Good day. The signs keep piling up that the U.S. is either in a recession or in the final approach to one. Home sales are dropping, “zombie companies” with apparently insurmountable debt problems are on the rise and interest rates are surging to brake soaring inflation. At least some of those elements have preceded the worst post-war slumps. But with any luck, forward-looking stock investors will help turn things around in the months ahead. Consider the last extended downturn: The S&P 500 began its upward climb in March 2009, and the longest recession since the Depression ended three months later.

In private equity, our Journal colleagues report that Apollo and Pimco have overcome rivals to enter the final stage of acquiring Credit Suisse’s securitized-products group. The also-ran group is led by Centerbridge Partners and insurer Martello Re.

Also, our Laura Kreutzer recently spoke with Morgan Stanley’s Neha Champaneria Markle, a fund-of-funds investment head, about the outlook for co-investing and secondaries transactions.

Finally the Journal’s Berber Jin reports that Andreessen Horowitz’s Chris Dixon led some big bets on cryptocurrencies just before the market soured earlier this year. Mr. Dixon remains unfazed, however, professing to holding a long-term horizon.

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Credit Suisse Group AG is nearing a deal to sell its securitized-products group to heavyweight investors Apollo Global Management Inc. and bond-fund specialist Pacific Investment Management Co. as part of a retreat from Wall Street, The Wall Street Journal reports, citing people familiar with the matter. The Swiss bank is set to give details of the sale on Thursday. The securitized-products group underwrites financing and packages mortgage bonds and other securities for resale. Apollo and Pimco beat out a competing group led by Centerbridge Partners and insurer Martello Re, some of the people said.

The alternative investment partners’ private-markets team at Morgan Stanley Investment Management has deployed nearly $4 billion directly into co-investment deals since the unit’s inception in 1999, according to the firm. Now the unit is armed with a fresh pool of capital after raising $1.25 billion for its second multimanager co-investment fund, handily exceeding the bank’s $750 million goal. WSJ Pro Private Equity's Laura Kreutzer recently spoke with Neha Champaneria Markle, head of AIP private-markets solutions at the firm, about the outlook for co-investments in the coming year.

As cryptocurrency prices soared last year, no investor bet more on the sector than Andreessen Horowitz, Berber Jin writes for The Wall Street Journal. The storied venture-capital firm had developed a reputation as Silicon Valley’s greatest crypto bull, thanks largely to partner Chris Dixon, one of the earliest evangelists for how blockchain technology could change business. His unit was one of the most-active crypto investors last year and in May announced a $4.5 billion crypto fund, the largest ever for such investments. The timing wasn’t good.

Sports-focused investment firm MSP Sports Capital said it has acquired a majority stake in the X Games franchise from a subsidiary of ESPN, Joseph De Avila reports for The Wall Street Journal. The seller will retain a minority stake in the franchise, which holds competitions across sports such as skiing, snowboarding, Moto X, BMX freestyle biking and skateboarding, while the cable network will continue to broadcast the games and other events. Skateboarding champion Tony Hawk will also join the investor group, according to a news release. The investment marks MSP Sports Capital’s sixth deal, following investments in companies that include McLaren Racing Ltd. and a global soccer group.

Real-estate-focused Fifth Wall Ventures Management’s new Climate Fund is leading a $200 million investment in lithium-ion battery recycler Ascend Elements as part of $300 million raised by the Westborough, Mass.-based company, Stephen Nakrosis reports for Dow Jones Newswires. Other participants in the equity and debt financing include the environmental unit of South Korea's SK Group and the Oman Investment Authority, Ascend said. The company operates a recycling plant in Georgia and plans to invest up to $1 billion to construct a new lithium reprocessing facility in Hopkinsville, Ky. Ascend said in July that it had closed on $500 million for its first Climate Fund.

Temasek Holdings-owned investment firm 65 Equity Partners said it has invested 150 million Singapore dollars, the equivalent of $105.9 million, in Cityneon Holdings, an entertainment company that develops immersive experiences. The firm joins a group of institutional investors in the company such as CITIC Capital, Pavilion Capital, EDBI Private Investments Pte. Ltd. and Qatar's Doha Venture Capital, according to a press release.

