Iris Dorbian
Advantage Insurance Holdings Ltd, an insurance provider based in the Cayman Islands, said Monday that it has named GSO Capital Partners to serve as Advantage's exclusive portfolio advisor. In this role, GSO will be responsible for investing capital into loans, CLOs and other corporate credit investments. GSO is the credit investment affiliate of The Blackstone Group.
Signal Hill, an investment bank for growth companies, said Monday that it has become a sponsor of Launchpad Venture Group. Based in Boston, Launchpad is an angel investor group that provides funding to early-stage companies.
Brookfield Investment Management said Monday that it has named Craig Noble Chief Executive Officer of the company. Noble has served as Brookfield's Co-Chief Investment Officer since 2012. Also, Kevin English has been named Chief Operating Officer. Headquartered in New York City, Brookfield is a global alternative asset manager.
Friendly's Ice Cream LLC, a portfolio company of Sun Capital Partners, has closed its acquisition of The Johnny Rockets Group. No financial terms were disclosed. Headquartered in Aliso Viejo, Calif., Johnny Rockets is a provider of franchise restaurants in 32 states and 20 countries.
Mobile phone maker Samsung has acquired key talent and assets from Boxee, according to a Samsung spokesperson. No financial terms were disclosed, although some news sources report that the amount is for $30 million. About the acquisition, Samsung says in a statement: "This will help us continue to improve the overall user experience across our connected devices." Based in Tel Aviv, Israel, Boxee, which is backed by Spark Capital, Union Square Ventures, General Catalyst Partners, Pitango Venture Capital and Softbank, NY, is a web TV startup.
Israel-based venture capitalists Michael Eisenberg and Eden Shochat said on Wednesday that they have closed $140 million for Aleph, a new fund focused on helping Israeli entrepreneurs. According to Eisenberg and Shochat, the fund will focus on making Series A investments. Prior to launching Aleph, Eisenberg was general partner at Benchmark Capital while Shochat was a general partner at Genesis. To read Eisenberg and Shochat's announcement of Aleph, go to: http://aleph.vc/press-release/.
Venture capital veterans Gaurav Garg and Peter Wagner announced on Wednesday that they have launched Wing Venture Partners with a $111 million venture fund that will focus on making early stage investments in business technology. Previously, Garg was a venture partner at Sequoia Capital for ten years while Wagner was managing partner at Accel Partners.
Illinois Tool Works said on Wednesday that it has acquired Gold Pattern Holdings from Actis, a private equity firm that focuses on investments in Asia, Africa and Latin America. No financial terms were disclosed. Gold Pattern Holdings owns Vesta Global Ltd., which has a 100% equity stake in Vesta Catering Co., Ltd. Based in China, Vesta is a Western kitchen equipment manufacturer.
Encore Capital Group said on Tuesday that it has closed its acquisition of 50.1% equity stake held by J.C. Flowers & Co. in Cabot Credit Management. The transaction was for for £115 million (approximately $177 million). CCM is a UK-based acquirer and manager of consumer debt.
Outerwall, formerly known as Coinstar, has entered into an agreement to acquire ecoATM in a $350 million cash transaction. Currently, Outerwall has a minority stake in ecoATM. However, as a result of the deal, which is expected to close in the third quarter of 2013, Outerwall will be the sole majority owner of ecoATM. Morgan Stanley & Co. served as financial advisor to Outerwall for the transaction while Capstone Partners was financial advisor to ecoATM. Headquartered in San Diego, Calif., ecoATM, which was backed by Falcon Investment Advisors, Claremont Creek Ventures and Tao Ventures, sells recycling kiosks for gadgets and phones.