Abdicated Responsibility
No column this morning, due to some unexpected issues on the homefront (don't worry -- nothing serious), plus a ton of deal news to blurb. Hope to return to our regularly-scheduled ramblings tomorrow...
THE BIG DEAL
• Renaud Laplanche, the recently-ousted CEO of LendingClub (NYSE: LC), is speaking to private equity firms and investment banks about a possible takeover attempt of the online lender, according to Reuters. Read more.
VENTURE CAPITAL DEALS
• Cylance, an Irvine, Calif.-based cybersecurity company that leverages artificial intelligence and algorithmic science, has raised $100 million in Series D funding co-led by The Blackstone Group and Insight Venture Partners. Existing investors include DFJ Growth, KKR, Dell Ventures, Capital One Ventures and TenEleven Ventures. Read more.
• Ginkgo Bioworks, a Boston-based designer and developer of microorganisms for such purposes as flavoring, has raised $100 million in Series C funding. Backers include Y Combinator’s Continuity Fund, Senator Investment Group, Cascade Investment, Viking Global Investors, Allen & Co. and Bailie Gifford. Proceeds will be used to acquire 600 base pairs of synthetic DNA. Read more.
• Buildium, a Boston-based startup that sells software for rental property managers, has raised $65 million in funding from Sumeru Equity Partners, according to Fortune. Read more.
• Celonis, a Munich-based provider of “process mining” big data analytics, has raised $27.5 million in Series A funding co-led by Accel and 83North. Read more.
• Midokura, a provider of software network virtualization solutions, has raised $20.4 million in Series B funding from Simplex Inc. (Japan) and return backers Innovation Network Corp. of Japan and Allen Miner. The company has offices in Tokyo, San Francisco and Barcelona. www.midokura.com
• ABA English, a Barcelona-based online English language academy, has raised €12 million in growth equity funding led by Kennet Partners. www.abaenglish.com
• Convercent, a Denver-based provider of compliance management software, has raised $11 million in Series C funding. Tola Capital led the round, and was joined by return backers like Sapphire Ventures. www.convercent.com
• Nuxeo, a New York-based enterprise content management platform, has raised $10 million in new VC funding from Kennet Partners. www.nuxeo.com
• iContainers, a Spain-based digital freight forwarder and marketplace for instant quotes and booking, has raised $6.7 million in growth equity funding. Serena Capital led the round, and was joined by return backers Kibo Ventures and Vitamina K. www.icontainers.com
• Blow Ltd., a London-based on-demand provider of beauty services, has raised £500,000 in seed funding from Unilever Ventures. www.blowltd.com
PRIVATE EQUITY DEALS
• Antin and Borletti Group have agreed to acquire Grandi Stazioni Retail, an Italian leasor of commercial space at large railway stations, for around €900 million, according to Reuters. Read more.
• Banca Monte dei Paschi di Siena SpA has hired Mediobanca to find a buyer for the platform that manages its non-performing loans, according to Bloomberg. Private equity firms like KKR are likely targets. Read more.
• The Blackstone Group is in advanced talks to acquire Acrisure, a Caledonia, Mich.-based insurance broker currently owned by Genstar Capital, according to Reuters. The deal could be valued at over $2 billion (including debt). Read more.
• Pfingsten Partners has acquired Kith Kitchens LLC, a Haleyville, Ala.-based maker of semi-custom framed and frameless kitchen and bath cabinetry under the Kith and Eudora brands. No financial terms were disclosed. www.doorcomponentsllc.com
• Polycom Inc. (Nasdaq: PLCM), a San Jose, Calif.-based maker of videoconferencing equipment, says that an unidentified private equity firm has increased its buyout offer from the company to $12.25 per share, which represents a 2.5% premium to the company’s closing share price on Tuesday. The offer values Polycom at around $1.66 billion, which remains below Polycom’s existing agreement to be acquired for $1.96 billion by Mitel Networks (Nasdaq: MITL). Read more.
• Prostar Capital has agreed to acquire a 40% interest in a crude oil and refined product storage terminal on Zhoushan Island (near Shanghai) for more than $100 million. The terminal is owned by China’s Tyloo Oil and Gas International Holdings Corp. www.prostarcapital.com
• Stada (DE: STAG), a German generic pharma company, said that it did not engage in takeover offers with CVC Capital Partners, denying a WSJ report from late last month. Read more.
• Warburg Pincus has acquired a majority stake in Inexio, a German provider of broadband services, at an enterprise value of around €250 million. Sellers include Deutsche Beteiligungs. Read more. www.warburgpincus.com
• Wasserstein Partners has acquired Northstar Travel Group, a Secaucus, N.J.-based provider of B2B information and events related to the travel and meetings industry, from the Wicks Group of Companies. No financial terms were disclosed. www.northstartravelgroup.com
• TA Associates has acquired an undisclosed stake in Conservice, a Logan, Utah-based provider of utility management and billing software for property owners and managers, from Kayne Anderson Capital Advisors. No financial terms were disclosed. www.conservice.com
IPOs
• No IPO news this morning.
EXITS
• Navis Capital Partners is considering a sale of WorldMark, an Australia-based provider of automotive aftermarket products and services, according to The Australian. A deal could value WorldMark at more than A$230 million. Read more.
OTHER DEALS
• Amazon (Nasdaq: AMZN) said that it plans to invest more than $3 billion into its Indian e-commerce site, increasing pressure on VC-backed competitors like Flipkart and Snapdeal. Read more.
• Yahoo (Nasdaq: YHOO) has hired investment bak Black Stone IP to sell about 3,000 patents, according to the WSJ. Read more.
FIRMS & FUNDS
• Longitude Capital, a life sciences-focused VC firm, has closed its third fund with $525 million in capital commitments. www.longitudecapital.com
• Ohio TechAngel Funds has closed its fifth fund with $5.1 million in capital commitments. www.rev1ventures.com
• SoftTech VC, a San Francisco-based seed-stage VC firm, has closed its fifth flagship fund with $100 million in capital commitments. It also has raised $50 million for an overage fund. Read more.
• Temasek Holdings of Singapore has launched a $500 million issue of new bonds that are backed by a portfolio of 34 private equity funds (managed by such firms as The Blackstone Group and TPG Capital), according to The Straits Times. Read more.
MOVING IN, ON & UP
• Nir Blumberger has joined Accel as an Israel-based venture partner. He previously worked in the corporate development group of Facebook. www.accel.com
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