Random Ramblings
A bunch of notes before I hop a plane to Los Angeles...
• Tough timing: Earlier this month, Coller Capital announced that it had closed its seventh private equity secondaries fund with $7.15 billion. This past Friday, the firm informed its investors that CEO and deputy CIO Tim Jones had stepped down, effective immediately. He will remain a "non-executive special advisor," whatever that means.
Suffice to say, the timing is bizarre. So is Coller's decision not to provide any sort of explanation to its investors, even though they just committed billions of dollars into a fund that Jones was supposed to be helping to oversee.
I haven't spoken to any LPs who have suggested that Jones' departure would make them want to bail ― after all, Coller does have around a 50-person investment team ― but it's unclear that they'd even have the option. A Coller spokeswoman says that firm founder and CIO Jeremy Coller is the only keyman listed on the new fund, a structure that is nearly as strange as losing your CEO right after fund close.
• Speaking of Coller: Ashley Johansen, a New York-based partner focused on fundraising and investor relations, has quietly left the firm. She had originally worked at Coller from 2005-2012, spent 10 months at AlpInvest and then returned to Coller in September 2013. No word yet on her future plans.
• Power drain: SunEdison yesterday agreed to sell its Japanese business to a Thai oil firm for around $82 million, but neither issued a press release or SEC filing. It may not sound like too much money, until you realize that SunEdison's market cap has cratered to under $1 billion (around a 92% fall since last July).
I spoke briefly to a company spokesman, who had no explanation for the company's lack of disclosure, but promised he'd look into it and get back to me. As you might have guessed, that didn't happen. For more on the SunEdison mess, check out this story from Katie Fehrenbacher.
• Recommended reading: Yesterday I posted a story about Quartet Health, a New York-based tech startup that is trying to better coordinate care between primary care and mental health professionals. It also is using a big data approach (the founder used to work at Palantir) to help primary care providers better identify mental health risk in patients that are being treated for other conditions. In short, Quartet a VC-backed tech startup trying to do something important. You can read it here.
• So, what's new with you? When Ellen Pao stepped into her Lyft ride on Saturday, she saw a familiar face behind the wheel: One of the jurors in her gender discrimination and retaliation case. Moreover, he had voted against her, and in favor of (victorious) defendant Kleiner Perkins.
Pao did a snap Twitter poll asking followers how much she should tip (she tipped regularly and gave him five stars), and had what she refers to as a "polite and friendly" conversation with him. It was all good, just a little surprising," Pao says.
THE BIG DEAL
• Permira has agreed to sell Creganna Medical, an Ireland-based maker of delivery devices for the minimally invasive vascular surgery market, to TE Connectivity (NYSE: TEL) for $895 million in cash. www.cregannatactx.com
VENTURE CAPITAL DEALS
• Mission Therapeutics, a UK-based drug developer focused on selectively targeting deubiquitylating enzymes to treat cancer, neurodegenerative and other diseases, has raised £60 million in new funding. Imperial Innovations led the round, and was joined by Woodford Patient Capital Trust and return backers Sofinnova Partners, SR One, Roche Venture Fund and Pfizer Venture Investments. www.missiontherapeutics.com
• OutSystems, an application delivery platform with offices in Atlanta and Portugal, has raised $55 million in new equity funding. North Bridge Growth Equity led the round, and was joined by return backers ES Ventures and Portugal Ventures. Read more.
• Spotcap, a Germany-based online lending platform for small businesses, has raised €31.5 million in new VC funding. Finstar Financial Group led the round, and was joined by return backer Holtzbrinck Ventures. Existing shareholders include Rocket Internet. Read more.
• Federated Wireless, an Arlington, Va.-based spectrum resource sharing subsidiary of Allied Minds (LSE: ALM), has raised $22 million in Series A funding. Backers include Woodford Investment Management ($15m) and Allied Minds ($5m). www.federatedwireless.com
• ThirdLove, a San Francisco-based intimates brand, has raised $8 million in Series A funding led by NEA. Read more.
