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Buyout shop GB Merchant Partners, through its GB Merchant Partners' 1903 Equity Fund, said that it has acquired Ashley Stewart, a Secaucus, N.J.-based plus size fashion retailer. Financial terms of the deal were not released. Formed in 1991, Ashley Stewart has more than 200 stores, and plans to expand following the acquisition. GB Merchant Partners has offices in New York and Boston. It’s 1903 Equity fund has roughly $270 million in committed capital.

Online comparison shopping company Nextag has acquired NextCoupons.com, an online coupon provider based in Santa Monica, Calif. Financial terms of the deal were not released. Nextag is based in San Mateo, Calif., and is backed by Providence Equity Partners, Morgenthaler Ventures and Technology Crossover Partners.

Backed by the private equity firm Actis, business process outsourcing company The ConJoin Group has acquired PHNS for $250 million. Dallas-based PHNS provides information technology and business process outsourcing services for the healthcare industry. The ConJoin group is based in Boston.

Middle market buyout shop LLR Partners has added Frank Filipps and William Jacobs to its newly formed financial services advisory board. Filipps served most recently as chairman and CEO of information services and analytics company Clayton Holdings. Jacobs served most recently as chief operating officer of MasterCard. Philadelphia-based LLR Partners has more than $1.4 billion under management.

Australian medical diagnostics company Sonic Healthcare will buy private equity-backed CBLPath for an undisclosed amount. Stamford, Conn.-based private equity shop Galen Partners, which focuses on healthcare investments, owns more than 40% of CBLPath. The remainder of the company is held by management, staff and other private investors. The deal is expected to close before the end of the year. CBLPath is a national laboratory providing pathology services, and is based in Rye Brook, N.Y.

Amazon will pay between $540 million and $545 million for the parent company of Diapers.com, Reuters reported, citing media accounts. The deal comes as Amazon bolsters its baby care offerings: in September, it launched the "Amazon Mom" program which provides member incentives such as discounts on diapers and free shipping. Five-year-old Diapers.com is owned by Jersey City-based Quidsi. The company is financed by Accel Partners, Bessemer Venture Partners and New Enterprise Associates, among others, Reuters reported.

PineBridge Investments has added George Hornig as senior managing director and chief operating officer. Hornig worked previously for Credit Suisse Asset Management, where he was managing director and co-global chief operating officer. Based in New York, Hornig will manage PineBridge’s operations, technology, product development and marketing and communications. PineBridge has $83 billion under management.

Private equity giant Blackstone Group paid investors a $16.2 million “clawback” on one of its real estate funds during the third quarter, Reuters reported. A clawback is paid when a fund fails to meet its targets, and general partners have to refund profits that were taken earlier in a fund’s life. Such obligations are down compared with last year, Reuters reported. As of Sept. 30, Blackstone's clawback obligations were $392 million, down from $485.3 million as of Dec. 31, 2009.

San Francisco-based Darwin Ventures has named Jay Bhatti to the post of general partner, and added Zach Heilman as lead engineering manager. Bhatti previously co-founded people search engine Spock.com. Heilman was previously the lead front-end engineer at Spock.com. Heilman and Bhatti will be based in New York City.

Harrah’s Entertainment, which is owned by private equity firms TPG Capital and Apollo Management, will raise about $500 million in an initial public offering, Reuters reported. The company plans to sell 31.25 million shares, or 9.3% of the company, at $15 to $17 each. The company will also change its name to Caesars Entertainment.