Canada

Ontario Teachers' to acquire digital insurance shopper Kanetix

Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan has agreed to acquire Kanetix Ltd, a Toronto-based insurance and financial technology company. No financial terms were disclosed. Founded in 1999, Kanetix operates a digital customer acquisition platform and marketplace that provides quote comparison search tools for insurance and other financial products. Ontario Teachers' also announced Igal Mayer will become the new president and CEO of Kanetix, replacing Andrew Lo. Kanetix was formerly a portfolio investment of U.S. private equity firm Monitor Clipper Partners (MCP). MCP acquired the business in September 2011.

MTY to buy Boxwood-owned yogurt franchise for $46 mln

MTY Food Group Inc (TSX: MTY), a Canadian casual, fast casual and quick service restaurant company, has agreed to acquire most of the assets of the sweetFrog Premium Frozen Yogurt franchise system based in Richmond, Virginia. MTY agreed to pay about $46 million (US$35 million) for the system. The seller is Boxwood Capital Partners, the private equity arm of U.S. investment banking firm Boxwood Partners. Boxwood acquired sweetFrog's operating company in 2015. Founded in 2009, sweetFrog has 254 franchised locations and 78 corporate-owned locations, most of them in the United States. The deal is expected to close within 30 days.

Whitehorse raises $1 bln for sophomore PE secondary fund

Toronto-based Whitehorse Liquidity Partners, a private equity firm that specializes in making preferred equity investments in private equity portfolios, closed its second private equity secondary fund at a hard cap of US$1 billion, according to a press release. Fund II's target was US$800 million. The firm's investor base includes top insurance firms, public and corporate pension plans, family offices, financial institutions and individual investors. Founded in 2015, Whitehorse is led by Managing Partner Yann Robard, a former head of secondaries and co-investments at Canada Pension Plan Investment Board.

Brookfield to acquire control of Brazil's Ouro Verde for $170 mln

The private equity group of Brookfield Asset Management has agreed to acquire a 55 percent controlling interest in Ouro Verde Locação e Seviços SA, a Brazilian heavy equipment and light vehicle fleet management company. Brookfield Business Partners, the group's listed affiliate, and co-investors agreed to pay about US$170 million for the stake. Brookfield will commit up to US$70 million of the equity. Established in 1973, Curitiba, Paraná-based Ouro Verde leases more than 25,000 heavy equipment and light vehicles and provides related maintenance, operations, and other services to Brazilian and global corporate clients. The deal is expected to wrap up this year.

Crown Capital provides $15 mln loan to help grow Triple Five

Canadian specialty finance firm Crown Capital Partners has provided a $15 million loan to Triple Five Intercontinental Group Ltd, a Calgary-based explorer, developer and producer of petroleum and natural gas. Founded in 2014, Triple Five currently produces about 3,800 barrels of oil equivalent production per day from six Alberta wells, of which about 85 percent is natural gas. The loan's proceeds will be used to refinance a senior debt facility and provide capital to drill more wells, which are expected to grow production. Earlier in 2018, Crown raised an additional $75 million for Crown Capital Partner Funding, increasing its committed capital to $300 million.

Fairfax and AGT-led group buy Omnitrax rail and port assets

The Arctic Gateway Group LP has acquired the Hudson Bay Railway and Port of Churchill facilities from Omnitrax Inc, a U.S. provider of railroad transportation services. Terms weren't released for the deal, which closed on August 31. The buying group consisted of Fairfax Financial Holdings, AGT Food and Ingredients Inc and Missinippi Rail LP, a consortium of First Nations and communities. Earlier this year, Fairfax and Point North Capital agreed to back the proposed management buyout of AGT, a Regina-based supplier of pulses, staple foods and food ingredients.

Royal Mail buys into Canada with $360 mln Dicom deal: Reuters

Britain’s Royal Mail Plc has bought Canadian parcel delivery company Dicom Canada for $360 million, adding to its growing operations in a number of U.S. states and across Europe, Reuters reported. The acquisition from U.S. private equity firm Wind Point Partners comes as Royal Mail aims to boost revenue share from outside the United Kingdom through its international unit. Dicom Canada, which offers ground-based parcel, freight and logistics services, operates a network of 28 depots and works with partners to provide pan-Canadian logistics services, Royal Mail said, adding the Montréal-based company had posted good revenue and profit growth in recent years.

Whitehorse closes second secondaries fund at $1 bln hard cap

Whitehorse Liquidity Partners has closed its second secondaries fund at its US$1 billion hard cap. Whitehorse Liquidity Partners Fund II exceeded its US$800 million target with the help of insurance companies, pension systems, family offices, financial institutions and wealthy investors. The fund is more than twice the size of its predecessor, which raised US$400 million in 2017. Founded three years ago by Managing Partner Yann Robard, who previously led the secondaries and co-investments program of Canada Pension Plan Investment Board, Toronto-based Whitehorse focuses on making preferred equity investments in private equity portfolios. To date, the firm has invested more than $1 billion in 18 closed or pending deals.

Ampersand Capital Partners invests in MBO of Neomed-Labs

U.S. private equity firm Ampersand Capital Partners has invested in the management buyout of Neomed-Labs, a Laval, Québec-based provider of clinical immunology laboratory services for biologics drug development. Terms weren't disclosed. The seller was Neomed Institute. Launched in 2015, Neomed-Labs partners with pharmaceutical businesses, biotechnology companies and healthcare organizations in the development of vaccines and immunotherapies. It is led by President and CEO Benoit Bouche. Ampersand said it will support Neomed-Labs' organic and acquisition growth initiatives, which will include expansion into adjacent markets and geographies as well as continued growth in Québec.

Wind Point sells Dicom Canada to Royal Mail for $360 mln

U.S. private equity firm Wind Point Partners has sold the Canadian unit of Dicom Transportation Group, a Montréal-based transportation and logistics services provider, to Royal Mail plc. Wind Point sold Dicom Canada to General Logistics Systems BV, the international arm of U.K.-based Royal Mail, for $360 million. Dicom Canada provides ground-based parcel, freight and logistics services in the domestic market. Wind Point, which in 2014 partnered with CEO Scott Dobak to buy Dicom Transportation Group, said it will continue to own the company's U.S. affiliate. In a separate statement, Royal Mail, a provider of postal and delivery services, said the deal will help it "capture higher growth segments outside Europe."