Italian and international private equity firms compete with Milan listed Spacs for acquiring businesses. The market is very active, but on the other side international political tensions between Usa and Russia make necessary change the shareholding structure of assets like it happened to Octo Telematics
Investindustrial is about to close the acquisition of Austrian Lifebrain, a financial company with sales of 56.5 million of euros that acquires European diagnostic laboratories (see here a previous post by BeBeez). The Italian Antitrust authorized the transaction. Lifebrain ceo Michael Havel founded the company in 2013 and developed the business with the support listed Polland’s financial firmMCI Capital sa. Unicredit, Raiffeisen Bank International, and VTB Bank supplied acquisition financing worth 90 million to Lifebrain.
Spaxs, the Spac that Corrado Passera and Andrea Clamer launched, announced the merger with Banca Interprovinciale, that has assets worth 1 billion of euros and net equity of 60 million (see here a previous post by BeBeez). Spaxs chose to acquire 91.4% of Banca Interprovinciale after two rounds of targets selections that shortlisted 12 and 3 companies. The transaction is worth 51.2 million for an enterprise value in the region of 56 million. Spaxs will pay in cash for about 72% of Banca Interprovinciale while it will buy 19.4% of the target through a swap of share valued up to 11 euros each. The remaining 8.6% will be available for interested parties. Spaxs will invest its left resources worth 600 million for developing the business. Passera will be the ceo of Banca Interprovinciale.
Italo-Nuovo Trasporto Viaggiatori (NTV), the Italian railway company, and private equity firm Global Infrastructure Partners (GIP) expects to sign the closing for the sale at the end of April, once the European competition authority will authorize the transaction (see here a previous post by BeBeez). Flavio Cattaneo, chief executive officer of NTV, added that few shareholders of the company might reinvest in the asset up to 25% of the sale proceeds together with GIP that will have at least a 75% stake in the company. GIP acquired NTV on the ground of an equity value of 1.94 billion of euros and an enterprise value of 2.4 billion which includes the company’s debt of 443 million. GIP acquired NTV from Intesa Sanpaolo(19.2%), Diego della Valle (17.4%), Generali Financial Holdings (14.6%), Peninsula Capital (12.4%), Luca Cordero di Montezemolo (12.4%), Gianni Punzo (8%), Isabella Seragnoli (5.8%), Flavio Cattaneo (4.9%), and Alberto Bombassei (4.9%).Vendors will gain a dividend of  30 million g the expenses of the aborted IPO.
John Peace and Fabio Sbianchi, the chairman and the chief executive officer of Octo Telematics, a provider of telematic services for car insurance companies, signed a binding agreement with Renova, the company’s owner, for buying a 20% stake in the business (see here a previous post by BeBeez). Octo shareholders will now be Renova (48.55%), the company’s managers (25%), Pamplona(26.5%). Octo needed to change its ownership structure to avoid US sanctions to Russia as Renova belongs to Russian olygarch Viktor Vekselberg. For such reason, Josef Ackermann, Luca Cordero di Montezemolo, John Deutch, Orit Gadiesh, Vladimir Kuznetsov, and Alexey Moskov all resigned from Renova’s board. Renova acquired a controlling stake in Octo Telematics in February 2014 from financial firms Charme, Amadeus Capital Partners, and Keensight Capital, while the company’s management took 5%. Renova later sold a stake to financial sponsor Pamplona. Octo Telematics did not make clear its intention about its previously announced listing on Milan stock market. Last year, the company generated sales of 239 million of euros with an ebitda of 117 million. On the ground of these figures, Octo’s shareholders aimed to list the company for an enterprise value of 1.2 billion. However,Mediobanca, Citi, Goldman Sachs, Barclays, and Unicredit, the company’s financial advisors for the IPO, valued the business 8.5X ebitda, or 1 billion which would allow Renova and Pamplona to get at least 350 million. Last Octo Telematics announced the acquisition of insurance assets of Usage-Based Insurance (Ubi) from Nasdaq-listed risk management company Willis Towers Watson.
