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AMERICAS
Private equity firms American Securities and Lindsay Goldberg agreed to acquire the Management Services Business of AECOM, an American multinational engineering firm, for $2.4bn. The acquired unit is a contractor to the US federal government and serves various departments and agencies, including the Department of Defense and the Department of Energy.
“The Management Services business is a proven industry leader with distinctive expertise that plays a vital role in supporting governments around the world to execute programs of critical importance. We intend to leverage our extensive experience investing in the government services sector, including our prior investments in PAE and ECS Federal, and we look forward to working alongside management and American Securities to thoughtfully grow the Company and its capabilities both organically and through strategic transactions,” Russell Triedman, Lindsay Goldberg Partner.
Lindsay Goldberg is advised by JP Morgan, RBC Capital Markets, Cravath Swaine & Moore and Gasthalter & Co. AECOM is advised by DBO Partners, Goldman Sachs and Wachtell Lipton Rosen & Katz.
3M, a manufectorer of abrasives, adhesive tape products and consumer-electronic components, completed the $6.7bn acquisition of Acelity, a medical technology company, and its KCI subsidiaries worldwide from a consortium comprised of funds advised by Apax Partners, together with Canada Pension Plan Investment Board and the Public Sector Pension Investment Board.
“This is an exciting day as we bring together two premier and innovative companies that are focused on delivering comprehensive health care solutions to enable better outcomes for patients. We are excited to have the tremendous people of Acelity join the 3M team, and are confident in the value that this acquisition will deliver to our customers and our shareholders. This addition further accelerates 3M as a leader in advanced wound care, which is a significant and growing market segment,” Mike Roman, 3M Chairman and CEO.
3M was advised by Credit Suisse and Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board was advised by JP Morgan, Goldman Sachs, Simpson Thacher & Bartlett and Jackson Walker.
Parsley Energy, an oil and natural gas company, will acquire a 77% stake in Jagged Peak Energy for $2.27bn including Jagged Peak's net debt of $625m. Jagged Peak Energy is an independent oil and natural gas company focused on the acquisition and development of unconventional oil and associated liquids-rich natural gas reserves in the southern Delaware Basin, a sub-basin of the Permian Basin of West Texas.
"Jagged Peak's oily, high-margin asset base slots in nicely to our returns-focused development approach, its acreage footprint and water infrastructure dovetails into our legacy Delaware Basin position, and its corporate culture aligns with our core values. In short, we now have a premier Delaware Basin business that rivals our foundational Midland Basin business. This transaction also creates tangible synergies that will enhance our corporate free cash flow profile and will be shared by the combined shareholder base. Ultimately, I am proud of the high level of execution Parsley has delivered throughout 2019, and I am excited by the prospects of what the combination of Parsley and Jagged Peak can deliver for shareholders in 2020," Matt Gallagher, Parsley's President and CEO.
Parsley Energy is advised by Tudor, Pickering, Holt & Co and Kirkland & Ellis. Jagged Peak was advised by Vinson & Elkins, Citi and RBC Capital Markets.
Alpine Investors-backed Riverside Insights, a provider of educational and clinical assessments, completed its acquisition of ESGI, a SaaS platform for administering, creating, tracking and reporting teacher-led assessments of early childhood students. Financial terms were not disclosed.
“We are thrilled to partner with ESGI to expand Riverside’s leadership position. ESGI has built a market-leading, premier product suite through its commitment to creating high-quality assessment technology for teachers and classrooms,” Rajib Roy, Riverside CEO.
ESGI was advised by Craig-Hallum Capital Group and Dorsey & Whitney. Buyers were advised by Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati and Stanton PRM.
Prudential Financial completed its $2.3bn acquisition of Assurance IQ, a fast-growing direct-to-consumer platform that transforms the buying experience for individuals seeking personalized health and financial wellness solutions. The deal was announced in September.
“Assurance was founded to protect and improve the personal and financial health of every individual. Prudential’s shared vision, coupled with the strength of its offering and capabilities, make it the ideal partner with which to begin our next chapter. We are excited to create an ecosystem that reaches more people and new markets with a more expansive suite of products to drive our combined growth.” Michael Rowell, co-founder and CEO of Assurance.
Assurance IQ was advised by Financial Technology Partners and Wachtell Lipton Rosen & Katz. Prudential Financial was advised by JP Morgan and Debevoise & Plimpton.
