COAL MELTDOWN
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Coal producer Blackjewel filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on Monday.
Hours later the firm’s lawyer warned the company could be forced to liquidate after CEO Jeff A. Hoops Sr.’s bank froze funds likely needed to restructure the business.
“It’s frankly a disaster,” Blackjewel lawyer Stephen Lerner said at a hearing with the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Charleston, W.Va., per the Wall Street Journal.
The West Virginian firm had filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in a filing estimating liabilities upward of $500 million, and assets of between $100 million to $500 million on Monday.
The firm also reportedly shut down two coal mines in Wyoming and sent 700 workers home Monday.
Per the Journal, Blackjewel is the fifth coal company to file for bankruptcy this year, despite President Donald Trump’s attempts to scale back regulation that could hurt the industry. In May for instance, the country’s third largest coal company, Cloud Peak Energy, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy.
In the near term though, coal mining jobs have held steady under Trump, per the Bureau of Labor Statistics: the number of coal workers rose from 50,500 in Nov. 2016 to 52,900 (preliminary) in May 2019. The rise has largely been attributed to demand from Europe and Asia—though overall demand has been steadily falling with exports down 7.4% in first quarter of 2019 year-over-year.
But in the long term, the trend of falling coal jobs expected to continue as the commodity comes under pressure against cheaper options such as natural gas.
“I can’t overstate the extreme competition between coal and natural gas,” Hans Daniels, CEO of Doyle Trading Consultants said last year.
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VENTURE CAPITAL
-RealWear, a Vancouver-based training platforms for workers, raised $80 million in Series B funding. Teradyne Inc, Bose Ventures, Qualcomm Ventures LLC, Kopin Corporation, and JPMorgan invested.
-Epidemic Sound, a Swedish music provider, raised $20 million in funding. Investors included DS Asset Management.
-TrapX Security, a San Jose Calif.-based cyber threat detection firm, raised $18 million in funding. Ibex Investors led the round, and was joined by investors including BRM, Opus Capital, Intel Capital, Liberty Technology Venture Capital, and Strategic Cyber Ventures.
-Tara AI, a San Jose, Calif.-based project management platform, raised $10 million in Series A funding. Aspect Ventures led the round and was joined by investors including Slack Fund, Y Combinator, and Moment Ventures.
-CleverConnect, a French HR tech startup, raised €5.5 million ($6.2 million). Sofiouest led the round. Read more.
-Clause, a New York provider of cloud-based smart contracting technology, raised $5.5 million in Series A funding. Galaxy Digital led the round.
-Sweet Reason Beverage Co. raised $2.5 million in seed funding from Lerer Hippeau. Investors also included RiverPark Ventures, Max Ventures, and Subversive Capital.
-Mercato, a San Diego-based online ordering and delivery platform for independent grocery stores, raised an undisclosed amount. Greycroft led the round.
Health
-Century Therapeutics, a Philadelphia-based cancer therapy firm, has raised $250 million in financing. Bayer, Versant, and Fujifilm Cellular Dynamics Inc. invested.
-Saluda Medical Pty, an Australian medical device company, raised $75 million funding. Boston Scientific Corporation and Redmile Group were the investors.
PE
-Searchlight Capital bid $414 million to acquire Latecoere, a French aeronautics company per Reuters.
-Providence Equity Partners acquired a minority stake in Chime, a sports, entertainment and communications company, for 54.4 million pounds ($68.91 million) to. The seller was WPP (LSE: WPP). Read more.
-Partners Group acquired a “significant” stake in Blue River PetCare, a Chicago-based operator of veterinary hospitals for companion animals. Financial terms weren't disclosed.
-Mill Point Capital acquired the liquid filled and dry type transformer businesses of Fort Lee, N.J.-based Pioneer Power Solution, for $65.5 million.
-Xact Data Discovery, a portfolio company of JLL Partners, acquired QDiscovery, a New London, Conn.-based-based provider of electronic discovery and digital forensic services. Financial terms weren't disclosed.
-FWM Holdings, the parent company of Forbes Family Trust and LGL Partners, completed its acquisition of Optima Fund Management, a New York-based private investment firm specializing in alternative investments for institutional and high net-worth clients. Financial terms weren't disclosed.
-A&R Logistics, a portfolio company of Wind Point Partners, acquired Blue Water Plastic Transport, a St. Clair, Mich.-based provider of specialty bulk transportation and logistics services to the plastics industry. Financial terms weren't disclosed.
-Marco Group International, a portfolio company of The CapStreet Group, acquired Manus Abrasive Systems, an Edmonton, AB based manufacturer and distributor of surface preparation equipment, abrasive materials, and consumables. Financial terms weren't disclosed.
-Alpine Investors invested in Best Home Services, a Naples, Fla.-based HVAC, plumbing service and repair business. Financial terms weren't disclosed.
-OpenGate Capital acquired Duraco Specialty Tapes, a Forest Park, Ill.-based B2B manufacturer of specialty tapes, from Essentra. Financial terms weren't disclosed.
-Reliable Medical Supply, a portfolio company of Seven Hills Capital, acquired Med City Mobility, a provider of complex rehab technology and durable medical equipment. Financial terms weren't disclosed.
-ALM, a portfolio company of EagleTree Capital, acquired General Counsel Summit, a Sydney, Australia-based event for in-house counsel, from Connect Media. Financial terms weren't disclosed.
