Good day! Business is booming in private equity and today we have a full plate to offer as a result. 

Our Preeti Singh and Laura Cooper detail the enormous upswell in technology sector interest as some of the biggest tech-focused firms chase billions of dollars for new funds and H.I.G. Capital jumps into the mix. Also, Preeti writes about GCM Grosvenor's plan to raise $1 billion for its first fund focused on backing funds managed by diverse sponsors. 

Finally our Journal colleague Miriam Gottfried reports that General Atlantic has named former Mastercard chief Ajay Banga as vice chairman of the New York firm. We have these and many, many more news items summarized below, so please read on...

As technology-focused private-equity firms come back to the fundraising market in droves, H.I.G. Capital is joining the race with its debut technology fund, according to people familiar with the matter, Preeti Singh and Laura Cooper report for WSJ Pro Private Equity. Tech investment vehicles have highlighted a record year of fundraising, with mainstays in the sector such as Vista Equity Partners, Thoma Bravo, Silver Lake and Francisco Partners quickly returning to seek more billions.

GCM Grosvenor Inc. is pitching its debut fund dedicated to backing limited partnerships and co-investments managed by diverse private-equity firms, with a target of raising $1 billion for the vehicle, Preeti Singh reports for WSJ Pro Private Equity. The firm’s GCM Grosvenor Advance Fund LP will invest in funds sponsored by firms where at least 33% of the economic interests go to diverse professionals, according to documents presented at a public meeting of the Rhode Island State Investment Commission, which pledged $10 million to the fund.

Growth investor General Atlantic has hired Ajay Banga, a former Mastercard Inc. executive chairman, Miriam Gottfried reports for The Wall Street Journal. Mr. Banga joins the New York private-equity firm as vice chairman after more than a decade as the credit giant's chief executive and refocusing its business on the digital economy. He begins his new role on Jan. 1.

Blackstone Inc. purchased $2.8 billion of logistics assets from Cabot Properties Inc. in two separate transactions, one involving U.S. assets and another consisting of properties in Europe. Blackstone Real Estate Income Trust Inc. acquired a portfolio of 102 properties across the U.S. that total 15.2 million square feet, according to a press release. Meanwhile, the firm’s European Core+ unit and its affiliates acquired 22 properties in Europe totalling 2.2 million square feet of industrial space, the release stated.

Advent International has picked up a significant stake in healthcare management company Iodine Software LLC in a transaction that values the Austin,Texas -based business at more than $1 billion, according to an emailed news release. Sellers Bain Capital and Silversmith Capital Partners remain as minority shareholders after first backing Iodine in 2018. The deal provides growth capital to Iodine, which uses artificial intelligence technologies in its hospital resource planning and revenue management programs. Bain Capital backed Iodine through its ventures arm.

Commonwealth Fusion Systems LLC said it has raised more than $1.8 billion in the largest private investment for nuclear fusion yet as startups race to be the first to generate carbon-free energy like the sun. Big-name investors backing the latest funding round for the Massachusetts-based company include Microsoft Corp. co-founder Bill Gates and George Soros via his Soros Fund Management LLC. Some of Commonwealth Fusion’s competitors, including Helion Energy Inc., have also recently secured huge funding as investors pile into clean energy technologies amid growing concerns about climate change.

Monomoy Capital Partners has agreed to acquire mobile sanitation products maker Thetford Corp. from private investment company Dyson-Kissner-Moran Corp. Etten-Leur, Netherlands-based Thetford supplies the recreational vehicle, marine, camping and truck markets with refrigeration, cooking and sanitation hardware. Monomoy is backing the company through its fourth flagship fund.

KKR & Co. has acquired an industrial warehouse in Vista, Calif. from Westcore Properties Inc. in San Diego. The 197,000-square-foot building in the San Diego area is fully leased to a healthcare diagnostics company, according to a news release. KKR invested in the property through its KKR Real Estate Partners Americas III fund.

Canadian private-equity firm TorQuest Partners said it has acquired North West Rubber Ltd, a Abbotsford, British Columbia-based manufacturer and distributor of recycled rubber matting and other flooring products.

GCM Grosvenor Inc. has agreed to buy a majority stake in the ReSource Waste Services business of ReEnergy Holdings LLC, which will retain a minority interest. The business provides processing and recycling services for construction and demolition projects, with five facilities in New England serving the Boston metropolitan area and with a total annual capacity of 1.3 million tons.

