Deals

ACON Latin America Opportunities Fund has completed its acquisition of Colombian waste management company Aseo Urbano SA, the firm announced. ACON bought the company from Urbaser of Spain and Raygar International, a private U.S. holding company. Terms of the deal were not released.

Advent International will invest an undisclosed amount in chicken-and-biscuits chain Bojangles, the firm said. The money will support growth. Bojangles was formed in 1977 and is based in Charlotte, N.C. The company operates about 500 restaurants, and plans to open 40 new locations this year. Terms of the Advent investment were not released. As part of the transaction, Falfurrias Capital Partners has agreed to sell its entire investment in Bojangles to Advent.

Affinity Equity Partners has submitted a final bid for Australian meat products firm Primo Smallgoods, Reuters reported. Primo Smallgoods could reportedly fetch as much as $1 billion, and Affinity has arranged about $622 million in financing from 11 banks, Reuters reported.

Aktien Medical Ventures has acquired a 4.9 percent interest in Apollo Medical Holdings, a provider of integrated medical management services that is traded on the over-the-counter Bulletin Board. Aktien is based in Dallas, and has offices in Los Angeles and Buenos Aires.

Alcatel-Lucent is mulling a sale of collection of businesses that serve non-telecom operator customers, with buyout shop Permira a reported frontrunner for such a sale, Reuters reported. The collection of businesses up for sale had revenues of around €1 billion ($1.4 billion) and operating margins around 6 percent to 7 percent, Reuters said.

Alden Global Capital has acquired the Journal Register Co., which publishes the New Haven Register and the Oakland Press. Financial terms weren’t disclosed. The Journal Register filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in February 2009 and emerged later that year. Alden was reportedly one of the Journal Register’s investors.

Apax Partners and two Canadian pension funds will pay $4.98 billion to buy medical device maker Kinetic Concepts Inc., taking the company private, Reuters reported. At $68.50 per share, the purchase price represents a premium of 6 percent to Kinetic’s close on the day before the deal was announced, Reuters said.

Aquiline Capital Partners

portfolio company WRM America Holdings, a specialty lines property and casualty insurance and risk management holding company, will buy the flood insurance business of publicly traded Fidelity National Financial Inc. The business will operate as a wholly-owned subsidiary of WRM America, the company said. Aquiline Capital focuses on financial services investments across industries such as property and casualty insurance, banking, securities, asset management, life insurance and financial technology.

Ayelet Investments has acquired publicly traded Conmed Healthcare Management, a provider of correctional facility health care services, for $3.85 per share in cash, or approximately $57.2 million. Financing for the deal comes from Ayelet and from Los Angeles-based private equity firm Levine Leichtman Capital Partners. The deal is expected to close during the third quarter.

Bank of China is a leading contender to buy the Royal Bank of Scotland’s aircraft leasing business, RBS Aviation Capital, Reuters reported, citing the Sunday Times. The unit has also attracted interest from General Electric and private equity firm Terra Firma. According to Reuters, both submitted “expressions of interest” for the business.

The Blackstone Group, The Carlyle Group, TPG Capital, Apollo Global Management and Warburg Pincus are among those interested in buying Morgan Keegan, the brokerage unit of Regions Financial Corp., Reuters reported. The firms, as well as Stifel Financial Corp., are expected to submit bids for the Morgan Keegan, which has a book value of about $1.5 billion, Reuters wrote.

BC Partners will pay 17 billion crowns ($2.6 billion) to buy Swedish cable company Com Hem, Reuters reported. BC Partners apparently beat out rival bidder Cinven. Com Hem is currently owned by private equity investors Carlyle Group and Providence Equity Partners.

The Blackstone Group is buying German outdoor clothing company Jack Wolfskin for what has been estimated at more than €700 million ($994 million), Reuters reported. The buyout shop did not disclose terms of the deal. The company’s co-founder and chief executive, Manfred Hell, will step down as part of the deal, Reuters said.

Len Blavatnik’s Access Industries, Sony Music Entertainment and Vivendi SA’s Universal Music Group are among the music companies and private equity firms interested in buying EMI Group Ltd, Reuters reported. Potential bidders for the 114-year-old music company also include Ronald Perelman’s MacAndrews & Forbes, Tom Gores’s Platinum Equity, and BMG Music Rights—a joint venture between Bertelsmann and Kohlberg Kravis Roberts.

A bidding deadline for bookstore chain Borders Group passed with no offers, Reuters reported, citing the Wall Street Journal. Bids were due ahead of a bankruptcy court auction, Reuters said. The company filed for bankruptcy in February.