-SARORAS Private Capital invested in Ninth Wave, a New York-based firm focused on secure data connectivity between financial institutions and third-party applications. Financial terms weren't disclosed.
-H.I.G. Europe acquired a controlling stake in Metalprint, an Italian maker of forged brass and aluminium industrial components. Financial terms weren't disclosed.
-VLS Recovery, a portfolio company of Aurora Capital Partners, acquired Tubal-Cain‘s cleaning and repair division as well as its industrial services division with locations in Port Arthur, Texas and Lake Charles, La. Financial terms weren't disclosed.
-Dunes Point Capital invested in Unified Door and Hardware Group, a Pennsauken, N.J.-based provider of doors and hardware. Financial terms weren't disclosed.
-Bain Capital is in exclusive talks to acquire a majority stake in Kantar Group, the market research unit, from WPP (NYSE:WPP). Read more. Financial terms weren't disclosed.
-Gryphon Technologies, a portfolio company of AE Industrial Partners, acquired PGFM Solutions, a Sewell, N.J.-based firm focused on cybersecurity for U.S. Navy and Coast Guard shipbuilding and modernization programs. Financial terms weren't disclosed.
-Meridian Adhesives Group, a portfolio company of Arsenal Capital Partners, acquired PolyCom Industries and affiliate Eco Dispersions, Dalton, Ga.-based industrial adhesives and coatings makers. Financial terms weren't disclosed.
-Transworld Systems, a portfolio company of Platinum Equity, acquired the financial services unit of Altisource Financial Services including Nationwide Credit. Financial terms weren't disclosed, though previously the deal was valued at $44 million.
-Medin Technologies Inc, a portfolio company of Seven Point Equity Partners, acquired Advantage Manufacturing Technologies, a Monroe, Wash.-based maker of orthopedic implants. Financial terms weren't disclosed.
-BC Partners agreed to acquire a majority stake in Synthon International Holding, a Netherlands-based developer of complex generics and hybrid medicines.
OTHERS
-FWD Group plans to acquire the life insurance businesses of Siam Commercial Bank, a Thai firm, for around $3 billion. Read more.
-Spark Networks acquired Zoosk, a San Francisco-based dating brand, for $258 million.
-Jack Henry & Associates (NASDAQ: JKHY) acquired Geezeo, a Boston-based provider of retail and business digital financial management solutions. Financial terms weren't disclosed.
IPOs
-Anheuser-Busch InBev plans to raise up to $9.8 billion in a listing of its Asia-Pacific business in Hong Kong, per Reuters. Read more.
-Aramco, Saudi Arabia oil giant, is once again chatting with investment bankers after putting an IPO on hold months earlier, per Bloomberg citing sources. Read more.
-Zhongliang Holdings Group, a Shanghai-based real estate developer plans to raise up to HK$3.54 billion ($453 million) in an offering of 530 million shares in Hong Kong. Read more.
-Codiak BioSciences, a Cambridge Mass.-based biotech, withdrew plans for an $86 million IPO. Jefferies, Evercore ISI and William Blair were underwriters. ARCH Venture Funds, Flagship Venture Funds, and Fidelity back the firm. It planned to list on the Nasdaq as “CDAK.” Read more.
EXITS
-Aterian Investment Partners acquired Hain Pure Protein, Lake Success, N.Y.-based Hain Celestial’s chicken and turkey business, for $80 million.
-L Catterton has agreed to sell SteelSeries, a global gaming platform, to Axcel. No financial terms were disclosed.
-Ideal Tridon, a portfolio company of Snow Phipps Group, acquired ZSi-Foster, a Canton, Mich-based specialty manufacturer and supplier of pipe, hose and conduit support, from Pfingsten Partners. Financial terms weren't disclosed.
-DP World acquired Topaz Energy & Marine, a Dubai-based marine logistics company, for $1 billion. The sellers were Standard Chartered and Renaissance Services. Read more.
-Nord Bay Capital and TriArtisan Capital Advisors agreed to acquire Hooters of America, a restaurant franchise, from H.I.G. Capital, Chanticleer Holdings and other investors. Financial terms weren't disclosed.
-Texas Pipe & Supply agreed to acquire MultAlloy, J&J Alloy, and J&J Bar operations, from FloWorks International, a portfolio company of Clearlake Capital. Financial terms weren't disclosed.
-Sunbelt Transformer, a portfolio company of Trilantic North America, acquired with Solomon, a Solomon, Ka.-based provider of refurbishment, repair and salvage services for electrical transformers, from Oaktree Capital Management.
F+FS
-Carnelian Energy Capital Management raised $775 million for its third fund. Carnelian focuses on North American energy investments in the lower-to-middle market upstream oil and gas sector. Read more.
-Insight Partners Insight Partners Continuation Fund raised $544.3 million, per an SEC filing.
-Vertex Ventures aised a $150 million second US venture fund, per an SEC filing.
-Fifty Years raised $50 million for its second fund focusing on tech startups in food, synthetic biology, and sustainability. Read more.
PEOPLE
-CloudScale Capital Partners named Matt Bross as a partner. Bross was formerly CTO of British Telecom, Williams Communications, and Huawei.
-Shuo Yang joined Fifty Years as a Principal. Sho is a Y Combinator alumni and was previously co-founder of Fifty Years portfolio company Maderight.
-Paul Vider join Partech’s Growth Equity team as Partner. He was previously at Kennet Partner.
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