Author: Luisa Beltran

AZZ Inc. has acquired Aquilex Specialty Repair & Overhaul, a unit of Aquilex Holding, for $250 million. The transaction closed April 1. Aquilex SRO is majority owned by Centerbridge Partners. Norcross, Ga.-based Aquilex SRO provides maintenance, repair, and overhaul services to the nuclear, fossil power, refining, chemical processing, pulp and paper, and waste-to-energy industries. Houlihan Lokey advised Aquilex SRO.

PRESS RELEASE

Houlihan Lokey is pleased to announce the sale of Aquilex Specialty Repair & Overhaul (Aquilex SRO), a subsidiary of Aquilex Holdings LLC, to AZZ Inc. (NYSE: AZZ) for a purchase price of $250 million. Houlihan Lokey served as the exclusive financial advisor to Aquilex SRO and assisted in structuring and negotiating the transaction. The transaction closed on April 1, 2013.

Headquartered in Norcross, Georgia, Aquilex SRO is majority owned by Centerbridge Partners, L.P. The company is a leading global provider of critical recurring and commonly nondiscretionary maintenance, repair, and overhaul services to a diverse base of customers in the nuclear, fossil power, refining, chemical processing, pulp and paper, and waste-to-energy industries. Aquilex SRO’s proprietary processes and highly engineered technology solutions provide unique life extension options for critical plant infrastructure and utilize specialized automated equipment and craft labor.
AZZ Inc. is a specialty electrical equipment manufacturer serving the global markets of industrial, power generation, transmission, and distributions, as well as a leading provider of hot dip galvanizing services to the North American steel fabrication market. AZZ, Inc. is headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas and currently has a market capitalization of over $1 billion.
This represents another successful transaction on behalf of Aquilex and their stakeholders. In early 2012, Houlihan Lokey advised a group of senior noteholders, led by Centerbridge Partners, L.P., in designing and executing an out-of-court financial restructuring which materially reduced the company’s debt and added new growth capital to the business by way of a rights offering. Through that transaction, Centerbridge became the controlling shareholder of the company.
Houlihan Lokey is an international investment bank with expertise in mergers and acquisitions, capital markets, financial restructuring, and valuation. The firm serves corporations, institutions, and governments worldwide with offices in the United States, Europe, and Asia. Independent advice and intellectual rigor are hallmarks of our commitment to client success across our advisory services. Houlihan Lokey is ranked globally as the No. 1 restructuring advisor, the No. 1 M&A fairness opinion advisor over the past 10 years, and the No. 1 M&A advisor for U.S. transactions under $3 billion, according to Thomson Reuters.
If you would like more information about Houlihan Lokey, or if you have any questions regarding our role in the sale of Aquilex SRO, please contact one of the transaction team members listed.

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SD Retail Consulting, a unit of Hilco Trading, said Thursday that Dick Lynch was named Senior Vice President of Merchandising and Strategy. Lynch previously served as The Sports Authority’s president and COO, interim CEO of Sur La Table and CEO (post-bankruptcy) of Hechinger.

PRESS RELEASE

SD Retail Consulting, a leading strategic retail advisory firm and unit of Hilco Trading, LLC, today announced that it has named Dick Lynch Senior Vice President of Merchandising and Strategy. In his new role, Mr. Lynch will be responsible for helping retailers create shareholder value through process, organization and technology enhancements in the key merchandising and inventory management functions. He will also play a key role in assisting management, owners and lenders in shareholder value creation assignments.

With more than 30 years of retail experience, Mr. Lynch brings extensive executive leadership expertise, having served as President and COO of The Sports Authority, interim CEO of Sur La Table and CEO (post-bankruptcy) of Hechinger. In his ten-year period at The Sports Authority, Mr. Lynch played a significant role in growing the company from a two-store start-up to a publically-owned, multi-billion dollar retailer listed on the New York Stock Exchange. Mr. Lynch also served as President of Paperchase US, where he was responsible for all facets of operating more than 500 Paperchase stores inside Borders book stores and standalone stores on both coasts.

Mr. Lynch rejoins SD Retail President Antony Karabus, having previously served as a senior retail advisor at Karabus Management for more than 10 years. During this time, he focused on solving retailer financial performance and strategic issues, covering merchandising, inventory management and store operations.

During his retail consulting career, Mr. Lynch has led the implementation and enhancement of assortment planning and inventory management organizations, processes and related systems at numerous retailers and played a key role in the identification of overhead cost reduction and re-organization opportunities. Mr. Lynch has also earned great respect from retail lenders and private equity firms over the years for his work in assessing retailer profitability and financial positions.

“Dick has an impressive track record of solving complex retail issues, having played a key role in successfully enhancing sales and margins, improving field and merchandising effectiveness and reducing the cost structure for numerous retail chains,” said Antony Karabus. “Partnering with Farla Efros, EVP/Chief Operating Officer of Merchandising and Strategy, Dick will be invaluable as SD Retail continues to expand its merchandising and strategy practice, and deliver innovative client solutions to meet the challenges and opportunities created in the current retail environment.”

“I am very excited to be joining SD Retail and to be working alongside many former colleagues,” said Mr. Lynch. “Today’s landscape poses many opportunities and challenges for retailers, and I look forward to working with the talented senior management team at SD Retail to identify and implement strategic growth opportunities to enhance the businesses of our clients.”

ABOUT SD RETAIL CONSULTING

SD Retail Consulting is a leading strategic retail advisory firm that helps retailers unlock value across multiple operating segments; including merchandising, planning and allocation, the in-store customer experience, supply chain, inventory, real estate, the support infrastructure, technology effectiveness and the raising of capital required to support growth strategies. The company is a unit of The Hilco Organization and operates in New York as well as at Hilco’s headquarters in Northbrook, Illinois. For more information on SD Retail Consulting visit http://www.sdretail.com.

ABOUT HILCO TRADING LLC.

Headquartered in Northbrook, Illinois (USA), Hilco is a privately-held, diversified financial and operational services firm whose principal competency is understanding and maximizing the value of business assets, including retail, consumer and industrial inventory; machinery and equipment; real estate; accounts receivable; intellectual property; and, going-concern enterprises.  Through 500 professionals operating on five continents, Hilco helps companies and their professional advisors assess asset value, maximize value for said assets through asset monetization solutions, and enhance value through advisory and consulting solutions.  Hilco serves retailers, wholesalers, distributors and manufacturers, directly and through their lenders, investors and advisors, which can include private equity firms, hedge funds, investment banks, law firms, turnaround professionals, accounting professionals, bankruptcy trustees and receivers.  For more information please visit our web site: www.hilcotrading.com.

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Hulu has hired Guggenheim Partners to advise on a sale of the company, even as the financial services firm is considering making its own bid for the video streaming service, three sources with knowledge of the matter told Reuters.

(Reuters) – Hulu has hired Guggenheim Partners to advise on a sale of the company, even as the financial services firm is considering making its own bid for the video streaming service, three sources with knowledge of the matter told Reuters.

Guggenheim Executive Chairman Alan Schwartz was first hired by Hulu in 2011 to advise on a sale, but its owners were unable to find a buyer willing to pay the $2 billion that the company’s owners wanted.

Hulu, jointly controlled by Disney and News Corp, has re-engaged Guggenheim to handle another sale attempt, according to the sources, who spoke on condition of anonymity because the ongoing auction process is private.

Guggenheim is a New York-based investment firm with a fast-growing media business. A spokesman for the firm, Terry Fahn, declined to comment, as did Hulu spokeswoman Elisa Schreiber, News Corp spokesman Dan Berger and Disney spokeswoman Zenia Mucha.

Securities experts say financial services firms are increasingly both advising on and participating in deals as they become larger and expand into more areas. While permitted under securities regulations, some corporate governance experts have raised questions about conflicts of interest.

Guggenheim has established “a Chinese wall” between its investment banking and asset management businesses, said one of the sources.