Leonard Green & Partners has acquired a majority interest in Dallas restaurant operator Velvet Taco from L Catterton and founding business FB Society, who both remain minority investors. The fast-casual chain founded in 2011 is expected to have 40 locations open by year-end.

Tiger Global Management led a $115 million investment in transportation services startup Cloud Technologies Inc. which operates as CloudTrucks. The investment values the San Francisco-based company at about $850 million. CloudTrucks is used by independent trucking businesses to hire out their services and receive payment.

Pamplona Capital Management has agreed to acquire electronic components distributor EET Europarts AS from FSN Capital. The Danish company supplies parts to more than 30,000 customers, according to an emailed news release.

Canadian pension manager Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec has completed a strategic investment in strategic communications and advisory services firm ICR, which has been backed by Investcorp since 2018.

Technology-focused BV Investment Partners has made a growth investment in billing services provider EMS Management & Consultants Inc., according to a news release. The Winston-Salem, N.C.-based company works with more than 260 emergency medical services organizations in 24 states.

Midmarket firm Radial Equity Partners is backing Clark-Reliance Corp., a company that designs and manufactures critical measurement, controls and filtration products used across industries that include mining, oil and gas, chemical refining, food and beverage, power distribution and pharmaceuticals, among others.

Healthcare specialist Thurston Group is backing Options Medical Weight Loss, a practice that helps patients manage their diets based in St. Petersburg, Fla. The investment is expected to fuel expansion for the chain, which has clinics in the Chicago area as well as Ohio, Arizona and Florida.

Houston-based private-equity firm Milton Street Capital has backed the fourth platform deal out of its debut fund with the acquisition of Woodsage LLC. Holland, Ohio-based Woodsage manufactures and sells components such as steel rollers that are used in conveyor belt systems and other applications.

Pike Street Capital is investing in wholesale food distributor Fair Market Inc., based in Wentzville, Mo. The growth investment is expected to fuel expansion into new markets and product lines.

Growth investor Sunstone Partners is backing background checking company Vcheck Global LLC. The Los Angeles-based company also provides due diligence and investigative services.

Horizon Capital is backing automation company BP3 Global Inc. with a $33 million investment to accelerate its growth, according to a news release. The Austin, Texas company automates business processes including document handling.

NovaQuest Capital Management has acquired a stake in product development business Covenant Animal Health Partners from TechAccel LLC, which formed the operation with Reliance Animal Health Partners, according to an emailed 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.

Rallyday Partners generated a return of 6.3 times invested capital with its sale of Hoboken, N.J.-based Genesis Research LLC, a life sciences researcher, to European healthcare investor GHO Capital Partners, Preeti Singh reports for WSJ Pro Private Equity, citing Ryan Heckman, a Rallyday co-founder and managing partner. The  Denver-based firm invested in the business alongside its founders in February 2020. The exit enabled the firm to return $143 million to investors in its $153 million debut fund, Mr. Heckman said. “Our model is working as designed and we are delivering value to our leadership teams and investors,” he said.

Greenbriar Equity Group has agreed to sell supply chain specialist BDP International Inc. to strategic buyer PSA International Pte. Ltd. Greenbriar acquired the logistics and transportation company based in Philadelphia in December 2018, according to an emailed news release. Port operator PSA is based in Singapore.

Pacific Equity Partners in Sydney has agreed to sell Australian auto parts maker AutoPacific Group to GUD Holdings Ltd. for 744.6 million Australian dollars, equivalent to about $530.8 million, according to a regulatory filing. The company makes towing parts and related items mainly for four-wheel drive vehicles and is expected to generated adjust pre-tax earnings of A$80 million to A$84 million next year, the filing shows.

HealthEdge Investment Partners has sold personal care services provider The Columbus Organization to strategic buyer CareSource, a nonprofit provider of managed services. The Blue Bell, Pa.-based Columbus enterprise works with around 100,000 children and adults with physical and intellectual disabilities in 13 states. HealthEdge acquired the organization about five years ago, according to a news release.

Australia’s Prosperine Capital Partners has sold technology consulting services provider SXiQ Pty. Ltd. to International Business Machines Corp. to enhance IBM’s consulting services in the region and its cloud services business. The company mainly works with small and mid-sized companies and organizations on Australia’s eastern coast.

