Good day! Today’s offerings inlcude a look at the booming private-credit industry, where upper management teams are woefully short on women and minorities, as our Maria Armental reports. 

Also, our Journal colleague Joe Wallace reports the world’s biggest sovereign wealth fund, managed by Norway’s Norges Bank, could jump into private equity. Reuters said the move, if it occurs, could deliver as much as $70 billion to buyout funds.

Finally, we note with sadness the passing of Warren Buffett’s longtime sidekick Charlie Munger at 99, as the Journal reports. Buffett had nicknamed him the “abominable no-man” for his influence on Berkshire Hathaway’s investments. Filed under people news. 

We have these stories and many more deals, exits and fundraisings condensed for you below, so please wade in... 

Private credit has boomed over the past decade with assets under management reaching $1.6 trillion as of last March. But as WSJ Pro Private Equity’s Maria Armental reports, the dramatic rise has been concentrated around larger firms, most of which are owned and run by white men. Private credit’s rising tide has failed to lift all boats, particularly those with women or minorities at the helm. Firms controlled by women or minorities managed less than 2% of total private credit assets as of March, lagging other alternative asset classes such as private equity and venture capital.

The world’s biggest sovereign wealth fund, managed by Norway’s central bank, has assets of about $1.5 trillion and mostly invests in stocks and bonds but could enter the private-equity sector, Joe Wallace reports for the Journal. Fund manager Norges Bank on Tuesday sought permission to begin investing in buyout funds, saying the step could boost returns without significantly increasing risk. Some 3% to 5% of the sovereign fund’s assets could gradually be moved into private equity, injecting $40 billion to $70 billion in the asset class, Reuters reported, citing a statement from Norges Bank. But the nation’s parliament needs to approve the strategy and has rejected similar requests in the past, citing cost and opacity, Reuters said.

Bain Capital-backed Rocket Software said it has agreed to acquire the Application Modernization and Connectivity business of publicly traded Open Text for about $2.27 billion in cash. Waltham, Mass.-based Rocket works with customers as they modernize their operations, according to a news release. Bain Capital backed Rocket in 2018, acquiring a majority stake at an enterprise value of about $2 billion. Rocket said the carve out of AMC would enhance its services with on-premises customer support as they migrate from mainframe computers and applications written in early programming languages such as Cobol to more modern equipment while preserving the value of decades of technology investments. Rocket said the deal would be financed partly with fresh cash from its existing shareholders and new debt. Open Text said the unit generated fiscal 2023 revenue of about $500 million and adjusted pre-tax earnings of $275 million.

Golub Capital led and Antares Capital jointly arranged a $500 million increase in financing for Patriot Growth Insurance Services, which both firms backed previously as lenders, according to a news release. The financing is expected to fuel the firm’s expansion, including through acquisitions. The Fort Washington, Pa.-based broker backed by GI Partners and Summit Partners employs more than 1,700 people in 130 offices spread across 26 states.

Goldman Sachs Group’s asset management arm led a $45 million investment in vendor management systems company Candex, investing through its growth equity strategy, according to a news release. World Innovation Lab and existing backers also joined in the deal. The New York-based company’s systems are used by businesses to manage payments to vendors, providing automated handling and analytics as well, according to the release.

Growth investor New Enterprise Associates led a $40 million investment in software maker Second Front Systems, joined by existing backers AE Industrial Partners and Moore Strategic Ventures, according to a news release. The company specializes in helping government agencies and contractors gain access to commercial software for use in national security endeavors.

Midmarket specialist Norwest Equity Partners in Minneapolis said it is once again backing United Sports Brands, a collection of active lifestyle retail product makers that Bregal Partners built up after acquiring Shock Doctor from Norwest in 2014. Norwest acquired Shock Doctor in 2008. The Fountain Valley, Calif.-based company’s other brands include McDavid, Cutters, Nathan and Glukos, according to a news release. Norwest previously backed and exited Wahoo Fitness, Pure Archery and Pelican Products, which aren’t among United’s brands.

Novacap is investing in data-management company Harmony Healthcare IT to help finance its expansion, according to a news release.  The South Bend, Ind.-based company provides cloud-based infrastructure used to process and store patient, employee and business records for services providers, according to the release.

Fort Point Capital in Boston said it is backing wastewater infrastructure services company Visu-Sewer, marking the first investment from the firm’s FPC Small Cap Fund III. Pewaukee, Wis.-based Visu’s services include rehabilitation and maintenance for municipal and commercial systems in the Midwest and Mid-Atlantic regions, according to a news release.

Praesidian Capital in Oklahoma City, Okla. said it is backing industrial equipment maker Reel Power International. The Oklahoma City-based company produces materials handling machinery used in the industrial, marine and energy sectors, according to a news release.

Ampersand Capital Partners in Wellesley, Mass. is backing Dutch clinical contract research organization Julius Clinical Research with a growth investment through a majority recapitalization, according to a news release. The Netherlands-based company began its existence as a University Medical Center Utrecht spin-off in 2008 and since then has conducted more than 130 clinical trials for its biopharmaceutical clients, according to the release.

A former unit of Live Oak Growth Capital, LO3 Capital, said it is backing a Milestone Partners deal to acquire payments processing services provider CDE Services with debt and equity commitments. The company specializes in payments systems for convenience and grocery stores as well as pharmacies, according to a news release. The Milestone deal was also supported by Navigate Capital.

Lower midmarket-focused WILsquare Capital in St. Louis said it has acquired paint distributor Automotive Color & Supply. The family-run business based in Fort Wayne, Ind. operates from 10 locations in Illinois and Indiana.

