Private Equity
Canadian gaming and entertainment operator Gateway Casinos & Entertainment Ltd has filed for an initial public offering with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission to list its shares on the New York Stock Exchange, Reuters reported. The company set a placeholder amount of US$100 million to indicate the size of the IPO. Vancouver-based Gateway, which recorded total revenue of $484.3 million in the first nine months of 2018, said all shares in the IPO will be sold by shareholders and it does not expect to receive any of the net proceeds from the sale. Its biggest investor is Catalyst Capital Group, a Canadian private equity firm, which acquired Gateway in 2010.
2 min read · 20 November 2018
Fairfax Financial Holdings, owned by Canadian billionaire Prem Watsa, has acquired an almost 14 percent stake in steelmaker Stelco Holdings for $250.1 million, Reuters reported. The insurer bought the stake in Stelco from Bedrock Industries, a unit of U.S. private equity firm Lindsay Goldberg LLC, which owned 60.1 percent in the company before the sale. Bedrock still holds about 47 percent stake in Stelco. Last year, Hamilton, Ontario-based Stelco went public on the Toronto Stock Exchange, raising $230 million.
1 min read · 19 November 2018
The U.S. leveraged loan market is looking forward to its first jumbo buyout loan of 2019 after the US$13.2 billion acquisition of Johnson Controls International Plc’s power solutions business by Canadian private equity firm Brookfield Business Partners, Reuters reported. The deal has more debt and less equity than most of 2018’s buyout loans as private equity firms issue increasingly aggressive deals to take advantage of strong investor demand for floating-rate debt in a rising interest rate environment. JP Morgan is leading the dollar-denominated loan for the business, while Barclays will lead the euro-denominated loan, the banker said. Credit Suisse is leading the bond offering, which is expected to be issued in dollars.
3 min read · 16 November 2018
Canada's BlackBerry Ltd raised its bets on artificial intelligence and cybersecurity this week with the US$1.4 billion purchase of U.S. machine-learning specialist Cylance, Reuters reported. The Irvine, California-based Cylance uses machine learning to preempt security breaches before they occur. Its applications seek to block malware or infiltration attempts rather than react after a breach. Founded in 2012, Cylance secured more than US$280 million from venture capital funds, according to Refinitiv data. That includes the US$120 million raised earlier this year in a round led by Blackstone Tactical Opportunities.
2 min read · 16 November 2018
Detour Gold Corp has agreed to name two of investor Paulson & Co’s nominees to its board as it looks to end a proxy fight with the U.S. hedge fund that had called for a complete overhaul of the board, Reuters reported. The Canadian gold miner also said its interim CEO would step down as a director. Paulson & Co, which has a 5 percent stake, had also called for the company to explore strategic alternatives, including a sale. Detour has been under attack by other shareholders as well, including U.S. hedge fund Livermore Partners and U.S. investment company Coast Capital Management LP, which have asked for a sale of the company and a rejig of its board.
2 min read · 15 November 2018
Johnson Controls International Plc said this week it would sell its power solutions business, which makes car batteries, to Canadian investment firm Brookfield Business Partners LP, in a cash deal valued at US$13.2 billion, Reuters reported. Johnson Controls’ power solutions business makes and distributes about 154 million lead-acid batteries for passenger cars and light trucks annually. The transaction, expected to be completed by June 30, 2019, will see Brookfield Business Partners, the listed vehicle of Brookfield's private equity group, partner with Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec.
2 min read · 13 November 2018
BlackBerry Ltd is in talks to buy cybersecurity company Cylance Inc for as much as US$1.5 billion, Reuters reported, citing a Business Insider story. Irvine, California-based Cylance develops artificial intelligence-based products to prevent cyber attacks on companies and recently considered filing for an initial public offering, according to the report. Earlier this year, Cylance raised US$120 million in a financing led by Blackstone Tactical Opportunities. The company's other investors include DFJ, Insight Venture Partners and Khosla Ventures.
1 min read · 12 November 2018
BGH Capital, an Australian private equity firm run by three star dealmakers, was rebuffed in its bid to acquire hospital operator Healthscope Ltd, Reuters reported. On Monday, Healthscope said it had picked Brookfield Capital Partners’ sweetened offer that values the business at up to A$4.5 billion (US$3.25 billion). Melbourne-based Healthscope, which had in May snubbed offers from Brookfield and BGH, said Brookfield’s new offer was superior and it would grant the Canadian investment firm exclusive access to due diligence to facilitate a binding offer. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board and Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan were partnering with BGH in its bid, Reuters reported last month.
3 min read · 12 November 2018
Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPPIB) could benefit from trade tensions between the United States and China by buying Chinese assets at knock-down prices, Reuters reported, citing comments made by CEO Mark Machin. CPPIB, one of the world’s biggest investors in real estate and infrastructure, has 8 percent of its funds invested in China and has said it expects to increase that number significantly in the next few years. “The thing for us is to be patient and look for good opportunities that are arising as a result of market stress and economic stress,” Machin said. “I think we’ll find very interesting opportunities in China over time as this continues.”
2 min read · 09 November 2018
Rival consortia led by U.S. buyout fund KKR and Germany’s insurer Allianz are among the four main contenders for a stake in the fibre network business of Dutch-based telecom company Altice, sources told Reuters. Altice is selling a stake of between 40 and 60 percent in its fibre network business, a deal that could be worth up to 3.6 billion euros (US$4.11 billion). The two other bidding groups are led by Australian investment firm Macquarie and U.S. infrastructure fund I Squared Capital. Ontario Municipal Employees Retirement System (OMERS) has teamed up with Allianz while Singapore’s GIC has joined forces with I Squared, one of the sources said.
2 min read · 06 November 2018
