Bidding War for $12.5B DocuSign, PAI Partners to Exit $10B Nestlé Joint Venture, WPP to Divest Kantar Stake
Private equity news the week of January 15th, 2024.
Insights
Chart of the Week: Approximately two-thirds of PE-backed CEOs have experience working in public companies. With take-private dealmaking at an all-time high, we're likely to see even more recruiting from public companies to fill CEO and other C-suite roles in portfolio companies. (Read More)
More Insights
- Private Equity is Recruiting More Public Company Execs (Read More)
- Private Equity Operating Trends Report 2024 (Read More)
- Turnaround Case Study: Dell Technologies (Read More)
- The 100 Largest Private Equity Buyouts of All-Time (Read More)
- Private Equity Firms Are Increasing Exposure to These Industries (Read More)
Deals News
Bain Capital and Hellman & Friedman are reportedly competing to acquire DocuSign at a valuation of $12.5 billion. DocuSign, which went public in 2018 at a $6 billion valuation, has seen its stock price lag behind other rapidly growing tech companies. In 2022, the company appointed former Google President Allan Thygesen as CEO. (Source)
BlackRock has acquired Global Infrastructure Partners (GIP), a private equity firm, for $12.5 billion. This acquisition expands BlackRock's exposure to private companies in the energy, transportation, and digital infrastructure sectors. Notable GIP holdings include the $14.9 billion acquisition of Cyrus One with KKR and a $2 billion deal for Atlas Renewable. (Source)
PAI Partners is considering selling its stake in Froneri, formerly Nestlé’s ice cream business, for over $10 billion. Formed by merging Nestlé’s ice cream division with R&R Ice Cream, backed by PAI, Froneri includes brands like Häagen-Dazs and was valued at around $8 billion in 2019. (Source)
