Good day Pro readers! Turmoil and uncertainty in the banking world continue to dominate the news cycle as investors and the companies they back try to assess how far and how deep the knock-on effects of recent bank failures will spread. As Swiss regulators moved to reassure investors that the government will ensure liquidity for Credit Suisse Group AG, members of our venture-capital team began to hear reports that some deposits are returning to Silicon Valley Bank or at least the bridge bank that took over its business. SVB’s travails aren’t just affecting the venture world. Many midmarket and lower midmarket private-equity firms also used the bank as their custodian or as a provider of fund financing, particularly fund subscription credit facilities.

Meanwhile, The Wall Street Journal’s Ed Ballard writes that SVB’s troubles also leave a potential lending hole for climate tech companies, an area where the bank had been active.

Read on for more details and check out our special section of SVB related coverage.

Now on to today's news...

Venture investors and startups are starting to return deposits to the revamped Silicon Valley Bank, whether in hopes of helping stabilize the institution so it survives, or out of necessity, WSJ Pro Venture Capital’s Yuliya Chernova and Marc Vartabedian report. The reversal comes as the chief executive of Silicon Valley Bridge Bank—created by federal regulators to manage Silicon Valley Bank deposits and assets—has gone on a charm offensive to persuade clients to stay with the bank.

Although Silicon Valley Bank was best known for its connections to software and biotech startups, the bank had more recently built niche businesses serving climate-tech companies. Its collapse threatens a key source of financing for entrepreneurs trying to reduce carbon emissions, as Ed Ballard reports for The Wall Street Journal.

Silicon Valley Bank executives went to Goldman Sachs Group Inc. in late February looking for advice: They needed to raise money but weren’t exactly sure how to do it. As The Wall Street Journal reports, the plan the banks came up with to shore up SVB’s balance sheet in advance of a credit ratings downgrade underestimated the risk that a raft of bad news would spark a crisis of confidence.

The Federal Reserve is rethinking a number of its own rules related to midsize banks following the collapse of two lenders, potentially extending restrictions that currently only apply to the biggest Wall Street firms, Andrew Ackerman writes for The Wall Street Journal. A raft of tougher capital and liquidity requirements are under review, as well as steps to beef up annual “stress tests” that assess banks’ ability to weather a hypothetical recession, according to a person familiar with the latest thinking among U.S. regulators. The rules could target firms with between $100 billion and $250 billion in assets, which at present escape some of the toughest requirements. There are about two dozen banks within the range, such as Fifth Third Bancorp and Regions Financial Corp.

The abrupt collapse of Silicon Valley Bank is expected to put a damper on innovation in the enterprise-technology market—at least in the short term—with emerging software startups facing new fundraising challenges and higher-priced loans, Angus Loten writes, citing corporate technology chiefs, investors and industry analysts. Beyond added financial pressures, they say, enterprise-tech developers—which make business software tools for companies—will also have to adjust to the sudden loss of the bank as a networking hub at the center of the startup ecosystem, which has helped foster the growth of countless go-to enterprise software products and services.

SVB Financial, the bank’s parent, employed 8,553 full-time workers as of the end of last year, according to a company filing. The bridge bank created by federal regulators to manage deposits and assets of Silicon Valley Bank has offered bank workers continuous employment at their regular salaries, Angel Au-Yeung writes for the Journal’s live blog citing bank employees.

Providence Equity Partners is backing yet another deal in the events industry. The private-market firm has agreed to acquire publicly traded U.K. events company Hyve Group PLC for £320 million pounds, or the equivalent of $389.1 million, Dow Jones Newswires’ Ian Walker writes. The proposal values the company at £481 million on an enterprise value basis. Providence Equity has a lengthy track record in the events space with previous investments in companies that include Clarion Events, which it sold in 2017 and trade-show company CloserStill Media, which it backed in 2018.

Digital infrastructure investor Digital Alpha has backed a $200 million strategic investment in Element8, a broadband internet service provider focused on rural communities that is acquiring Oklahoma City, Okla.-based high-speed internet service provider AtLink Services, according to a press release.

Orion Resource Partners, a minerals and metals-focused asset-management firm, is selling a minority stake in Sweetwater Royalties to Canadian pension manager Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan, according to a press release. The release states that Ontario Teachers has acquired a 25% stake in industrial minerals and base metals royalty company Sweetwater for $221.6 million. Orion Resource Partners formed Sweetwater in 2020.

Arjun Infrastructure Partners is acquiring a minority stake in photovoltaic energy company Amarenco as part of a €300 million investment round, the equivalent of $322 million, that the company has raised. Arjun joins existing backers that include Tikehau Capital and a group of investors alongside Crédit Agricole Group, the release stated.

Barings has agreed to acquire fixed income investor Gryphon Capital Partners Pty Ltd., which manages 2.6 billion Australian dollars, the equivalent of $1.74 billion, according to an emailed press release. The unit will combine with Barings Global Structured Finance division, which manages $8.2 billion, the release stated.

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

Ryan Reynolds used his celebrity and wit to build Mint Mobile into a low-cost competitor in the crowded wireless business. Now, the Hollywood star and his backers are cashing in: selling the upstart brand to T-Mobile US Inc. in a cash and stock deal valued at up to $1.35 billion, the Journal’s Will Feuer writes.

Consumer-focused firm L Catterton has raised at least $4.34 billion so far for L Catterton X LP and a related parallel fund, according to a regulatory filing. The amount indicated in the filing is close to the $5 billion that the  firm raised for its previous flagship fund, which closed in 2020. WSJ Pro Private Equity reported in late 2021 that the firm initially told investors it would aim to raise $6.5 billion for the fund, although it’s unclear whether or not the firm later adjusted that goal. 

Clayton Dubilier & Rice has hired John Hayes as operating adviser to help the New York private-equity firm back and expand industrial businesses, according to a news release sent by email. Mr. Hayes previously served for 10 years as chairman and chief executive of aluminum-packaging maker Ball Corp., which also provides equipment and services to the aerospace industry, the release said. Mr. Hayes joined the Broomfield, Colo.-based company more than two decades ago, working in various positions before becoming CEO in 2011. At Clayton Dubilier, he will work with the firm’s investment team as well the managers of its portfolio companies to help improve strategies and operations, the release said. Clayton Dubilier invests across sectors such as consumer, financial services, healthcare, industrials and technology. The firm in September had raised roughly $10 billion for its latest private-equity fund, or half of its $20 billion goal, WSJ Pro Private Equity reported at the time.

Private investment firm LeapFrog Investments said in an emailed news release that it has named Rob Leary as a senior adviser to the firm’s chief executive officer and leadership team. Mr. Leary previously served as chief executive of both Nuveen and the Olayan Group and currently serves on the board of directors at Intact Financial Corp., RSA UK and Citizens Financial Group, according to the release.

Turnspire Capital Partners has hired Ahdiv Nathan as a vice president at the lower midmarket investment firm, according to an emailed announcement. Mr. Nathan previously worked at DestinHaus Capital, a California-based private-equity firm focused on industrial and manufacturing businesses.

Swiss regulators said they would provide liquidity to Credit Suisse Group AG, if necessary, offering a lifeline to the lender hard hit by concerns over its financial health, the Journal reports. Investor confidence in Credit Suisse crumbled Wednesday, unleashing worries that a banking crisis centered among U.S. regional banks had spread across the Atlantic and was poised to unleash substantial damage to markets and the economy.

Brokers and asset managers would have to notify their customers of data breaches as part of a raft of cybersecurity and resiliency rules the Securities and Exchange Commission proposed Wednesday, Paul Kiernan writes for The Wall Street Journal.

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