The CapMan Russia Fund and the Belgian firm Gimv have backed Russian photo services company Expert Photo with an undisclosed amount of growth capital. Expert Photo is a 16-year-old provider of online and offline photo printing services. The infusion of cash will help Expert Photo strengthen its position in Russia. Following the deal, the CapMan Russia Fund and Gimv each will own 19 percent of the company. CapMan Plc and Gimv are both major investors in the CapMan Russia Fund.

Charterhouse has collected roughly €510 million ($724 million) in loans to back its buyout of Dutch company Bureau Van Dijk Electronic Publishing from BC Partners, Reuters reported Thursday. The debt includes €370 million of senior loans and roughly €140 million of mezzanine loans, Reuters wrote. Credit Suisse, Goldman Sachs, JP Morgan and Nomura are arranging the senior financing.

Charter International rejected a new offer from manufacturing buyout firm Melrose that valued the British industrial toolmaker at £1.4 billion ($2.3 billion), Reuters reported. The offer was 8 percent higher than an earlier offer from Melrose, Reuters said.

Comcast-Spectator said it has agreed to sell the Philadelphia 76ers to a group led by Joshua Harris, an Apollo Global Management co-founder. David Blitzer, a senior managing director at The Blackstone Group, is part of the group. Financial terms were not disclosed. Apollo and Blackstone were not part of the sale. The deal, which needs approval by the NBA’s board of governors, is believed to be valued at less than $300 million.

EQT has acquired Atos, a supplier of medical rehabilitation products for patients who have undergone the surgical removal of the larynx. EQT bought the company from Nordic Capital. Terms of the sale were not released.

General Atlantic has made a “significant investments” in Align Networks. Financial terms were not announced. Jacksonville, Fla.-based Align Networks provides workers’ compensation physical medicine programs.

Genstar Capital portfolio company Evolution Benefits has completed its buy of Lighthouse 1. Financial terms weren’t announced. The combined companies, called Evolution 1, will serve more than 7 million consumers and manage HSAs, HRAs, FSAs and transit plans.

Gordon Brothers Europe and OpCapita have joined together to make an offer for British electricals chain Comet, Reuters reported. Restructuring firm Hilco UK is also reportedly interested in the company. First round bids for the company, currently owned by Kesa, were due in July. Bidders are to be notified within seven days if they are going through to a second round, Reuters said.

Hertz Global Holdings will pay $250 million to acquire Donlen Corp., a provider of fleet leasing and management services. Hertz, which is backed by Clayton, Dubilier & Rice, The Carlyle Group and Bank of America Merrill Lynch, also will assume approximately $680 million of Donlen’s outstanding fleet debt. The deal is expected to close during the third quarter. Based in Northbrook, Ill., Donlen manages more than 144,000 vehicles across North America.

Newly formed Hi Capital Corp. has acquired more than 20 percent of Russian drug retailer Pharmacy Chain 36.6, Reuters reported. According to Reuters‘s estimates, the deal could total about $70 million. No terms were released.

H.I.G. European Capital Partners said it has acquired Halterman Products. Financial terms weren’t announced. Haltermann, of Germany, produces refinery products for use in graphic arts, plastics processing, automotive, pharma, fine chemicals, electronics, cosmetics and coatings. H.I.G. Europe is the European arm of H.I.G. Capital.

H.I.G. European Capital Partners has acquired a majority stake in Hanlo Group. Financial terms of the deal were not announced. The acquisition is a joint investment with Solidus Partners, the investment vehicle of Philippe Graf von Stauffenberg. Based in Graz, Austria, and Freiwalde, Germany, Hanlo provides energy efficient prefabricated houses in the German speaking region.

European private equity investor HitecVision has acquired North Sea Communications from Telia Norge for 170 million Swedish krona ($26.5 million). North Sea Communications operates a fiber optical cable system between Norway and the United Kingdom, providing the offshore oil and gas industry in the southern part of the North Sea with high speed and low latency communications.

Billionaire Carl Icahn has offered $10.2 billion to buy Clorox Co., Reuters reported. At $76.50 per share, the offer represents an 11 percent premium to the company’s closing price on the day before the offer was disclosed. Icahn bought a stake in the company in February, and said he owns 9.4 percent of its outstanding stock. Icahn also said he had arranged for $7.8 billion in financing for the deal through Jefferies & Co., Reuters wrote.

