Private Equity
Ontario music retailer Sunrise Records said it will take over 70 brick-and-mortar locations previously owned by HMV Canada. Sunrise said the initiative will introduce it to all major markets across Canada. The acquired stores will start opening in April 2017, it added. HMV Canada, which went into receivership earlier this year, has been backed since 2011 by Hilco Capital. Re:Capital Canada, an affiliate of the British private equity firm, acquired the business from the United Kingdom’s HMV Group Plc.
4 min read · 27 February 2017
Hayfin Capital Management LLP, which recently agreed to be acquired by British Columbia Investment Management Corp (bcIMC), has raised about US$3.7 billion (€3.5 billion) for its European direct lending strategy. London-based Hayfin said the funds were raised from new and existing global institutional investors and will be used to extend senior loans to European mid-market companies in various industries. Last month, bcIMC struck a deal to buy a majority stake in Hayfin from TowerBrook Capital Partners, PSP Investments, Ontario Municipal Employees Retirement System (OMERS) and Future Fund.
2 min read · 27 February 2017
Milestone Apartments Real Estate Investment Trust, which last month agreed to be acquired by Starwood Capital Group for about $1.7 billion (US$1.3 billion), has started talks with the U.S. private investment firm about raising the initial bid, sources told Reuters. The move comes days after proxy advisory firm Institutional Shareholder Services issued a report recommending Milestone unitholders vote against the transaction. Milestone and Starwood could agree on a higher price and make an announcement as soon as early this week, the sources said. Dallas-based Milestone, which went public in Toronto in 2013, owns and manages apartment properties targeting blue-collar workers across the U.S. southeast and southwest.
2 min read · 27 February 2017
Canadian metals and mining company Nevada Copper Corp (TSX: NCU) has secured an additional US$5 million in financing from its cornerstone investor, Pala Investments, a Swiss private equity firm. The financing, which took the form of a convertible loan, brings Pala's total investment in the company since 2014 to US$30 million. Vancouver-based Nevada said the deal's proceeds will help ensure greater flexibility as it progresses with development initiatives at Pumpkin Hollow, a large, advanced-stage copper project located in Nevada. The company owns 100 percent of the asset.
5 min read · 27 February 2017
The real estate arm of Canada's second-largest pension fund manager is looking at India's logistics sector following the announcement of its first investment in the country for more than six years, Reuters reported. Ivanhoé Cambridge, the real estate unit of Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec, announced a US$250 million residential investment in India last week, the first in the country since Daniel Fournier was put in charge of the division in 2010. India's real estate logistics sector is being fueled by the production of automotive components, textiles and pharmaceuticals, according to a research report by the real estate investment firm JLL. Export and import cargo is expected to grow to 2,800 million metric tonnes by 2020, the report said.
2 min read · 27 February 2017
U.S. power utility company AES Corp said it would buy a privately-held company that builds utility-scale solar projects, along with Canadian pension fund manager Alberta Investment Management Corp (AIMCo), for US$853 million, Reuters reported. The deal to buy FTP Power LLC, popularly known as sPower, from U.S. hedge fund Fir Tree Partners also includes US$724 million in debt. AES and AIMCo will each directly purchase and own slightly below 50 percent equity interests in the business.
1 min read · 24 February 2017
Give and Go Prepared Foods Corp, acquired last year by U.S. private equity firm Thomas H. Lee Partners, has bought the business of United Baking Co Inc and its affiliates Uncle Wally’s LLC and Vision Enterprises LLC. No financial terms were released. Based in Shirley, New York, Uncle Wally’s is a pure-play maker of premium muffins. Toronto's Give & Go said the deal represents the first expansion of its manufacturing footprint in the United States. It added that Uncle Wally's products will complement its own portfolio of thaw-and-sell products. Thomas H. Lee acquired Give & Go last August from OMERS Private Equity.
3 min read · 23 February 2017
Tricor Pacific Founders Capital set out two years ago to build a portfolio of food, beverage and consumer-packaged-goods companies. In that time, the Vancouver family office has made big strides toward that goal. Tricor Founders was launched as a partnership among food-industry executive Richard Harris, two of the founders of Tricor Pacific Capital, Rod Senft and Trevor Johnstone, and Derek Senft, Rod’s son. PE Hub Canada sat down with Harris, once dubbed Tricor Founders’ “secret weapon”, to discuss recent deals, the family office’s progress, and where it goes from here.
4 min read · 23 February 2017
Saba Software Inc, a portfolio company of U.S. private equity firm Vector Capital, has agreed to acquire Halogen Software Inc (TSX: HGN), an Ottawa provider of cloud-based performance management solutions. Saba agreed to an all-cash purchase price of $12.50 per share, which implies an equity value for Halogen of about $293 million. U.S. growth equity firm JMI Equity and other shareholders holding about 54 percent of Halogen shares have agreed to support the deal. U.S.-based Saba said the acquisition will extend its position as a provider of SaaS talent management solutions. Halogen's Michael Slaunwhite will chair the combined company.
6 min read · 23 February 2017
Brussels Airport is being prepared for a potential sale as one of its owners is planning an exit from Belgium's main hub, sources told Reuters. Australian Macquarie's infrastructure fund, which owns a 36 percent stake, is currently in talks with co-owner Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan, which has 39 percent, on whether the Canadian investor wants to increase its stake, the sources said. JP Morgan has been tasked with overseeing the process. Ontario Teachers' is looking to sell minority stakes in Britain's Bristol Airport and Birmingham Airport, Reuters reported earlier this month.
2 min read · 23 February 2017
