Private Equity
InstarAGF Asset Management last month made a $75 million investment in Steel Reef Infrastructure Corp, a Canadian midstream company that owns and operates processing and transportation facilities for oil, natural gas and natural gas liquids. The deal gave InstarAGF a minority interest in Steel Reef, entitling InstarAGF President and CEO Greg Smith with a seat on the company's board. Calgary-based Steel Reef said the investment will support near-term organic growth initiatives and enable it to pursue new infrastructure projects in top-tier basins. Toronto-based InstarAGF, an investor in infrastructure and real assets, raised an initial $372 million for its flagship fund in March.
6 min read · 02 May 2016
Canadian buyout and related private equity investment slowed in Q1 2016 with 59 deals (announced and closed) capturing $4.7 billion in total disclosed values, according to data released by Thomson Reuters. Dollar flows in Canada in this period were down 22 percent from Q1 2015, while the number of deals dropped 43 percent. Canadian investors were also less active around the world, joining only 20 international deals valued at $17 billion in the first quarter. Despite the decline in deal-making, buyout and other private equity funds in the Canadian industry raised $14.3 billion in committed capital between January and March, already exceeding the amount raised during all of 2015 by 29 percent.
3 min read · 02 May 2016
Altas Partners, a Canadian private equity firm founded by former Onex Corp Managing Director Andrew Sheiner, has raised US$1 billion for Altas Partners Holdings LP. The fund was closed at its hard-cap target and was oversubscribed, the firm reported. Investors in the fund were not disclosed. Based in Toronto, Altas was launched by Sheiner in 2012 to make equity investments of $100 million to $500 million over longer horizons than most private equity firms. It typically assumes control-stake positions in hard-to-replicate businesses. To date, the firm has acquired three companies: Capital Vision Services, NSC Minerals and St. George’s University (SGU). PE Hub Canada profiled Altas and its investment in Grenada-based SGU in August 2014.
2 min read · 02 May 2016
Unique Fabricating Inc (NYSE: UFAB) has acquired the business and substantially all of the assets of Intasco Corp, a London, Ont.-based manufacturer of precision die cut solutions. The acquisition, valued at $27.5 million, included 100 percent of the capital stock of Intasco USA Inc. Auburn Hills, Mich.-based Unique is a maker of components for customers in the automotive and industrial appliance markets. It said the Intasco deal will broaden the company's offerings, production capabilities, and reach in existing and adjacent markets. Unique is a portfolio investment of Taglich Private Equity, a U.S. private equity firm.
6 min read · 02 May 2016
Bombardier Inc's dual-class share structure is vital to protect the long-term interests of the Québec-based aerospace and transportation company, and the Bombardier-Beaudoin family has no plans to relinquish its majority control, Reuters reported, citing a statement by Executive Chairman Pierre Beaudoin. Several major investors, including the Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec, have pressed the Bombardier-Beaudoin family to reduce its voting control of the company, according to sources.
3 min read · 02 May 2016
Canadian enterprise software company OpenText Corp (Nasdaq: OTEX, TSX: OTC) has agreed to acquire ANXeBusiness Corp of Southfield, Michigan, a provider of cloud-based information exchange services to the U.S. automotive and healthcare industries. The deal is valued at about US$100 million and is expected to close later this year. Waterloo-based OpenText said the acquired company will complement its business-to-business integration solutions and strengthen its presence in the automotive and healthcare spaces. ANXeBusiness was bought by U.S. private equity firm One Equity Partners (OEP) in October 2006.
3 min read · 29 April 2016
OMERS Private Equity (OPE) has agreed to sell Give and Go Prepared Foods Corp (Give & Go) to Thomas H. Lee Partners, a U.S. private equity firm. No financial terms were released; however, Reuters recently reported that Thomas H. Lee was close to acquiring Give & Go for a sum approaching US$800 million. Based in Toronto, Give & Go is a maker of branded and private-label baked goods. OPE bought the company from Kilmer Capital Partners in 2007. Michael Graham, OPE's senior managing director, North America, said the deal marks the firm's seventh exit in the last three years. He added that OPE has seen about three times its original investment in Give & Go.
4 min read · 29 April 2016
Canadian private equity firm Onex Corp has closed its sale of German plastics processing machinery maker KraussMaffei Group to a consortium led by China National Chemical Corp (ChemChina). Announced in January, the deal was valued at about US$1 billion (€925 million). Onex, which acquired KraussMaffei from Madison Capital in December 2012, said it received proceeds of US$747 million on a US$358 million investment. This result gave the firm a gross multiple of invested capital of 2.1 times and a 24 percent gross rate of return, Onex reported.
2 min read · 29 April 2016
Pacific Exploration & Production Corp said an Ontario court approved a US$500 million debtor-in-possession financing facility for the Canadian company and its units, hours after it filed for creditor protection, Reuters reported. The Ontario Superior Court of Justice also approved a US$134 million letter-of-credit facility and second-priority lien over assets under the facility, the oil and gas company said. Pacific Exploration reached a deal last week with creditors, including Canadian private equity firm Catalyst Capital Group, to convert almost all of its debt to equity after it missed an interest payment due in March.
2 min read · 28 April 2016
Clearspring Capital Partners has secured $260 million for its third private equity fund, Clearspring Capital Partners III, earmarked for investments in mid-market companies in Canada. It is the largest fund in the Toronto-based firm’s 14-year history, bringing total assets under management to more than $500 million.
3 min read · 28 April 2016
