| | | | | | | This morning: It's Monday, the second day of spring and the snow-covered trees look rather pretty outside. It feels like a typical day in January, except that it's not winter but the end of March. Cuba: Reuters News is reporting that you can book hotel rooms in Cuba using Priceline. Who doesn't want to go to Cuba? M&A: Last week, I reported that private equity was out of the running for AssetMark. Strategics had taken the lead, I said in the story. Two of the strategics are backed by Asian financial institutions, according to sources, which of course made me think of Russell Investments. Citic Group, of Beijing, was in talks to buy Russell last year, but that deal fell apart when the Chinese stock market plunged over the summer (and a reported investigations into Citic Securities executives). This allowed TA Associates and Reverence Capital to swoop in and buy Russell for $1.15 billion. I don't know who the strategics are in the AssetMark process but the broad market isn't in the best of shape. I'm hearing that private equity isn't officially out of the auction so they may still have a shot. Tasty deal: In the fall, I was in the midst of kitchen renovations and ordered a crossan'wich at Burger King as a treat for all my hard work. I liked it so much that I returned the next day. The likely maker of that crossan'wich was Gold Standard Baking Inc, which was owned by Arbor Investments for seven years. In fact, Arbor's investment in Gold Standard is our "Deal of the Year." Just so you know, Chicago-based Gold Standard makes about 10 million croissants a week as well as 300,000 Danishes. It also provides croissants to about two-thirds of BKs nationally. Check out the story. Here's a list of all the winners. Departures: Chris has a story on Lawrence Schloss, president of Angelo, Gordon & Co, who is leaving the firm after more than two years. His departure comes after John Angelo, one of the founders of the firm, died in January. Read the story here. If you have a comment, a tip, or something nice to say email me at [email protected]. If you have a complaint, email Chris at [email protected]. -- Luisa | | | | Today's Take | | | | California, New York lawmakers tackle PE regulation Regulation of the private equity industry is turning into a local fight. In recent weeks, state lawmakers in California and New York drafted bills to address fee transparency and the tax treatment of carried interest. To date, efforts to raise federal taxes on private equity firms' share of their funds investment profits (known as carried... Read more... Deal of the Year, Middle Market/Overall, 2016: Arbor Investments Arbor Investments turned its buy of Gold Standard Baking Inc into more than just a sweet deal by boosting the company's production of croissants five-fold and adding a heaping scoop of new customers. Arbor sold Gold Standard Baking in April 2015 to Parallel49 Equity (formerly known as Tricor Pacific Capital Inc). The Chicago private equity firm made... Read more... Deal of the Year, Turnaround, 2016: Sun Capital Partners In February 2015, the New York City Police Department announced it was awarding a contract to a company called Point Blank Enterprises Inc for 13,000 protective vests. The prestigious contract award was the culmination of a multi-year turnaround undertaken by Sun Capital Partners that garnered the firm more than 3.5x its invested capital when it sold... Read more... Deal of the Year, Small Market, 2016: Riverside Eemax was just starting to warm up when The Riverside Company bought it in 2008. Today the tankless water heater company is boiling hot. Under Riverside's ownership, Eemax's EBITDA grew from less than $2 million to more than $9 million and the company's revenue tripled. The add-on acquisition of EcoSmart in 2013 expanded its reach into the... Read more... Deal of the Year, Large Market, 2016: Charlesbank Capital Charlesbank Capital Partners spotted potential that others missed in the company that would become FullBeauty Brands. At the time, the specialist in plus-sized clothing carried the name OneStopPlus.com and its parent was PPR, known more for its stable of higher profile brands such as Gucci, Alexander McQueen and Puma. (PPR changed its name to Kering... Read more... Deal of the Year, European, 2016: GTCR In applying its "leaders strategy" to a neglected foreign subsidiary, GTCR was able to grow a U.K.