Another source said Guggenheim has taken steps to keep the situation “transparent” and it is up to Hulu to decide whether to retain the financial services firm if it makes an offer for the company.

“It’s a definite conflict of interest,” said Ehud Kamar, a professor at USC’s Gould School of Law who specializes in securities law and is an expert on mergers and acquisitions.

“As financial firms get bigger and bigger, there is a greater likelihood that this will happen,” he said.

Other banks that have been on both sides of a deal include Goldman Sachs & Co, which was not paid a $20 million fee it billed for advising El Paso Corp on its sale to Kinder Morgan Inc. El Paso shareholders had sued Kinder Morgan, alleging that the sale was tainted by Goldman’s stake in the acquirer.

Kinder Morgan settled the suit for $110 million. The judge, Delaware Chancery Court Judge Leo Strine, described Goldman Sachs’ behavior as “furtive” and “troubling” though he also told lawyers for the El Paso shareholders that they may have a tough time holding the bank liable for its actions. Goldman has declined to comment on the matter.

POSSIBLE BIDDER

Guggenheim, which says on its website that it manages more than $170 billion in assets, created a separate Guggenheim Digital Media unit in January and put former Yahoo Inc and News Corp executive Ross Levinsohn in charge.

Levinsohn has been studying a bid for Hulu, according to the three sources.

Reuters previously reported that Hulu had reached out to potential buyers in March after initially contemplating a deal in which Disney and News Corp might buy the other out. It is not clear whether that transaction is still being considered. A third investor in Hulu, Comcast Corp, has given up control as a condition of buying NBC Universal.

Former News Corp President Peter Chernin, a one-time Hulu board member and one of its architects, has bid around $500 million for Hulu and offered to assume its $330 million in debt, sources told Reuters in April. A spokesman for Chernin had no comment on Guggenheim’s role.

Hulu says on its website that it has more than 3 million subscribers paying $7.99 a month for its premium service, and that it generated revenues of around $700 million last year. It sells advertising for its free service.

Guggenheim recently headed a group that spent $2.15 billion last year to buy the Los Angeles Dodgers baseball team. Its media investments include Billboard, Adweek, The Hollywood Reporter and Dick Clark Productions.

(Editing by Edwin Chan, Alden Bentley and Tiffany Wu)

(The story corrects names of Hulu owners in third paragraph to Disney and News Corp, instead of Disney’s ABC and News Corp’s Fox network. Also corrects title of Dan Berger in fourth paragraph to News Corp spokesman, instead of Fox spokesman.)

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Imran Akram has joined DN Capital as a principal. Previously, Imran was part of the founding team that started Fidelity Growth Partners Europe.

PRESS RELEASE

DN Capital, a leading media and technology growth capital and early stage investor, today announced that Imran Akram has joined the firm as a Principal.

Prior to DN Capital, Imran was part of the founding team that started Fidelity Growth Partners Europe. His investments there included Innogames (browser based online gaming), GoodData (hosted business intelligence software/SaaS), Seatwave (event ticketing marketplace) and Wahanda (health, beauty and wellness marketplace). He started his investment career with General Atlantic where he was part of the team that invested in GlobalCollect (online payments). Before that he worked at Bain & Company and in Citigroup’s securitisation team, after graduating with a First in Engineering, Economics and Management from Oxford University. At DN Capital, Imran’s focus is on software and digital media opportunities, primarily targeting growth equity deals in these segments. His arrival continues the expansion of the DN Capital investment team. Imran commented: “I am excited to join the DN Capital team and to support the firm’s growth equity expansion.”
Nenad Marovac, Founding Partner at DN Capital, commented:
“We are delighted that Imran has joined us at DN Capital. He has built an outstanding record of delivering excellent results through strong leadership, innovative thinking and sound investment judgement. Imran will continue to build our growth equity investing and brings a strong network across Europe.”
“DN’s team continues to grow in strength to the benefit of both our portfolio companies and investors.”

ABOUT DN CAPITAL
DN Capital is a global early stage and growth capital investor in software, mobile applications, digital media and e-commerce companies with offices in London and Palo Alto. DN Capital’s objective is to identify, invest in and actively support its portfolio companies to become global leaders. Portfolio companies include Shazam Entertainment, Apsmart (sold to Thomson Reuters), Endeca Technologies (sold to Oracle), Datanomic (sold to Oracle), Eyeka, Performance Horizon, JacobsRimell (sold to Amdocs), Lagan (sold to Kana) Mister Spex, OLX (sold to Naspers), Airsense Wireless, MPME, Apsalar, Tbricks and windeln.de. The professionals at DN Capital bring over 50 years of private equity experience to their investments, and actively work with portfolio companies to steward their growth through the various stages of development. Additional information about the firm and its portfolio companies can be found at www.dncapital.com.

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Bitbar said Wednesday that it closed a $3 million financing round led by Creathor Venture, DFJ Esprit, Finnvera Venture Capital and Qualcomm. Based in Helsinki, Finland and Silicon Valley, Bitbar is the creator behind a cloud-based Android testing platform.

PRESS RELEASE

Bitbar, the creator behind the most popular cloud-based Android testing platform, announced that it has completed a $3 million (USD) financing round.

The round is led by Creathor Venture (Frankfurt, Germany), DFJ Esprit (London), Finnvera Venture Capital (Finland), and Qualcomm Incorporated, acting through its venture investment group, Qualcomm Ventures, with additional funding from TEKES (Finland) financing.

Bitbar will use the funding to expand its rapidly growing mobile developer tools beyond Android, iOS and HTML5 that are currently supported, as well as beyond just testing.

“We are witnessing the renaissance of the mobile developer,” says Marko Kaasila, CEO, Bitbar. “We have seen more than 40 percent month-to-month growth on new users and more than 50 percent growth in monthly revenues. This financing round will allow us to grow our platform even further and provide our customers with a fully integrated development, testing and deployment experience for all relevant mobile platforms.”

“Bitbar’s disruptive technology has the potential to revolutionize the entire mobile software development process,” says Marc Biel, Investment Manager at Creathor Venture. “The company has made excellent progress in a very short time and is very well positioned for the future.”

Bitbar offers high-performance mobile software development and testing solutions that are based on widely adopted open standards. Testdroid by Bitbar is the easiest to use automated cloud-based testing solution for mobile apps, testing applications on over 200 real devices in minutes, including smartphones, tablet computers, and even cameras.

“At DFJ Esprit we have a global outlook. World class teams are at the heart of every business we invest in. We are committed to backing the very best European talent right here at home to create businesses that can win in global markets. Bitbar’s customer traction in the Android developer market and the pace this market is developing is what made this investment stand out” said Scott Sage, principal, DFJ Esprit, a Pan European VC firm with more than $1 billion under management and whose recent investments include Datahug, Sport Pursuit and Lyst.

Bitbar’s top tier customer list includes companies from around the world, including Ancestry.com, BMW, Critical Path, eBay (US and UK), Evernote, Facebook, Flipboard, Google, LivingSocial, Lookout, PayPal, Pinterest, Saffron Digital, SoundCloud, Swiftkey, Tesco, The Weather Channel, Top Free Games and Wooga.

About Bitbar
Bitbar is a technology and services company that provides high-performance mobile software development and testing solutions based on widely adopted open standards. The company’s flagship cloud-based Android testing solution, Testdroid Cloud, is the first automated, real-time testing tool for mobile application developers. The company also offers Testdroid Recorder to automatically generate standards-based test scripts and Testdroid Server for companies to build in-house test labs. Bitbar helps accelerate time to market and lowers costs of developing software on mobile platforms – from smartphones to tablet computers and even cameras. The company is funded by Creathor Venture (Frankfurt, Germany), DFJ Esprit (London), Finnvera Venture Capital (Finland), and Qualcomm Ventures. Bitbar is based in Helsinki, Finland and Silicon Valley. Follow Bitbar and Testdroid on Twitter at @bitbar. For more information, see www.bitbar.com.

