Private Equity
Walter Global Asset Management has acquired a minority stake in LionGuard Capital Management, a Montréal-based asset management firm. Terms weren't disclosed for the deal, which includes direct allocations toward LionGuard-managed funds. Founded in 2014 by President, CEO and CIO Andrey Omelchak, LionGuard specializes in research on small and medium capitalization companies. The partnership with Walter will allow the business to expand its teams across research, operations and client-servicing divisions. LionGuard is the first deal of Walter, a private equity platform focused on North America's asset management sector. Launched in 2018, the platform is an affiliate of Canadian family office Walter Group of Cos.
3 min read · 01 May 2019
Engage2Excel Inc has acquired Rideau Inc, a Montréal-based integrated recognition platform that supports employee engagement and retention. Terms weren't disclosed for the deal, which was backed by U.S. mid-market private equity firm Comvest Partners. Comvest acquired Engage2Excel, a Statesville, North Carolina-based provider of employee recognition and engagement, sales incentives, talent acquisition and consumer loyalty solutions and services, in 2018. Established in 1912, Rideau is expected to continue operating in its existing form, while leveraging the assets of Engage2Excel.
3 min read · 30 April 2019
Canadian private equity firm TorQuest Partners is aiming to raise up to $1.35 billion for its fifth mid-market fund, according to a report by AltAssets. The fund's predecessor, TorQuest Partners Fund IV, closed in 2016 at its $925 million hard cap. Toronto-based TorQuest was founded in 2002 by Senior Managing Partner Brent Belzberg and Managing Partner Eric Berke. As reported by PE Hub Canada last year, the firm has sustained a brisk deal pace of late, both buying and selling businesses. Last month, TorQuest acquired Prepac Manufacturing Ltd, a Delta, British Columbia-based maker of ready-to-assemble home furniture.
1 min read · 30 April 2019
Canadian private equity firm Onex Corp and a group of co-investors have committed to invest US$1.8 billion in Convex Group Ltd, a newly-launched, Bermuda-based property and casualty insurance company. About US$1.6 billion has been funded, Onex said. Led by insurance industry executives Stephen Catlin and Paul Brand, Convex will focus on underwriting complex specialty risks across a range of business lines. The funded investment includes US$750 million from Onex Partners V, which raised US$7.15 billion in 2017. Another US$780 million came from co‑investors, including Public Sector Pension Investment Board , a Canadian pension fund.
3 min read · 30 April 2019
Caprion Biosciences Inc has acquired Serametrix Corp, a Carlsbad, California-based provider of immune monitoring services. No financial terms were disclosed. Caprion, a Montréal-based provider of immunology and proteomics services to the biopharmaceutical industry, said it will leverage Serametrix's expertise in the analysis of myeloid-derived suppressor cells and its global operations. The add-on deal is Caprion’s third since the company's acquisition in 2016 by U.K. healthcare private equity firm GHO Capital Partners. The seller was Chicago Growth Partners. Founded in 2000, Caprion is led by President and CEO Martin Leblanc.
3 min read · 30 April 2019
Canadian specialty finance firm Crown Capital Partners has provided a $25 million loan to Rokstad Holdings Corp, a Coquitlam, British Columbia-based provider of power line construction and maintenance services in North America. Rokstad's power line services include emergency and storm response, transmission and distribution line construction, and maintenance and underground cable services. Founded in 2008, the company was reacquired last year by the Rokstad family from U.K. construction business Carillion Plc. CEO Aaron Rokstad said the loan's proceeds will allow Rokstad to leverage a "growing pipeline of new projects and opportunities."
3 min read · 29 April 2019
Telecon has acquired SC360, a Montréal-based provider of voice and data network infrastructure build and maintenance solutions. No financial terms were disclosed. The deal was backed with equity from a group of investors that included Clearspring Capital Partners, Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec (CDPQ) and Capital régional et coopératif Desjardins (CRCD). Telecon, a Montréal-based provider of telecommunications network infrastructure services, said the purchase strengthens the scope of its Canadian connectivity services, especially in Québec and Ontario secondary markets. SC360 is Telecon's fourth acquisition since Clearspring, a Canadian mid-market private equity firm, led a $70 million financing of the company in 2017.
3 min read · 29 April 2019
QuadReal Property Group has partnered with T5 Data Centers, an Atlanta-based provider of data centre solutions, in the launch of a platform to develop, acquire and operate data centres. The platform, which will do business under the name T5 Data Centers, has been capitalized to support the creation and purchase of more than US$2.5 billion facilities able to support the needs of enterprise and hyperscale users. QuadReal, a Vancouver-based real estate investment, operating and development company, is owned by British Columbia Investment Management Corp (BCI), a Canadian pension system.
4 min read · 29 April 2019
Northleaf Capital Partners has hired Nicholas Doktor as an associate, private equity. Based in Northleaf’s New York office, Doktor will participate in the origination, evaluation and monitoring of the firm's private equity investments. Doktor joins from CIT Bank, an affiliate of U.S. financial services firm CIT Group, where he most recently served as an associate in the sponsor finance group. Toronto-based Northleaf oversees more than US$12 billion in private equity, private credit and infrastructure commitments.
1 min read · 29 April 2019
Altas Partners, a pioneer of long-life investing, has raised close to its US$2.5 billion target and could hold a final close this quarter, a person with knowledge of the firm told Buyouts. Whether Fund II has a cap is unclear. A spokesperson for Toronto-based Altas declined comment. Andrew Sheiner, a former senior Onex Corp executive, formed Altas in 2012. The firm invested deal by deal before raising its first fund, which closed on US$1 billion in 2016. Altas was an early adopter of the long-life philosophy in PE. Other firms that followed include funds raised by Blackstone Group, Carlyle Group and KKR.
1 min read · 26 April 2019
