By Andrei Skvarsky. European Principal Finance (EPF), a business franchised by New York-headquartered global asset manager Apollo, has bought an 842m-euro ($923m) portfolio of 68 commercial and residential real estate properties from an Italian pension fund. The properties include hotel, retail, logistics and parking assets and are mostly located in Rome and Milan, Apollo said… Continue Reading
Category Archives: Deals
Deutsche Boerse joins forces with AirCarbon Exchange in emissions quotas trade
By Andrei Skvarsky. Deutsche Boerse (DB1) has made an investment in AirCarbon Exchange (ACX) in what is expected to result in synergic collaboration between Singapore-based ACX and DB1 subsidiary European Energy Exchange (EEX) in selling carbon credits, greenhouse gas emission quotas. ACX, a carbon allowances trading specialist, did not disclose the exact sum received from… Continue Reading
Euronext Dublin registers 5-year $5bn Eurobond programme to be launched by Russia’s Sovcombank
By Andrei Skvarsky. Euronext Dublin (the Irish Stock Exchange) has registered a five-year framework $5bn Eurobond programme to be launched by Sovcombank, one of Russia’s top ten lenders. Multinational investment banks J.P. Morgan and Renaissance Capital are acting as co-arrangers of the programme while Bank of New York Mellon is the trustee and principal paying… Continue Reading
UAE’s Mubadala, two other firms invest $33m in Open Mineral metals trader
By Andrei Skvarsky. United Arab Emirates state investment company Mubadala and two other firms have put $33m into Switzerland-headquartered base metals trading company Open Mineral to help it further sophisticate the digitisation of its business. Dusseldorf-headquartered venture capital firm Statkraft Ventures and Beijing- and Hong Kong-based private equity fund Lingfeng Capital were the investors that joined Mubadala in… Continue Reading
$150m raised in energy transition-focused IPO co-run by Sova Capital, EarlyBirdCapital
By Andrei Skvarsky. London-based brokerage Sova Capital and U.S. boutique investment bank EarlyBirdCapital have acted as joint book runners for a successful initial public offering (IPO) aimed at funding an energy transition project for emerging and frontier markets. Oxus Acquisition Corp., a Kazakh special purpose acquisition company (SPAC), raised $150m through its IPO on the… Continue Reading
Rouble volatility in Q2 mainly caused by OPEC+ output deal delay – Matrix
By Andrei Skvarsky. The Russian rouble’s unusual volatility in the second quarter of 2021 was chiefly caused by uncertainties over the then inability of the OPEC cartel and other key oil producing nations to agree output volumes because of a dispute that was only settled by July 18, according to Russian investment firm Matrix Capital.… Continue Reading
Uzbekistan’s Grand Leather Shoes pulls off buyout overseen by Bluestone bank
By Andrei Skvarsky. Uzbek shoe manufacturer Grand Leather Shoes has bought out a dysfunctional electrical heating equipment producer as part of Uzbekistan’s current sweeping privatisation programme, with Central Asia-focused Bluestone Investment Bank leading the shoe company through the $1.9m acquisition. Grand Leather Shoes, whose name in Uzbek is Grand Charm Poyafzallari, acquired a stake of 61.9… Continue Reading
Russian unit of Oney banking group to go over from Sovcombank to Ozon retailer
By Andrei Skvarsky. Oney Bank LLC, the Russian unit of global banking group Oney, is changing hands as Sovcombank, one of Russia’s largest private lenders, has signed a deal to sell it to Russian online retailer Ozon. Ozon is buying 100 per cent of Oney, according to a statement from the retailer, which held an… Continue Reading
Russia’s Sberbank buying out e-commerce firm goods.ru
By Andrei Skvarsky. Sberbank, Russia’s biggest lender, has signed a deal to buy out goods.ru (Marketplace), a Russian e-commerce company selling a wide range of consumer goods, among them electronics, car accessories, furniture, toys and medicines. Sberbank is going to acquire an 85 per cent stake in goods.ru by buying part of Russian electronics retailer… Continue Reading
Moscow’s Japanese-owned SBI Bank to get investment from sovereign funds
By Andrei Skvarsky. Two state-owned investment promotion funds, one of them Russian and the other Russian-Japanese, have pledged to make a joint investment in SBI Bank, a Russian lender owned by Japanese group SBI Holdings. The Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF) and the Russia-Japan Investment Fund, which has been instituted by RDIF and a subsidiary… Continue Reading
