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☆ Exclusive-BDT & MSD Partners Explores $5 Billion Sale of Alliance Laundry-Sources
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-30 | by ( Jan. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +2 min

By Anirban Sen(Reuters) - Merchant bank BDT & MSD Partners, the owner of Alliance Laundry Systems, is exploring a sale of the U.S. laundry equipment manufacturer that could value it at nearly $5 billion, including debt, according to people familiar with the matter. BDT & MSD Partners, Alliance Laundry, and Morgan Stanley declined to comment. It supplies laundry systems to U.S. military facilities, laundromat chains, hotels, long-term healthcare facilities and clinics, restaurants, fire stations, residential apartments, and other businesses across sectors. In 2015, Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan sold its majority stake in Ripon, Wisconsin-based Alliance Laundry to BDT Capital Partners, prior to its merger with MSD Partners. BDT & MSD Partners is run by former Goldman Sachs alumni Trott and Gregg Lemkau.

Persons: Anirban Sen, Morgan Stanley, Michael, Byron, Primus, Goldman Sachs, Trott, Gregg Lemkau, Silver, Armour, Shari Redstone, Chizu Nomiyama Organizations: Reuters, Merchant, MSD Partners, Alliance Laundry Systems, Alliance, Laundry, BDT Capital Partners Locations: Ontario, Ripon , Wisconsin, New York

☆ Instagrid replaces gas-powered generators with electric alternatives. Check out the 23-slide pitch deck it used to raise $95 million.
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-23 | by ( Tasmin Lockwood | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

download the appSign up to get the inside scoop on today’s biggest stories in markets, tech, and business — delivered daily. Read previewA German startup replacing fossil fuel generators used to power construction, film sets, music festivals, and first responders has just raised $95 million in a Series C funding round. "What people did before, if they needed more computational power, they built bigger and bigger and bigger computers – so these mainframe computers that you had in the early 90s," he told Business Insider. AdvertisementIts customers, which buy units for use or to rent on to others, include Swedish construction company Skanska, European construction rental company Loxaml, and the Red Cross. The fresh funds will be used to expand the rollout of the current system and launch additional powerful electric generator systems.

Persons: —, Instagrid, Sebastian Berning, Berning, Morgan Organizations: Service, Business, Teachers ' Venture, Ontario Teachers, Energy Impact Partners, SET Ventures Locations: Swedish, Ontario, Europe, North America, , California

☆ Need to ask whether AI will increase inequality, Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan CEO says
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-18 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailNeed to ask whether AI will increase inequality, Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan CEO saysJo Taylor, CEO of the Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan, discusses how his fund is adapting to longer retirements, and what AI could mean for the future.

Persons: Jo Taylor Organizations: Ontario

On day one of Sam Bankman-Fried's criminal trial, assistant U.S. attorney, Danielle Sassoon, rattled off a lengthy list of potential witnesses who might be called to testify for either the government or the defense. The list, which was compiled jointly by both sides, was released during the afternoon session and included Bankman-Fried's brother, Gabe, as well his parents, Allan Joseph Bankman and his wife, Barbara Fried. Parents of the disgraced former CEO of FTX are themselves the subject of new scrutiny. Other entities that may take the witness stand included various venture funds and crypto-focused companies like Genesis, Lightspeed Venture Partners, Ontario Teachers Pension Fund, Third Point, Signature Bank, and Voyager Digital. Many of these businesses were hurt or wiped out by the collapse in cryptocurrency prices triggered in part by FTX's implosion.

Persons: Sam Bankman, Danielle Sassoon, Gabe, Allan Joseph Bankman, Barbara Fried, Ellison, FTX, Wang, Anthony Scaramucci, Fried Alfred Lin, Sequoia Capital Zac Prince, Michael Lewis Organizations: Alameda Research, U.S, SkyBridge, Sequoia Capital, Lightspeed Venture Partners, Ontario, Pension Fund, Signature Bank, Voyager Locations: Bankman, Manhattan

☆ India-Canada relations: how could trade be affected as tensions rise?
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-19 | by ( Manoj Kumar | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

On Tuesday, New Delhi dismissed the allegations as "absurd", and asked Canada instead to crack down on anti-India elements operating in its territory. Here is what is at stake for both countries:HOW ARE TRADE TALKS AFFECTED? Steady growth has seen goods trade rising to $8 billion in 2022, with Indian exports to Canada touching $4 billion and imports from Canada also worth $4 billion. Pharmaceutical products, worth about $418 million, made up the bulk of Indian exports last year, followed by iron and steel products worth about $328 million and machinery, nuclear reactors and boilers worth about $287 million. India's growing demand for imported lentils has benefited Canadian farmers, while Indian pharmaceutical and software companies have expanded their presence in the Canadian market.

