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Manulife Collects Nearly $4.7 Billion | Sapphire Bags $2 Billion | Lime Rock Settles for $375 Million
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Good day and happy holidays! Inflation might be a cause of concern on Wall Street but apparently did little to deter shoppers. The traditional start of the Christmas shopping season over the past weekend saw retail sales in stores and online rise by more than 14%, excluding autos, from last year and 5.8% compared with pre-pandemic 2019, according to Mastercard SpendingPulse data. So any economic Grinches lurking over consumer wallets might have to wait until next year to have any effect.
In private-equity news today, our Chris Cumming reports that Canadian insurer Manulife Financial's investment management arm has raked in nearly $4.7 billion for a new infrastructure fund. Also, our Laura Kreutzer writes that growth investor Sapphire Ventures is banking about $2 billion for a pair of new funds and Luis Garcia reports that Lime Rock is closing its first clean-energy growth fund with about $375 million.
We have these and many more reports condensed and linked for you below, so please slide on down...
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Wiring that connects a data center in Virginia to the internet. Data centers are considered part of the digital infrastructure targeted by investment managers such as Manulife Investment Management.
PHOTO: T.J. KIRKPATRICK FOR THE WALL STREET JOURNAL
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Manulife Investment Management has raised $4.65 billion to invest in infrastructure, a sector where investors’ hopes have been sparked by the transition to renewable energy and the possibility of increased U.S. government spending Chris Cumming reports for WSJ Pro Private Equity. The new vehicle, Manulife Infrastructure Fund II LP, received a little less than half of its capital from parent company Manulife Financial Corp., a Toronto-based insurer, said Recep Kendircioglu, co-portfolio manager and head of infrastructure investment.
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Growth investor Sapphire Ventures has rounded up $2 billion to back promising technology companies, as money continues to flow into the sector, Laura Kreutzer writes for WSJ Pro Private Equity. The Palo Alto, Calif.-based firm, which backs digital businesses such as recruiting systems and services provider Gem Software Inc., has closed its latest pair of funds less than a year after raising $1.7 billion for vehicles primarily focused on enterprise software businesses.
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Lime Rock Management has raised about $375 million for its first fund focused on making growth investments in providers of services and products to the clean-energy industry, Luis Garcia reports for WSJ Pro Private Equity. The firm, which also invests in oil-and-gas deals, wrapped up Lime Rock New Energy LP below a $600 million target it initially set for the fund. The total raised includes a co-investment pool.
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14.1%
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The gain in U.S. retail sales, excluding autos, over the Thanksgiving holiday weekend from this time last year, according to Mastercard SpendingPulse data, which also reflects a 5.8% increase from the same period of pre-pandemic 2019
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An event at the Mohegan Sun casino earlier this year honored the late basketball star Kobe Bryant. PHOTO: MADDIE MEYER / GETTY IMAGES
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Bain Capital and Korean private-equity firm MBK Partners have committed $275 million to Mohegan Gaming & Entertainment’s $1.55 billion plan to develop a casino in South Korea, according to a news release from the Uncasville, Conn.-based gambling resort operator, which changed its name from the Mohegan Tribal Gaming Authority in 2017. The new project would construct a casino resort on Yeongjong Island in Incheon, South Korea, under the Inspire Entertainment Resort name, according to a news release. The $1.55 billion first phase is set for completion in 2023 and includes a $300 million commitment from Mohegan Gaming.
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One Equity Partners, joined by existing investors, committed $300 million to cybersecurity company Armis Inc., valuing the Palo Alto, Calif.-based business at about $3.4 billion, according to a news release. The fresh capital will finance product development and expansion, including acquisitions.
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Edison Partners led a $35 million growth investment in text-messaging services provider Solutions by Text LLC, with participation from Stifel Venture Bank, a unit of Stifel Financial Corp., according to an emailed news release. In addition to the new investment, the Dallas-based services provider to auto lenders, banks and other types of businesses appointed payments industry executive David Baxter as its chief executive.
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One Equity Partners has agreed to acquire the Norit Activated Carbon manufacturing business of Cabot Corp., according to an emailed news release. The carveout from Boston-based Cabot includes two plants in North America as well as operations in Europe and Asia. Norit’s products are used for purification of air, water, food and beverages, natural gas, chemicals and pharmaceuticals.
