Latest news with #PrivateEquity
Bloomberg
a day ago
- Business
- Bloomberg
Virgin Australia IPO Targets $443 Million as Bain Rides Rally
Bain Capital -controlled airline Virgin Australia will relist in a A$685 million ($443 million) initial public offering, betting investors are brushing off the turmoil caused by US President Donald Trump's trade war. The US private equity firm is selling 30% of Virgin Australia at A$2.90 a share, it said in a statement Wednesday.
The Guardian
a day ago
- Business
- The Guardian
Hapless Thames Water finally drinking in last chance saloon
This time Thames Water really is drinking in the last chance saloon Call yourself barbarians at the gate? Actually, KKR hates the decades-old description, but the US private equity firm is still meant to have a fearsome reputation for doing its homework, being a cute judge of political risks and going where others fear to tread. All of which makes its eleventh-hour abandonment of its £4bn bid for Thames Water very odd. The suggestion is that the big bosses in New York couldn't stomach the political and reputational risks of owning the UK's largest and most crisis-ridden water company. If that's the reasoning, though, KKR should explain itself. The political risks aren't obviously worse than six months ago – and arguably are lesser now that the government's water commissioner, Sir Jon Cunliffe, is talking aloud about 'how to restore the stability and predictability of the regulatory system' in his interim report published co-incidentally on Tuesday. Thames's reputation is still in the gutter, but that's not fresh news. The government, too, seems to have been as keen as mustard on KKR. But, as the US firm should know, there are still limits on how many soft promises can be made, and how far the regulatory regime can be bent out of shape ahead of Cunliffe's final report. And, if you can't handle the odd political spat over executive bonuses, the UK water industry was probably never the place for you. KKR was not an unproblematic rescuer, as argued here previously, but, in two important ways, it is a shame it has scarpered. First, KKR was a grown-up international name in infrastructure and was imagining a 10-year commitment to Thames before listing it on the stock market, a good end-point. Second, Thames's fall-back plan – a recapitalisation led by the bondholders – is messy. There are 100 financial institutions in the creditor group owed £13bn collectively. They are all, apparently, aligned in support of a version of a debt-for-equity proposal, but the sheer number of firms involved can only add complexity. The exercise may not be quite like herding cats, but at least there was only one KKR. Nor, to put it mildly, do all 100 members of the creditor group fit Cunliffe's description of the preferred type of shareholder for water companies: those who seek 'low risk, low returns', such as pension funds, for the very good reason that treating sewage and supplying drinking water is not meant to be exciting. Silver Point Capital is a US hedge fund that describes itself as 'a leader in global credit investing'. In other words, debt, not equity, is its game. Fellow US hedgie Elliott is a jack of all trades, but note its un-Cunliffe description of its thrill-seeking style when owning equity – 'positions with a high asymmetry of reward to risk' and 'a high degree of optionality.' Others in the creditor group will be debt-only funds that aren't allowed to own equity. Maybe the coalition will hold out of fear that special administration, AKA temporary nationalisation, would mean a worse outcome for all. But plan B is plainly sub-optimal. There were good reasons why KKR was selected as 'preferred bidder'. An open question, though, is why Thames's board, from a field of six, selected only KKR. An obvious alternative would have been CK Infrastructure, which owns 75% of Northumbrian Water. The need for speed and exclusivity apparently trumped everything, but that now looks a poor call. If it really is too late to summon CKI back, it is only the creditor group's proposal that is standing in the way of special administration. It may feel like Thames has been drinking in the last-chance saloon for about two years, but this time it genuinely is. From the government's point of view, a good outcome at this point may be one in which the creditors shuffle the pack among themselves, with cuddlier names such as Aberdeen emerging as core would-be shareholders and the debt opportunists relegated to minor roles. That could be a workable fudge for a while. But the position is now properly unstable. A lot of time has been wasted on KKR's non-bid. Special administration, the outcome the government has desperately been trying to avoid, is a real possibility.
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Business Standard
6 days ago
- Business
- Business Standard
PAG elevates India head Nikhil Srivastava to co-head of private equity
PAG, one of Asia-Pacific's largest alternative investment firms, has appointed Nikhil Srivastava as Co-Head of its Private Equity business—a move that elevates the current India head to a broader regional leadership role as the firm undergoes a leadership transition. Srivastava, who joined the Hong Kong-based firm in 2019 and currently leads the India private equity franchise, will work alongside David Wong in overseeing PAG's private equity operations. He also joins the firm's Management Committee with immediate effect, according to a company press statement. The leadership reshuffle comes as long-time partner and Co-Head of Private Equity, Lincoln Pan, prepares to exit the firm to become Chief Executive Officer of Jardine Matheson Holdings. Pan will remain with PAG until November, the firm said. Srivastava has played a key role in scaling PAG's India operations, spearheading marquee deals including the acquisition and public listing of Nuvama Wealth Management, and the investment in packaging company Manjushree Technopack. 'Nikhil assumes this leadership position with an outstanding track record in deal-making, team leadership, and strategic execution, as well as a deep understanding of the region and ability to manage and grow our portfolio companies,' said Weijian Shan, Executive Chairman and Co-Founder, PAG. Prior to PAG, Srivastava spent nearly a decade at KKR across India, Singapore, and the US, and earlier held roles at Goldman Sachs and Inphi Corporation. He holds engineering degrees from Stanford and BITS Pilani, and an MBA from Harvard University. PAG manages over $55 billion in assets and employs more than 370 investment professionals across 15 offices globally.
South China Morning Post
28-05-2025
- Business
- South China Morning Post
3 ‘formidable' clusters of companies targeting Hong Kong IPOs, HKEX CEO says
'Formidable' clusters of companies are set to tap Hong Kong's initial public offering (IPO) market, which is an attractive entry point for global capital seeking diversification, according to the Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing (HKEX). Advertisement IPOs in the city have raised around US$10 billion this year and there were more than 150 companies in the pipeline, including many US$1-billion-plus jumbo deals, CEO Bonnie Chan Yiting said on Wednesday at the Greater China Private Equity Summit organised by the Hong Kong Venture Capital and Private Equity Association. The three clusters driving the 'formidable' IPO pipeline in Hong Kong were mainland Chinese A-share firms, US-listed Chinese firms and specialist companies, she said. 'Many of the A to H listings have international ambitions,' she said. 'As this going-out concept continues, you will see many of these A share companies wanting to have an offshore fundraising platform to support their overseas expansion plans.' HKEX CEO Bonnie Chan (left) and Rebecca Xu, co-founder and managing director of Asia Alternatives have a discussion at the Greater China Private Equity Summit in Hong Kong on Wednesday. Photo: Elson Li Within this category, more than 40 companies had filed their IPO applications or had announced such plans, Chan said, adding that the momentum in the IPO market would be a boon for the region's private equity sector, aiding fundraising and investment exits. Advertisement On the potential homecoming of Chinese companies listed in the US, Chan said the Hong Kong stock exchange was ready to welcome them.
Bloomberg
27-05-2025
- Business
- Bloomberg
Cerberus Eyes Chinese Firm's Darwin Port, the Australian Says
US private equity firm Cerberus Capital Management LP is preparing a bid for the strategically-important Port of Darwin, currently owned by Chinese firm Landbridge Group, The Australian newspaper reported. Cerberus is readying a proposal to buy the 99-year lease from Landbridge at a price slightly above the A$506 million ($328 million) the Chinese company paid for it in 2015, the newspaper said late Monday. Landbridge is possibly open to offers around A$1 billion, The Australian cited an unidentified official as saying.
