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Corporate Financier’s Notes by Aivars Jurcans
Done! And Done
Evergrande, a Chinese property developer, agreed to sell a 20% stake in Shengjing Bank to Shenyang Shengjing Finance Investment Group, a state-owned investment group, for USD 1.5 billion. Evergrande will still retain a 15% stake in Shengjing Bank.
Source: FT
Peel Hunt, a UK corporate broker, has raised GBP 112 million in a flotation on Aim, London’s junior market, at a valuation of about GBP 280 million. Founded in 1989, the company made revenues of GBP 196.8 million in the last financial year, up from GBP 95.5 in the previous year.
Source: FT
Bank Leumi, an Israeli lender, agreed to merge Leumi USA, its US unit, into Valley National Bancorp, a US lender, in a deal valuing Leumi USA at about USD 1.2 billion. Approximately 90% of proceeds will be paid in Valley common stock, with the remainder to be paid in cash.
Source: Reuters
Apollo Global Management, a US private equity firm, agreed to sell Amissima Vita, an Italian insurer, to Athora Holding, a Bermuda-based specialised life insurance group with EUR 79 billion of assets under administration. The financial details of the deal were not disclosed. Apollo acquired Amissima Vita (previously named as Carige Vita Nuova) from Banca Carige in 2015.
Source: Reuters
Deals On The Table
Allianz SE, a German insurer, is said to be in “advanced talks” to transfer a block of Swiss life insurance assets to Resolution Life. The transaction would affect roughly USD 6 billion in liabilities. Allianz would remain legally responsible for the policies while Resolution Life would manage the books going forward.
Source: Bloomberg
Cattolica, an Italian insurer, said that its board considers the EUR 1.17 billion buyout offer from Generali to be at a fair price. Generali already holds a stake of almost 24% in Cattolica.
Source: Reuters
P10 Inc, the holding company of P10 Holdings, an investment firm, is said to be preparing for an IPO in the US. It had USD 14.2 billion of fee-paying assets under management and reported revenues of USD 66.8 million for the 6 months ended 30 June 2021.
Source: Reuters
Renaissance Insurance, a Russian insurer, is said to be considering listing its shares on the Moscow Exchange and raise up to USD 290 million in an initial public offering.
Source: Reuters
Credit Agricole, a French lender, is said to have offered to buy Olinn, an auto leasing and computer equipment company, for EUR 100 million. Olinn has annual revenues of EUR 175 million and serves 5,300 clients in Europe.
Source: Reuters
Banco Inter, a Brazilian digital lender, and StoneCo, a payments company, are said to be in “preliminary talks” to expand a current partnership agreement, including a potential merger. StoneCo acquired a 4.99% stake in Banco Inter in June 2021. A combined entity would have a market capitalisation of roughly USD 22 billion.
Source: Reuters
FWD Group Holdings, an insurer owned by Richard Li (a Hong Kong billionaire), is said to be planning an initial public offering in the US. The company reported revenues of USD 9.49 billion last year.
Source: Reuters
Not So Fast
Kakao Pay, a South Korean financial technology firm, is said to have pushed back its planned initial public offering, worth as much as USD 1.28 billion, from October to November 2021.
Source: Reuters
Up-and-Comers
Remitly, a Seattle-based payments startup, has gone public at a USD 7 billion valuation, a big step up from the USD 1.5 billion it was valued 14 months ago. Its shares are currently trading at about 27x times its 2020 revenue.
Source: FT
Exciting Numbers
As of the end of July 2021, USD 7.3 trillion was held in passive open-ended and exchange traded funds that invest primarily in US equities, according to Morningstar, outweighing the USD 6.6 trillion in comparable actively managed funds.
Source: FT
According to World Bank, some USD 445 billion of remittances were sent to developing countries through formal channels alone in 2020.
Source: FT
A Thought Worth Noting
“A preponderance of evidence suggests that the rise of passive has played a major role in the stock market bubble of the past decade. If the rise of passive is the main cause for this bull market, a sustained bear market can only occur if the passive sector shrinks.”
Vincent Deluard, global macro strategist, StoneX
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Aivars Jurcans has more than 20 years of corporate finance and investment banking experience. His services are currently available through MURINUS ADVISERS.
Design by Artis Briedis, Photo by Joe Taylor on Unsplash
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