State Grid Corporation of China, the world's largest power utility corporation, agreed to acquire Chilquinta Energia, a company that provides installation, transmission, maintenance and distribution of electricity and natural gas, from Sempra Energy, an energy infrastructure company, for $2.2bn.
"This agreement is really important. It moves our company one step closer to completing the sale of our South American businesses and concentrating our investment strategy right here in North America. All of our companies in Chile, including Chilquinta Energía and Tecnored, are excellent businesses with a strong focus on safety, reliability and customer service. We are so appreciative of the hard work and dedication of our Chilean team over the past 20 years," Jeffrey W. Martin, Sempra Energy Chairman and CEO.
Sempra Energy is advised by Bank of America Merrill Lynch, Lazard and White & Case.
Guidehouse, a portfolio company of Veritas Capital and provider of management consulting services to government clients, completed its acquisition of Navigant Consulting, a recruiting service firm, for $1.1bn. The deal was announced in August.
“We are delighted to welcome all of our colleagues from Navigant. Their significant commercial market expertise in healthcare, energy, and financial services complement the public sector strengths of Guidehouse, creating a new type of consultancy focused on driving cross-market advancements. Together we will serve our clients with distinction around the world, helping them address their most difficult challenges and identify their most promising opportunities in order to set a national agenda and drive global change. Increasingly, solutions to complex societal problems will require integrated problem solving between government and commercial entities. Guidehouse, with our combination of public and private sector expertise, is at the forefront of the emerging model of professional services that can address this new market opportunity,” Scott McIntyre, Guidehouse CEO.
Navigant Consulting was advised by Jefferies & Company and Sidley Austin. Guidehouse and Veritas Capital were advised by Schulte Roth & Zabel.
Bloomberg reported that US antitrust enforcers started an in-depth review of Google’s $2.6bn planned acquisition of a data analytics company Looker Data Sciences, a further sign of greater scrutiny on big technology companies.
The antitrust division of the Justice Department is seeking more information from Google and Looker related to the deal to determine whether the tie-up harms competition.
Google was advised by Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton.
Sciens Building Solutions, a Huron Capital portfolio company, agreed to acquire SmartWatch Security & Sound, security, fire alarm & sound integrator. Financial terms were not disclosed.
The acquisition will further increase the company's presence in Florida, providing Sciens with beneficial expertise and resources in access control, video surveillance and sound, while expanding product offerings across new and existing customers.
"Sciens' strong market experience and operational expertise combined with our capabilities and relationships are expected to enhance our ability to serve our loyal customers and new clients. We are already recognized as a provider of choice by our existing customer base, and we are excited to leverage this position, as well as Sciens' institutional knowledge and capabilities to pursue continued market penetration and growth together," Madelaine Lock, SmartWatch President.
Huron Capital is advised by Lambert & Co.
MidOcean Partners-backed Hunter Fan Company, a manufacturer of ceiling and industrial fans, agreed to acquire Jan Fan, a manufacturer and distributor of fixed and rolling-mount caged fan solutions for commercial and industrial workspaces. Financial terms were not disclosed.
"The acquisition of Jan Fan augments Hunter's growing HVLS fan business allowing the company to provide a more holistic solution for our customers' needs. We are excited to continue the rapid growth, both organically and through acquisition of Hunter's Industrial division with the addition of Jan Fan," Andrew Gilbert, MidOcean Partners Principal.
Hunter Fan Company is advised by Gibson Dunn & Crutcher.
John Bryan and Bert Ellis, two media veterans, agreed to acquire a 50% stake in Mighty Oak Entertainment, a clip-based sports programming company started in 2005, from founder Mark O'Brien. Financial terms were not disclosed.
"This partnership with John and Bert is an opportunity to take our areas of expertise and bring them together to build a multi-platform network of content for the global marketplace. We have over 10k clips with music licensed in perpetuity that is available for all areas of distribution. We each bring unique skill sets to maximize the library, expand titles and create new IP. I am honored to be in business with both John and Bert," Mark O'Brien, Mighty Oak Entertainment Founder.
LD Communications is advising Mighty Oak Entertainment.
Chicago-based AHEAD, which builds platforms for digital business, Data Blue, which delivers customized storage, backup and server virtualization and consolidation solutions, and Sovereign Systems, an IT service management company, agreed to merge. Financial terms were not disclosed.