Comvest Credit Partners said it set up a $400 million credit facility for debt resolution services company Beyond Finance in Houston, marking its fifth financing for the business since it first backed the company in 2019.

The government-owned Korea Development Bank’s private-equity arm has pumped $100 million into robot developer Think Surgical Inc., according to a news release. The Fremont, Calif.-based company’s robots are used in knee surgery and bone implants, according to its website. The company plans to use the fresh capital to develop new technologies.

Onex Corp.-backed airline operator WestJet Group’s planned takeover of Canadian rival Sunwing Airlines is likely to substantially reduce competition in the vacation travel market, Canada’s Competition Bureau said in a report on the proposed deal Wednesday. The regulator outlined its concerns in the report, which it sent to the Transport ministry where officials have the power to block the combination. A review process is set to end early next month.

The development-oriented World Bank affiliate International Finance Corp. joined Canadian fund manager Sarona Asset Management to co-invest in L Catterton-backed Crediclub, a Mexico-based lender, according to a press release. Creditclub announced in May that L Catterton would take a significant majority stake in the company through its Latin America strategy. The two new co-investors join several of the company’s current backers that also participated in the $80 million round.

Investment firm Manhattan West Asset Management’s private-equity arm backed the management-led buyout of entertainment producer Round Room Live LLC from a subsidiary of toymaker Hasbro Inc., according to a news release. The New York-based company specializes in family-oriented live shows and events.

Bonaccord Capital Partners and RidgeLake Partners, a joint venture between Ocean Avenue Capital and Apogem Capital, have taken a minority stake in media and entertainment-focused private-equity firm Shamrock Capital, according to a press release. Los Angeles-based Shamrock, which traces its roots to the Roy Disney family office, manages some $3.8 billion in assets, according to its website.

Ara Partners said it is expanding its investment in BioVeritas LLC, an ingredients maker for the food industry, with an additional $65 million commitment to the company that it acquired last year. The Bryan, Texas-based company develops ingredients from unused or discarded food products and is targeting food and feed makers as well as producers of health supplements and industrial materials, according to an emailed news release. The company pitches its products as climate-friendly alternatives to ingredients derived from petrochemicals.

Strauss Zelnick’s media-focused ZMC Advisors in New York is backing digital advertising and marketing company Wpromote LLC. The El Segundo, Calif.-based company works with major brands such as Adobe, Brinks, KitchenAid, Klipsch and Instacart, according to its website.

Austin, Texas-based Tritium Partners led a $60 million investment in CharterUp LLC, whose digital system is used to charter buses and dispatch shuttle services by organizations across the U.S., according to a press release.

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

Ken Moelis is one of many SPAC leaders who have changed their plans, with Atlas Crest Investment Corp. II joining the list of vehicles that intend to shut down before reaching their merger deadlines, Josh Beckerman reports for Dow Jones Newswires. Since its February 2021 initial public offering of shares, the special-purpose acquisition company chaired by the Moelis & Co. investment bank founder has searched without success for a private company to back, according to a regulatory filing. The SPAC cited "adverse market conditions including unconducive capital markets, an overall decline in the SPAC market” and a reluctance among company managers in doing a SPAC deal.

Ardian in Paris said it has sold its interest in drug packaging company Unither Pharmaceuticals SAS to a group led by management and including other existing investors. Participants in the deal include GIC, IK Partners, Keensight and Parquest as well as Eric Goupil, Unither chief executive. The French company has more than 1,600 employees and seven plants, including sites in the U.S., Brazil and China. Ardian first courted backing the company in November 2016.

SkillSurvey Inc., a company backed by Primus Capital and PNC Erieview Capital, has been acquired by strategic buyer iCMS Inc., according to a news release. The Malvern, Pa.-based company develops systems used in recruiting and hiring processes, according to its website. PNC Erieview made a growth investment in the company in November 2019 while Primus has been an investor since December 2014.

Integrum Holdings has raised at least $551 million so far for Integrum Capital Partners LP, according to a regulatory filing. The New York-based firm, which was founded in 2021 by Tagar Olson, Ursula Burns and Richard Kunzer, targets investments in technology-enabled services companies across sectors that include insurance, corporate and business services, financial technology and payments, as well as traditional financial services, according to the firm’s website.

