trehan, who joined from TPG Capital, is the new head of its private equity business in the country.
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