“With this combination, our ability to scale expands substantially. Our larger, combined brand will help us serve clients more effectively, but the minimal regional overlap will allow us to maintain the close-knit relationships that our clients have come to expect,” Matt Cadogan, Sovereign Managing Partner.
AHEAD is advised by Gabriel Marketing.
HumanEyes Technologies, a 3D-Virtual Reality holistic solutions developer, completed the acquisition of HowToCreateVR.com, one of the world’s leading content repositories for Virtual Reality developers and content creators. Financial terms were not disclosed.
“Marcelo and I have become great friends and colleagues over the past two years as we have collaborated on many projects to help evangelize on behalf of VR and AR and its community of creators. He is one of the world’s leading authorities in this space and has done an incredible job of capturing and preserving an unprecedented library of hands-on content from leading experts in their respective specialties. Marcelo will truly be missed by the tight-knit AR and VR content creator community, but they can rest assured that HumanEyes is fully committed to building on the legacy he has created,” Jim Malcolm, HumanEyes Technologies Chief Marketing Officer.
Chalmers Group of Companies, a privately owned Canadian corporation that manufactures and supplies niche quality equipment to the medical and transportation industries, agreed to acquire LYNX Product Group, which designs, develops, and manufactures both standard and custom animal care washing, disinfection, filling, and conveying systems. Financial terms were not disclosed.
"By bringing these companies into CMG, we are providing our clients with a broader support network, deeper technical expertise, commonality among platforms, and a centralized source for parts and equipment," Jim Fry, CMG President and CEO.
MobilityWorks, a retail sales and service provider of wheelchair accessible vans, cars, and SUVs, agreed to acquire Freedom Mobility, which provides quality, affordable wheelchair accessible transportation. Financial terms were not disclosed.
“Adding Freedom Mobility to our organization offers an exciting opportunity to strengthen and expand our service offering into the state of Colorado. We look forward to the addition of their talented employees, and are excited to continue to serve the Colorado community, " Eric Mansfield, MobilityWorks Chief Operating Officer and President.
IHS Markit, a world leader in critical information, analytics and solutions, agreed to acquire Novation Analytics, a provider of software solutions, data analysis and advisory services to the automotive industry. Financial terms were not disclosed.
“We have been working closely with Novation Analytics over the last few years, helping original equipment manufacturers and suppliers navigate the emissions compliance challenges. Having the team on board will help us scale our capabilities as we plan to bring new solutions to the market beyond the CO2 emissions sector,” Tim Armstrong, IHS Markit Automotive Planning Solutions Vice President.
Kibo, a leader in cloud commerce, agreed to acquire Monetate, a testing and optimization provider. Financial terms were not disclosed.
“Monetate continues to be committed to providing our clients with capabilities to deliver the best experiences for their customers in every interaction over time. Our clients have leveraged our solution to deploy successful personalization strategies to drive growth and conversion. The opportunity to become part of a larger commerce platform with complementary products is exciting for both our clients and employees,” Stephen Collins, Monetate CEO.
Hoist Group, a hospitality partner for hotels and public operations, agreed to acquire HotelEngine, an online platform which integrates with hotel websites. Financial terms were not disclosed.
“HotelEngine completes our PMS product suite by adding a full and reputed booking engine functionality. Having been active across the Nordic market for many years, HotelEngine has a reputation for following customer evolution and rapid technological changes in hotel distribution. Hoist Group looks forward to continuing to enhance the customer experience and improving hotel service quality,” Alfonso Tasso, Hoist Group CEO.
SoftBank looking to take control of WeWork with financing package.
Reuters reported that SoftBank Group prepared a financing package for WeWork that would give it control over the shared office space company. The package would significantly increase the stake of SoftBank, which already owns around one-third of WeWork, and further dilute the influence of co-founder Adam Neumann.
"WeWork has retained a major Wall Street financial institution to arrange a financing. Approximately 60 financing sources have signed confidentiality agreements and are meeting with the company's management and its bankers over the course of this past week and this coming week," a WeWork spokeswoman said.
Richard Branson's private equity partnership stalls. (FS)
Richard Branson's partnership with London-based private credit firm Metric Capital Partners to raise a $500m fund was put on hold. Metric reportedly decided to shift its focus away from the partnership to concentrate on marketing its next flagship credit fund, which is now in the market seeking more than $1bn. The fundraising for that fund launched earlier this year.