Russia’s Sovcombank says receiving its first ESG loan
By Andrei Skvarsky. Sovcombank, one of Russia’s largest banks by assets, has announced it has signed an agreement to receive its first loan to be based on environmental, social and governance (ESG) principles. Financing Sovcombank’s buy-now-pay-later Halva card programme is the purpose of the ESG tranche of a two-tranche syndicated loan of $350m arranged for… Continue Reading
Russia’s Sovcombank to lend up to $300m for building Akkuyu nuclear plant in Turkey
By Andrei Skvarsky. Sovcombank, one of Russia’s largest banks, has entered into a deal in which it would lend a maximum of $300m to co-finance Russia’s current construction of a nuclear power plant at Akkuyu, Turkey, the first Turkish nuclear generating facility. The borrower is construction project operator Akkuyu Nuclear JSC, a subsidiary of Russian… Continue Reading
Deal with identity verifier Sumsub provides Leverate fintech firm with anti-fraud solutions
By Andrei Skvarsky. Leverate, a Limassol-headquartered technology provider for foreign exchange brokerages, has clinched a deal with London-based identity verifier Sumsub that supplements packages offered to clients by the Cyprus-based company with anti-fraud technologies. The terms of the deal save customers of Leverate, whose technology is used by about 65,000 traders, the trouble of going… Continue Reading
M4Markets FX and CFD broker launches festive rebate promo
By Andrei Skvarsky. M4Markets, a foreign exchange (FX) and contract-for-difference (CFD) brokerage, has announced that clients of the company will receive $2 for every lot they trade as a Christmas-New Year rebate promotion launched on December 1 and expiring on January 31. Only direct clients, both current and new ones, and only those holding a standard… Continue Reading
Ingot Brokers speeds up client verification to ‘3 minutes’ via deal with Sumsub
By Andrei Skvarsky. Australian multi-asset financial brokerage Ingot Brokers has drastically speeded up its client identity verification procedure and made it more accurate via an automated solution acquired from London-headquartered identity verifier Sumsub. The solution, obtained by Ingot from Sumsub under a partnership agreement, cuts customer onboarding time “from 3 days to 3 minutes”, the… Continue Reading
Minority owners to reject Kaz Minerals buyout price offer from Nova
By Andrei Skvarsky. Moscow-based investment adviser CFC Management has confirmed that its clients who together own a stake of about 3.6 per cent in copper producer Kaz Minerals intend to vote against the acquisition price offered for the London-listed copper miner by investment consortium Nova Resources. In following CFC advice, the owners of the 3.6… Continue Reading
ENLARGED: Debex launches debut online delinquent debt auction in Spain
By Andrei Skvarsky. Debex, an international company running online auctions for delinquent debts, has launched trading in Spain with the debt portfolio of Spanish microlender Prestamer being its first sale. Debex credits its trading with quickness, efficiency and convenience for clients. A buyer can get acquainted with a debt portfolio before it is put on… Continue Reading
Sberbank to be sole owner of Russia’s Cetelem Bank via deal with BNP Paribas
By Andrei Skvarsky. Russia’s biggest lender Sberbank is going to become the sole owner of Russia’s Cetelem Bank, the country’s number one car loan provider, by enlarging its capital in the firm to 100 per cent under an agreement with BNP Paribas that awaits regulatory approval in Russia and France. Under the terms of the… Continue Reading
Sberbank, UAE’s Mubadala clinch cooperation deal
By Andrei Skvarsky. Russia’s biggest lender Sberbank and Abu Dhabi state investment fund Mubadala have signed an agreement to collaborate in multiple fields, including investment, Islamic finance, venture capital and risk hedging. Artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, natural science, telemedicine and education are among areas where the Russian bank and United Arab Emirates company are going to join… Continue Reading
EXCLUSIVE: Sova Capital offers trading in Saudi forwards
