Alberta Investment Management Corp (AIMCo), one of Canada's largest pension funds, said on Friday that it has begun searching for a replacement for Chief Executive Officer Leo de Bever, who is retiring, Reuters reported. AIMCo, which manages about $70 billion of government and retirement funds from Alberta public servants, said it will take as long as necessary to replace de Bever, who has been CEO since April 2008. De Bever will stay on the job until his successor is found.
A fresh breeze has been blowing in North America’s PE fund-raising market of late, bringing relief to many investors with new offerings. But it takes more than that to explain the success that Canadian private equity firm Clairvest Group has recently had marketing its fifth fund, Clairvest Equity Partners V LP (CEP V). This week, Clairvest expects to announce the first close of CEP V, raising at least 75% of the partnership’s $600 million hard-cap target. What’s more, it will have managed this feat in less than three months on the fundraising trail.
Timber conglomerate Weyerhaeuser Co's first-quarter profit rose 27 percent as its acquisition of Longview Timber began paying off, Reuters reported. Weyerhaeuser bought Longview Timber Holdings from Brookfield Asset Management Inc last June for US$2.65 billion, including assumption of debt. Net profit rose to US$183 million in the quarter ended March 31.
Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce, the fifth largest bank in Canada, and two private equity consortia are exploring offers for global asset manager Russell Investments, sources told Reuters. CVC Capital Partners Ltd and Silver Lake have teamed up to pursue Russell, as have Warburg Pincus LLC and TPG Capital LP. Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance Co, which owns Russell, is hoping to find a buyer for both the firm's investment management and indexes businesses for as much as US$3 billion.
The Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPPIB) has become something of a white knight for a few private equity managers with aging funds they can’t seem to close. CPPIB announced this week that it led the restructuring of J.W. Childs Associates’ third fund, a US$1.75 billion vehicle that closed in 2002. According to Yann Robard, CPPIB’s head of secondaries and co-investments, the pension fund will continue to look for more opportunities to restructure older PE funds as part of its “portfolio liquidity solutions” strategy.
Telus Corp, one of Canada's dominant telecom providers, has reached a new agreement to acquire struggling wireless startup Mobilicity, in a renewed bid to overcome government objections on competition grounds, reports Reuters. Mobilicity said that it agreed to be acquired by Telus for $350 million and that a court-appointed monitor has recommended the transaction. The deal is still subject to government approval. The Toronto-based Mobilicity has been backed by U.S. private equity firm Quadrangle Capital Partners since 2008.
Acts of bribery, fraud and corruption are as old as human history. And as tactics by people committing such acts adapt and change, so do initiatives by public authorities to curb abuses. As Canadian and U.S. private equity and venture funds have become increasingly active in global deal-making, they need to be more aware of bribery and corruption issues abroad. And investors need to take steps to ensure that they and their investee companies are not in violation of laws concerning the corruption of foreign public officials.
Private equity firm Blackstone Group (BX.N) is set to launch a $4.2 billion financing to back its $5.4 billion acquisition of auto parts maker Gates Global, sister news service Reuters reports. The deal is the second-largest U.S. leveraged buyout financing of the year, according to Thomson Reuters data, and is also the largest private equity buyout of an industrial company in more than four years.
Goldcorp Inc , the world's second-biggest gold miner by market value, said on Thursday that it raised its offer to buy Osisko Mining Corp to about $3.6 billion, reports Reuters. Osisko has rejected Goldcorp's bid as too low. Osisko earlier this month unveiled a complex "white knight" bid by fellow Canadian miner Yamana Gold for 50 percent of its assets. As part of the deal, the company entered into funding arrangements with CPPIB Credit Investments and the Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec.
The chief executive of Osisko Mining Corp said on Tuesday it will be tough for Goldcorp Inc to raise its bid for Osisko by enough to trump a rival deal, and it is more likely that the gold producer will walk away from the transaction, Reuters reports. Last week Osisko unveiled a "white knight" bid by fellow Canadian miner Yamana Gold Inc for 50 percent of its assets. As part of the Yamana deal, Osisko entered into funding arrangements totaling $550 million with CPPIB Credit Investments and the Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec.