Deal roundup, 3.4.15

• Australia’s Macquarie Group Ltd will buy 90 aircraft from Dublin-based lessor AWAS Aviation Capital Ltd for $4 billion, building its presence in the Asian plane leasing sector and boosting an income stream that is more predictable than those from financial markets.
• French telecoms group Orange wants to remain in Belgium, where it has a 51 percent stake in Mobistar, the country’s second biggest mobile operator, and has not been contacted about a potential bid for Mobistar’s smaller rival Base, a top executive said on Wednesday.

• Two bidding groups are lining up final offers for the Swedish power grid of Finnish utility Fortum that could be worth around 6 billion euros ($6.7 billion), ahead of a March 11 deadline, sources familiar with the matter told Reuters.

• Norwegian food retailer Coop has won approval for its planned acquisition of competitor Ica’s 550 stores in Norway, the Norwegian Competition Authority said on Wednesday.

• Private equity firms Bain Capital LLC and Golden Gate Capital Corp are competing to acquire Ann Inc, the struggling U.S. women’s retailer and owner of the Ann Taylor brand, according to people familiar with the matter.

• Falcon Private Bank is open to buying rivals as it expects a wave of consolidation in the industry due to more onerous regulations, its global head of private banking said on Wednesday.

• Binding bids for Slovenian aircraft maintenance firm Adria Airways Tehnika are due by March 20, the national news agency STA reported, citing airport Aerodrom Ljubljana , which is Adria’s minority owner.

• EU antitrust regulators are expected to clear German car parts maker ZF Friedrichshafen AG’s $13.5 billion bid for U.S. peer TRW Automotive Holdings Corp with conditions, two people with knowledge of the matter said on Wednesday.

• Britain agreed to sell its 40 percent stake in the Eurostar rail link for 585 million pounds ($899.8 million) to a consortium of Canadian public pension fund Caisse de Depot du Placement du Quebec and British asset manager Hermes.

• French biopharmaceutical company Genfit is exploring a sale of the business to capitalize on interest in medicines to treat a form of liver disease, Bloomberg reported, citing people familiar with the matter.

• Avago Technologies Ltd held advanced talks last month to acquire Freescale Semiconductor Ltd, and is still looking for an acquisition that could be transformative, according to four people familiar with the situation.

• Emirates Airline expects consolidation in the low-cost sector in Asia, the Dubai-based carrier’s president said on Wednesday.

• Spain’s Bankia said on Wednesday it would sell its stake in real estate company Realia to Mexican billionaire Carlos Slim’s property group Inmobiliaria Carso ahead of a full takeover offer for Realia from Slim.

• Britain told Russian oligarch Mikhail Fridman on Wednesday that he had seven days to explain why he should be allowed to retain ownership of newly acquired oil and gas fields in the North Sea or face being forced to sell them.

• Oil major BP has put up for sale its stake in one of Europe’s biggest natural gas pipelines in the North Sea as part of its ongoing asset disposal program.

• U.S. private equity firm Hellman & Friedman and U.S. asset manager Fortress Investment Group are lining up a joint bid for Italian bank services provider ICBPI, ahead of a March 23 deadline, two sources familiar with the matter said. The trio could pay up to 2.4 billion euros ($2.67 billion), they said.

• Three consortia have entered the second round in the race for Spanish gas distributor Madrilena Red de Gas, majority owned by Morgan Stanley, three sources familiar with the matter said. Canada’s CPP is bidding alongside German insurer Allianz SE and the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority for the asset, estimated to be worth 1.2-1.8 billion euros ($2 billion) including debt.

• Bavarian Nordic A/S has struck a prostate cancer drug deal with Bristol-Myers Squibb Co that could be worth $1 billion should its trials, part of a new field in cancer treatment, be successful.

• Chinese e-commerce titan Alibaba Group Holding Ltd has invested 2.4 billion yuan ($382.8 million) in TV program producer Beijing Enlight Media Co Ltd, Beijing Enlight said in a regulatory filing.

• IBM Corp said it had bought AlchemyAPI, a fast-growing startup selling software that collects and analyzes unstructured text and data in ways big enterprises, website publishers and advertisers find useful.

• India’s Reliance Infrastructure has agreed to take over management control of Pipavav Defence and Offshore Engineering Co by acquiring a stake of about 18 percent for 8.19 billion rupees ($131.6 million).

• Australian regulators have approved a bid by the U.S. arm of Brazilian beef giant JBS SA to acquire Australian Consolidated Food Holdings Pty Ltd (Primo) for an undisclosed sum, Treasurer Joe Hockey said.

• Solidium, the Finnish state’s investment arm, said it had raised its holdings in engineering groups Metso Oyj and Outotec Oyj, two companies that have been the subject of takeover speculation. Solidium said it had spent about 32 million euros ($35.56 million) in order to do so.

• Ride service Uber is buying mapping and search startup deCarta for an unspecified amount, technology website Mashable said on Tuesday, citing an Uber representative.

• Swedish broadcasting group MTG AB is seeking a buyer for its 39 percent stake in Russia’s CTC Media Inc , business daily Vedomosti reported.

($1 = 0.89 euros) ($1 = 8.29 Swedish crowns) ($1 = 6.27 Chinese yuan) ($1 = 3.75 riyals) ($1 = 62.26 Indian rupees)

(Compiled by Anet Josline Pinto and Lehar Maan in Bengaluru)