Fintyre, the Italian tyre distributor that belongs to financial sponsor Bain Capital, acquired Italy’s competitor La Genovese gomme (LGg) (see here a previous post by BeBeez). LGg has sales of 11.7 million of euros. In the last three years Fintyre acquired Italian peers Pneumarket from Marangoni Group, Franco Gomme, and Germany’s Tyre and Automotive Technology from private equityREIFF. After such buys, Fintyre sales reached the amount of 734.6 million. Bain Capital acquired the company from financial firmBlueGem Capital and financed the transaction with a bond worth 130 million issued last year in April. Fintyre’s liabilities also include an unitranche debt that financial firm Blackstone Group subscribed through GSO Capital Partners to support the company’s development plans. In 2009, Bluegem acquired a 32.7% stake in Fintyre to support the acquisition of Italy’s All Pneus together withSofipa Equity Fund that both a 38.6% in the business. In 2015, Bluegem increased its stake in Fintyre to 90% acquiring company’s shares from Italian private equity Synergo.
Fondo Italiano per l’Efficienza Energetica (FIEE), the Italian investment firm with a focus on energy efficiency, invested 24.5 million of euros in Selettra , an energy saving compay (esco), that manages and projects systems of public lighting, renewable energy farms, as well as electric and electronic plants (see here a previous post by BeBeez). FIEE will buy 50% – 60% of Selettra with the subscription of a capital increase. Last year the company posted revenues of 7.3 million of euros with an ebitda of 3.9 million. FIEE has resources for investments worth 166 million and last year invested 33 million in City Green Light, a company that manages and projects systems for public lighting.
Financial firm Peninsula Capital will coinvest with with Milan Spac Space4 spa for acquiring 80% of Italy’s Guala Closures through a business combination (see here a previous post by BeBeez). Peninsula will hold 7% of Guala and will acquire all the company’s outstanding shares worth up to 10 million of euros. The business combination will be on the ground of Space4 share price of 10 euro. Guala’s managers will hold up to 24% of the voting rights. Private equity firms aPriori, NB Renaissance, and SwanCap, the current owners of Guala, will keep a 3% in the business. Credit Suisse and Barclays, Guala’s advisors, collected offers from Edizione Holding- Goldman Sachs, Onex Corporation, Blackstone, Clayton Dubilier & Rice, Advent, Kkr, Apollo, and Tpg, French private equity Astorg, and trade buyer Amcor Corporation. All offers were worth above one billion for an equity value of 504 and net financial debt of 555 million. Last year the company posted revenues of 535 million and a 20% ebitda margin, while in November 2016, the company issued a bond of 510 million listed on Milan Extra Mot Pro.
The management team of Anthilia Capital Partners raised to 80.25% its holding in the private equity house and seriously considers to carry on m&a with other financial firms, said Giovanni Landi, the fund’s executive vice chairman (see here a previous post byBeBeez). Anthilia appointed the following new partners: Katia Bolzoni (corporate governance), Anne-Sophie Chouillou (fund manager), Barbara Ellero (private debt), and Matteo Soriani (products development). The managers acquired a 15% stake from the Trabaldo Togna family that now holds 10% of the business, while  Cassa Lombarda has 9.75%. One of the thirty Italian private equity firms that manage assets worth less than 1 billion of euros could be interested in aggregating with Anthilia, which has the status of innovative SME and therefore is eligible for generous tax allowances.
Fabrizio Viola, FIG senior advisor at Boston Consulting Group and former ceo of Banca Popolare di Vicenza and Mps, will start in May the roadshow to launch a special purpose acquisition company (see here a previous post by BeBeez). The fundraising target is of 200 million of euros to invest in a small bank, a challenger bank, to transform it into a fintech lender to SMEs. Viola will launch such Spac together with English banker Derek Vago, who worked also at Nomura, Emanuele Grasso a financial services partner at PwC,and Gregorio Gitti, a bespoke Italian business lawyer. Ubs and Barclays are working as placement advisors. Roberto Nicastro, the former coo of Unicredit and former ceo of the four Italian good-banks (Carichieti, Banca Marche, Banca Popolare dell’Etruria e del Lazio, and Cariferrara), and current senior advisor of Cerberus, is also working on the launch of a Spac. Panfilo Tarantelli, Francesco Trapani, Sergio Ascolani, Salvatore Cordaro, and Umberto Quadrino, shareholders of Italian financial firm Tages Holding are also working with Vam Investments for launching a Spac. British asset manager NextEnergy Capital is also reportedly working on creating a listed investment vehicle with a focus on the sector of renewable energy.
