S&P Global Market Intelligence offers our top picks of global private equity news stories and more published throughout the week.
Blackstone Group Inc. will make yet another sizeable logistics investment in the U.S. in its bid to cash in on growing demand for e-commerce and delivery services.
The alternative asset manager is acquiring the industrial real estate assets and affiliated industrial operating platform of diversified real estate investment trust Colony Capital Inc. for $5.9 billion. The platform, which covers approximately 60 million square feet of infill, logistics assets across 465 light industrial buildings, has been made by the alternative asset manager's $20.5 billion fund Blackstone Real Estate Partners IX LP, or BREP IX, which reached a final close in September.
It follows Blackstone's $18.7 billion purchase of a U.S. logistics portfolio from GLP Pte Ltd. which nearly doubled the size of Blackstone's existing U.S. industrial footprint, the firm said. The acquisition marked BREP IX's initial investment, with Blackstone Real Estate Income Trust also backing the portfolio.
Separately, BREP IX reached a deal to buy a 65% controlling stake in Great Wolf Resorts Inc. from affiliates of Centerbridge Partners LP. Blackstone and Centerbridge will create a $2.9 billion joint venture to own the family-oriented entertainment resorts owner and operator.
A Blackstone Group sign stands in front of the investment firm's offices. |
* An investor group including Stone Point Capital LLC, KKR & Co. Inc. and Axa XL is selling high-net-worth specialist Privilege Underwriters Inc. to Japanese insurer Tokio Marine Holdings Inc. for roughly $3.1 billion.
* An affiliate of Warburg Pincus LLC is purchasing oil and gas company Roan Resources Inc. in a cash transaction worth roughly $1.0 billion, including about $780 million in assumed debt.
* Warburg, alongside Deutsche Beteiligungs AG and other minority shareholders, is selling its stake in German fiber-optic broadband network provider inexio Informationstechnologie und Telekommunikation GmbH to EQT Infrastructure. The deal was valued at about €1 billion, Reuters reported, citing sources familiar with the transaction.
* Brookfield Business Partners LP and its institutional partners are buying a 50% stake in infrastructure service provider Brand Industrial Services Inc., which does business as BrandSafway, from Clayton Dubilier & Rice LLC.
The Unilever Group logo in Manila. |
Auction block
* Cinven and sovereign wealth fund Abu Dhabi Investment Authority are exploring a joint bid for KKR-backed life-sciences testing company LGC Group, which could be worth more than $2 billion, including debt, people familiar with the matter told Bloomberg News.
* Golden Gate Capital is considering selling specialty chemicals maker ANGUS Chemical Co. in a transaction valued at more than $1.6 billion, people with knowledge of the matter told Bloomberg.
* Cerberus Capital Management LP is in talks to purchase Rank Group Ltd.-owned packaging firm Closure Systems International Inc., which could sell for up to $1 billion, people with knowledge of the matter told Bloomberg.
* KKR is planning to acquire the Continental Soup business of The Unilever Group in Australia, The Australian Financial Review's Street Talk blog reported.
Flush with cash
* Lexington Partners LP raised roughly $11.74 billion for Lexington Capital Partners IX LP and certain parallel funds.
* Hahn & Co. collected $3.2 billion for a pair of funds that will target investments in South Korea, Bloomberg reported, citing a person with knowledge of the matter.
* Paine Schwartz Partners LLC held a final close for Paine Schwartz Food Chain V with approximately $1.43 billion in capital commitments.
Sector intelligence
Banking US banks trading at lowest price-to-adjusted tangible book value in September
Energy In rapid expansion, energy storage executives address safety, performance risks
ESG Corporate consumers drive uptake of renewable energy as state subsidies fade
Fintech Houlihan eyes US fintech after picking up 2 industry i-bankers
Healthcare US hospital market concentration is rising as debate over consolidation persists
Insurance GEICO, USAA embrace telematics in private auto underwriting
Metals Gold execs eye technology, but cautious on potential for cost improvements
Private equity Private equity firms face setbacks in monetizing midstream investments
Real estate US REIT returns continue to soar in Q3, outperforming broader market
Retail, consumer products, gaming and leisure Shoemakers lead same-store sales growth among consumer companies
Technology, media and telecommunications Huawei's offer to license 5G technologies may fall flat

A Blackstone Group sign stands in front of the investment firm's offices.
The Unilever Group logo in Manila.