About Creathor Venture
As a leading European Venture Capital firm, Creathor Venture invests in technology-oriented companies and entrepreneurs. The focus is particularly on mobile, e-, m-, s-commerce, media, cloud, life science, mobile health and diagnostics. Regional focus is on Germany, Switzerland, Austria and Scandinavia. The current portfolio of more than 30 companies is actively supported in development, growth and internationalization by our team of 15 staff. The management team of Creathor Venture consists of the founder of the former Technologieholding VC GmbH, Dr Gert Köhler as well as Ingo Franz, Cédric Köhler and Karlheinz Schmelig. The team has built more than 200 technology companies successfully, conducted more than 20 international IPOs and has achieved exceptional returns for fund investors and the financed entrepreneurs in the past.

Creathor Venture manages funds of more than EUR 180 million (USD 240 mio) and currently has four Offices in Germany (near Frankfurt & Munich), in Zurich and in Stockholm.

The investors of the current fund include the European Union, through which the fund receives funding from the “Competitiveness and Innovation Framework Programme” (CIP), and the “ERP EIF fund of funds” and the LfA – Gesellschaft für Vermögensverwaltung mbH, both facilities of the European Investment Fund (“EIF”), fund of funds, family offices and entrepreneurs. As the largest investor in Creathor the management underlines its entrepreneurial orientation.

About DFJ Esprit
DFJ Esprit is a leading cross-stage venture capital firm that invests from seed to late stage in European technology and media companies. Members of the DFJ Esprit team have experience of investing in over 200 companies and generating strong returns for investors through building valuable companies alongside the founders and management teams. DFJ Esprit is the exclusive European partner for the Silicon Valley-based DFJ Network with offices in over 30 cities around the world. www.dfjesprit.com

 

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The Pritzker Group said Wednesday that five industry executives will serve as senior advisors to its companies. They include: Christopher Doerr, the co-CEO of Sterling Aviation Holdings; Stephen Fraser; John Pedersen, a former senior vice president of Boston Scientific; John Prann, a director of Corrections Corporation of America; and, Paul Reilly, a serial entrepreneur who founded and sold several businesses.

PRESS RELEASE

The Pritzker Group today announced five industry executives to serve as senior advisors to its family of companies, giving strategic counsel as the firm aggressively pursues growth and operational excellence.

The Pritzker Group, led by Tony and J.B. Pritzker, has a 10-year history of acquiring and growing middle market companies. The firm is expanding its investing activities, which remain focused on family and entrepreneur-owned companies that lead their markets. The Pritzker Group’s newly expanded investment and operations team, led by Baird private equity veteran Paul Carbone, acquires leading middle-market companies in the manufactured products, services and healthcare sectors.

“Our senior advisors offer expertise and perspective to our company management teams and The Pritzker Group as part of our commitment to operational excellence.  Their counsel will help our companies create and execute strategies that achieve world-class operations, products and services for our customers,” said Carbone, The Pritzker Group’s managing partner of private equity.

The senior advisors are:

Christopher L. Doerr is co-CEO of Sterling Aviation Holdings Inc. and previously led Karl’s Event Services, Inc. and LEESON Electric Corporation.  Doerr is currently a director of Roadrunner Transportation Systems, Inc. (NYSE:RRTS) and Regal Beloit Corporation (NYSE:RBC). He provides strategic counsel to Signicast, the world’s leading provider of investment castings.

Stephen H. Fraser has served in a variety of senior management positions for private and publicly-traded companies, including Horizon Lines and GENCO. Fraser is a professional independent board member and provides advisory services to companies. He serves as a senior advisor to PECO Pallet, a North American leader in pallet rental services and logistics.

John B. Pedersen is a former senior vice president of Boston Scientific Corp. (NYSE:BSX) and senior engagement manager of McKinsey & Co. Pedersen is a senior advisor to Clinical Innovations, a women’s health medical device business focused on improving efficiency and outcomes during labor and delivery.

John R. Prann, Jr., is currently a director of Corrections Corporation of America (NYSE:CXW) and formerly served as president and CEO of Katy Industries. A former Deloitte & Touche partner, Prann is senior advisor to Impact Products, which manufactures and supplies branded and private label non-chemical commercial cleaning and maintenance products.

Paul J. Reilly is a serial entrepreneur who founded and sold several businesses, including Paul Reilly Company of Illinois, Rytec Corporation and R-Bac Industries.  Reilly also has served as the top executive of Encore Discovery Solutions, D-Vision Systems and Orbit Commerce.  He was named senior advisor to Intersystems International, which designs and manufactures specialized material handling equipment serving the global agriculture industry.

About The Pritzker Group’s Middle-Market Investment Team

The Pritzker Group’s middle-market investment team acquires North American-based companies with enterprise values between $100 and $500 million, focusing on quality businesses with leading positions in the manufactured products, healthcare and services sectors. The firm’s proprietary capital base allows for broad flexibility in its investment horizon, transaction structure and approach to creating long-term value, making it an ideal partner for entrepreneur- and family-owned businesses. The Pritzker Group brings large-company credibility, relationships and expertise to the middle market and can support its companies with additional growth capital. The firm’s middle-market and venture capital teams have acquired or invested in more than 100 companies over the past decade. For more information, visit www.pritzkergroup.com.

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Verdesian Life Sciences, which is backed by Paine & Partners, has acquired all of the assets of Plant Syence Ltd and its affiliates. Financial terms weren’t announced. Plant Syence, of the U.K., supplies plant nutritional solutions to the agriculture and horticulture markets.

PRESS RELEASE

Verdesian Life Sciences, LLC (“Verdesian”), a Paine & Partners, LLC (“Paine & Partners”) company, today announced that it has acquired all of the assets of Plant Syence Ltd and its affiliates (“Plant Syence”).  Plant Syence is an East Yorkshire-based company which has served as a manufacturer’s representative for Verdesian in the United Kingdom and continental Europe for the last 11 years. Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed.
“Verdesian is committed to product development and enhancing our portfolio through acquisition of companies and technologies. The acquisition of Plant Syence is an important step in Verdesian’s growth strategy,” said JJ Grow, Chief Executive Officer of Verdesian Life Sciences. “We have had a successful and long-term relationship with Plant Syence.  They’ve developed strong local relationships and have offered keen insight into local markets that has led to the continued development of Verdesian products. We welcome Plant Syence to the Verdesian family and look forward to creating a global plant health company together.”
“We firmly believe that this development will benefit the company and our customers,” said John Haywood, CEO Plant Syence. “Increased investment from our new parent company will allow us to be more responsive to the needs of our customers and provide more support to those using our products. Our team will remain the same, as will the quality of our products, and with this extra support we plan to develop more innovative products.”
Plant Syence will immediately begin conducting business as Verdesian Life Sciences Europe, Ltd. Haywood will assume the Managing Director position of Verdesian Life Science Europe and will report to JJ Grow.
About Plant Syence
Founded in 2002, Plant Syence is a supplier of plant nutritional solutions to the agriculture and horticulture markets. Plant Syence has worked with leading research institutes to help develop technologies and ideas for the European market to provide a full independently verified local support package.
About Verdesian Life Sciences, LLC
Verdesian focuses on investments in plant health and nutrition.   Established in September 2012 by Paine & Partners, a global private equity investment firm that specializes in the food and agribusiness industry, Verdesian acquired Biagro Western Sales, LLC, a leader in protected technologies for developing plant health and plant nutrition products, in September 2012, and Northwest Agricultural Products, a world-class provider of specialty agriculture products, in February 2013. Further information about Verdesian is available at www.VLSci.com.

