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CIC takes on the world
After a low-key year, China Investment Corporation really has come back out swinging. After last week’s news of its nifty deal with Apax Partners in Europe, a (US) SEC filing by the Chinese sovereign wealth fund gives an intriguing glimpse into how it is using exchange-traded funds to take positions on sectors ranging from healthcare to consumer services and gold.
Should Guy Hands be barred from Britain?
Based on the contents of this delirious court filing we would argue that the answer is an unequivocal “yes.”
That’s not because Guy Hands, the founder of Terra Firma and, by extension, the boss of EMI,
Doubt cast on EMI’s viability
EMI’s accountants have raised “significant doubt” about its ability to continue as a going concern, in a report that lays bare the parlous state of the £4.2bn investment by UK buy-out group Terra Firma in the music group.
D Telekom mulls T-Mobile IPO
Deutsche Telekom, owner of T-Mobile USA, the fourth-largest US wireless provider, is exploring an IPO or spinoff of the US business as it seeks to jump-start the carrier and assuage disenchanted shareholders,
Resolution eyes RBS branches
Resolution Group, the vehicle set up by UK investor Clive Cowdery, and US buy-out group Blackstone, are in the running to join National Australia Bank in a potential bid for the 318 branches being sold by RBS.
Abu Dhabi to take Gatwick stake
The owners of Gatwick have sold another stake in the airport, this time to Abu Dhabi’s sovereign wealth fund. The move comes days after news that South Korea’s National Pension Service would take a 12% stake in Gatwick for just under £100m.
Further reading
Elsewhere on Thursday,
- Meet the market’s biggest losers.
- Goldman departures: if you left Lloyd, he’d find you…
- That Macquarie Bank picture aftermath.
- Revenue beat rate: this earnings season.
Hands weighs plea on Citi loans
Guy Hands will have to ask investors in his Terra Firma private equity group to inject another £100m after admitting that EMI’s recorded music business will not be able to meet the terms of loans from Citigroup this year.
Axa puts Spotless up for sale
Spotless, the French maker of laundry and cleaning products, could become the latest “pass-the-parcel” deal between private equity groups, after Axa Private Equity put it up for sale with a €600m-€700m price tag after withdrawing the company from sale two years ago amid the financial crisis.
How to say ‘more please’ in Chinese
For a prime example of investor chutzpah, look no further than China Investment Corp, the country’s mega sovereign wealth fund, which has just done a deal with Apax to invest €685m (£599m) in the UK private equity group’s €11.2bn buy-out fund.
Groups circle Dubai assets
Istithmar, the investment arm of the troubled Dubai World conglomerate, has put Inchcape Shipping Services, the UK-based port and shipping agent, up for sale for $600m-$700m, in a deal that has drawn interest from buy-out groups including Advent International,
CIC invests in Apax fund
China Investment Corp has invested €685m (£599m) into Apax Partners’ €11.2bn fund in a landmark deal that could encourage other buy-out groups to solicit investments from the Chinese sovereign wealth fund.
Hands taxed by Citi’s EMI push
Guy Hands may face a dilemma over his tax planning if Citigroup succeeds in moving its legal dispute with his buy-out group Terra Firma from New York to London. Hands sued Citi in New York late last year,
Korea’s NPS and the ‘overlap’ factor
One thing we know about the South Koreans — they have reversed course in recent years to become big spenders and poor savers. They have also become much bolder investors, after decades of adhering to a more cautious approach.
Korea’s NPS swoops on Gatwick
South Korea’s National Pension Service will next week take a 12% stake in Gatwick airport, in a further push to expand its international portfolio from $240bn to $400bn by 2014. The deal follows NPS’s acquisition last year of HSBC’s headquarters at London’s Canary Wharf for £773m.
Apollo sets Asia property fund
Apollo Management is launching an Asia Pacific property fund with an expected $500m to $1bn under management, to target distressed real estate in the region. The fund will be run from Hong Kong by a team headed by Grant Kelley,
Travelport plans £2.2bn IPO
Travelport said on Monday that its planned flotation in London would value all of its shares at up to £2.16bn ($3.45bn). The UK-based travel services group – which is about 70%-owned by US buy-out group Blackstone – announced IPO plans last month.
Citi mulls sale of buy-out unit
Citigroup plans to sell or split off its $10bn Citi Private Equity unit, expanding the list of money-management businesses the US bank is disposing of to reduce debt, reports Bloomberg. Citi Private Equity oversees about $2bn of Citi’s money with the remainder from outside investors.
Permira, Lovering, eye DFS
UK buy-out house Permira and John Lovering, the veteran UK retail executive, have teamed up to prepare a bid for DFS, the sofa chain being sold by its founder Lord Kirkham. The auction of DFS, valued at about £500m,
Banca Leonardo ditches buy-outs
Banca Leonardo, the Italian investment bank, is shutting its private equity division and writing down the value of its holdings by €70m ($97m) . The decision comes after huge losses seen in some of Italy’s biggest buy-out deals,
HgCapital buys alternative energy
UK buy-out group HgCapital will on Monday announce three investments in wind and solar power projects worth a total €300m ($416m), including one of the UK’s biggest wind farms. HgCapital Renewable Power Partners,
Buy-out groups in £900m spree
Private equity groups were expected on Thursday to acquire three mid-sized UK companies in separate deals worth a combined £900m-plus, as the buy-out market shows signs of a revival after a two-year hiatus.
Warburg Pincus buys Survitec
Warburg Pincus will on Friday announce the £280m acquisition of Survitec, the UK maker of safety and defence equipment. Unlike deals in the credit bubble era, however, the US buy-out group is financing less than half the price of Survitec with debt,
3i bounces back
3i, the UK’s oldest private equity group, said on Thursday that its financial strength had been restored after last year’s debt crisis. 3i said its net debt was £643m, down from £1.9bn a year ago,
Trilantic eyes Rodenstock
Trilantic Capital Partners, the former Lehman Brothers private equity fund backed by Richemont chairman Johann Rupert, has offered to take control of German glasses maker Rodenstock with the support of the Swiss luxury goods group.
KKR snaps up Pets at Home
US buy-out group KKR has agreed to acquire Pets at Home in a deal valuing the UK’s top supplier of pet products at £955m. The deal follows an auction between leading private equity groups for Pets at Home,
Banks eye Kabel’s €5bn buy-out
Private equity groups including CVC and Carlyle are lining up banks to finance a €5bn bid for Kabel Deutschland, Germany’s top cable operator, in what would be the biggest leveraged buy-out for two years.
KKR, Grayer in new venture
US buyoufirm KKR is set to announce it is jointly establishing a new company with Jonathan Grayer, former CEO of Kaplan, the education unit of the Washington Post Co, reports the WSJ. The new company, Weld North,
Blackstone eyes UK banking
The chief executive of Blackstone has confirmed the possibility that the US buyout group will back the launch of a UK retail bank Stephen Schwarzman told reporters at a conference in Saudi Arabia that Blackstone was “looking at one potential situation” in the UK banking market.