Persons: Hardeep Singh Nijjar, Nanak, Chris Helgren, Justin Trudeau, Canpotex, Manoj Kumar, Arpan Varghese, Jaiveer, Clarence Fernandez, Anil D'Silva Organizations: REUTERS, Trading Economics, UN, Canpotex, Pharmaceutical, Caisse, Ontario Teachers, Bombardier, SNC Lavalin, TCS, Infosys, Wipro, Canadian Bureau of International Education, Thomson Locations: Surrey, British Columbia, Canada, DELHI, India, New Delhi, India's, Punjab, Bengaluru

U.S. Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo's trip to China last month had promised some economic and trade detente between the two superpowers now at loggerheads. And none of the 222 funds polled expected China economic growth to be any higher next year than this - mirroring a recent Reuters survey of domestic and overseas banks and investors. As these sorts of surveys go, there's an awful lot in there that could spell "peak gloom". Indeed, shorting China equities was deemed the second "most crowded trade" behind long exposure to supercharged Big Tech stocks. Even if the economy turns, political catalysts for a return to China may be slow in coming.

Persons: Aly, Gina Raimondo's, it's, Jamie Dimon, Jay Clayton, Jenny Johnson, Franklin Templeton, Willem Sels, Mike Dolan, Sharon Singleton Organizations: REUTERS, . Commerce, Bank of, Big Tech, Reuters, Reuters Graphics Reuters, JPMorgan, Investments, The Ontario Teachers, Caisse, Franklin, HSBC Private Banking, Thomson Locations: Shanghai, Shenzhen, China, loggerheads, Wall, Asia, Silicon Valley, Hong Kong, Temasek, Bridgewater, Blackrock, India, Indonesia, Washington, United States

☆ Norges Bank: Norway's $1.4 trillion investment fund is shutting its China office
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-08 | by ( Laura He | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

The firm, which manages Norway’s $1.4 trillion government pension fund, is the world’s biggest single investor in the stock market. The decision to close its Shanghai office was driven by “operational considerations” and doesn’t affect the fund’s investments or its investment strategy in China, NBIM said in a statement on Thursday. There are currently eight people in the Shanghai office, the firm said. Norges Bank is the central bank of Norway. Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan, one of the world’s largest pension funds, closed its Hong Kong-based China equity investment team earlier this year.

Persons: NBIM, Odin Jaeger Organizations: Hong Kong CNN — Norges Bank Investment Management, Norges Bank, Bloomberg, Getty, Ontario, CNN, Forrester Research, Consulting Locations: China, Hong Kong, Shanghai, Asia, Singapore, Oslo, Norway, Norwegian

The Chinese national flag is seen in front of the financial district Central on the Chinese National Day in Hong Kong, China October 1, 2022. Most were on the fund's private equity team and were informed early last month, according to two of the people. CPP, which employs more than 150 people in Hong Kong, its Asia hub, declined to comment. The Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan (OTPP) closed down its China equity investment team based in Hong Kong in April, Reuters has reported. There have been $3.2 billion worth of acquisitions of firms in China by private equity so far this year.

Persons: Tyrone Siu, Gina Raimondo, Canada's, Michel Leduc, Julie Zhu, Kane Wu, Edwina Gibbs Organizations: REUTERS, Investments, U.S, . Commerce, The Ontario Teachers, Reuters, Caisse, Financial Times, Thomson Locations: Central, Hong Kong, China, HONG KONG, Asia, Canada, U.S, Washington, Shanghai

The gathering comes at a time when global investors and banks are warning that confidence is waning in China's economic outlook. Such a meeting, with a clear agenda to discuss challenges facing global fund managers investing in China, is rare, the three sources said, and reflected Beijing's keenness to shore up confidence among foreign investors. Weighed down by strict COVID measures, China's economy grew just 3% in 2022, one of its worst showings in decades. The meeting is organized by China's fund regulator Asset Management Association of China (AMAC). U.S. dollar-denominated fundraising by China-focused venture capital and PE firms this year also had its weakest first half year in the past decade, data from industry tracker Preqin showed.

