TPG Capital Management LP's $700 million bid for Billabong International Ltd. is still on the table, although the struggling Australian surfwear retailer needs to address some concerns raised by the private equity firm. Texas-based TPG, the last remaining bidder for Billabong, was considering formally withdrawing its takeover bid after weeks of due diligence, the Australian Financial Review said earlier on Thursday, citing unidentified sources, sending the surfwear company's shares tumbling by almost a fifth, Reuters wrote.
A private equity firm founded by Chinese billionaire Yu Yong and a fund backed by state-owned China Development Bank have offered to buy Australian-listed copper explorer Discovery Metals Ltd., valueng the company at about $850 million. The takeover offer for Discovery is the latest in a series of small-to-mid-sized metals and mining deals to hit Asia in the wake of sliding commodity prices.
Olympus Partners has acquired Waddington North America. Financial terms were not announced. Waddington produces rigid plastic foodservice disposables for the catering, institutional, retail, restaurant and food processing sectors. The Olympus team included Manu Bettegowda, Mike Horgan, Pete Tedesco, Griffin Barstis and Taylor Rhyne.
The Running Specialty Group said Wednesday it has acquired five Dallas-based Run On! stores. Financial terms were not announced. Bob and Rebecca Wallace, current owners of Run On! will remain with the company. With the five Run On! stores, RSG will have 24 running-specialty stores. RSG is a joint venture between The Finish Line, a mall-based athletic footwear retailer and Gart Capital Partners.
Estancia Capital Management has acquired a minority stake in Spruce Private Investors. Financial terms were not announced. Stamford, Conn.-based Spruce is a wealth management firm that serves as a Chief Investment Officer for family offices, foundations and endowments.
Flexpoint Ford said Wednesday it is investing up to $75 million into Corva, a platformed focused on acquiring and operating dialysis clinics. Jerry Simonsen, the former CEO of Renal Management, will serve as Corva's CEO. Separately, Corva has agreed to buy Innovative Renal Care, of Houston, that currently serves approximately 100 patients with end stage renal disease.
Final bids for Smart & Final, which is backed by Apollo Global Management, are due later this month, sources tell peHUB. Centerbridge Partners and Ares Management are still vying for the grocery retailer, persons say. Smart & Final could go for $700-$900 mln.
In the latest "Inside the Deal" column in Buyouts Magazine, Béla Szigethy and Stewart Kohl, co-CEOs of lower-mid-market buyout shop The Riverside Company, give some advice on exit strategy based on their 24 years of experience.
Blackstone has set up a joint venture with mid-sized rival Anacap to hunt for private equity deals in Europe's embattled banking sector, a person familiar with the situation said, Reuters wrote Wednesday. The venture between the New York-listed private equity powerhouse and financial services specialist Anacap will target banking and insurance deals in areas including consumer and corporate lending.
A consortium led by private equity firm 3i has kicked off the sale process for its majority stake in French medical-diagnostics company Labco, Reuters reported Wednesday. Paris-based Labco, in which management and a group of laboratory doctors also own a stake, could fetch around 1 billion euros ($1.3 billion), which would see troubled 3i make a profit on its 2008 investment in the firm, the sources said. The consortium, which also includes investors TCR Capital, Natixis Investment Partners and CIC Finance, has hired Rothschild to handle the sale process which started this week.