Good day readers! As we head into the last few days of the month, private-equity firms continue to log fund closings and deal announcements, even if it is at a slower pace than we have typically seen in many previous years. This morning our own Chris Cumming has news of a new lower midmarket fund from New Heritage Capital, while Luis Garcia reports on an investment from PSG Equity in carbon emissions software provider One Click. Finally, our WSJ Pro Bankruptcy colleagues delve into the distress that certain medical services providers are feeling in the wake of a law designed to protect patients from surprise medical bills.

Read on for more details…

New Heritage Capital, a Boston-based firm focused on investments in fast growing founder-owned companies, said it has closed its fourth, and so far largest, fund with $438 million, Chris Cumming reports for WSJ Pro Private Equity. The final tally for the new fund surpassed both its $350 million target and the $260 million that New Heritage raised for the fund’s predecessor.

Numerous healthcare services providers, including some backed by private equity, say that a law designed to protect patients from surprise medical bills is contributing to their financial distress, Soma Biswas and Becky Yerak report for WSJ Pro Bankruptcy. The companies cite lengthy billing disputes and payment delays with insurers that hurt their ability to stay afloat. Some of the businesses with dented earnings or cash flows count firms such as KKR & Co. and Blackstone as backers.

Growth investor PSG Equity led an investment in software maker One Click LCA, whose applications help construction companies and manufacturers measure carbon emissions, with plans to help the business expand, Luis Garcia reports for WSJ Pro Private Equity. European private-equity firm InfraVia also participated in the €40 million investment, equivalent to about $43.8 million, in Helsinki-based One Click. The company’s software measures the carbon footprint of each stage of a construction project or manufacturing process.

Midmarket buyout firm TJC in New York is buying the commercial aviation business of publicly traded L3Harris Technologies for $700 million in cash plus a contingent earn-out payment of as much as $100 million, subject to the performance of the business this year and next, Will Feuer reports for Dow Jones Newswires. The carve out includes two operating units, avionics and aircraft training, and has about 1,450 employees. The firm is investing through its Resolute Fund VI, according to a news release. Separately in Europe, TJC said it has agreed to acquire maritime logistics company Global Transport Solutions Topholding, which operates under the Marinetrans and Best Global Logistics brands. TJC said it aims to help the company grow.

Apollo Global Management-backed Apterra Infrastructure Capital led a $600 million financing for Longroad Energy Holdings to accelerate the expansion of its wind, solar and battery assets to more than 9 gigawatts by 2027 as well as the build out of projects totaling 30 gigawatts, Ed Ballard reports for WSJ Pro Sustainable Business. The Boston-based company said the transaction includes a $275 million term loan, a $175 million revolving credit facility and a $150 million letter of credit.

Healthcare-focused Archimed has closed its take-private deal for London-listed software maker Instem despite objections from a major investor in the maker of programs used in drug development. Archimed offered 833 pence per share for the business in August, valuing the company’s equity at about £203 million, equivalent to roughly $255.9 million. Growth investor BGF in London has opposed the deal, saying in September it undervalued the business.

Barclays Sustainable Impact Capital and Neom Investment Fund have been joined by the U.K. Infrastructure Bank in backing clean aerospace technology-focused ZeroAvia through a $116 million growth commitment, according to a news release. A group of strategic and venture investors also joined the Series C round. The Hollister, Calif.-based company is developing electric-hydrogen hybrid engines for aircraft.

Paceline Equity Partners is backing mechanical building systems company Kelso Industries with a $50 million commitment, joining Oxbow Equity Partners and Peterson Partners as an investor in the company. Phoenix-based Kelso installs and maintains heating, ventilation, air conditioning and refrigeration systems, among other services, according to a news release.

Centana Growth Partners and Full In Partners led a $50 million cash and credit growth investment in medical payments software maker RepeatMD, with Silicon Valley Bank providing the $10 million debt portion, according to a news release. The Houston-based company focuses on payments programs for aesthetic medical and wellness practices, which often receive cash for services.

Buyout firm Core Industrial Partners in Chicago is offering to reacquire Fathom Digital Manufacturing through a $4.50 a share buyout under a non-binding proposal for the on-demand three-dimensional printing company, representing a 7% premium to Friday’s $4.20 closing price, Colin Kellaher reports for Dow Jones Newswires. Core took the Hartland, Wis.-based company public in 2021 at a valuation of about $1.4 billion and controls shares giving it roughly 63% of the voting power in the business. Fathom’s market capitalization stood at around $28.7 million Friday.

