Good day. With so much upheaval going on in markets, geopolitics and economies generally, it wasn’t shocking to hear from recruiters at Jensen Partners that the number of professionals changing horses surged during the first quarter of this year. But it must certainly add to the challenges faced by managers of affected firms. Jensen said there were 241 moves in private equity for the period, up from 145 in the fourth quarter.

A few more job changes may result in the near future as Australia’s largest pension system, AustralianSuper, is expanding its New York office, as our Preeti Singh writes. She reports that the pension system also plans to commit roughly $4.85 billion to U.S. private equity investments over the coming two years. 

Also, our Laura Kreutzer writes that investment manager Lombard Odier is teaming up with nonprofit group Alliance to End Plastic Waste and chemicals company Dow Inc. to raise $500 million in investment capital to back businesses that reduce plastic pollution. 

Meanwhile, Spring Lane is investing in a company building data centers powered by excess renewable energy, as our Luis Garcia reports. And finally, our CFO Journal colleague Jennifer Williams-Alvarez delves into the growing take-private trend. 

We have all of that and much more for you below, so please read on...

Australia’s largest pension fund plans to commit up to 7 billion Australian dollars, the equivalent of $4.85 billion, annually over the next two years to U.S. private-equity investments as part of a plan to boost its exposure to the asset class, Preeti Singh reports for WSJ Pro Private Equity. AustralianSuper, which oversees more than A$260 billion of retirement savings on behalf of more than 2.6 million members, is also ramping up recruiting for professionals in its New York office, according to Terry Charalambous, head of private equity for the pension.

Lombard Odier Investment Managers, chemicals maker Dow Inc. and the nonprofit Alliance to End Plastic Waste have formed a partnership that will seek $500 million to back private-equity investments aimed at reducing plastic waste, Laura Kreutzer reports for WSJ Pro Private Equity. The nonprofit plans to provide an anchor commitment to the strategy along with technical expertise and other advice.

Spring Lane Capital, a private-equity firm in Boston focused on sustainable infrastructure, has invested $35 million to help Soluna Computing Inc. build data centers powered by excess electricity from wind- and solar-power projects, WSJ Pro Private Equity’s Luis Garcia writes. Soluna plans to develop three sites, including a data center in Texas with an initial 50-megawatt capacity that will be fed by a wind-energy development, the company said.

More U.S. public companies are going private as deal makers look to use the capital they have built up to buy targets made more attractive amid recent stock-market declines, Jennifer Williams-Alvarez reports for CFO Journal. There were 47 take-private deals last year, up from 33 in 2020 and the highest total since 2010, according to financial data firm Dealogic. This year through Tuesday, that tally stood at 26, compared with 17 during the same time period last year. The value of these deals also has risen, topping $121 billion so far this year, the highest since 2007.

DigitalBridge Group Inc. is buying Switch Inc., a data-center company in Las Vegas, for $11 billion, the latest digital asset being snapped up by the investment company, Chris Wack reports for Dow Jones Newswires. DigitalBridge is partnering with an affiliate of the infrastructure investor IFM Investors to acquire Switch for $34.25 a share, representing an 11% premium to Tuesday’s closing price in New York. The deal includes the assumption of debt and is expected to close in the second half of this year. DigitalBridge, based in Boca Raton, Fla., manages about $47 billion of assets for investors.

Balmoral Management in Los Angeles has agreed to acquire publicly traded Trecora Resources in an all-cash transaction that gives the Sugar Land, Texas-based manufacturer of petrochemicals products and specialty waxes an enterprise value of $247 million, Dean Seal reports for Dow Jones Newswires. Private-equity investor Balmoral is offering $9.81 per share, a nearly 30% premium to the stock's closing price Tuesday. Trecora said the deal price represents a multiple of 11.4 times its adjusted pretax earnings last year and has been approved by its directors. The company was facing a fight over three board nominees put forward by hedge fund firm Ortelius Advisors, a regulatory filing shows.

Warehouse owner Duke Realty Corp. rejected a $23.71 billion buyout offer from its much larger peer, Prologis Inc., on Tuesday, calling it insufficient, Chris Wack reports for Dow Jones Newswires. The all-stock Prologis offer values Duke at $61.68 a share. Under terms of Prologis’ proposal, Duke Realty shareholders would receive 0.466 shares of Prologis common stock for each share of Duke Realty common stock they own.

Growth investor TCV led a $100 million investment in contract management company Evisort Inc., joined by Breyer Capital and existing investors such as General Atlantic and Vertex Ventures, according to a news release. The San Mateo, Calif.-based company makes systems used to analyze and manage changes that affect business contracts and keep the materials organized for later reference.

LeapFrog Investments and Tana Africa Capital are providing strategic backing to TA Associates-backed payments technology company Interswitch Ltd. in Lagos, Nigeria, according to an emailed news release. Helios Investment Partners and TA remain the largest investors in the business, which has about 950 employees and is pursuing a pan-Africa strategy. 

Riverside Partners in Boston is backing revenue cycle management services company UniLink, according to a news release. The Phoenix-based company works with hundreds of healthcare providers to make their operations more efficient and free staff time to devote to patients.