Light to sell a 17.17% stake in Renova Energia.
Light, a Brazilian energy company, agreed to sell a 17.17% stake in Renova Energia, a power generation and distribution company, to CG I Fundo de Investimento em Participacoes Multiestrategia, for a symbolic consideration of BRL1 ($0.24).
Rio de Janeiro-based distributor Light said the sale of its stake in Renova is part of a strategy to divest non-core assets and focus on improving the performance in operations involving energy distribution.
EMEA
Private equity firm Thoma Bravo agreed to acquire Sophos Group, a global leader in cloud-enabled next-generation cybersecurity, for $3.8bn.The acquisition price represents a premium of approximately 37.1% to the closing price per Sophos share on Oct. 11 2019.
"Today marks an exciting milestone in the ongoing journey of Sophos. Sophos is actively driving the transition in next-generation cybersecurity solutions, leveraging advanced capabilities in cloud, machine learning, APIs, automation, managed threat response, and more. We continue to execute a highly-effective and differentiated strategy, and we see this offer as a compelling validation of Sophos, its position in the industry and its progress." Kris Hagerman, CEO, Sophos.
Sophos Group is advised by JP Morgan, UBS, Lazard, Slaughter & May and Tulchan Communications. Thoma Bravo is advised by Goldman Sachs, Kirkland & Ellis and Finsbury.
Liberty Global has offered a $500m sweetener to rescue the sale of its Swiss cable and TV business to Sunrise Communications. Freenet, which holds nearly a quarter of the stock in Sunrise, still opposes Sunrise’s $6.3bn deal to buy Liberty Global’s Swiss business, despite a new offer from the American seller to take part in the acquisition. Investors are due to vote on 23 October on a $2.8bn capital hike to help fund the purchase.
“We have always believed in the logic of this combination. It creates a national powerhouse that will provide a fully-converged challenger to Swisscom and represents a smart and accretive transaction for both Sunrise and Liberty shareholders,” Mike Fries, Liberty Global CEO.
Sunrise is advised by UBS, Deutsche Bank, Morgan Stanley, Lenz & Staehelin, Latham & Watkins, Slaughter & May, Nautadutilh, PWC, Deloitte, Meyerlustenberger Lachenal, Finsbury and Morrow Sodali Global. Liberty is advised by Credit Suisse, JP Morgan, Lion Tree Advisors, Shearman & Sterling, Homburger and Citigate Dewe Rogerson.
Private equity firm NorthEdge Capital closed its £90m ($114m) acquisition of Catalis, a game testing company. The price represents a premium of approximately 179.6% to the market capitalization of Catalis.
"Catalis has performed well and according to plan since its delisting from the Frankfurt Stock Exchange in 2018, delivering organic growth, a publishing portfolio of increased depth and quality, and a strengthened Testronic business. I would like to take this opportunity to thank all the employees of Catalis for all their hard work and support." Peter Biewald, Catalis Chairman.
Catalis was advised by Zeus Capital, Squire Patton Boggs and Yellow Jersey. NorthEdge was advised by GCA Altium and Eversheds.
KKR completed the acquisition of Hyperoptic. (FS)
KKR completed the acquisition of a majority stake in Hyperoptic, the UK’s largest residential gigabit broadband provider, from funds managed by Newlight Partners and Mubadala Investment Company. Financial terms were not disclosed.
Hyperoptic benefits from a full-fiber network covering 43 towns and cities across the UK, with gigabit broadband services passing almost 400k homes and businesses.
“Hyperoptic has a market-leading position and superior consumer product. The business is strongly positioned to meet the growing demand for full-fiber services in the UK through further investment and national roll-out, supporting housing development and renovation. Our investment in Hyperoptic builds on KKR’s strong track record in telecommunications infrastructure in Europe, investing in and deploying next-generation digital connectivity,” Vincent Policard and Cristina Gonzalez, KKR European Infrastructure Member and Director.
Hyperoptic was advised by LionTree Advisors. KKR was advised by Finsbury. Newlight was advised by Gasthalter & Co.
Faurecia, a French car parts group, agreed to acquire the remaining 50% of its joint venture with Continental, a German auto group, for €225m ($248m).
“SAS has strong growth potential and represents an excellent opportunity for Faurecia strategically and financially,” Patrick Koller, Faurecia Chief Executive.
