Good morning and TGIF! Today our Rod James reports on a huge continuation-fund deal pulled together by Insight Partners. The $1.3 billion fund will let the New York firm keep businesses it backed through a half-dozen older investment pools while HarbourVest Partners and Lexington Partners are prepared to provide liquidity to fund investors who want to cash out.

In more somber news, contrarian investor Sam Zell, who became a billionaire through investing in distressed properties, has died at 81, as our Wall Street Journal colleagues Tali Arbel and Peter Grant report. The Chicagoan was best known for setting up REITs, selling one to Blackstone for $39 billion.

For these and many more stories, please read on...

One of the world’s largest technology investors, Insight Partners, has raised a fund to help it hold on to stakes in companies held by six older vehicles, Rod James reports for WSJ Pro Private Equity. The New York-based firm, which manages $75 billion in assets, rounded up $1.3 billion to buy stakes in the software companies from the vehicles Insight originally used to acquire them, according to a statement seen by The Wall Street Journal. Investors in the original vehicles were given the option to transfer their holdings into the new fund or sell their positions to specialist buyers of secondhand fund stakes HarbourVest Partners and Lexington Partners.

One of the REITs he started, Equity Office Properties Trust, became the first such vehicle to be included in the S&P 500 and commanded a $39 billion price when it was sold in 2007 to Blackstone through what was then among the largest leveraged buyouts ever, Tali Arbel and Peter Grant report for The Wall Street Journal. Carlyle Group co-founder David Rubenstein interviewed Zell for his “How to Invest: Masters on the Craft” book last year in which the son of Polish refugees described himself as a self-confident entrepreneur who never failed, even if some of his ventures didn’t work out.

Renewable-energy companies are leasing warehouses, boosting the otherwise sagging demand for industrial real estate.

Companies outside of the tech sector are facing an uphill battle in recruiting Big Tech’s laid-off software developers, engineers and data scientists.

Changes to how companies account for renewable energy may lift the veil on actual usage vs. credits bought to offset fossil-fuel use.

Midmarket investor Sentinel Capital Partners in New York said it has sold manufacturer ECM Industries to strategic buyer nVent Electric for $1.1 billion. The New Berlin, Wis.-based company makes electrical connectors, tools and test instruments used in a variety of industries. Sentinel first backed the business in late 2019, according to the firm’s website

Technology-focused Vista Equity Partners said it is investing $125 million in enterprise software maker Fivetran, backing the company through its Vista Credit Partners unit. The Oakland, Calif.-based producer of software to facilitate data movement between cloud services providers and end users said it generates more than $200 million in revenue on an annual run-rate basis.

Growth investor TCV in Menlo Park, Calif., led a $60 million series D investment in staffing company Instawork, joined by new backer 9Yards Capital in West Hollywood, Calif., and existing investors in the business whose legal name is Garuda Labs. Based in San Francisco, Instawork provides an online site to connect employers with people seeking work. Also known as Technology Crossover Ventures, TCV managed about $19.88 billion at the end of last year, according to a regulatory filing in March.

White Star Capital led a $29.7 million investment in credit company Percent Technologies, joined by new investors including Susquehanna International Group’s private-equity arm and existing backers such as B Capital Group, according to a news release. The New York company, legally named Cadence Group, provides a website where lenders, borrowers and investors can engage in private-credit transactions, according to a news release.

Indian investment firm 360 ONE Asset Management has committed $28 million to data analytics company Course5 Intelligence, leading a $55 million investment round that the India-based company said it expects to close shortly. The company also said it expects to seek a public listing of its shares within 18 months.

Eurazeo in Paris said it led an $11.5 million growth investment in architectural construction document-automation software maker Swapp, investing through its Smart City Fund II. The Tel Aviv-based company’s products let users create and manipulate documents and focuses on serving architects for schools and multifamily housing projects, according to an emailed news release. Existing backer Entrée Capital also participated in the deal.