About Paine & Partners, LLC
Paine & Partners provides equity capital for management buyouts, going private transactions, and company expansion and growth programs. Paine & Partners engages exclusively in friendly transactions developed in cooperation with a company’s management, board of directors and shareholders. The firm currently makes investments through its $1.2 billion fund, Paine & Partners Capital Fund III, L. P. and related entities.
Paine & Partners focuses on the food and agribusiness industry globally, and its principals, through a predecessor fund, have made successful strategic investments in Seminis, then the world’s leading global developer, producer and marketer of vegetable and fruit seeds; and Advanta Netherlands Holdings BV, at the time, the largest independent agronomic seed company in the world. Paine & Partners also invested in Icicle Seafoods, a leading producer, harvester and processer of salmon, pollock, halibut, cod, crab and other seafood products with operations in North and South America and sales globally. Paine & Partners’ most recent investments include Sunrise Growers~Frozsun Foods, a leading value-added frozen fruit processor and marketer; Eurodrip, a global manufacturer and supplier of drip irrigation solutions; Verdesian Life Sciences, a U.S.-based plant health and nutrition investment platform; Scanbio Marine Group, a leading Norwegian producer of fish protein concentrate, fish meal, and fish oil; and Costa Group, Australia’s largest integrated grower, packer and marketer of fresh fruits and vegetables. The complex investment opportunities in today’s rapidly evolving agribusiness environment play to the strengths of Paine & Partners’ differentiated approach. For further information, see www.painepartners.com.

 

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PLH Group Inc., which is backed by U.S. private equity firm Energy Capital Partners, has acquired Pipeworx Ltd. and its subsidiaries. Financial terms of the transaction were not announced. The Acheson, Alberta-based Pipeworx, founded in 2004, delivers infrastructure services to the oil and gas industry across the Western Canadian Sedimentary Basin.

PRESS RELEASE

PLH Group, Inc. (“PLH”), a portfolio company of private equity firm Energy Capital Partners, today announced its acquisition of Pipeworx Ltd. (“Pipeworx”), a leading pipeline contractor in Western Canada.

Effective April 16, 2013, PLH has acquired Pipeworx and its subsidiaries. With four offices and headquarters in the Edmonton, Alberta area, Pipeworx delivers infrastructure services to the oil and gas industry across the Western Canadian Sedimentary Basin. Since its founding in 2004, Pipeworx has been committed to the successful completion of its projects – safely performing quality workmanship on time and within budget. Specializing in the construction of pipelines ranging in size from 2″ to 20″ in diameter, Pipeworx has evolved into one of the most innovative and respected pipeline contractors in Western Canada. Pipeworx also provides infrastructure services for gathering systems, well sites and facilities, tank farm installations, compressor installations, module fabrication and integrity repair programs.

“Canada, and Western Canada in particular, presents significant emerging and long-term opportunities for PLH and the pipeline infrastructure services market as a whole,” said Mark Crowson , President and CEO of PLH. “This strategic addition to PLH significantly expands our geographic footprint in North America, and we are pleased to welcome Pipeworx to the PLH platform.” Pipeworx will be an operating unit of PLH, and its current senior management and employees will remain in place.

About PLH Group, Inc. 
PLH is a leading provider of construction and maintenance services to the electric power delivery and pipeline industries in North America. Its customers include many of the largest utilities, regional cooperatives, renewable energy developers, commercial and industrial customers, and major oil and gas producers and midstream companies. PLH, a company started by Energy Capital Partners, has acquired Sun Electric, TESSCO, AIR 2, Auger Services, Snelson Companies, IPS Engineering, Southeast Directional Drilling, M&M Pipeline Services, Energy Services South and Pipeworx. PLH is actively seeking to expand further its service offerings and geographic footprint. For more information, visit www.PLHGroupInc.com.

About Energy Capital Partners 
Energy Capital Partners is a private equity firm with over $8 billion in capital commitments. The firm is focused on investing in the power generation, electric transmission and pipeline construction services, midstream oil and gas, renewable energy, oil field services and environmental services sectors of North America’s energy infrastructure. Its management has substantial experience leading successful energy companies and energy infrastructure investments. For more information, visit www.ecpartners.com.

SOURCE PLH Group, Inc.

 Photo courtesy of Shutterstock.

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Aberdare Ventures said Tuesday that Mohit Kaushal has joined the firm as a partner. He will focus on Aberdare’s investments in technologies and services that will drive healthcare efficiency. Kaushal was most recently West Health’s chief strategy officer and EVP of business development.

PRESS RELEASE

Aberdare Ventures, a leading healthcare venture capital firm, today announced that Mohit Kaushal has joined the firm as a partner. Mohit (Mo) Kaushal is a leading authority on information-enabled care delivery and will focus on Aberdare’s investments in technologies and services that will drive healthcare efficiency.

“Mo has lived at the intersection of medicine, technology, communications, and policy for years,” noted Paul Klingenstein, founder of Aberdare Ventures. “He’ll make an enormous contribution to our efforts in transformational health investing. The timing is superb for all of us.”

An MD and MBA by training, Kaushal was most recently the inaugural Chief Strategy Officer and Executive Vice President of Business Development at West Health, a unique set of entities focused on lowering healthcare costs through medical research, healthcare policy, investment and entrepreneurship. He developed the West Health Investment Fund strategy, sourced and led investments in Humedica (acquired by Optum Health), Change Healthcare, RxAnte and goBalto.

Previously, Kaushal was the Director of Connected Health with the Federal Communications Commission, where he established the agency’s first dedicated healthcare team. During his time in the Obama administration, he was also a member of the White House Health IT task force, a cross-agency team focusing on implementing the technology aspects of Health Reform. Prior to this position, Kaushal was an investment professional at Polaris Venture Partners, and worked for Merrill Lynch’s Health Care Investment Banking Group and the World Health Organization. Kaushal holds an MBA from Stanford and an MD with distinction from Imperial College of Science, Technology and Medicine, London.

“Aberdare has a wonderful reputation for advancing some of the most disruptive companies in healthcare,” said Kaushal. “The team shares my passion for working with great companies and entrepreneurs to produce a much more efficient, consumer-centric and efficacious healthcare system, and I am very excited to be on board.”

Kaushal joins existing Aberdare Venture partners Paul Klingenstein, Darren Hite, Sami Hamade, Jake Odden, and Sigrid Van Bladel.

About Aberdare Ventures

Formed in 1999, Aberdare Ventures is a San Francisco-based venture capital firm investing in visionary entrepreneurs and technologies that are transforming healthcare with new biological, engineering, and information technologies. The firm has attracted and partnered with many superior early stage companies such as Ironwood, Pharmion, Clovis Oncology and MC10, repeatedly backing start-up’s that have grown to values exceeding $1 billion. The team of six investment professionals oversees a committed capital base in excess of $400 million in aggregate. For more information please visit: www.aberdare.com.

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Quantum Energy Partners has formed Jagged Peak Energy with the former executive leadership team of Ute Energy. Denver-based Jagged Peak will engage in the acquisition, development, and exploration of oil and gas assets, primarily focusing on resource plays in select North American basins. Quantum, along with members of the management team, have committed more than $400 million to Jagged.