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Searchlight Capital Partners is backing Cyprus tourism company Louis PLC and its Celestyal Cruises business, which operates in the eastern Mediterranean and the Greek islands. Part of the deal calls for the creation of a new entity Celestyal Holdings to enable expansion, with Louis as a shareholder, according to a news release. Celestyal operates two ships from Piraeus, Greece.
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Investment firms Oberndorf Enterprises and Willoughby Capital led a $90 million growth investment in business and market intelligence company Tegus Inc. The Chicago-based company provides research mainly to institutional investors and plans to expand into Europe starting with an office opening in Waterford, Ireland, according to a news release.
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Our add-on deal interactive tool allows you to sort and analyze volumes of add-on deal data compiled by WSJ Pro. View more.
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A sign marks the New York headquarters of Blackstone, which is selling consumer loan company Aqua Finance. PHOTO: ANDREW KELLY / REUTERS
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Blackstone Inc. is selling a controlling interest in consumer lender Aqua Finance Inc. to retirement services provider Athene Holding Ltd., which Apollo Global Management Inc. is acquiring for about $11.73 billion. Apollo will manage Aqua following the transaction, which values the Wausau, Wis.-based finance company at about $1 billion, according to a news release. Blackstone backed Aqua through its tactical opportunities strategy, announcing the acquisition of an 80% stake in the company in August 2018, according to S&P Global Market Intelligence data. Blackstone will remain a minority investor in the business. Aqua is expected to have originated
about $2 billion in loans for home improvements, water treatment and other needs this year by Dec. 31.
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Freeman Spogli & Co.-backed Osprey Packs Inc. is being acquired by strategic buyer Helen of Troy Ltd. for about $414 million in cash, according to a news release. The Cortez, Colo.-based maker of outdoor gear is expected to generate net sales of $155 million to $160 million this year.
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Hunter Point Capital, which backs asset managers focused midsize companies, has hired Melvin Hibberd as a managing director to lead its investment team from New York. He joins from Blackstone Inc., where he was a managing director in the GP stakes arm.
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High Street Capital has promoted Charlie Bossart to principal at the Chicago-based firm, where he is responsible for investments in the U.S. Southeast, West Coast and parts of the Midwest, according to an emailed news release. He joined High Street in 2012.
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Joshua Kushner, pictured here in 2015, leads Thrive Capital, which recently changed its regulatory status to allow it to make more investments outside of traditional venture capital. PHOTO: KAI-UWE WÄRNER / ZUMA PRESS
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Joshua Kushner's Thrive Capital has joined a few other venture investment firms in changing its regulatory status, a move that allows the firm to make more investments outside of the traditional purview of venture capital but comes with new compliance burdens, Yuliya Chernova reports for WSJ Pro Venture Capital. New York-based Thrive registered as an investment adviser with the Securities and Exchange Commission in September, according to a regulatory filing, and said it intends to back public companies and invest in crypto assets.
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Car-rental company Hertz Global Holdings said it plans to buy back as much as $2 billion of its stock, Matt Grossman reports for The Wall Street Journal. The bulk of the buyback program would follow completion of a deal for Hertz to buy back all of its Series A preferred shares, which are mostly owned by Apollo Global Management Inc.
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Telecom Italia SPA Chief Executive Luigi Gubitosi has resigned from the telecommunications company, which has begun to examine a takeover offer by KKR & Co., Kim Richters reports for Dow Jones Newswires. Mr. Gubitosi remains a director of the company, which was once a government-owned monopoly in Italy. KKR proposed a take-private transaction at €0.505 per share, giving the phone company an equity value of roughly €10.79 billion, or about $12.17 billion. But Vivendi SE, the media conglomerate steered by the family of French billionaire Vincent Bollore that owns nearly 24% of the group’s shares, may press for a significantly
higher amount, Mauro Orru reports, citing investment bank Bryan Garnier. The bank said Vivendi was unlikely to accept less than €0.80 per share.
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The global market for quantum computing technology and services is expected to expand rapidly to $8.6 billion in 2027 from $412 million last year, according to research from International Data Corp. in Needham, Mass. Investment in the sector is forecast to reach nearly $16.4 billion by the end of 2027, including deals involving private-equity and venture firms, IDC said, calling 2021 a “pivotal year” for the industry.
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