Private Equity
Dye & Durham Corp, a Toronto-based legal technology company, has filed a preliminary prospectus with Canadian securities regulators outside of Québec for an initial public offering (IPO) of its common shares. The IPO, which includes a secondary offering, has not yet been priced. One of the selling shareholders is Manulife Capital, the private equity arm of Canadian insurer Manulife. Manulife invested in the business earlier in 2018, according to the prospectus. Dye & Durham, which operates in Canada and the United Kingdom, provides cloud-based software and technology solutions for legal and business professionals. It is led by CEO Matthew Proud.
3 min read · 02 October 2018
Brookfield Infrastructure has closed its acquisition of the provincially regulated portion of Enbridge Inc's (TSX, NYSE: ENB) natural gas gathering and processing business in the Montney, Peace River Arch, Horn River and Liard basins in British Columbia and Alberta. The provincially regulated assets reflect $2.5 billion of a $4.31 billion deal Brookfield entered into earlier this year. The acquisition of the federally regulated assets is expected to close in mid-2019. The combined business, which includes 19 plants and 3,550 kilometres of pipelines, will be called NorthRiver Midstream Inc.
3 min read · 02 October 2018
A joint venture of Larry Tanenbaum, head of Canadian family office Kilmer Group, and Junior Bridgeman has closed its acquisition of Coca-Cola Refreshments Canada from Coca-Cola Co (NYSE: KO). Terms weren't disclosed for the deal, which was announced in March. The Globe and Mail previously reported the value at about $800 million. The new business, Coca-Cola Canada Bottling Ltd (CCCBL), assumed all Coca-Cola bottling and distribution operations in Canada, including more than 50 sales and distribution centres and five production facilities. CCCBL will be led by Todd Parsons, executive vice president at Kilmer, while Tanenbaum will serve as executive chairman.
5 min read · 02 October 2018
A consortium led by U.S. private equity firm Blackstone Group has closed its previously announced acquisition of a majority stake in Thomson Reuters' financial & risk business. Also participating in the investor group are Canada Pension Plan Investment Board and GIC. No financial terms were disclosed. As a result of the transaction, the Blackstone-led group owns a 55 percent equity stake in the F&R business now renamed Refinitiv, while Thomson Reuters retains a 45 percent stake. Thomson Reuters is controlled by Canada’s Thomson family.
5 min read · 01 October 2018
Thomson Reuters Corp has completed the sale of a majority stake in its Financial & Risk (F&R) unit to U.S. private equity firm Blackstone Group LP, Reuters reported. The news and information provider agreed in January to sell a 55-percent stake in the business, which provides data and news primarily to financial customers, in a deal which values the total F&R business, now called Refinitiv, at about US$20 billion. It gives Thomson Reuters, controlled by Canada’s Thomson family, an ally as it seeks to reinvigorate a business facing challenges from a shrinking and budget-conscious customer base. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board and GIC invested in the deal alongside Blackstone.
2 min read · 01 October 2018
Calgary-based energy company Encana Corp has agreed to sell its San Juan assets in New Mexico to DJR Energy LLC, a Denver, Colorado-based oil and gas explorer and producer. In a separate release, Encana said the purchase price is US$480 million ($621 million). The deal, expected to close in Q4 2018, includes about 182,000 net acres, which produced about 5,400 barrels of oil equivalent per day last year. DJR said acquiring the assets will help it become a "dominant player" in the San Juan Basin. DJR launched in 2017 with the backing of U.S. private equity firms Trilantic Capital Management, Waveland Energy Partners and Global Energy Capital.
3 min read · 01 October 2018
Canadian private equity firm Onex Corp has taken SIG Combibloc Group AG public on the SIX Swiss Exchange. SIG, a Swiss provider of aseptic carton packaging solutions for the food and beverage industry, priced its shares at 11.25 Swiss francs per unit. Reuters reported the company is expected to raise 1.49 billion francs (US$1.53 billion) before the initial public offering (IPO)'s greenshoe option. Onex, which acquired SIG in 2015, is selling shares as part of the IPO. Its proceeds will be about US$300 million, excluding the greenshoe. Onex will continue to hold a 57 percent interest.
3 min read · 28 September 2018
SIG Combibloc priced its initial public offering at 11.25 Swiss francs per share in a deal that raises 1.49 billion francs (US$1.53 billion) before an overallotment option and values the Swiss packaging maker at around 3.6 billion francs, it said before its market debut on Friday. As well as new shares being issued to reduce debt, Canadian private equity firm Onex Corp, majority owner of the drinks packaging company since 2015, and SIG management are also selling some of their existing holdings. The offer price, which Reuters had reported on Thursday, was towards the lower end of the 11 to 12 franc price range the company had flagged this week.
2 min read · 28 September 2018
Calgary-based energy infrastructure company AltaGas Ltd (TSX: ALA) has agreed to acquire a 50 percent stake in the existing and future Aitken Creek natural gas processing plants of Black Swan Energy Ltd. In a separate release, AltaGas said its investment in the acquisition and new infrastructure is estimated at about $230 million. With the deal's close, the companies will enter into an agreement for the use by Black Swan of the AltaGas processing capacity, as well as transportation and marketing agreements. Black Swan, a Calgary-based energy explorer and producer, is backed by Azimuth Capital Management, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board and Warburg Pincus.
4 min read · 27 September 2018
Toronto private equity firm Argosy Partners is seeking up to $50 million for its fourth shotgun fund, according to a news release. Shotgun Fund IV, like its predecessors, is earmarked for purchases of equity from selling shareholders when a shotgun clause or buy-sell agreement is executed. This specialized financing helps owner-operators of mid-market companies resolve shareholder disputes and gain liquidity. Fund IV's launch follows the winding up of a prior shotgun fund as a result of last month’s sale of Logistik Unicorp, a Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu, Québec, provider of uniform solutions, to Wynnchurch Capital.
2 min read · 27 September 2018