• 5D Robotics Inc., a Carlsbad, Calif.-based provider of automation technology for vehicles, has raised $5.5 million in seed funding from unidentified investors. www.5drobotics.com
• Lexumo, a Cambridge, Mass.-based automated cloud-based service for continuously monitoring software for vulnerable open source components, has raised $4.89 million in seed funding from Accomplice, .406 Ventures and Draper Labs. www.lexumo.com
• Four51, a Minneapolis-based provider of cloud-based B2B e-commerce solutions, has raised $5 million in new VC funding from three unidentified investors. www.four51.com
• Hi-Fi, a Ponte Vedra, Fla.-based “mobile lifestyle network,” has raised $3 million in seed funding from backers like MTH Ventures. www.lifeinhifi.com
• CarGlass, a San Francisco-based startup that connects drivers to content, has raised $3 million in seed funding from Byron Asset Management, Morning Crest Capital and two unidentified family offices. www.carglassapp.com
• SuitePad GmbH, a Berlin-based provider of a tablet-based hotel guest connectivity solutions, has raised €3 million in VC funding. Target Partners led the round, and was joined by return backers HW Capital and VC Fonds Technologie Berlin. www.suitepad.de
PRIVATE EQUITY DEALS
• Alco Manufacturing Corp., an Elyria, Ohio-based manufacturer of unleaded carbon steel couplings and fittings for hydraulic systems, has acquired Lakeshore Fittings Inc., a Grand Haven, Mich.-based maker of machined brass, eco-brass, stainless steel and aluminum fittings for the lawn and garden, gas distribution, plumbing and hydraulic industries. No financial terms were disclosed. Alco Manufacturing is a portfolio company of Blue Point Capital Partners. www.lakeshore-automatic.com
• Altamont Capital Partners has acquired Excel Fitness Holdings Inc., the largest Planet Fitness franchisee in Texas. No financial terms were disclosed. www.altamontcapital.com
• AUA Equity has acquired Raymundos Food Group LLC, a Bedford Park, Ill.-based maker and marketer of refrigerated snacks and desserts. No financial terms were disclosed. www.raymundos.com
• Audax Private Equity has acquired Preferred Compounding, a Barberton, Ohio-based provider of elastomeric compounds to the North American compounding industry, from Wingate Partners. No financial terms were disclosed. www.preferredperforms.com
• The Carlyle Group has agreed to acquire Essential Power, a 1,767 net MW power generation portfolio with facilities located in the Mid-Atlantic and New England, from IMF Investors. No financial terms were disclosed. www.carlyle.com
• CenterOak Partners has acquired a majority equity stake in Cascade Windows Inc., a Spokane, Wash.-based maker of vinyl windows and siding, from Altamont Capital Partners. No financial terms were disclosed. www.cascadewindows.com
• Dorner Manufacturing Corp., a Hartford, Wis.-based portfolio company of Incline Equity Partners, has acquired FlexMove System, a Malaysia-based manufacturer of flexible chain conveyors. No financial terms were disclosed. www.dornerconveyors.com
• EQT Partners has agreed to acquire Swiss travel services company Kuoni Reisen Holding AG for approximately $1.4 billion. Read more.
• Hammond, Kennedy, Whitney & Co. has acquired Panos Brands, a Rochelle Park, N.J.-based maker and marketer of natural and specialty food products, from High Roads Capital Partners. No financial terms were disclosed. www.panosbrands.com
• JPB Capital Partners has acquired a majority stake in Mulligan’s Beach House Bar and Grill, a chain of six family-oriented seafood restaurants in Florida. No financial terms were disclosed. www.jpbpartners.com
• Partners Group has agreed to acquire a control stake in Guardian Early Learning Group, an Australian provider of childcare and early childhood education, from Navis Capital Partners. The deal values Guardian at around A$440 million, and is expected to close later this quarter. Read more.
• PCORE Exploration & Production II LLC, a Dallas-based oil and gas company focused on core unconventional oil prospects in North America, has been launched with a $200 million equity commitment from Natural Gas Partners. PCORE’s senior managers previously worked at such companies as Pioneer Natural Resources, SM Energy and Norton Rose Fulbright. www.pcoreep.com
• ZEST Anchors Inc., an Escondido, Calif.–based portfolio company of Avista Capital Partners, has acquired Danville Materials LLC, a San Ramon, Calif.-based maker of restorative consumables and small equipment for the dental market, from Inverness Graham Investments. No financial terms were disclosed. www.zestanchors.com
IPOs
• AdvancePierre Foods, a Cincinnati-based sandwich food supplier to verticals like retail and education, has hired banks for an IPO that could value the company at upwards of $2.5 billion, according to Bloomberg. Shareholders include Oaktree Capital Management. Read more.