PRESS RELEASE

Quantum Energy Partners (“Quantum”), a leading energy private equity firm, is pleased to announce the formation of Jagged Peak Energy LLC (“Jagged Peak” or the “Company”) with the former executive leadership team of Ute Energy LLC led by industry veteran Joe Jaggers (“Jaggers”).
Jagged Peak will engage in the acquisition, development, and exploration of oil and gas assets, primarily focusing on resource plays in select North American basins. Quantum and members of the management team have collectively made capital commitments in excess of $400 million to the Company.
The Jagged Peak team will be led by Jaggers as Chairman, Chief Executive Officer and President. Joining the executive management team alongside Jaggers will be Chief Operating Officer Greg Hinds and Chief Financial Officer Laurie Bales.
Quantum and Jaggers previously partnered together in building Ute Energy, LLC into one of the more successful resource play companies focused in the Uintah Basin. Ute Energy was sold last year for in excess of $1 billion. Jaggers and the management team successfully executed a lease, acquire and drill strategy, growing production at sale announcement to over 7,800 net boepd and undeveloped acreage to over 156,800 net acres.
Wil VanLoh, President and CEO of Quantum, commented, “We are excited to be partnering once again with Joe, Greg, and Laurie. They comprise the nucleus of an exceptional team of oil and gas professionals that have a proven track record of delivering superior returns in unconventional resource plays. They possess best in class execution capabilities and will be well positioned to capture producing property and acreage acquisitions and then build value through development drilling.”
Jaggers remarked on the closing, “We look forward to Jagged Peak building upon our prior success at Ute Energy. We see a great opportunity in the market today to capture resource-rich opportunities and accelerate the conversion into proved reserves and cash flow. We are also excited to continue our partnership with Quantum, whose strong financial sponsorship and energy industry expertise provides a great compliment to our team.”
About Jagged Peak Energy, LLC
Based in Denver, Colorado, Jagged Peak will focus on liquids resource opportunities onshore. The organization has proven skills in capital allocation, efficient operations and acquisition execution.
About Quantum Energy Partners
Founded in 1998, Quantum Energy Partners is a leading provider of private equity capital to the global energy industry, having managed together with its affiliates, more than $6.5 billion in equity commitments since inception. For more information on Quantum, please visit www.quantumep.com. For investor relations, please contact Michael Dalton at (713) 452-2000.

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Haystax Technology, which is backed by Edgewater Funds, has acquired Digital Sandbox. Financial terms weren’t announced. McLean, Va.-based Digital Sandbox provides threat and risk analysis and monitoring software in the National Security and Homeland Security fields.

PRESS RELEASE

Haystax Technology, Inc. (Haystax), a portfolio company of the Edgewater Funds, today announced the acquisition of Digital Sandbox, Inc. Haystax provides multi-source information integration, big data analytics and visualization to address the challenges posed by exponential increases in data volume to customers in the intelligence, defense and security communities. The Digital Sandbox acquisition extends Haystax capabilities and products in public safety, law enforcement and corporate security markets.

Digital Sandbox is a software company that has been providing threat and risk analysis and monitoring software in the National Security and Homeland Security fields since 1998. Federal, State, and Local agencies use Digital Sandbox commercial software product suites to quantify and monitor risks from natural and man-made threats, and to direct resources based on threat and risk priorities. Digital Sandbox’s suite of secure and cloud-deployable software tools provide geospatial, temporal, and real-time streaming information feeds to monitor threats and risks for field operations and special events, including four of the last five Super Bowls.
William Van Vleet , Chief Executive Officer of Haystax, said, “The accelerating variety, volume and velocity of data available can overwhelm organizations and leaders responsible for ensuring the safety of major companies and events. We are excited to add Digital Sandbox’s technologies to provide our customers with scalable analytics to monitor hundreds of real-time news and social media feeds with mobile solutions to enable entirely new capabilities for prioritized, intelligent decision-making.”
Digital Sandbox founders and partners, Bryan Ware and Anthony Beverina , added, “Together, as part of one company, we become a more powerful platform with access to defense and intelligence markets. We are now positioned to compete for opportunities that were, until now, beyond the capabilities of either company alone. We are very excited to join Haystax to raise the level of our service and capabilities for our customers.”
Following the acquisition, Digital Sandbox will be known as Digital Sandbox, Inc., a Haystax Company, and will continue to be led by its president, Anthony Beverina . Bryan Ware will serve as the chief technology officer for Haystax Technology. The terms of the transaction were not released.
About Digital Sandbox, Inc.
Digital Sandbox provides analytic tools and information products to government agencies and large enterprises, enabling them to optimize their strategic, policy, and budgetary decisions for risk-based resource allocation. Digital Sandbox analytic risk management solutions help customers in the public safety, corporate, and homeland security fields lower their risk exposure, increase the impact of their risk management budgets, and maximize the effectiveness of their resources. Visit Digital Sandbox on the Web at www.dsbox.com.

About Haystax Technology
Haystax Technology, Inc. provides next generation products, systems and service solutions to sift, refine and analyze large, disparate and unstructured volumes of data to reveal undiscovered connections and enable precise, actionable intelligence for government and commercial market clients. In essence, these technologies allow users to find “the needle in the haystack” quickly and reliably. For further information about Haystax Technology, visit our website at www.haystaxtechnology.com.
About The Edgewater Funds
The Edgewater Funds is a Chicago-based private equity firm with $1.4 billion in committed capital. Through Edgewater Growth Capital Partners, we partner with management to help accelerate growth in their businesses. Edgewater focuses on funding high quality middle market companies where we can add substantial value through our capital, our experience and our broad network. Edgewater leverages the experiences of its Partners and Advisory Board who have distinguished themselves as successful CEOs and business leaders.

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Gryphon Investors has completed the sale of TrustHouse Services Group, a Charlotte, N.C.-based contract food service provider, to Elior SCA. Financial terms weren’t announced. Gryphon invested in TrustHouse in 2008. The sale to Elicor was announced in March.

PRESS RELEASE

Gryphon Investors (“Gryphon”), a San Francisco-based private equity firm, and Michael J. Bailey, the CEO of TrustHouse Services Group (“TrustHouse”) announced today that they have completed the previously announced sale of Gryphon’s portfolio company TrustHouse to Elior SCA (“Elior”), a prominent provider of contract and concessions catering headquartered in Paris, France. Elior partnered with its two main shareholders and TrustHouse’s management for the acquisition. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.
About TrustHouse Services Group
TrustHouse Services Group (www.trusthouseservices.com) is a leading food service provider focused on the healthcare, education and corrections sectors. TrustHouse manages over 675 client accounts across 45 states. Divisions of TrustHouse include Aladdin Food Management based in Wheeling, WV; AmeriServe Food Management headquartered in Columbia, MO; Fitz Vogt & Associates located in Walpole, NH; A’viands, LLC in Minneapolis, MN; Lindley Food Services located in New Haven, CT; and Valley Services, Inc. located in Jackson, MS. TrustHouse is headquartered in Charlotte, NC and was founded in 2008 by Mike Bailey and Gryphon Investors, a San Francisco-based premier middle-market private equity firm.

About Gryphon Investors
Based in San Francisco, Gryphon Investors focuses on leveraged acquisitions of, and growth investments in, middle-market companies in partnership with experienced management. Having committed more than $1 billion of discretionary equity capital, Gryphon has an extensive track record of investing $35 to $100 million of its own capital in companies with sales ranging from $50 to $250 million. Gryphon prioritizes investment opportunities where it can form proactive partnerships with owners and executives to build leading companies, utilizing Gryphon’s capital, professional resources and significant financial and operational expertise. Visit www.gryphoninvestors.com for more information.

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StepStone Group said Tuesday it closed its secondary private equity fund at $450 million. StepStone Secondary Opportunities Fund II LP exceeded its original target of $350 million and closed at the hard cap. Together with allocated capital from separately managed accounts, StepStone has raised approximately $650 million for a focused and differentiated strategy within the secondaries market.

PRESS RELEASE

StepStone Group, LP (“StepStone”) today announced the final closing of its secondary private equity fund, StepStone Secondary Opportunities Fund II, LP, (the “Fund”) with total commitments of $450 million. The Fund exceeded its original target of $350 million, closing at its hard cap. Together with allocated capital from separately managed accounts, StepStone has raised approximately $650 million for a focused and differentiated strategy within the secondaries market.

Limited Partners in the Fund consist of leading U.S. and international investors, including public and corporate pension funds, insurance companies, endowments and foundations, family offices, and financial service and advisory firms.

The Fund’s investment strategy focuses on the smaller end of the secondaries market, where StepStone believes it can capture market inefficiencies to drive returns.

