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.
Vantiv has agreed to buy Mercury Payment Systems for $1.65 billion. Silver Lake, which owns a majority of Mercury, is the seller. Durango, Colo.-based Mercury, a payment technology company, generated net revenue of $237 million in 2013. Mercury, which had filed for an IPO, said it will withdraw its registration statement filed with the SEC. Credit Suisse and BofA Merrill Lynch provided financial advice to Vantiv. Morgan Stanley was lead M&A advisor to Mercury, which was also advised by J.P. Morgan, Barclays and FT Partners.
8 min read · 13 May 2014
SpeedCast, a portfolio company of TA Associates, has acquired SatComms Australia. Financial terms weren’t announced. SatComms, of Queensland, Australia, is a specialized provider of mobile and fixed satellite solutions in the Australian market and in the Asia-Pacific region.
5 min read · 13 May 2014
Dr. Asif Naseem has joined Mason Wells as an Executive Operating Partner. Dr. Naseem most recently served as Vice President, Communications Global Business Unit at Oracle.
2 min read · 13 May 2014
Pittsburgh Glass Works, which is backed by Kohlberg & Company, has agreed to sell its Insurance & Services business unit (“I&S”) to Solera Holdings. Financial terms weren’t announced. I&S consists of LYNX Services, GTS Services, and GLAXIS. The unit provides services such as clams management, call center and software for glass retailers. Goldman Sachs acted as financial advisor to PGW.
2 min read · 13 May 2014
Pouschine Cook Capital Management has sold Great Lakes Caring. Financial terms or the buyer weren’t disclosed. William and Cherilyn Deary, Great Lakes founders, and their management team will continue to lead the company and maintain a significant equity stake, a statement said. An FTC notice in April said Wellspring Capital was acquired Great Lakes Partners. Jackson, Mich.-based Great Lakes is a for-profit provider of in-home post-acute services. Houlihan Lokey advised Pouschine Cook.
3 min read · 13 May 2014
Playnation, which is backed by Palatine Private Equity, has acquired Funhouse Leisure. Financial terms weren’t announced. U.K.-based Funhouse is a specialist operator of prize and vending equipment for the hospitality and leisure sector.
2 min read · 13 May 2014
An investor group has acquired a material equity stake in StoreFinancial. The group consists of Dan Henry (NetSpend CEO), Mark O’Connell, Mariner Holdings, OpenAir Equity Partners, Larry Maddox, and Jim Jerome (former NetSpend EVP). Financial terms were not announced. Overland Park, Kansas-based StoreFinancial is a payments processor and program manager.
2 min read · 13 May 2014
Monroe Capital said it has increased a credit facility for World West Media to $25 million. Ridgefield, Conn.-based World West Media provides global movie showtimes, information and other services for the media and information industries.
2 min read · 13 May 2014
BitPay said Tuesday it has raised $30 million in Series A funding led by Index Ventures. Horizons Ventures, Founders Fund, Felicis Ventures, RRE Ventures, TTV Capital, Sir Richard Branson and AME Cloud Ventures also participated. Atlanta-based BitPay said it processes $1 million per day in bitcoin payments for over 30,000 merchants. Bit Pay, payment service provider, said total accumulated investment has reached $32.7 million.
3 min read · 13 May 2014
Bregal Partners said Tuesday it is partnering with Michael Magerman to invest in enthusiast consumer brands and committed $100 million to future transactions. Magerman has joined Bregal as a Senior Advisor. He is the former CEO of Odyssey Sports, Quickie Manufacturing, Bravo Sports, Tommy Armour Golf and Marc Scot Apparel.
3 min read · 13 May 2014