LLR Partners in Philadelphia has acquired and combined controlled-environment horticultural equipment and automation systems supplier AgriNomix LLC and greenhouse irrigation company Zwart Systems to form AdeptAg in Oberlin, Ohio, according to an emailed news release. The firm plans to expand the newly formed business by adding other companies serving greenhouse growers.

Levine Leichtman Capital Partners is backing Global Loan Agency Services, based in London, according to a news release. The firm is investing through its Levine Leichtman Capital Partners Europe II SCSp fund.

Angeles Equity Partners is investing in health clinic operator Agile Occupational Medicine, according to a news release. The Gardena, Calif.-based business runs occupational healthcare clinics in California.

Bow River Capital is backing ProductPlan LLC with a majority recapitalization of the software-as-a-service provider, according to a news release. The Santa Barbara, Calif.-based company develops cloud-based product management systems.

Princeton Equity Group is making a growth investment in membership-based franchise consulting network International Franchise Professionals Group, according to a news release. The Parlin, N.J.-based group has more than 1,300 members.

Lower middle-market focused Southfield Capital in Greenwich, Conn. is backing consulting company Franchise FastLane Inc., according to a news release. Management of the Omaha, Neb.-based company won’t change following the investment.

Maven Capital Partners UK is investing £15 million, the equivalent of $18.4 million, in identity and access management services company ProofID Ltd., which is part of PIDHC Ltd., according to a news release. The Manchester, England-based company serves customers in the U.K., U.S. and Europe.

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

Apollo Global Management Inc. is selling a 67% interest in U.S. grocery store chain Fresh Market Holdings Inc. to Cencosud SA in Santiago, Chile for a total investment of $676 million, according to a news release. The Greensboro, N.C.-based company has 120 stores across 22 states and generated adjusted pre-tax earnings of $196 million on $1.93 billion in revenue last year. Apollo, the Berry family and company managers are retaining minority interests.

Permira is exiting medical technology management services provider Althea Group SpA through a sale to infrastructure specialists Fondi Italiani per le Infrastrutture SGR SpA, also known as F2i, and Inframedica, a portfolio company of Munich-based DWS Group GmbH, according to a news release. Founded in 2014, the Italian company provides biomedical infrastructure management services to hospitals in Italy and 17 other countries with more than 3,000 employees.

ArcLight Capital Partners has sold Enstor Gas and its natural gas midstream assets to a fund advised by JPMorgan Chase & Co.’s asset management arm, according to a news release. ArcLight has backed the company since at least 2018, helping to expand the Houston-based business.

Global insurance company AXA, consumer products company Unilever and investment firm Tikehau Capital are joining forces to launch a fund targeting €1 billion, the equivalent of $1.05 billion, to invest in regenerative agriculture, according to a press release. Each of the three firms plans to commit €100 million to the new fund, which Tikehau will manage. The fund will seek to back investments in companies across three broad agricultural categories including soil health, regenerative ingredients and technology that supports a transition to regenerative agriculture, which includes farming and grazing practices that help combat climate change by enhancing soil health and biodiversity, among other benefits.

Kayne Anderson Capital Advisors has closed on almost $1.88 billion for its latest property-focused fund, Kayne Anderson Real Estate Debt IV, surpassing the firm’s $1.5 billion target, according to a press release. The fund invests in Freddie Mac structured products as well as direct loan originations.

Capital Dynamics Holding AG has closed its fifth co-investment fund, Capital Dynamics Mid-Market Direct V, with $578 million in commitments to invest in midsized companies alongside other fund managers, according to a news release. The Swiss firm had aimed to raise $500 million for the new vehicle, and said more than 35% of its capital has already been deployed.

Ethos Capital has added Stephen Gold as an executive partner, according to an emailed news release. He previously led the internet-of-things operations for manufacturer Honeywell International Inc. and helped create the Watson business of International Business Machines Corp. He will work with Ethos portfolio companies to provide sector-specific guidance.

Transportation and logistics investor Bravia Capital Partners has added cricket star Sir Garry Sobers to its board of advisors, according to a news release. The Barbadian athlete will advise the firm, a single-family office set up and led by Bharat Bhise as chief executive.

A Temasek affiliate, Fullerton Fund Management Co., has listed a fund-of-funds on the ADDX digital securities exchange in Singapore, opening a path for individuals to invest in private equity, according to an emailed news release. The Fullerton Optimised Alpha Fund has a seven-year life, targets a yield of 8% to 12% and plans to invest in six to eight private-equity vehicles. Qualified investors can get into the fund for a minimum of $10,000 per transaction because the fund has been digitized and placed into a blockchain structure to enhance security and reduce administrative costs. Fullerton is part of the Seviora asset management group set up by Temasek.

Quintana Infrastructure & Development in Houston is joining with Astarte Capital Partners in London to form QAI Capital, which is targeting $1.5 billion in investments in adaptive infrastructure across North America, according to a news release. The partnership plans to focus on data and technology, industrial and environmental, decarbonization and energy transition areas with equity investments of $20 million to $80 million.

StepStone Group said 37% of the people it hired last year were women and 34% were ethnically or racially diverse, in an annual progress report. By January of this year, StepStone said 19% of its partners were women, up by more than half from 2019, and 15% were racially or ethnically diverse, up by about two-thirds.

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Ted Bunker; Chris Cumming; Luis Garcia; Laura Kreutzer; Preeti Singh; Chitra Vemuri.

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