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 Wahoo Fitness, Pure Archery, Pelican Products, McDavid, Cutters, Nathan and Glukos, according to a news release.

Buyout firm KKR & Co. in New York said it has acquired fire and safety equipment maker Potter Global Technologies from Gryphon Investors and expects to help the business expand through acquisitions. The St. Louis-based company provides fire alarm and suppression systems, radio communications technology used by first responders and mass emergency notification systems, according to a news release. KKR is backing the company through its Ascendant strategy and intends to establish an employee-ownership program for the business, according to the release. San Francisco-based Gryphon acquired the company in December 2017, when it was known as Potter Electric Signal Co., according to the firm’s website.

European buyout firm EQT AB said its Asia-focused BPEA arm is acquiring a majority interest in business software maker HRBrain in Japan. The company’s products are used in employee evaluations and talent management, according to a news release. The firm is investing through its BPEA EQT Mid-Market Growth Fund, with company founder Hiroki Hori remaining as a minority shareholder and chief executive.

SBI Investment in Japan said it led a $100 million growth investment in computing services provider Oxford Quantum Circuits, which said it is ready to let customers use its newly developed OQC Toshiko system. The new investment will be used to further develop the company’s quantum computers which are made available to online users through data centers.  Other participants in the Series B investment include Lansdowne Partners, according to a news release.

Siris Capital Group in New York said it is acquiring land mobile radio systems company BearCom from Bertram Capital. The Garland, Texas-based company with more than 1,000 employees and 60 North American locations specializes in integrating and maintaining Motorola two-way radio communications and security technology. Foster City, Calif.-based Bertram acquired the business in July 2018, according to the firm’s website.

Godspeed Capital Management, a lower midmarket firm focused on defense and government services and technology companies, said it has created Crimson Phoenix, a new company to provide data and intelligence analysis technologies to support the U.S. intelligence and special operations community. Ross O’Rourke, a former chief executive of applicant tracking technology company AgileATS, will serve as Crimson Pheonix’s CEO.

Lightyear Capital in New York is backing broker Inszone Insurance Services, joining BHMS Investments in backing the business, according to a news release. BHMS is also increasing its investment in the company along with rolling over its existing stake through the transaction. The Rancho Cordova, Calif.-based company provides property and casualty insurance as well as employee benefits programs to clients across the U.S., according to its website.

Africa-focused impact investor Development Partners International in London and Verod Capital in Lagos, Nigeria, said they are investing in digital infrastructure provider Pan African Towers with a growth investment. The Nigerian company provides wireless telecommunications infrastructure to phone companies across its home country, which has more than 200 million mobile-services subscribers, according to a news 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.

Growth equity-backed fast-fashion clothing supplier Shein has confidentially filed to go public in the U.S. in what could be one of biggest IPOs in years, Corrie Driebusch and Shen Lu report for the Journal. The Singapore-based company with hundreds of millions of shoppers expects to make its trading debut sometime next year, according to people familiar with the matter. Mubadala Investment and Sequoia Capital joined existing backers such as General Atlantic in a $2 billion growth investment in May that valued the company at about $66 billion, according to research provider PitchBook Data. Claure led a $100 million commitment in January that is still pending, PitchBook indicated.

Publicly traded Digital 9 Infrastructure is selling its interest in data center operator Verne Global for up to $575 million to Paris-based Ardian, including a potential earn-out payment of as much as $135 million based on performance through 2026, Joe Hoppe reports for Dow Jones Newswires. The London-listed firm has also initiated a strategic review, according to a regulatory filing. Digital 9 acquired Verne in September 2021 and subsequently added to it through acquisitions, generating adjusted pre-tax profit of about £13.5 million for the 12 months through June, the filing indicated.

Midmarket firm TowerBrook has raised at least $2 billion so far for TowerBrook Investors VI and related parallel funds, according to a regulatory filing. Investors that have disclosed commitments to the new fund include the Massachusetts Pension Reserves Investment Management Board, New York State Common Retirement Fund, Florida State Board of Administration and Washington State Investment Board. TowerBrook closed the fund’s predecessor with $4.25 billion in 2018, according to a news release issued at the time.