JMI Equity has made a $30 million investment in BrightLine, a provider of marketing services for the interactive TV advertising sector. JMI will have a minority interest in BrightLine. JMI General Partner Brad Woloson will take a seat on the BrightLine board. New York-based BrightLine’s customers include Unilever, GlaxoSmithKline, Intuit and Cisco.

Levine Leichtman Capital Partners portfolio company Pacific World Corp. has completed its buy of Fing’rs (Europe) AG and Fing’rs (Deutschland) GmbH. Financial terms weren’t announced. Pacific World provides nail and beauty care products in North America under the Nailene, Fing’rs, Revlon, and Bio Oil brand. Fing’rs Europe also supplies proprietary nail and beauty care products mainly in Europe.

Liz Claiborne Inc. is in talks with private equity firms to sell its Mexx brand, Reuters reported, citing Bloomberg. Leonard Green & Partners, Sun Capital and Golden Gate Capital are among the firms exploring the sale. According to Bloomberg, the Mexx business could fetch about $100 million.

Marwyn European Transport, a subsidiary of Marwyn Management Partners, will acquire German bus operator Axel Tucks for €3.75 million ($5.38 million), the company announced. Axel Trucks operates more than 100 buses in the Rhine-Ruhr region of southwest Germany. Marwyn European Transport was launched in February.

Mid Europa Partners is reportedly mulling a purchase of Polish retailer Emperia’s store chains, according to Reuters. Emperia is valued at about $500 million, and last month launched a tender for its retail arm, which includes store chains Stokrotka, Groszek and Lewiatan, Reuters wrote. Mid Europa recently bought another Polish retailer, Zabka, from Penta Investments.

NewSpring Capital led a mezzanine investment in CODi, a maker of laptop computer carrying cases and accessories, the firm announced. Terms of the deal were not released. CODi is based in Harrisburg, Pa., and will use the new capital for expansion.

After roughly a year of talks with various buyout, Nokia and Siemens have abandoned plans to sell a stake in their joint venture Nokia Siemens Networks, Reuters reported. The companies had been in talks with private equity groups including Gores Group, Reuters said.

Nordic Capital has dropped out of the running to buy Swedish cable television operator Com Hem, Reuters reported. Buyout shop CVC Capital Partners Ltd dropped out earlier in the process. Final bids were due in July, and Cinven and rival BC Partners are expected to table binding bids for the cable firm, Reuters wrote. The company is expected to fetch as much as 18 billion Swedish crowns ($2.7 billion), Reuters said.

Olympus Capital Holdings Asia, a mid-market firm, is leading a group of investors paying $45 million for a “sizable minority stake” in China’s Huaxia Dairy Farm Ltd, Reuters reported. The firm will put $30 million into the dairy producer, with European dairy company Mueller Milch Management investing $10 million. Existing shareholders in Huaxia Dairy will supply another $5 million. The company, which runs own of China’s largest dairy farms, will use the money for general working capital and expansion, Reuters wrote.

Olympus Partners said it has bought FFR-DSI from Cortec Group. Financial terms weren’t announced. Twinsburg, Ohio-based FFR-DSI designs, markets and supplies merchandising, loss prevention and operational efficiency systems primarily to retailers and consumer packaged goods companies. The Olympus team on the deal included Jim Conroy, David Haddad, Jason Miller and Sachin Bavishi. John Schoenfeld and Rob Kiburz of Kirkland & Ellis provided legal advice. Chris Williams, John Neuner, Brent Spiller and Chip Duggins of Harris Williams supplied financial advice to Cortec.

The Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan is planning to increase its majority stakes in two Chilean water utilities: Essbio SA and Esval SA, Reuters reported. The government is auctioning off its stakes in both utilities. Following the auction, the government will hold 5 percent of each. Teachers’ currently owns about 51.1 percent of Essbio and 69.8 percent of Esval, Reuters wrote.

Paine & Partners has made a strategic investment in Australia’s Costa Group, which is a grower and marketer of fresh produce. Terms of the deal, which is expected to close later this year, were not disclosed. Paine & Partners focuses on investments in the food and agribusiness industries.

The New York-based investment firm Prospect Capital announced that it has made a secured second lien investment of $39 million to support the recapitalization of Totes Isotoner, a company controlled by affiliates of MidOcean Partners and Bruckmann, Rosser, Sherrill & Co. LLC.

Providence Equity Partners portfolio company Ascend Learning has acquired PrepMe Adaptive Learning, a Chicago-based publisher of online courses and educational materials. PrepMe was founded by Avichal Garg and Karan Goel. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.

Providence Equity Partners has completed its $1.88 billion purchase of SRA International. SRA provides technology and strategic consulting services government organizations and commercial clients. The deal was announced in April.

