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.
SevOne said Thursday that it named JackSweeney its CEO, effective immediately. Sweeney most recently served as a Managing Director for Bain Capital Ventures. Wilmington, Del.-based SevOne, a Bain Capital Ventures portfolio company, provides IT performance management software.
3 min read · 25 July 2013
Bain Capital and Blackstone stand to get nearly half of their investment back from Michaels Stores. The crafts retailer plans to issue an $800 million dividend to shareholders.
2 min read · 25 July 2013
PNC provided a $150 million loan to Emerge Energy Services. The facility was used to refinance debt and for general corporate purposes, PNC said. Fort Worth, Texas-based Emerge Energy, a portfolio company of Insight Equity, is a diversified energy services company.
1 min read · 25 July 2013
Prolexic Technologies said Thursday it has closed $30 million in Series C funding led by new investors Trident Capital and Intel Capital. Hollywood, Fla.-based Prolexic is a Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) mitigation provider. Existing shareholders include Kennet Partners, Camden Partners and Medina Capital.
3 min read · 25 July 2013
Oakfield Capital Partners is investing £1 million (US$1.53 million) in Freedom Brewery. London-based Freedom is a microbrewer of craft lager.
2 min read · 25 July 2013
Michaels Stores has priced an offering of $800 million of senior PIK toggle notes due 2018. Michaels plans to use net proceeds to fund a cash dividend to its equity and equity-award holders, and to pay related fees and expenses. Irving, Texas-based Michaels, a specialty retailer of arts, crafts, is a Blackstone portfolio company.
3 min read · 25 July 2013
Accel Partners said Wednesday that Kobie Fuller has joined the firm as Principal, while John Locke was promoted to Principal. Fuller, who spent two years as the Chief Marketing Officer of REVOLVE clothing, will help Accel identify and work with entrepreneurs who are building category-defining companies. Locke, meanwhile, has been a member of the investment team at Accel since 2009.
3 min read · 24 July 2013
The Evergreen Group has agreed to acquire the Backyard Sports franchise in the recent Atari assets auction. The acquisition includes the Backyard Sports I.P., registrations, copyrights, patents, game code and all other assets associated with the brand. Financial terms weren't announced.
2 min read · 24 July 2013
Vista Pro Automotive, a portfolio company of Wynnchurch Capital, Summit Strategic Investments, and McLinden Capital, has acquired certain assets of American Condenser & Coil. Financial terms weren't announced. Gardena, Calif.-based AC&C supplies air conditioning condensers to the North American independent automotive aftermarket. Angle Advisors provided financial advice to AC&C.
3 min read · 24 July 2013
Visual Merchandising Inc., a portfolio company Blue Sage Capital, has merged with Noa Visual Group. Financial terms were not announced. Broomfield, Colo.-based Visual Merchandising designs, makes and distributes custom mannequins, forms, and other visual merchandising products to the global retail industry. Vectra Bank Colorado, a regional bank subsidiary of Zions Bancorp., provided additional financing. St. Charles Capital provided financial advice to Visual.
2 min read · 24 July 2013