Lovell Minnick Partners, a private equity firm focused on investments in the global financial services industry, agreed to acquire Billhighway, a provider of integrated software and payment solutions to membership-based organizations. Financial terms were not disclosed.
“We are excited to partner with the Billhighway team to support the Company’s growth in its core MBO markets and expansion into new segments. We believe that Billhighway solves critical pain points for its clients through scalable, differentiated technology and superior client service, and we are excited to accelerate further investments in the product, the market and the team,” Trevor Rich, Lovell Minnick Partner.
Lovell Minnick is advised by Jaffe Raitt Heuer & Weiss and Morgan Lewis & Bockius. TPG and Wells Fargo Securities provided debt financing.
CapVest-backed Valeo Foods Group, a pan-European producer of branded food and beverage products, agreed to acquire Matthew Walker, the world’s oldest Christmas pudding maker, from 2 Sisters Food Group, a privately owned food manufacturing company, for £67m ($82m).
"The strength of Matthew Walker’s market leadership combined with the strong consumer demand for its high-quality products make the business and its brands a great addition to our existing Valeo UK growth platform to sit alongside our wider portfolio of products including our very successful Rowse Honey brand. We look forward to welcoming and working with our new colleagues in Matthew Walker as we pursue our ambitious growth plans for the business,” Ian Ainsworth, Valeo Foods UK Managing Director.
2 Sisters Food Group was advised by Stamford Partners and Squire Patton Boggs.
Accenture, a global professional services company, agreed to acquire Sutter Mills, a French firm that specializes in developing and executing data-driven marketing strategies for clients. Financial terms were not disclosed.
The acquisition would strengthen Accenture Interactive's ability to help brands, in France and throughout Europe, to leverage data to deploy innovative marketing strategies. The combination of Sutter Mills' and Accenture Interactive's expertise would enable companies to create hyper-relevant experiences at scale across all customer touchpoints.
"New growth engines are driven by a company's ability to create experiences that are unique to each of potentially millions of customers. This requires capturing and responding to customers' expectations in near real-time, with personalized messages delivered through relevant media. Sutter Mills's mastery of data, adtech and martech would enhance our ability to provide clients with these hyper-relevant experiences, enabling us to even better support our clients in achieving their growth objectives," Claude Chaffiotte, Head of Accenture Interactive in France and Benelux.
Arthur J. Gallagher, a global insurance brokerage, risk management, and consulting services firm, agreed to acquire Proinova, a Sweden-based insurance broker firm. Financial terms were not disclosed.
"Proinova is a strong, family-run business that extends Gallagher's geographic presence into the southern region of Sweden, and expands our capabilities and product offering to clients across Scandinavia. I am delighted to welcome Sten and his associates to our growing global team," Patrick Gallagher, Arthur J. Gallagher Chairman and CEO.
Deutsche Bank looking to sell its stake in Turquoise.
Deutsche Bank is looking to sell its stake in Turquoise, the trading venue co-owned by the London Stock Exchange, as part of a wide-reaching overhaul of the German bank, Financial News reported.
Deutsche has moved its Turquoise stake into the company's so-called capital release unit that houses around €75bn ($82.7bn) of risk-weighted assets being sold or wound down by the bank.
Energean Oil to sell Edison E&P's North Sea assets for up to $280m.
Energean Oil & Gas agreed to sell Edison E&P North Sea assets to Neptune Energy Group for up to $280m, as part of an ongoing plan to sell non-core assets.
The assets to be sold include interests in the Nova and Dvalin gas developments offshore Norway, and in the UK, and interests in the producing Scott, Telford, Tors and Wenlock fields.
Sun Capital Partners nearing a deal to buy Vetrerie Riunite. (FS)
Sun Capital Partners, a private equity firm, is in the lead to buy Italy’s Vetrerie Riunite, which produces specialized components for the home appliance, automobile and ceramics manufacturing sectors. The rival bidder VAM Investments received no answer to its offer for the company.
APAC
Santos, an Australian energy company, agreed to acquire northern Australia operations of ConocoPhillips, an American multinational energy corporation with its headquarters located in the Energy Corridor district of Houston, for $1.4bn.
The acquisition delivers operated interests in long-life low-cost gas assets including Darwin LNG, Bayu-Undan, Barossa and Poseidon. It also brings operatorship of a strategically located LNG hub with significant expansion potential and longer-term opportunities to monetize Santos' material resources in the region.
"This acquisition delivers operatorship and control of strategic LNG infrastructure at Darwin, with approvals in place supporting expansion to 10 mtpa, and the low cost, long life Barossa gas project. These assets are well known to Santos. It also continues to strengthen our offshore operating and development expertise and capabilities to drive growth in offshore northern and Western Australia," Kevin Gallagher, Santos Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer.
Santos is advised by Credit Suisse, J.B. North & Co and Allens.
Total, a French multinational integrated oil and gas company, agreed to acquire a 37% stake in Adani Gas, an Indian natural gas distribution company, for $866m.
"Adani is delighted to deepen its strategic partnership with Total, a global energy major, to one of the largest downstream gas partnerships in India. Total's investment in Adani Gas reinforces India's natural gas and demand potential. The partnership will derive significant synergies between Adani's capabilities of developing world-class assets and Total's global best practices as well as leveraging business synergies across LNG, Fuel Retail and City Gas distribution. We look forward to working together towards delivering India's India's vision for clean and green energy," Gautam Adani, Adani Group Chairman.
Netmarble leads the bidding race for Woongjin Coway.
Netmarble, South Korea's largest mobile-gaming company, was named the preferred bidder for a stake in water purifier rental firm Woongjin Coway. The company is valued at approximately $1.3bn.
"We are looking at the Coway buy to diversify into new business, not because we believe that the gaming industry has hit its limit or its growth is uncertain," Sen Jang-Won, Netmarble Vice President.
NCLAT halts talks between Bhushan Power and JSW Steel.
Bloomberg reported that the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal temporarily halted JSW Steel $2.8bn purchase of insolvent Bhushan Power & Steel, a move that hurts the South Asian nation’s effort to clean up the world’s worst bad-debt pile.
The National Company Law Appellate Tribunal ordered a freeze on payment by the Sajjan Jindal-led mill and took objection to the Enforcement Directorate, the federal anti-money laundering agency, taking over the assets of the bankrupt steel mill. The agency is investigating allegations of money laundering by former owners of Bhushan Power and Steel.
PayTM looking to raise $2bn from SoftBank and Ant Financial. (FS)
PayTM, an Indian e-commerce payment system and financial technology company, is close to securing $2bn of new financing from investors including Jack Ma's Ant Financial, Japan's SoftBank and Rob Citrone's Discovery Capital Management to fend off an influx of new rivals.
The funding will be split evenly between equity and debt and values the country's top online financial services firm at $16bn.
LGT Capital closed its fourth Asia-focused fund at $1bn. (FS)
Swiss alternative investment firm LGT Capital Partners announced the final close of its fourth fund at $1bn. The program's investor base consists of more than 50 institutions, including pension funds, insurance companies and university endowments in Europe, US, Canada, Australia and the Middle East.
"Having been present in the Asia-Pacific region since 1998, we have seen increasing interest from institutional investors in the region. In parallel, the opportunity set of investments has also grown substantially," Doug Coulter, Hong Kong-based Partner at LGT Capital Partners.
Societe Generale abandoned plans to form a securities JV in China.
Reuters reported that Societe Generale, a French multinational investment bank, abandoned its plan for a securities joint venture in China in favor of a wholly-owned subsidiary, as Beijing said foreign ownership limits on the country's giant financial industry would be gone by the end of next year.
"As China further opens its markets, we will make further investments in China," Xin He, SocGen's head of global markets.
Malaysia extended its tax incentives for venture capital to 2023. (FS)
DealStreet Asia reported that the Malaysian government is extending tax incentives given to venture capital and angel investors until 2023 to further spur startup funding and attract more foreign investment in the country. The extension is among a slew of measures included by Finance Minister Lim Guan Eng in his Budget 2020 proposal.
"Building on this early success, the government will further allocate an additional MYR50m ($12m) to My Co-Investment Fund under the Securities Commission Malaysia to leverage such platforms to help finance the underserved SMEs," said the budget proposal.
KKR-backed Latitude Financial lowers IPO pricing. (FS)
KKR-backed Latitude Financial, an Australian financial services company with headquarters in Melbourne, lowered its IPO pricing by at least 11% ahead of its expected listing on Friday. The company now seeks to raise as much as $680m.
Although some investors had committed to buy shares at the lower end of the range, KKR and its partners believed a lower price would achieve better support. Shares in the company would also have a better chance of trading higher on 18 October, when they start trading under the code LFS.
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