-based lender and post strong returns in a difficult European macroeconomic environment. Before GTCR acquired it in 2012, Premium Credit Ltd (PCL), which offers insurance premium financing to small businesses and occasionally lends to individuals, was a subsidiary of MBNA... Read more... Deal of the Year Award Winners, 2016 Our Deal of the Year winner this year is a bakery that started out as a regional operation in Chicago, and under the guidance of its private equity owners, expanded its customer base to include WalMart Stores Inc and Burger King Corp. This is the kind of story we love to hear about when judging Deal... Read more... Angelo, Gordon President Schloss leaves firm Lawrence Schloss, president of Angelo, Gordon & Co, is leaving the firm after more than two years, according to a letter the firm sent out late Friday. The firm has no plans to replace Schloss, according to an LP who read the letter to Buyouts. Schloss's name and bio have already been removed from the... Read more... Lightyear sets Fund IV hard cap at $1.25 bln Lightyear Capital set a $1.25 billion hard cap for its latest flagship buyout fund, a source with knowledge of the fund told Buyouts. Lightyear Fund IV's hard cap represents a 32 percent increase from the $950 million Lightyear raised through its previous fund. Fund III closed on its hard cap after surpassing its $800 million target,... Read more... GSO shops third mezzanine fund with $6 bln target GSO Capital Partners is in the market, targeting $6 billion for its third mezzanine fund, according to two people with knowledge of the firm. GSO, an affiliate of Blackstone Group, is targeting April for a first closing on GSO Capital Opportunities Fund III, one of the people said. The firm has not yet set a... Read more... S&P upgrades PE-backed SandRidge from default, expects restructuring Two energy firms with current and former ties to Riverstone Holdings LLC drew one negative and one positive rating change from Standard & Poor's Rating Services as debt issues loom in the space. SandRidge Energy Inc drew an upgrade to CCC- from D after the oil-and-gas producer said it made a $21.7 million interest payment... Read more... Personal Capital struggles with Series E: sources Personal Capital is expected to wrap up funding for a Series E in a few months. But it's not clear how well those discussions are going. The online wealth advisor is seeking to raise from $50 million to $75 million and bids were due about two weeks ago, two sources familiar with the situation said. Evercore Partners is advising,... Read more... Wisconsin splits private-equity, VC allocations The State of Wisconsin Investment Board will extract venture-capital investments from its private-equity portfolio and create a separate allocation to venture-related strategies, according to investment-board documents. The Investment Board approved the proposal at its March 8-9 meeting. Wisconsin currently groups VC funds and co-investments within its private-equity allocation. The new venture-capital portfolio will include SWIB's existing allocations... Read more... Corporate buyers playing a big role in exit markets Exit markets are felt the pinch, but corporate acquisitions have continued to display remarkable strength. Read more... Oversubscribed Teralys fund close brings VCAP fundraising to C$1.3 bln Montral-based Teralys raised its fund thanks to VCAP and 16 LPs, including European institutional investor Bpifrance Read more... Wisconsin splits VC, PE allocations VC allocation, which will include in-state investments, will be about $1.3 billion initially Read more... | The Summit for Middle Market Debt Finance
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| | | | VC Deals | | | | Atlantic Healthcare raises $24 mln Atlantic Healthcare plc said Monday it raised $24 million. Participants include Salix Pharmaceuticals Inc.; Fullbrook Thorpe Investments LLP (the family investment arm of Andy Leaver, founder of Clinigen Group plc); LDC (the private equity division of Lloyds Banking Group plc); and existing investors. Atlantic Healthcare, of the U.K., is a specialty pharma company focusing on gastrointestinal disorders. Read more... Elliptic raises $5 mln Elliptic said Monday it raised $5 million in Series A funding led by Paladin Capital Group. Also participating were Santander InnoVentures, KRW Schindler, Digital Currency Group, and existing investor, Octopus Ventures. London and New York-based Elliptic uses graph analysis and machine learning to identify illicit activity in blockchain transactions. Read more... German travel startup Distribusion raises $6.77 mln Business-to-business travel startup Distribusion Technologies raised 6 million euros ($6.77 million) in funding from Northzone, Creandum, HR Ventures and returning investor Frhphasenfonds Brandenburg. Based in Berlin, Germany, Distribusion's technology enables intercity bus operators to partner with travel resellers. Read more... Omidyar Network leads $1.6 mln seed round for Tinkergarten Omidyar Network, a philanthropic investment firm started by eBay founder Pierre Omidyar, led a $1.6 million seed financing round for Tinkergarten, a provider of outdoor early childhood education. Other investors in the round include Blue {Seed} Collective, City Light Capital, 500 Startups and Outbound Ventures. Read more... KDWC leads $7.6 mln investment in HighGround Chicago-based HighGround, an employee engagement platform, raised $7.6 million in Series A1 financing. KDWC led the funding round with participation from existing investors including Columbus Nova Technology Partners and Lightbank. HighGround has raised more than $19 million to date. Read more... | 2 Weeks Left To Join Your Peers at PartnerConnect East!