Midmarket firm Excellere Partners said it has rounded up $875 million for Excellere Capital Fund IV LP, ahead of a $750 million target. Investors that disclosed commitments to the fund include New Jersey State Investment Council and the Los Angeles County Employees Retirement Association, according to WSJ Pro Private Equity’s LP Commitment database. Denver-based Excellere targets investments in companies with at least $7 million in earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization, according to the firm’s website.

Atalaya Capital Management, an investment firm focused on private credit and special situations, has rounded up at least $365 million so far for Atalaya Special Opportunities Fund VIII LP, a regulatory filing indicates. One investor that has backed the fund is the Texas County and District Retirement System, which pledged $100 million, according to the pension’s website. Meanwhile, an independent investment committee for the New Hampshire Retirement System is recommending a $50 million commitment to its board of trustees, which is slated to vote on the recommendation in December, pension documents indicate. Atalaya closed its previous special opportunities fund in 2019 at the fund’s $950 million cap.

Pharos Capital Group, a health-care focused private-equity firm, has raised more than $179.8 million so far for its fourth flagship strategy, according to a regulatory filing for the firm’s Pharos Capital Partners IV-A LP fund. In March, the firm reported managing more than $1.22 billion of client assets at the end of December.

True Wind Capital has hired Nima Kelly as chief operating officer and chief compliance officer. She most recently worked as the chief legal officer of website domain marketer GoDaddy Operating Co. Also, the firm has hired Michael Crest as an operating executive and Tom Hegge as director of strategic capital. Mr. Crest was most recently chief executive of software company Optanix Inc. and Mr. Hegge was a managing member of Great Plains Partners.

Eaton Partners, a placement agent owned by Stifel Financial Corp., has hired Jonathan Lee as managing director and head of Asia Pacific out of the firm’s Hong Kong office. Mr. Lee previously led the Asia Pacific activities at fellow placement firm MVision Private Equity Advisers, according to a press release.

Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell said the central bank was prepared to quicken a pullback from easy-money policies, opening the door to raising interest rates in the first half of next year as it grapples with inflation and a potential new virus wave that could exacerbate supply-chain disruptions, Nick Timiraos and Amara Omeokwe report for The Wall Street Journal. During a Senate hearing Tuesday, Mr. Powell said it would be appropriate for the Fed to consider accelerating the reduction of its asset-purchase stimulus program at its Dec. 14-15 meeting.

Vista Equity Partners lost a bid to have a lawsuit over its $1.9 billion take-private deal for business management software maker Mindbody Inc. as a Delaware judge said that Mindbody shareholders had shown that Vista knowingly participated in the company’s failure to disclose information, Reuters reported. The plaintiffs, led by investment firm Luxor Capital Group, sued over the deal in August, claiming that Vista had aided Mindbody management when it failed to disclose details about the transaction process and the target company’s revenue.

The U.K.’s top competition regulator directed Meta Platforms Inc., formerly Facebook, to sell social-media animated-images company Giphy, saying its acquisition could limit competition among platforms and U.K. advertisers, Joe Hoppe and Ben Dummett report for The Wall Street Journal. Facebook bought Giphy in May 2020 for $315 million, according to documents published as part of a review of the deal that the Competition and Markets Authority began last year.

KKR & Co. has distributed more than $500,000 in grants to 47 small businesses and New York City’s Partnership Foundation and more than $3.2 million to 27 nonprofit organizations in the U.S., the U.K. and France, according to a news release. The New York firm said the small business grants of $10,000 each to help them weather the coronavirus pandemic. About four-fifths of the recipients are minority owned, 62% are owned by women and 23% by veterans.

Apollo Global Management Inc. plans to give up to $50,000 each to three nonprofit groups nominated by employees as the winners of its inaugural Citizenship competition. The recipients are America Needs You, which supports low-income students who are the first in their families to go to college; Oliver Scholars, which works to identify high-potential Black and Latino seventh graders in New York City schools and helps place and support them in private schools; and Per Scholas, which provides training and recruitment services to people who are underrepresented in technology fields. The organizations were chosen from more than 80 presented by employees in the competition, which began in October, according to an emailed news release.

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