Persons: Fang Xinghai, didn't, Andrew Collier, Premier Li Qiang, Xie Yu, Julie Zhu, Selena Li, Kim Coghill Organizations: U.S ., Reuters, Canada's, Ontario, China Securities Regulatory Commission, Management Association of China, ., Orient Capital Research, Ant, Premier, Wednesday, Thomson Locations: HONG KONG, Beijing, U.S, China, Taiwan, Hong Kong

☆ 4 things making it harder for Janet Yellen to repair the US-China relationship
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-06 | by ( Laura He | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

The global economy stands to gain if Washington and Beijing can mend fences, but analysts say this appears unlikely. Here are four things likely to make it harder for Yellen to repair US-China ties, and one thing keeping the relationship going. Sequoia’s executives said in a statement that it has become “increasingly complex” to run a decentralized global investment business. On Wednesday, US pharmaceutical firm Moderna (MRNA)signed a deal to make its first major investment in China. “Both sides are ramping up commercial restrictions in the name of national security and national interests,” she said.

Persons: Janet Yellen, China, ” Wei Jianguo, ”, Anna Ashton, Biden, Beijing’s, Wei, Capvision, Xi Jinping’s, “, Li Qiang, Xi, Alex Capri, ” Ashton, —, Jennifer Hansler, Wayne Chang, Bryan Mena Organizations: Hong Kong CNN, Eurasia Group, Micron Technology, China Daily, Analysts, China, Capvision, Bain & Company, Group, Forrester Research, Ontario, Republicans, Hawks, Shanghai Cooperation Organization, Xinhua, US Commerce Department, “, National University of Singapore Business School, Moderna Locations: Hong Kong, Beijing, United States, China, Chinese, Washington, Japan, Europe, Shanghai, New York, decouple, Moscow, Ukraine, Russia, Taiwan, Tianjin

Brookfield and DigitalBridge are leading opposing bidding consortia in the auction for privately held DigitalBridge, the sources said, adding an outcome is expected by next month. The terms of Compass' debt allow for it to be taken over by a new owner without it being refinanced, one of the sources said. The Deal reported in February that Compass Datacenters was exploring a sale. Compass Datacenters, Brookfield Infrastructure Partners and DigitalBridge declined to comment. During the same month, Brookfield Infrastructure also acquired freight container lessor Triton International Ltd (TRTN.N) for about $4.7 billion.

Persons: Dealmaking, Brookfield, Milana Vinn, Anirban Sen, Daniel Wallis Organizations: Brookfield Infrastructure Partners, DigitalBridge, RedBird Capital Partners, Ontario, Azrieli, Brookfield Infrastructure, Reuters, Triton International, Boca, Thomson Locations: Brookfield, Dallas , Texas, Data4, Boca Raton , Florida, New York

☆ China's economy is growing again. So why are investors dumping stocks?
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-19 | by ( Laura He | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

Investors trimmed their exposure to China amid economic uncertainty in the country, rising geopolitical tensions and Beijing’s crackdown on international consulting firms. The Nasdaq Golden Dragon China Index has lost more than 5% since April 18. Another concern for global investors is the country’s “fundamental investability,” he said, referring to geopolitical and Chinese policy risks. Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan, one of the world’s largest pension funds, has closed its Hong Kong-based China equity investment team. “The more cracks appear in Western economies,” the more global investors will need to put money into Chinese assets, he added.

☆ Geopolitics is shrinking India’s risk premium
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-09 | by ( Una Galani | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +7 min

They are lured by a country whose potential as an alternative investment destination to China increasingly outweighs the local challenges of doing business. India’s $3 trillion economy is forecast to grow by 6.5% this fiscal year, continuing to outpace the rest of the world. Executives and investors also see a business-friendly government that is likely to remain in power for the next half-decade. Morgan Stanley analysts and strategists expect India to become the world’s third-largest economy and stock market before the end of the decade. The India risk premium is rapidly disappearing.

HONG KONG, May 2 (Reuters Breakingviews) - Money flowing into the People's Republic is getting uncomfortably hot. Yet recent reversals in New York, Hong Kong and Shanghai suggest that is driven by fickle short-term funds – exactly what Beijing doesn’t want. Reuters Graphics Reuters GraphicsFollow @mak_robyn on TwitterCONTEXT NEWSChinese spirit maker ZJLD shares closed down 18% lower than their initial public offering price on their trading debut April 27. The KKR-backed company raised $676 million in what was the biggest offering in Hong Kong since October 2022. Separately, the Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan, Canada's third largest pension fund, closed down its China equity investment team based in Hong Kong, Reuters reported on April 25, citing sources.