Two new equity investors joined existing backers of data-center developer DataBank as part of a $533 million financing transaction that included a $345 million construction loan and fresh equity commitments totaling $188 million, according to a news release. The latter amount included $50 million from the two new investors, who the company didn’t name. Based in Dallas, DataBank said it recently acquired sites in Culpeper, Va. and outside downtown Atlanta. Firms that participated in an August 2022 investment included Ardian, Garden City Equity and Northleaf Capital Partners, according to research provider PitchBook Data.

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

Midmarket firm Corridor Capital in Los Angeles has sold healthcare marketing company SPM Group in La Grange, Ill. to Amulet Capital Partners-backed Unlock Health, according to an emailed news release. Nashville, Tenn.-based Unlock Health was set up in April following the acquisitions of healthcare-focused media and risk assessment company Eruptr and creative agency Decode, and with the SPM deal it now employs 343 professionals and generates around $100 million in revenue, according to the release. Corridor first backed SPM in 2018.

A blank check company started by Akkadian Ventures co-owner and Managing Director Michael Dinsdale and led by former Morgan Stanley investment banker Kanishka Roy is combining with New York information technology services company Veea in a transaction that implies an enterprise value of about $281 million, according to data provider Boardroom Alpha. The special purpose acquisition company, Plum Acquisition Corp. I, raised around $319 million through a March 2021 IPO and since then has refunded about 90% of that to investors, Boardroom Alpha data show. The deal announced Tuesday was presaged by a Nov. 12 filing about combining with Veea, whose backers include Edgewater Capital Group in New York. Veea said it anticipates raising $50 million through a private financing in conjunction with the de-SPAC deal.

Pantheon in London said it has collected its largest private equity secondaries warchest with investor commitments totaling $3.25 billion, including parallel vehicles and its Pantheon Global Secondaries Fund VII, exceeding the firm’s initial $2 billion target. Investors in the vehicle include the Ventura County Employees’ Retirement Association in California. Pantheon said it is deploying the new capital through firm-led secondary deals as well as by buying stakes in other funds and has invested about 60% of what was raised. The firm cited significant fund flows from its private wealth channel and related sources. Pantheon said it managed about $62 billion in discretionary assets as of the end of June.

Intermediate Capital Group in London has raised at least $855 million so far for ICG North American Credit Partners Fund III, according to a regulatory filing. A separate filing indicates that a related feeder fund has raised at least $340 million, but whether the totals overlap isn’t clear. The publicly traded firm aims to raise $2 billion for the vehicle, which has a $2.25 billion hard cap, according to public documents prepared for the Connecticut investment advisory council. The state’s treasurer is considering a commitment of up to $125 million to the fund, the documents show. The firm itself is expected to commit at least $100 million to the fund, and plans to invest from the strategy primarily in midsize company debt, the documents show.

Tower Arch Capital in Draper, Utah, said it has closed its Tower Arch Partners III fund and a parallel vehicle after reaching a $750 million upper limit. Shannon Advisors placed the new fund.  Tower Arch said members of the firm invested significant amounts in the fund. The firm said it now manages about $1.6 billion.

No equal business partner has ever played second fiddle better than Charlie Munger, Jason Zweig and Justin Baer write for the Journal. Warren Buffett’s closest friend and consigliere for six decades as the billionaire vice chairman of Berkshire Hathaway, died Tuesday at age 99 in a California hospital. As they worked together, Buffett nicknamed Munger the “abominable no-man” for his ferocity in rejecting potential investments, including some that Buffett might otherwise have made. But Munger also convinced the tech-phobic Buffett to do deals he would have shunned.

Intermediate Capital Group in London said it has added Adam Gross and Anne-Marie Peterson as managing directors on its private debt team in North America, based in New York. Gross previously worked for Barclays while Peterson was most recently with Robert W. Baird & Co., where she was a managing director and head of debt advisory.

Carlyle Group shares rose as much as 7.6% Tuesday after S&P Global’s S&P Dow Jones Indices unit said late Monday it would include the Washington-based firm’s stock in its MidCap 400 index, the Journal reports. The change forces mutual funds and ETFs that track the index to buy Carlyle shares, which will join the index starting Thursday. The stock closed Tuesday up 4.9% at $34.43.

Credit-focused Vibrant Capital Partners in New York said it is opening an office in Abu Dhabi, led by Volkan Kurtas, the firm’s founder and chief investment officer, with Managing Director Alex Nerguizian serving as senior executive in the office. Vibrant, which managed around $8 billion as of last month, said in an emailed news release the outpost would serve as its international headquarters.

Walt Disney Co.’s Bob Iger downplayed earlier comments that suggested asset sales were on the table, telling employees in a meeting Tuesday that the task he faced after returning to the media and entertainment conglomerate as chief executive a year ago was harder than expected, Joe Flint reports for the Journal. Asked about his comments concerning asset sales and aired by CNBC last summer, Iger said he likes to “run things up flagpoles to see how they will fly” and “think out loud.”  Disney shares fell 2.8% Tuesday.

Jada Fund of Funds in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia said it is investing in a new private-credit fund from Ruya Partners, which has a $250 million goal for the vehicle, Ruya Private Capital I. Jada, which was set up by the government-backed Public Investment Funds of Saudi Arabia, said it is its first private-credit commitment and brings the new fund to a first close at around $100 million.

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Maria Armental; Ted Bunker; Chris Cumming; Luis Garcia; Rod James; Laura Kreutzer; Chitra Vemuri.

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