Ratos portfolio company Arcus-Gruppen will buy a 51 percent stake in Norwegian wine wholesaler Excellars. The purchase price is roughly $11.7 million, the firm said. Arcus-Gruppen is one of the largest wine suppliers in the Nordic region. The deal is expected to close in September.

Rhone Capital and Triton have received approval from the European Union to proceed with the acquisition of German company Evonik’s industrial carbon division ECB, Reuters reported. The ECB division makes products used in specialty pigments, and used to reinforce rubber used in tires and other products.

Charlotte, N.C.-based Ridgemont Equity Partners bought a majority stake in Aurora Parts & Accessories, a distributor of aftermarket and replacement semi-trailer parts and accessories. Financial terms of the deal were not released. Aurora is based near Indianapolis. NXT Capital, DE Shaw Direct Capital Portfolios and BB&T Capital Partners Mezzanine Fund II provided financing for the deal.

Serent Capital will invest in C2 Educational Systems, a provider of enrichment centers for K-12 students. David Kennedy, a co-founder and general partner with Serent, worked on the transaction. C2 was advised on the transaction by Arlington Capital Advisors.

SRA International said that shareholders have voted to approve the takeover by Providence Equity Partners. At the special meeting of shareholders, 94.7 percent of the total outstanding shares of SRA’s common stock, and 81.3 percent of the total outstanding shares of Class A common stock voted to approve the merger. SRA, in April, announced that Providence had agreed to pay $1.88 billion to buy SRA, a provider of technology and strategic consulting services.

Starwood Capital is paying 250 million reais ($159 million) for a 33.3 percent stake in MRV Log, the logistics arm of Brazilian builder MRV Engenharia, Reuters reported. After the deal closes, MRV Engenharia will own 42 percent of the company. The money will help MRV Log expand its portfolio of assets.

Sun Capital Partners, the Florida-based private equity firm, completed its purchase of Contessa Premium Foods Inc. and appointed Donald J. Binotto as president and CEO of the company. Most recently, Binotto was president and CEO of StarKist Co., a producer of canned seafood.

Sun Capital Partners and fashion design company Kellwood will acquire Amsterdam-based fashion brand Scotch & Soda. Terms of the deal, which is expected to close in August, were not released.

TA Associates has completed its investment in Stadion Money Management, a 20-year-old investment management firm. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. As a result of the financing, M. Roy Burns, a principal at TA Associates, and Roger B. Kafker, a managing director at TA Associates, joined the company’s board.

Torque Capital Group has bought Triumph Precision Castings Co., of Chandler, Ariz., and Norcross, Ga.-based Dynamic Turbine in separate deals. Financial terms were not announced. The companies produce rotating blades, vanes, shrouds and other parts used in the hot gas path section of turbine engines. Torque Capital is a New York buyout firm.

Newburyport, Mass.-based private equity investor Twelve Court Inc. has acquired Aegom Interactive. Terms of the deal were not released. Aegom publishes education content for use with the SMART Notebook software. The company is based in Centerville, Mass.

Veronis Suhler Stevenson will acquire financial software company Strata Decision Technology. Terms of the private investment, which was made by VSS Structured Capital Fund II, were not disclosed. SDT was advised by Berkery, Noyes & Co., the New York-based investment banking firm.

Vodafone is reportedly in talks with private equity funds about selling a stake in its Indian mobile operations, Reuters reported, citing the Economic Times. The company is reportedly talking with at least two buyout firms. Earlier in July, Vodafone bought out its partner, Essar, from the Indian venture, Reuters said.

Water Street Healthcare Partners portfolio company Bound Tree Medical, a supplier of emergency medical supplies and equipment to the pre-hospital market, has acquired Missouri-based Alliance Medical. Terms of the deal were not released. Alliance Medical is a distributor of emergency medical services products, supplies, equipment and clothing.

Weld North Holdings, a partnership between former Kaplan Chief Jonathan Grayer and buyout shop Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co., has closed its first deal: the acquisition of e-learning company e2020 Inc. Terms of the deal were not released. Sari Factor, managing director for education at Weld North, will become CEO of e2020, the firm said. The company, formed in 1998, provides online courses for K-12 students through a software-as-a-service model. The courses can be used for anything from advanced placement to so-called “credit recovery,” to help students who have fallen behind with course credits.

German state-controlled bank WestLB is in exclusive talks with private equity firm Apollo Global Management over a sale of its real estate unit, Reuters reported. Earlier reports had valued the unit, WestImmo, at about €400 million ($567.9 million).