• AveXis Inc., a Bannockburn, Ill.-based developer of gene therapies for patients with severe genetic and orphan diseases like spinal muscular atrophy, has set its IPO terms to 4.25 million shares being offered at between $19 and $21 per share. It would have an initial market cap of around $438 million, were it to price in the middle of its range. The pre-revenue company plans to trade on the Nasdaq under ticker symbol AVXS, while Goldman Sachs and Jefferies served as lead underwriters. Shareholders in AveXis include PBM Capital (15% pre-IPO stake), Deerfield Management (9.9%), JDH Investment Management (9.5%), Roche Finance (8.4%), White Rock Capital Partners (6.6%), Third Security (6.6%), T. Rowe Price (5.4%), Venrock (5.3%), Janus Capital Management, Adage Capital Management, RA Capital Management, QVT Financial, Rock Springs Capital Management, Foresite Capital Management, RTW Investments and Boxer Capital. www.avexisbio.com
• Countryside Properties, a British home-builder owned by Oaktree Capital Management, has set its IPO terms to between £225 pence to £275 pence a share, which could give it around a £1.1 billion valuation (at the middle of its range). Read more.
• Proteostasis Therapeutics Inc., a Cambridge, Mass.-based developer of therapeutics to treat diseases caused by defects in protein processing, has set its proposed IPO terms to 3.85 million shares being offered at between $12 and $14 per share. It would have an initial market cap of around $217 million, were it to price in the middle of its range. The pre-revenue company plans to trade on the Nasdaq under ticker symbol PTI, with Leerink Partners and RBC Capital Markets serving as lead underwriters. Proteostasis Therapeutics has raised over $50 million in VC funding, from firms like Elan Science One (21.6% pre-IPO stake), New Enterprise Associates (17.1%), Healthcare Ventures (13.9%), Fidelity Biosciences (11.7%), Novartis Bioventures (11.6%), Sanofi-Genzyme BioVentures (5.8%) and Cormorant Asset Management. www.proteostasis.com
EXITS
No exit news this morning.
OTHER DEALS
• Fanatics Inc., a Jacksonville, Fla.-based e-commerce company focused on sports merchandise, has acquired Kitbag, a British maker of replica soccer jerseys, for £11.55 million. The seller was Findel (LSE: FDL). Fanatics shareholders include Silver Lake, Kynetic LLC, Alibaba, Andreessen Horowitz and Insight Venture Partners. Read more.
• IBM (NYDE: IBM) has agreed to acquire Aperto, a Berlin-based digital marketing agency. No financial terms were disclosed. Read more.
• Sainsbury (LSE: SBRY), a British supermarket chain, has agreed to acquire home and general merchandise retailer Home Retail Group (LSE: HOME) for approximately $1.9 billion. The deal represents around a 63% premium to HOME shares before the first reports of acquisition talks. Read more.
FIRMS & FUNDS
• Chubb has launched a private equity practice that will provide insurance solutions to U.S. and Canadian private equity firms and their portfolio companies. It will be led by EVP Seth Gillston. www.chubb.com
• Lewis & Clark Ventures, a St. Louis-based VC firm, has closed its debut fund with $104 million in capital commitments. www.lewisandclarkventures.com
• Medicxi Ventures, a newly-independent VC firm made up of the existing life sciences team and portfolios of Index Ventures, has closed its debut fund with €210 million in capital commitments. www.medicxiventures.com
• Qiming Venture Partners, a China-focused VC firm, has closed its fifth fund with $648 million in capital commitments. www.qimingvc.com
Moving In, On & Up
• Scott Bigham has left The University of Texas Investment Management Co. (UTIMCO), where he was director of lower and middle markets on the private markets team, according to Dow Jones. This comes shortly after UTIMCO private markets director Lindel Eakman left to join Foundry Group, and real estate managing director Mark Shoberg left for Stanford. Bigham is expected to launch his own investment business, after an 11-year run with UTIMCO. Read more.
• Stephen Domenik, a general partner with Sevin Rosen Funds, has been named interim CEO of Pixelworks Inc. (Nasdaq: PXLW), following the resignation of Bruce Walicek. Domenik was been on the Pixelworks board since August 2010. www.pixelworks.com
• Gregg Galardi has joined Ropes & Gray as a New York-based partner in the law firm’s business restructuring practice. He previously was with DLA Piper, as global co-chair of the restructuring practice. www.ropesgray.com
• GI Partners has promoted Jeff Sheu from principal to director. He joined the firm in 2004. www.gipartners.com
• Craig Lilly has joined law firm Baker & McKenzie as a Palo Alto-based partner, with a focus on cross-border and domestic M&A transactions. He previously was with Greenberg Traurig. www.bakermckenzie.com
• Permira has promoted Dipan Patel to a partner in its Menlo Park office. Patel joined the firm’s London office in 2009, and relocated to Silicon Valley in 2012. His portfolio board seats include Ancestry.com, LegalZoom and Informatica. www.permira.com
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