“We are fortunate to have a sophisticated, diversified group of global investors as Limited Partners, many of whom have invested with us in the past,” said Tom Bradley, one of the Fund’s co-managers. “In a difficult fundraising environment, we are appreciative of the support and confidence that our Limited Partners have shown in our differentiated secondaries strategy – one which seeks to generate alpha by building a more concentrated portfolio of high quality assets, purchased at attractive prices, leveraging the global StepStone platform. We have generated significant momentum as a result of our recent investment activity and will seek to continue to build upon the success of our secondaries strategy.”

About StepStone

StepStone is a leading private equity firm that oversees more than US$50 billion of private equity allocations, including approximately US$10 billion of assets under management, through its global offices in New York, London, Beijing, and San Diego. StepStone creates customized and targeted portfolios for the world’s most sophisticated investors using a highly disciplined research-focused approach that integrates fund, secondary, mezzanine and co-investments. StepStone leverages its unique global platform to optimize exposure to top performing investment strategies, geographies and managers. For more information about StepStone, its philosophy and services, please visit www.stepstoneglobal.com.

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Kevin McNamara has joined Health Evolution Partners as an operating partner. McNamara is a founding principal of McNamara Family Ventures, a family investment office providing venture and growth capital to health care companies.

PRESS RELEASE

Health Evolution Partners, a health care private equity firm, announced today that Kevin McNamara has become the firm’s newest Operating Partner. McNamara brings extensive experience in corporate operations, finance and investing with particular expertise in helping leading health services companies mature and grow.

“We are excited to add Kevin to our team of accomplished health care professionals,” said David J. Brailer, MD, PhD, Managing Partner and Chief Executive Officer of Health Evolution Partners. “As Chief Financial Officer of HealthSpring, Kevin helped shepherd the company’s incredibly successful IPO and we look forward to bringing his expertise to help guide our portfolio of growth companies.”

“While I have spent my career leading large corporate enterprises, my passion lies with fast growing companies,” said Kevin McNamara. “Health Evolution Partners allows me to combine my experience with my passion, and provide valuable contributions to some of the most innovative health care companies operating today.”

David Smith, General Partner for Health Evolution Partners’ Growth Buyout Fund said, “I’m delighted to welcome Kevin to our team and look forward to working closely with him in weeks to come. He brings a wealth of practical knowledge from a broad swath of organizations within the health care continuum. His experience guiding organizations as varied as HealthSpring, ProxyMed, Luminex and HCCA will be invaluable to our partners and portfolio.”

McNamara is a founding principal of McNamara Family Ventures, a family investment office providing venture and growth capital to health care companies, and currently serves on the boards of directors of Tyson Foods, a member of the S&P 500, and Luminex Corporation, a publicly-held life sciences company. He also serves on the board of directors of Leon Medical Centers, a privately-held health care services provider serving Medicare patients in the Miami-Dade region, and chairs the board of Agilum Healthcare Intelligence, an early stage health care IT enterprise offering business intelligence solutions to smaller hospitals and physician practices.

McNamara’s career includes leadership positions with managed care organization HealthSpring, Inc. (EVP and Chief Financial Officer), health transactions facilitators ProxyMed, Inc. (Non-Executive Chairman and Interim Chief Executive Officer) and Envoy (Chief Financial Officer and Director), clinical recruitment service provider and strategic planning firm HCCA International, Inc. (Chief Financial Officer), among others. He received a B.S. in accounting from Virginia Commonwealth University and an M.B.A. from the University of Richmond, VA, and is a Certified Public Accountant (inactive.)

With Health Evolution Partners, Kevin McNamara will serve as Operating Partner with the firm’s Growth Buyout Fund and join the boards of portfolio companies CenseoHealth and Optimal Radiology.

About Health Evolution Partners | www.healthevolutionpartners.com

Health Evolution Partners invests in rapidly growing companies in the health care industry. We target opportunities across the key sectors of the health care economy – hospitals, physicians, managed care, pharmaceutical developers, device makers and consumer products and services. Our investments are led by an exceptional team of health care investment professionals and seasoned operators. We believe that the firm’s extensive network of health care specialists, policymakers and thought leaders give our companies a significant competitive advantage. By partnering with talented management teams, we are able to create long-term value and in turn, drive attractive returns for our investors.

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Wayne Kawarabayashi has joined Union Square Advisors as a partner in the firm’s New York office. Kawarabayashi was most recently an MD of M&A at Barclays.

PRESS RELEASE

Union Square Advisors LLC, a leading technology-focused investment bank, announced today that Wayne Kawarabayashi has joined the firm as a Partner in its New York office. Mr. Kawarabayashi most recently served as Managing Director of M&A at Barclays. “We are very excited that Wayne is joining Union Square Advisors,” said Carter McClelland, Executive Chairman of the firm. “Wayne brings significant leadership and execution experience in technology M&A and a breadth of relationships with investors and corporations alike. Wayne will help Union Square to continue to drive its growth and leadership in our core technology investment banking business.”

“Union Square Advisors will be a unique opportunity for me to join a platform that provides a differentiated value proposition to its clients,” said Wayne. “I am impressed by Union Square Advisors’ team which brings deep industry insights, strong execution and remains focused on the most dynamic areas in technology. The firm has undeniable momentum right now and I am enthusiastic about its prospects going forward.”

The demand for Union Square Advisors’ M&A and capital-raising expertise has continued to accelerate and grow. Since 2009 the firm has announced 33 transactions for a total transaction value approaching $3.5 billion. Most recently, the firm served as an advisor to VMware in the creation of the Pivotal Initiative with EMC. Union Square Advisors actively works with leading technology companies on a wide range of M&A and financing transactions across the entire technology ecosystem – in the software, Internet/digital media, networking, storage, systems and semiconductor spaces; on both buy-side and sell-side transactions with public and private companies; on cross-border, competitive and other transactions with significant structural complexities; and across the investment spectrum working with venture capital, growth equity, public equity and private equity investors.

About Union Square Advisors

Union Square Advisors LLC is a leading investment banking advisory firm serving technology companies through its mergers & acquisitions, private capital financing and advisory services. Founded in 2007 by a group of the world’s premier technology banking professionals, the firm has offices in San Francisco and New York and works with leading public and private firms across the technology landscape – including software, Internet/digital media, networking, storage, systems and semiconductor companies, as well as with the strategic capital providers that invest in these sectors. For more information on Union Square Advisors, please visit www.usadvisors.com.

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Tengram Capital Partners has collected $173 million for its first institutional fund. Fund I’s target was $150 million, according to a statement. Mt. Vernon Group and Triple A Partners were placement agents for the pool while White & Case was fund counsel. Founded in 2010, Westport, Conn.-based  Tengram targets middle market consumer and retail companies.

PRESS RELEASE

Tengram Capital
Partners LLC (“TCP” or “Tengram”), a private equity firm that invests
in leading middle-market consumer companies that own strong,
recognizable brands, has completed the fundraising of it first
institutional fund. The fund closed with $173 million of commitments,
exceeding its target fund size of $150 million.

TCP received commitments from a broad array of institutional and
individual investors, including endowments, pension plans, alternative
asset managers, and large family offices. Matthew Eby, Co- Founder and
Managing Partner, commented, “The team at Tengram is thrilled to have
the trust and support of a strong group of long-term investors. We
value their partnership and look forward to working on their behalf.”

Tengram was founded in 2010 by William Sweedler and Matthew Eby.
Richard Gersten joined as a Partner in 2011. Together, they have spent
almost 50 years operating and investing in branded consumer businesses.
TCP’s brand-focused strategy has led to current fund investments in
Robert Graham, Sequential Brands Group, NEST Fragrances, and Laura
Geller Beauty. William Sweedler, Co-Founder and Managing Partner, said,
“Rich, Matt and I have unique, complementary backgrounds that together
bring a collective expertise that differentiates our partnership from
many consumer investors. Tengram’s core philosophy is that brands are
the most vital and valuable part of the consumer experience. The
partners, along with our consumer focused investment team, will
continue to attract unique and proprietary investment opportunities in
our areas of expertise, including apparel, home, sporting goods,
retail, health and beauty, and food and beverage.”