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| | | | | | Back to top | | Ardian to sell Novacap majority stake to Eurazeo, Mrieux Dveloppement Ardian said Monday that it has entered exclusive negotiations to sell its majority stake in Novacap to Eurazeo and Mrieux Dveloppement. Financial terms weren't announced. Ardian will remain a minority shareholder. Novacap, of Lyon, France, is a diversified chemicals Group that produces and distributes essential chemicals that are used in everyday products. Read more... Clearlake Capital buys That's How We Roll Clearlake Capital Group LP said Monday that it acquired That's How We Roll LLC (THWR). Financial terms weren't announced. THWR founder and CEO Aldo Zuppichini will maintain a significant equity stake. Fairfield, New Jersey-based That's How We Roll provides "better-for-you" snacks in North America, including flagship brands Mrs. Thinsters and Dippin' Chips. Read more... Convergence Partners invests in inQuba Convergence Partners has invested in inQuba. Financial terms weren't announced. Santa Monica, California-based inQuba is a a customer experience management and customer engagement Saas provider. Read more... KKR to buy Airbus defense electronics unit for $1.2 billion: Reuters Private equity firm KKR ( KKR.N) has agreed to buy Airbus Group's ( AIR.PA) defense electronics business for 1.1 billion euros ($1.2 billion), the European aerospace group said on Friday. Read more... PE-backed Ministry Brands buys unit from Vista Equity's Active Network Knoxville, Tennessee-based Ministry Brands, a Christian software company backed by Genstar Capital and Providence Equity Partners, acquired ACTIVE Network's faith division, which offers a software product that helps churches integrate administrative functions. Based in Dallas, Texas, ACTIVE provides management solutions for event and activity organizers and is owned by Vista Equity Partners. Read more... DHL, UPS, Affinity and CVC eye South Korean logistics firm: Korea Economic Daily Deutsche Post DHL Group ( DPWGn.DE) and United Parcel Services Inc ( UPS.N) were among those that entered initial bids to buy South Korea's fourth-largest logistics company Logen Co Ltd, Korea Economic Daily reported on Friday. Read more... Arsenal Capital makes majority investment in Pacific Urethanes Arsenal Capital Partners made a majority investment in Pacific Urethanes LLC, a producer of specialty polyurethane foam materials based in Ontario, California. Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed. Pacific Urethanes is the first investment in Arsenal's strategy to build a specialty foam solutions and technologies platform. Read more... | Registration is Now Open for PartnerConnect MidWest!
