I've been a business reporter for a while. I've covered Wall Street, venture capital and now private equity. I'm always looking for a scoop or something to talk about. I'm the eternal optimist and am still waiting for the Chicago Cubs to win the World Series. Yes, I believe.
Main Capital Partners said Sept. 11 that it sold its majority stake in Connexys to Bullhorn Inc, a portfolio company of Vista Equity Partners. Financial terms weren’t announced. Connexys, of Boston, provides cloud-based recruitment software.
3 min read · 11 September 2017
ManoMano said Sept. 11 that it raised 60 million euros ($72 million) in Series C funding led by General Atlantic. Existing investors Piton Capital, Partech Ventures, and Bpifrance also participated in the fundraising round. ManoMano is a European online marketplace for DIY and gardening products.
3 min read · 11 September 2017
Typeform said Sept. 11 that it raised $35 million series B Funding led by General Atlantic. Existing investors including Index Ventures, Point Nine, and Connect Ventures also participated in the fundraising round. Typeform, of Barcelona, is a conversational data collection platform.
4 min read · 11 September 2017
General Atlantic said Sept. 11 that Henri de Castries has joined as chairman of Europe and special adviser. He is the former chairman and CEO of AXA Group.
3 min read · 11 September 2017
2 min read · 07 September 2017
Rxbar, the protein bar maker, is up for sale and has hired Piper Jaffray & Co, according to the Wall Street Journal. Rxbar, of Chicago, produced about $7 million in 2016 EBITDA and is expected to generated more than $20 million EBITDA in 2017, the story said. Peter Rahal and Jared Smith founded Rxbar in their kitchen, the WSJ said.
1 min read · 07 September 2017
Francisco Partners has invested in NMI, taking a majority stake. Financial terms weren’t announced. The deal, which has closed, calls for Bregal Sagemount to sell its holding, while Great Hill Partners will remain a significant shareholder. NMI, of Roselle, Illinois, provides payments enabling technology for ISOs, VARs, ISVs. Financial Technology Partners LP provided financial advice to NMI, while Goodwin Procter LLP acted as legal advisor. William Blair & Company provided financial advice to Francisco Partners. Kirkland & Ellis LLP was the attorney for Francisco.
4 min read · 07 September 2017
Ares Commercial Real Estate Corp said Sept. 6 that Sumit Sasidharan was named managing director and head of real estate debt capital markets at its external manager, a subsidiary of Ares Management LP. Sasidharan is assuming the responsibilities of Precilla Torres, who will remain at Ares and take on a new role managing funds that invest in a variety of real estate securities, including commercial mortgage-backed securities. Sasidharan previously served as managing director of the Annaly Commercial Real Estate Group.
4 min read · 07 September 2017
Pontifax AgTech said Sept. 6 that it has sold Blue River Technology to John Deere. The deal was valued at $305 million. Pontifax AgTech led Blue River’s $17.5 million Series B funding round in December 2015. Other co-investors in the B round include Monsanto Growth Ventures, Syngenta Ventures, Khosla Ventures, Innovation Endeavors and Data Collective. Blue River, of Sunnyvale, California, is a robotic crop management platform.
3 min read · 07 September 2017
Weave Communications Inc said Sept. 7 that it raised $17 million in a Series B-1 funding round led by Catalyst Investors. Existing investors Crosslink Capital and Pelion Venture Partners also participated in the round. Weave, of Lehi, Utah, provides voice, SMS, email and marketing services to dental and optometry offices.
2 min read · 07 September 2017