Tengram partners with exceptional entrepreneurs and operators,
providing the strategic guidance and resources required to effectively
activate and grow their brands. As Richard Gersten, Partner, explained,
“We work closely with our management teams and strive to create strong
partnerships founded on a basis of trust. Our partnership approach
resonates with many founder and family-led businesses that are seeking
the operating expertise and intellectual capital to help grow their
businesses.”

Tengram used Mt. Vernon Group and Triple A Partners as placement agents
and White & Case as fund counsel.

ABOUT TENGRAM CAPITAL PARTNERS:

Tengram Capital Partners, LLC is a private equity firm that focuses
exclusively on leading middle-market consumer and retail companies that
own strong recognizable brands. The team has a diverse background of
consumer investing and operating expertise that assists and guides
company management to unlock the true potential of their brand. Tengram
invests in both traditional “growth” and “restructuring/turnaround”
situations in either the public or private sectors. Previous and
current investments for Tengram and its predecessor investment entity,
Windsong Brands, LLC, include Laura Geller Beauty, NEST Fragrances,
Sequential Brands Group, Robert Graham, Joe Boxer, Joe’s Jeans, Field &
Stream, Design Within Reach, and Cloudveil. Tengram’s website is
(www.tengramcapital.com ).

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Jeremy Dickens has joined Shearman & Sterling’s private equity practice as a partner in New York. Most recently, Dickens was a member of the private equity practice at Weil, Gotshal & Manges where he was co-founder and co-head of its global capital markets practice.

Shearman & Sterling Expands Private Equity Capabilities and Strengthens Capital Markets Practice with Addition of Dickens

Shearman & Sterling has furthered its commitment to build a market-leading private equity practice with the addition of veteran lawyer Jeremy Dickens, who will join the firm as a partner in New York.
Mr. Dickens comes to Shearman & Sterling with law firm and corporate experience. At Weil, Gotshal & Manges, he was a member of the private equity practice and co-founder and co-head of its global capital markets practice. During his 18 years with Weil, in both London and New York, Mr. Dickens represented leading private equity firms and their portfolio companies in a wide range of matters, including M&A, corporate governance, corporate restructurings, securities offerings, compliance, shareholder litigation, and SEC and corporate investigations. He also was widely respected as a top high yield debt and IPO lawyer, primarily acting as underwriters’ counsel. Throughout his career, global, UK, and US peer- and client-nominated ranking guides repeatedly named him a leading lawyer.

In 2007, after representing Riverdeep Group in the $3.7 billion reverse acquisition of Houghton Mifflin, he left Weil to become President of the resulting company, Education Media and Publishing Group (EMPG). In that role, he was responsible for M&A, corporate finance, joint ventures, and other strategic initiatives. He served on EMPG’s board of directors and worked closely with its private equity backers. After shepherding EMPG through an out-of-court restructuring in 2009, he founded a company providing outsourcing services to large nonprofit organizations and served as an independent director of a private equity-backed bank holding company.

“Jeremy’s arrival significantly strengthens our private equity capabilities and enhances our already well regarded leveraged finance practice,” said Shearman & Sterling global managing partner David Beveridge. “He has exceptional credentials in both areas and is highly regarded by his clients.”

Added Shearman & Sterling Americas capital markets leader Antonia Stolper, a New York-based partner, “Our Capital Markets Americas practice already has a market-leading reputation, and having Jeremy come on board will certainly solidify our standing among clients and the broader business community.”

Mr. Dickens will focus on expanding the firm’s private equity practice, which draws upon asset management, capital markets, mergers & acquisitions, executive compensation, bank finance, and tax groups and also provides opportunities for litigation and restructuring assignments. He also will advise Shearman & Sterling’s corporate and investment banking clients.

“Shearman & Sterling’s long history, great reputation across critical practice areas and global footprint make it the ideal platform from which to build a private equity practice,” Mr. Dickens said. “I am honored to join a firm I have admired for so many years and I am very excited about the opportunities ahead.”
*****
Shearman & Sterling LLP is a global law firm with approximately 900 lawyers in 20 offices in 12 countries around the world. The firm is a leader in mergers and acquisitions, capital markets, project development and finance, complex business litigation and international arbitration, asset management and tax.

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Starwood Capital Group said Monday it raised $4.2 billion with latest global fund. The Greenwich, Conn. private investment firm focuses on real estate globally.

PRESS RELEASE

Starwood Capital Group (“Starwood”), a leading private investment firm, today announced the successful closing of its latest global fund, Starwood Distressed Opportunity Fund IX (“SOF IX”). The fund reached its cap with $4.2 billion of commitments from more than 75 investors around the world.
“We are grateful for our investors’ continued support and confidence in our team, which have been instrumental to our success since our founding in 1991,” commented Barry Sternlicht , Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Starwood Capital Group. “We have now grown to manage more than $23 billion in assets on behalf of clients across our six main product lines; Global Real Estate Investing, Energy Infrastructure through Starwood Energy Group, Global Real Estate Long Short Investing through Starwood Real Estate Securities, Retail Investments through Starwood Retail Partners based in Chicago, Hotel Branding and Management through SH Group, and Global Real Estate Finance through Starwood Property Trust in the U.S. and Starwood Capital Europe Advisers in the United Kingdom. Today we employ over 250 talented people directly, in nearly every expertise in real estate to better support investors in ten offices around the world.”
After dramatically reducing its acquisitions in 2006 and 2008 when real estate pricing made little sense, Starwood significantly increased its investment activity in 2009 and on. Starwood fully invested the approximately $2.8 billion of Starwood Global Opportunity Fund VIII and Starwood Hospitality Fund II which closed in March of 2010 in a variety of assets including more than 18,000 single family lots, interests in more than 9,000 multifamily units, the purchase of six distressed bank loan pools, and more than 70 domestic hotels. Notable transactions include the acquisition of Corus Bank in partnership with the FDIC for $2.75 billion, the joint venture acquisition of Sea Island Resort, as well as providing the startup funding for TRI Pointe Homes which recently became the first homebuilder to go public since 2004.
“We have been actively investing this new fund, SOF IX, since the end of last year, and have completed more than 20 investments both here and in Europe in the past months. We have already invested or committed approximately $2 billion of equity capital in the United States and Europe. The fund, like all Starwood vehicles, is diversified by product type and geography and includes interests in several bank loan pools, distressed debt, more than 3 million square feet of office, 1 million square feet of retail, 15,000 multifamily units and more than 150 hotel properties,” added Jerome C. Silvey , EVP and Chief Financial Officer.
About Starwood Capital Group
Starwood Capital Group is a private, U.S.-based investment firm with a core focus on global real estate. Since the group’s inception in 1991, the firm has raised nearly $19 billion of equity capital, and through its various funds, has invested $15 billion representing over $38 billion in assets and today manages over $23 billion of assets across five businesses, with a primary focus on its private real estate funds. Starwood’s businesses include Starwood Global Real Estate, Starwood Property Trust (NYSE: STWD), Starwood Real Estate Securities, SH Group and Starwood Energy Group Global. Starwood Capital Group maintains offices in Greenwich, Atlanta, San Francisco, Washington, D.C., Chicago and Los Angeles, and affiliated offices in London, Luxembourg, Paris and Sao Paulo. Starwood Capital Group has invested in nearly every class of real estate on a global basis, including office, retail, residential, senior housing, golf, hotels, resorts and industrial assets. Starwood Capital Group and its affiliates have successfully executed an investment strategy that includes building enterprises around core real estate portfolios in both the private and public markets. Additional information about Starwood Capital can be found at www.starwoodcapital.com.

