Firms & Funds

Antin Infrastructure Partners, a Paris-based infrastructure fund backed by BNP Paribas, has reached a final fundraising close at €1.1 billion ($1.5 billion), according to Reuters. BNP Paribas has committed €300 million and owns 40 percent of the fund’s management company. Antin has invested to date in UK train leasing company Porterbrook, Croatian motorway Bina Istra, French oil storage firm Pisto, and a portfolio of dry bulk ports in Europe called Euroports.

Barclays Capital said it has completed fundraising for a £645 million ($1.03 billion) infrastructure fund. The pool is earmarked for recession-proof social infrastructure projects such as schools, hospitals and prisons.

Blackstone Group will pay $200 million for a 40 percent stake in Brazilian private equity firm Patria Investimentos. Blackstone will pay for the deal through a combination of cash and stock and the acquisition is being made by Blackstone itself, not one of its private equity funds. Brazil’s economy is expected to expand this year, while the Brazilian economy already makes up 45 percent of Latin America’s GDP.

Brynwood Partners, based in Greenwich, Connecticut, has closed its latest fund, Brynwood Partners VI, with $305 million of committed capital. It is the largest fund in Brynwood’s 26-year history. Brynwood Partners currently manages over $640 million of private equity capital.

Canadian pension fund manager Caisse De Depot Et Placement Du Quebec intends to sell almost $800 million in private equity funds, according to a report in the Wall Street Journal. The funds come in the form of buyout and venture-capital funds. According to the report, the deal may be completed with third-party financing. Caisse backs managers including Accel Partners, AXA Private Equity, Blackstone Group, Carlyle Group, Wynnchurch Capital, BC Partners and Genstar Capital.

Carlyle Group portfolio company John Maneely Co. completed a restructuring that it expects will position to grow through acquisition and to hire more workers. The Beachwood, Ohio-based company plans to change its corporate name to JMC Steel Group to reflect its core steel pipe and tubular products business.

Colony Capital, the California-based private equity real estate firm, said it will continue to expand its hospitality and consumer business in the Gulf Arab region. Colony is the largest shareholder in Carrefour, the French retail company, and has large investments in Fairmont Hotels and Accor, the world’s fourth-largest hotel group, where it is the largest shareholder.

Dean Capital Group has announced the opening of a new fund, Anadarko Basin I LP, which is offering investors access to the crude oil and natural gas sector in Texas and Oklahoma. The fund will be “directly or indirectly acquiring, holding, managing, operating and selling oil and gas properties with Dean Capital Group acting as manager of the partnership,” according to the firm.

The Government of Singapore Investment Corp. will be investing more in developing countries, it announced, because it expects a slowdown in economic growth in the West. Its chief investment officer, Ng Kok Song, said that growth in Asia will be 8 percent, compared to 2.4 percent in the developed world. The GIC manages over $200 billion, the larger portion of which will go into emerging markets.

Hainan Airlines, China’s fourth biggest airline, will launch a private equity fund with plans to invest in aircraft leasing. Hainan aims to raise 5 billion yuan ($747 million).

Invest AD, the Abu Dhabi private equity firm, has launched an Iraq investment fund to invest in high-growth companies in that country. The new fund opened to institutional and high-net-worth investors in early October, Invest AD said. Iraq has the world’s third-largest proven oil reserves and has signed 11 oilfield deals with major international oil firms, which are expected to lift the country’s capacity to 12 million barrels per day from 2.5 million.

Lion Capital has raised about €1 billion ($1.35 billion) for its third buyout fund. The overall target is €2 billion. The London-based firm has around 40 backers, nearly all of whom were expected to invest in the new fund. Lion’s holdings include breakfast cereal maker Weetabix, noodle bar chain Wagamama, and a recent acquisition, French frozen food retailer Picard Surgeles.

Mallinckrodt Baker, which has been bought by New Mountain Capital, has changed its name to Avantor Performance Materials. Phillipsburg, N.J.-based Avantar makes and markets chemicals and materials under the brand names J.T. Baker and Mallinckrodt Chemicals. New Mountain is a New York buyout firm.

StepStone Group announced that it has acquired SilverBrook Private Equity, adding that it is on a mission of “balancing the firm’s U.S. presence between the east and west coasts.” As part of the deal, Thomas Bradley, Mark Maruszewski and Michael McCabe, the SilverBrook partners, will join StepStone as managing directors based in New York City. The financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.