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Back to top | | Starwood gets $13 billion bid from Anbang, tops Marriott offer: Reuters Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide Inc (HOT.N) on Friday said a $13 billion cash offer from China's Anbang Insurance Group Co was superior to one from Marriott International Inc (MAR.O), setting the stage for the largest-ever deal by a Chinese company in the United States, Reuters News reported. Read more... Blue Harvest Fisheries buys Harbor Blue Seafood Blue Harvest Fisheries LLC, a portfolio company of Bregal Partners, said Monday it acquired Harbor Blue Seafood Inc. Financial terms weren't announced. The deal includes seven scallop vessels and related shoreside assets from Harbor Blue Seafood, of Fairhaven, Massachusetts. Read more... WeWork buys Welkio Shared-office-space startup WeWork acquired Welkio, a visitor sign-in system for offices, the company said Friday in a blog post. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. Based in San Luis Obispo, California, Welkio was created in 2014 during a company hackathon at mobile agency Hathaway. WeWork recently raised about $430 million at a $16 billion valuation in a funding round led by private equity firm Hony Capital Ltd, reported the Wall Street Journal. Read more... | | Firms & Funds | | |
Back to top | | Updata Partners collects $160 mln toward fifth fund Washington, DC-based Updata Partners raised $160 million toward a targeted $275 million fifth fund, according to an SEC filing. Read more... Union Square raises $166.8 mln toward a fourth fund Union Square Ventures has raised a $166.8 million toward a fourth fund, according to a filing with the SEC. Read more... SV Angels targets $46 mln for new fund San Francisco-based angel investor SV Angel has filed to raise $46 million for its sixth fund, according to a regulatory filing The only partner listed on the filing is Topher Conway, son of Ron Conway, although the SV Angel website also lists Brian Pokorny and Kevin Carter as general partners. Read more... ARCH to raise $400 mln ninth fund ARCH Venture Partners has set out to raise a $400 million ninth fund, according to a filing with the SEC. Read more... Skype co-founder's Atomico targets $750 mln for fourth fund Atomico, the venture firm started by Skype co-founder Niklas Zennstrm, has set out to raise $750 million for its fourth fund, according to a filling with the SEC. Based in London, Atomico backs technology companies. On Monday, it made a $25 million investment in LendInvest, an online marketplace for property finance in the UK. Read more... Silver Oak closes third fund at $335 mln hard cap Silver Oak Services Partners, a lower middle market private equity firm based in Evanston, Illinois, closed its third fund at its $335 million hard cap. Like its predecessors, Silver Oak Services Partners Fund III LP will seek control-oriented investments in the business services, healthcare services and consumer services sectors. Silver Oak typically invests between $10 million to $30 million in companies with EBITDA between $3 million to $20 million. Forum Capital Partners served as placement agent for Silver Oak. Read more... | | Human Resources | | |
Back to top | | Lachman, Bodner join Advent as Senior Advisors Advent International said Monday that Todd Lachman and Larry Bodner have joined the firm as Senior Advisors. Lachman and Bodner will work closely with Advent's global retail, consumer and leisure team. Lachman is the former global president of Mars Petcare while Bodner is the former CFO of Big Heart Pet Brands. Read more... Bain Capital Ventures hires Williams as operating partner in San Francisco Bain Capital Ventures hired Jeff Williams as an operating partner in the firm's San Francisco office, where he will focus on infrastructure software and security companies. Read more... | | Odds & Ends + Hot Links | | |
Back to top | | PE HUB First Read In First Read, Google is shopping for cloud companies and its list includes Namely and Shopify, Mattermark has raised $7.3 million in series B funding and Apple is expected to launch a smaller, cheaper iPhone today. Read more... VC-backed Storefront shuts down Storefront, a marketplace that helps merchants find and rent retail space, shut down Thursday, the company announced on its website. Spark Capital led a $7.3 million Series A funding round for Storefront in April 2014. Investors include Mohr Davidow Ventures, Great Oaks Venture Capital, 500 Startups and former Citigroup Chief Executive Vikram Pandit, among others. Read more... Supporting emerging markets with innovative fund structures OPIC has extended its pilot program for innovative, uniquely structured investment funds that target hard-to-reach areas and sectors. Read more... PE HUB Second Opinion To close out your week, Second Opinion has news: AlpInvest-led group seals $1.2 bln secondary deal with Thomas Lee firm, Dropbox is set to sell shares in the secondary market at a 34 pct discount, and Aubrey McClendon left his biggest backer with billions to lose. Read more... |
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