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Susan Kasser has joined Neuberger Berman as an MD and head of private debt at Neuberger Berman Alternatives. Kasser joined Neuberger Berman in March and is based in New York. Most recently, Kasser was with the Carlyle Group, where she was a founding member of Carlyle Mezzanine Partners.

PRESS RELEASE

Neuberger Berman, one of the world’s leading employee-controlled asset managers, is pleased to announce the addition of Susan Kasser as Managing Director and Head of Private Debt at Neuberger Berman Alternatives. Ms. Kasser joined Neuberger Berman in March and is based in New York.

Neuberger Berman’s Private Debt business is focused on building portfolios of attractive yield-oriented investments, including uni-tranche, second lien and mezzanine, and financing portfolio companies of private equity investors. The Private Debt business is a part of Neuberger Berman Alternatives, a prominent private equity limited partner and an experienced direct equity co-investor. Neuberger Berman Alternatives has approximately 60 investment professionals in its integrated private equity platform, which consists of capabilities across primary and secondary fund investments as well as direct debt and equity investments in transactions led by financial sponsors.
Ms. Kasser joins Neuberger Berman from The Carlyle Group, where she was a founding member of Carlyle Mezzanine Partners. In her prior role, she focused on investing in privately negotiated junior debt and equity securities of middle market and large cap leveraged buyouts, recapitalizations and growth financings across multiple industries. Prior to Carlyle, she worked at Goldman Sachs in several groups, including Leveraged Finance, Private Equity and Global Investment Research. Ms. Kasser received an MA in International Economics and Finance and a BA in Philosophy from Brandeis University, where she graduated magna cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa. She holds the designation of Chartered Financial Analyst.
“The breadth of Susan’s industry experience as a deal leader will enable us to further develop and enhance yield-oriented investment solutions for our clients,” said Anthony Tutrone , Managing Director and Global Head of Neuberger Berman Alternatives, which manages approximately $18 billion for institutions and individuals. “By expanding our dedicated effort focused on financing private equity transactions, we are also broadening the partnership between Neuberger Berman Alternatives and the private equity community.”
About Neuberger Berman
Neuberger Berman is a private, independent, employee-controlled investment manager. It partners with institutions, advisors and individuals throughout the world to customize solutions that address their needs for income, growth and capital preservation. With more than 1,800 professionals focused exclusively on asset management, it offers an investment culture of independent thinking. Founded in 1939, the company provides solutions across equities, fixed income, hedge funds and private equity, and had $205 billion in assets under management as of December 31, 2012. For more information, please visit our website at www.nb.com.

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Madison Dearborn Partners has agreed to buy National Financial Partners in a deal valued at about $1.3 billion. Terms of the deal call for NFP shareholders to receive $25.35 in cash for each share of NFP common stock they own. Deutsche Bank Securities, Morgan Stanley Senior Funding and UBS Securities are providing debt financing. NFP is a benefits, insurance and wealth management business. BofA Merrill Lynch advised NFP’s board while UBS acted as financial advisor to Madison Dearborn.

PRESS RELEASE
National Financial Partners Corp. (NYSE: NFP), a leading provider of benefits, insurance and wealth management services, today announced that it has entered into a definitive agreement with Madison Dearborn Partners, LLC, a private equity investment firm, under which a controlled affiliate of Madison Dearborn will acquire NFP.

Under the terms of the agreement, NFP shareholders will receive $25.35 in cash for each share of NFP common stock they own, in a transaction with an equity value of approximately $1.3 billion, which includes the full value of the Company’s convertible debt. The purchase price represents a premium of approximately 26 percent over NFP’s closing share price of $20.05 on March 12, 2013, the last day of trading prior to press reports that NFP was considering a possible sale of the Company.

As previously disclosed, as a result of interest it had received from private equity firms, NFP’s Board of Directors formed a special committee of independent directors to explore a possible sale of the Company. After a thorough and rigorous process, and with the assistance of its legal and financial advisors, the special committee negotiated and recommended this transaction with Madison Dearborn to the full Board. The transaction was unanimously approved by the Board.

“This compelling transaction provides shareholders with substantial value, and is a successful outcome of the thorough process undertaken by our Board,” said Jessica M. Bibliowicz , chairman and chief executive officer of NFP. “This agreement also provides significant opportunities for our clients and employees by partnering with an extremely well-respected firm with proven expertise in the financial services sector.  NFP has a solid foundation, and we are confident the Company will thrive as a private enterprise in this next chapter of its evolution.”

“Madison Dearborn’s interest in NFP is a clear endorsement of the quality and success of our business, the value of our client-centric culture, and the hard work and dedication of our people. We are confident that partnering with this world-class investor will help us continue to execute on our long-term One NFP strategy and grow the business,” said Douglas W. Hammond , president and chief operating officer of NFP. As previously disclosed, the Board expects to appoint Mr. Hammond chief executive officer of NFP when Ms. Bibliowicz steps down from that role in May.

“We are pleased to have this opportunity to invest in NFP and help the Company advance its strategy,” said Vahe Dombalagian , a managing director at Madison Dearborn. “We look forward to working closely with the Company’s leadership team as it continues to build a strong diversified business. We fully support NFP’s focus on providing high-quality and value-added services to all of its clients, including corporations, through a more unified brand across its business segments.”

Madison Dearborn has obtained debt financing commitments from Deutsche Bank Securities Inc., Morgan Stanley Senior Funding, Inc., and UBS Securities LLC, the proceeds of which will be used to fund the transactions contemplated by the agreement and to pay related fees and expenses. Pursuant to an equity commitment letter, controlled affiliates of Madison Dearborn have committed to provide a cash investment on the terms and subject to the conditions set forth in the letter.

The transaction, which is subject to the approval of holders of a majority of the outstanding shares of NFP common stock and other customary closing conditions, is expected to close in the third quarter.

BofA Merrill Lynch served as financial advisor to the Board and the special committee, while Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton LLP was their legal counsel. Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP served as legal advisor to the Company.  UBS Securities LLC served as financial advisor to Madison Dearborn, while Ropes & Gray LLP served as its legal advisor.

About NFP
National Financial Partners Corp. (NYSE: NFP), and its benefits, insurance and wealth management businesses provide diversified advisory and brokerage services to companies and high net worth individuals, partnering with them to preserve their assets and prosper over the long term. NFP advisors provide innovative and comprehensive solutions, backed by NFP’s national scale and resources. NFP operates in three business segments. The Corporate Client Group provides corporate and executive benefits, retirement plans and property and casualty insurance. The Individual Client Group includes retail and wholesale life insurance brokerage and wealth management advisory services. The Advisor Services Group serves independent financial advisors by offering broker/dealer and asset management products and services. Most recently NFP was ranked eighth on Business Insurance’s 100 Largest Brokers of U.S. Business; second on Business Insurance’s Largest Agents and Brokers Headquartered in the U.S. Northeast; and as the ninth Top Global Insurance Broker by Best’s Review; it operates the third largest executive benefits provider of nonqualified deferred compensation plans by total clients as ranked by PlanSponsor; operates a top 10 independent broker/dealer as ranked by Investment Advisor; and has three advisors ranked in Barron’s Top 100 Independent Financial Advisors. NFP is also a leading independent life insurance distributor according to many top-tier carriers.  For more information, visit www.nfp.com.

About Madison Dearborn Partners
Madison Dearborn Partners, based in Chicago, is one of the most experienced and successful private equity investment firms in the United States.  Since Madison Dearborn’s formation in 1992, the firm has raised six funds with aggregate capital of over $18 billion and has completed approximately 125 investments.  Madison Dearborn invests in businesses across a broad spectrum of industries, including financial and transaction services; basic industries; business and government services; consumer; health care; and telecom, media and technology services.  Its noteworthy investments include CapitalSource, Nuveen Investments, PayPal, TransUnion, and EVO Payments.  For more information, please visit www.mdcp.com.

 

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