Joseph Campolo, co-founder of food and beverage-focused private-equity firm Arbor Investments, died on Oct. 24, after a battle with brain cancer, according to an emailed announcement. The 54-year old Mr. Campolo, who co-founded Chicago-based Arbor in 1999 alongside Chief Executive Gregory Purcell, led the firm’s investments in a host of food and beverage companies, including Gold Star Baking and Greco and Sons, the firm said. He is survived by his wife Angie and daughters Mia, Caroline and Claudia.

Oppenheimer Holdings Inc. said it is expanding its fund placement and advisory group with two new hires. The firm has named Charles Buisseret as managing director and global co-head of its fund placement group and Makayla Stephens as a director, according to a press release. Mr. Buisseret was previously a managing director with placement agent MVision Private Equity Advisers, while Ms. Stephens was with the investor relations team at communications focused private-equity firm Grain Management LLC.

Cercano Management, a family office-focused manager that spun out of Microsoft Corp. co-founder Paul Allen’s Vulcan Inc. investment operation early this year, is expanding to Atlanta, according to a news release. The Bellevue, Wash.-based firm has tapped Daley Ervin to lead the new office. He was most recently a managing director with Engage Ventures in the city. Mr. Allen, whose Vulcan acquired pro basketball’s Portland Trailblazers, soccer’s Seattle Sounders and football’s Seattle Seahawks, died in 2018. The Sovereign Wealth Fund Institute estimates Vulcan manages about $16 billion.

Private credit supplier Montage Capital in Campbell, Calif., said it has hired Samantha Kim as a principal on its investment team. She joins from Avidbank Holdings Inc. in San Jose, Calif., where she was a vice president and specialty finance team leader.

Healthcare-focused Grant Avenue Capital said it has added Brian Berkin as a managing director to help source deals involving medical devices, pharmaceuticals and other areas within the sector. He was previously a Tailwind Capital partner, coordinating the firm’s investment process, according to an emailed news release.

Public pension funds in the U.S., after pouring new money into commercial real estate at a record rate during the first half of the year, are cooling fast on the sector and cutting back on new investments, Peter Grant reports for The Wall Street Journal. These retirement funds made $32.6 billion worth of new financial commitments to office buildings, warehouses, hotels and other commercial properties during this year’s first half, according to Ferguson Partners, a professional services firm that tracks the industry. Those investments, made through financial firms and funds, were up nearly 40% from the same period last year. But rising borrowing rates are bad news for such an interest-rate-sensitive sector and investments are expected to fall off in the second half.

Sales of newly built homes dropped sharply last month, the latest sign that rising interest rates are causing an abrupt slowdown in the housing market, a driver of the U.S. economy in past expansions. Nicole Friedman reports for The Wall Street Journal that new home sales fell 17.6% compared with September 2021 and 10.9% from August, the largest month-to-month decline since April. Sales of existing, or previously occupied, homes have fallen for eight straight months.

The number of companies unable to cover their borrowing costs over the past three years has risen 10% worldwide since the start of this year and now accounts for 4.7% of all publicly traded companies, according to a study by consulting firm Kearney Holdings Ltd. in London. The firm examined data on around 70,000 listed companies from 152 countries to determine which businesses qualified as “zombie companies” whose operating profit indicates they can’t cover debt service and are at imminent risk of insolvency. Kearney said the proportion could rise as interest rates climb.

French financial services giant Natixis SA’s asset management arm is opening a private-equity impact fund to qualified individual investors in Canada, according to a new release. The Mirova affiliate of Natixis Investment Managers sponsors the Mirova Environment Acceleration Capital fund, which it began raising about a year ago, and invests from it in sustainable businesses and technologies. Innocap  Investment Management Inc. acts as manager for a fund feeder vehicle for individual investors. The fund doesn’t provide for liquidations or redemptions and has a 10-year hold period.

Alternative investments firm Quadra Capital Partners, along with Walter Global Asset Management, said it is partnering with asset manager and family office Carmignac Gestion SA in Paris to provide access to its hedge funds and other strategies to qualified Canadian investors.

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