Infrastructure-focused firm DigitalBridge said it has amassed $1.1 billion for DigitalBridge Credit (Onshore), related parallel funds and co-investment commitments. The DigitalBridge Credit team provides credit for digital infrastructure projects with a focus on current income-based returns in first lien term loans, second lien term loans, and junior debt, and so far has backed 11 investments, according to a press release. The credit team has backed investments that include artificial intelligence infrastructure technology company CoreWeave, fiber network Everstream Solutions and Surf Internet, a fiber-optic high-speed internet service provider.

Private-equity firm True North in India said it has set up a private-credit strategy and has collected more than 10 billion rupees, or about $120 million, so far for the operation, with a goal to wrap up the fundraising drive by year-end. The firm said the strategy will focus on backing midmarket businesses in India and has made eight investments so far.

Former NBCUniversal Chief Executive Jeff Shell is in advanced talks to join private-equity firm RedBird Capital Partners, leading its sports and entertainment investment business, Joe Flint reports for the Journal. A formal announcement about Shell’s appointment is expected in the first quarter of next year. A RedBird representative confirmed the negotiations.

TSG Consumer Partners in Larkspur, Calif. said it has hired Monica Chase as a managing director and head of investor relations, based in New York. She joins from Permira, where most recently she was head of investor relations for North America, according to a news release.

Nuveen Private Capital, a private capital unit created earlier this year when Nuveen acquired Arcmont Asset Management, said it has hired Jamal Hammoud as managing director and senior investment strategist. Hammoud will be responsible for supporting Arcmont’s and Churchill Asset Management’s fundraising efforts in the Middle East. Churchill is also part of Nuveen Private Capital and Hammoud will be based in that firm’s New York City office, according to a news release.

Credit-focused GoldenTree Asset Management in New York said it has hired Shawn Mathew as a partner and head of corporate strategy, a new role within the firm, which said it manages more than $51 billion. Based in GoldenTree’s new Dallas office, he joins from Sixth Street Partners where he had a similar role as a managing director.

Preston Capital, an investment firm focused on life settlements, said David Posnick and Anne Buchanan have joined the firm. Posnick most recently served as a senior managing director and co-head of distressed investing at Blackstone and will become executive chairman at Preston. Buchanan, meanwhile, joins as managing director to lead Preston’s capital formation and investor relations efforts and most recently served as partner and head of investor relations at Stronghold Investment Management.

Publicly traded investment holding company Aimia in Toronto said it has appointed Suzanne Raftery Herbst as chief operating officer. She joins from Innovate, where she held a similar role, according to a news release.

Twenty months after the Federal Reserve began a historic campaign against inflation, investors now believe there is a much greater chance that the central bank will cut rates by next spring rather than raise them again, the Journal’s Sam Goldfarb writes. Interest-rate futures last week indicated a roughly 60% chance the Fed will lower target rates by 25 basis points, or 0.25%, by its policy meeting in May, up from 29% at the end of October, according to CME Group data.

Private equity’s move into the life insurance sector has elevated risk levels for some carriers after they shifted their investments into illiquid assets when underlying valuations were elevated, Fitch Ratings said. The asset shift largely occurred when historically low interest rates held down yields on traditional investments, making private equity alternatives more attractive. Fitch said some insurers also reduced their capital requirements by reinsuring through Bermuda, which has also heightened risk levels. Risks are rising as valuations of assets underlying alternative investments have deteriorated, Fitch said.

A group calling itself the New Civil Liberties Alliance said it has asked a federal appeals court to rehear a lawsuit challenging Securities and Exchange Commission rules regarding the composition of the boards of directors of public companies based on race, gender and sexual orientation. The group said the rules should be set aside because they violate constitutional protections.

Most of Australia’s large pension funds plan to increase allocations to international investments, chiefly in infrastructure, private credit and property over the coming two years, Alice Uribe reports for Dow Jones Newswires, citing an NAB report based on 41 funds that manage around 2 trillion Australian dollars, equivalent to about $1.32 trillion. The report said fund managers indicated a strong preference for unlisted assets.

Send us your tips, suggestions and feedback. Write to:

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

Follow us on X:@wsjpe, @LHVGarcia, @LauraKreutzer