Sova Capital, a London-headquartered emerging markets brokerage, has announced it is now offering trading in forward contracts linked to equities listed on the Tadawul, Saudi Arabia’s stock exchange. Sova already conducts global trading in securities from Russia, the Commonwealth of Independent States, Central and Eastern Europe, Turkey and other emerging markets on behalf of institutional clients.… Continue Reading
Unicorn PE firm to find strategic investor for Russian drug company
By Andrei Skvarsky. Moscow-based private equity firm Unicorn has announced it has been hired by a Russian pharmaceutical company to find a strategic investor for it. Unicorn’s client in the project is Mosfarm, a company headquartered in the Moscow region and one of Russia’s largest manufacturers of infusion solutions. Unicorn, whose business is focused on Russian… Continue Reading
Moorgate Capital acts as exclusive financial adviser in UK firm’s buyout of food wholesaler
By Andrei Skvarsky. London-based Moorgate Capital has acted as the exclusive financial adviser to British firm Lioncroft Holdings in acquiring 200m-euro ($225m) food and beverage wholesaler Lioncroft Wholesale (trading as East End Wholesale Stores) in a deal completed on June 30. Lioncroft Holdings bought Lioncroft Wholesale from East End Foods, one of Britain’s largest Asian spice,… Continue Reading
Permira Debt Managers prices new CLO at $225.5m
By Andrei Skvarsky. London-based debt investors Permira Debt Managers (PDM) has set the price for the Providus IV collateralised loan obligation, the fourth CLO in its Providus series, at 207.6m euros ($225.5m). Just as the previous Providus CLOs, Providus IV has environmental, social and governance (ESG) standards among its eligibility criteria, which puts restrictions on… Continue Reading
US fund Princeville Capital provides Russian e-retailer with $50m convertible loan
By Andrei Skvarsky. US investment fund Princeville Capital has provided Russian online retailer Ozon with a $50m loan convertible into equity. The money came as part of a round of financing in which Ozon also received convertible loans totalling $100m from its main stakeholders Sistema and Baring Vostok, according to an Ozon statement. Sistema, which… Continue Reading
Russian conglomerate Sistema boosts share in Ozon retailer to 43%
By Andrei Skvarsky. Russian conglomerate Sistema has enlarged its direct stake in Russian online retailer Ozon to 31.3 per cent from 21.9 per cent by converting earlier loans, with its total interest in Ozon swelling to 43 per cent as a result. The loans were made in 2019. In 2019, Sistema and the Baring Vostok… Continue Reading
Da Vinci Capital passes control of Global Fintech Solutions to Prytek
By Andrei Skvarsky. Guernsey-based private equity company Da Vinci Capital has sold a majority stake in software developer Global Fintech Solutions (GFS) to the Prytek investment firm in what has been described as “one of the fastest exits” in Da Vinci’s history. According to a joint statement from Da Vinci and Prytek, the sale makes… Continue Reading
Silicon Valley’s Fort Ross invests in Kryon to promote business automation in Russia
By Andrei Skvarsky. Silicon Valley-based Russia-focused company Fort Ross Ventures has made an investment in multinational technology firm Kryon that is expected to boost the use of its automation solutions by Russian businesses. Kryon has developed a platform that comprises process discovery and robotic process automation (RPA) tools. The platform is used by companies including… Continue Reading
Russia’s Sberbank carries out big promo campaign, sells bonds worth $26.8m
By Andrei Skvarsky. Hundreds of thousands of people took advantage of an annual promotion campaign by Sberbank last month which, besides a bunch of special offers, enabled Russia’s biggest lender to sell bonds worth 1.71bn roubles ($26.8m). There were offers in a wide range of services, including medical treatment, tour operating, car sales and taxi… Continue Reading
One of Inflexion’s portfolio firms makes five buyouts in November
By Andrei Skvarsky. British investment company Inflexion Private Equity has announced that its portfolio company Radius Payment Solutions, a fuel card manager, made five acquisitions in November. Inflexion owns a minority stake in Radius, which is based in Britain and has offices in various parts of Europe. Radius’s five acquisitions are two vehicle tracking companies,… Continue Reading