London-based private-equity firm Hg has acquired a majority stake in software supplier GTreasury, with former majority owner Mainsail Partners remaining as a minority investor, according to a news release. The Buffalo Grove, Ill.-based company’s software is used by companies to manage cash, payments and accounting, among other things, according to its website.

Lower-midmarket firm Boyne Capital and clean energy-focused Breakwater North have formed Integral Energy Services, a clean energy and critical infrastructure services business platform, according to a news release.

Clearview Capital in Stamford, Conn., said it has recapitalized vehicle towing and garage equipment maker Inventive, investing in the Mountain Home, Idaho-based company through its Clearview Capital Fund IV.

Our add-on deal interactive tool allows you to sort and analyze volumes of add-on deal data compiled by WSJ Pro. View more.

Boston-based specialist investor LRVHealth has raised $200 million for its fifth venture investment vehicle, Brian Gormley reports for WSJ Pro Venture Capital. The fund is about twice the size of its 2018 predecessor.

Longtime Lazard Chief Executive Ken Jacobs is preparing to step down, Cara Lombardo, Laura Cooper and Ben Dummett report for The Wall Street Journal, citing people familiar with the matter. The move comes as the investment bank that also manages about $200 billion in assets seeks to revive its fortunes. Peter Orszag, a former Obama administration official who has run Lazard’s financial-advisory unit since 2019, is expected to take the top job, the people said. Jacobs, 64, plans to remain at the firm and continue working with clients.

Brookfield-controlled Oaktree Capital Management said it has added Gregory Halagan as a managing director and its first head of insurance solutions. He is based in New York and reports to Tony Harrington, a managing director and global head of marketing and client relations for the Los Angeles firm, according to an emailed news release. Halagan was most recently a Mercer Investments partner and co-head of U.S. insurance investments.

Healthcare specialist Apposite Capital in London said it has promoted ​​Anne-Laure Meynier to partner and Sahil Shah to investment manager. Meynier has been with the firm since 2015 while Shah came aboard in 2021, according to an emailed news release. Also, Apposite said it has appointed Stefano Lomartire as an investment executive.

Industry advisory firm Monument Group in Boston said it has hired Lars Fonkert as a vice president in its recently established Amsterdam office, as part of its European distribution team. Fonkert most recently worked on business development for European asset manager Amundi, according to an emailed news release.

Public-sector investment bank Bpifrance topped the global list of most-active private-equity investors in the first quarter with 37 deals, followed by credit-focused Ares Management at 35 and Carlyle Group and KKR, both with 26, according to a ranking from PitchBook Data. In the U.S., Ares was the most active with 27 transactions, followed by Audax Group with 20, Shore Capital Partners with 16 and HarbourVest Partners and Carlyle with 15 each.

Global venture-capital investments in clean energy businesses climbed to $12.3 billion last year from $11.1 billion in 2021 and $3 billion in 2020, according to an analysis by consulting firm Oliver Wyman, which said average deal sizes tripled to $53 million in 2021 and last year from $17 million in 2019, when the total invested was just $1.9 billion. The firm said two-thirds of investments last year went into renewable energy and batteries.

The biggest U.S. public pension fund is set to review its bets on private equity starting next month, according to a Financial Times report. The $455.1 billion California Public Employees' Retirement System, which last year raised its target allocation to the asset class to 13% from 8%, could increase its bets again following the review, the newspaper said.

Italian lender Mediobanca has acquired specialist boutique investment bank Arma Partners, parachuting in 69 bankers specializing in technology deals in the latest sign of consolidation in the industry, Paul Clarke reports for sister publication Financial News in London. Mediobanca is upping its investment-banking ambitions with the acquisition of the boutique firm run by former Goldman Sachs banker Paul-Noël Guély. Arma Partners has built a reputation as a leader in software, cloud services, financial technology and internet deals and has built a roster of senior bankers from larger rivals since its beginnings 20 years ago.

Middle-market investor Sterling Group in Houston said it has formed Premier Tire & Service to roll up independent tire stores and retail automotive services providers across the U.S. The firm, with assets of roughly $5.9 billion, is backing the new platform through its Foundation Fund.

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