☆ As possible Social Security benefits cut looms, GOP senator says lawmakers are working on a 'big idea' fix
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-25 | by ( Lorie Konish | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

Nicholas Kamm | AFP | Getty ImagesSocial Security's trust funds have a new projected depletion date that is about a decade away. The idea calls for creating an investment fund separate from Social Security and allowing the investment to earn returns over a period of 70 years, Cassidy said. It would target the Social Security trust funds' biggest weakness, which is that it has "the absolute worst investment strategy you could have right now," Cassidy said. 'Big idea' inspired by private pensionsThe idea for investing Social Security's funds in the market is inspired by private pension funds, which already buy securities outside of Treasurys. Possible changes to fix Social Security generally include tax increases, benefit cuts or a combination of both.

☆ Blackstone says India top Asian market, eyes infra investments
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-14 | by ( M. Sriram | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

MUMBAI, Feb 14 (Reuters) - India will continue to be Blackstone Inc's (BX.N) biggest market in Asia and the private equity giant may consider infrastructure investments there in the future, a top company executive said on Tuesday. Blackstone said it manages assets worth $50 billion in India, including in private equity and real estate. Private equity deals in India totalled $32 billion last year, a 27% drop from 2021. Even as Blackstone remains bullish on India, Gray said more certainty around tax and capital market laws will help increase foreign investments in India. China's share in Asia's total private equity deal value dropped to 28% in 2022 from 41% in 2021, the data showed.

☆ RSA Security explores $2 bln-plus sale of Archer -sources
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-18 | by ( Milana Vinn | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Clearlake Capital, another private equity firm, invested in RSA the following year. Last year, RSA sold a majority stake in its events business, RSA Conference, to private equity firm Crosspoint Capital Partners for an undisclosed amount. Archer, headquartered in Bedford, Massachusetts, is a governance, risk and compliance software platform with over 15,000 users globally. RSA's other business divisions include identity and access management platform SecureID and threat detection and response software platform NetWitness. Archer is not the only risk management software vendor up for sale in the United States.

New York CNN —FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried was indicted on eight criminal charges including wire fraud and conspiracy by misusing customer funds, according to an indictment from the US Attorney of the Southern District of New York. Separately Tuesday, US markets regulators charged Bankman-Fried with defrauding investors and customers in his failed crypto exchange FTX. The Securities and Exchange Commission said Bankman-Fried, “orchestrated a years-long fraud” to conceal from FTX investors the diversion of customer funds to Alameda Research, his crypto-trading hedge fund. Star athletes and celebrities who backed FTX also reportedly received a stake in the company, including Tom Brady and Gisele. That meant there was no meaningful distinction between FTX customer funds and Alameda’s funds that Bankman-Fried used as his “personal piggy bank,” the complaint says.

But many are delaying IPOs amid a stock market rout that has raised concerns over frothy tech valuations. In a statement to Reuters, Snapdeal said it has decided to withdraw the IPO prospectus "considering the prevailing market conditions", without elaborating. It adding that Snapdeal may reconsider an IPO in future depending on its need for capital and market conditions. The change of Snapdeal's plans comes as tech stocks in India that listed in recent years face investors' wrath. In August, TPG and Prosus-funded Indian online pharmcy PharmEasy withdrew papers for its $760 million IPO, while Warburg Pincus-backed seller of wireless earphones, boAT Lifestyle, also withdrew its papers in October.

NEW YORK, Dec 7 (Reuters) - Sonnedix and Cubico, two renewable energy developers, are competing to buy Chilean solar power assets that Italy's Enel (ENEI.MI) has put on the block to help trim debt, sources familiar with the matter told Reuters. Consisting of around 500 megawatts (MW) of operating and newly built sites, the portfolio is expected to fetch up to 1 billion euros ($1 billion). Enel and Cubico declined to comment. Pension and infrastructure funds have been buying stakes in low-carbon energy generation for many years, attracted by their predictable returns. Additional reporting by Valentina Za and Francesca Landini in Milan; editing by Cynthia OstermanOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ SSE to sell stake in transmission network business for $1.78 bln
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-25 | by ( Hadeel Al Sayegh | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Nov 25 (Reuters) - British power generator and network operator SSE (SSE.L) said on Friday it had reached an agreement to sell a 25% stake in its power transmission network business to Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan Board for 1.47 billion pounds ($1.78 billion). The business, SSEN Transmission – which operates under its licensed entity – Scottish Hydro Electric Transmission plc, will be chaired by SSE's finance director, Gregor Alexander, and Ontario Teachers' will get a proportional representation on the board. The stake sale process is expected to commence in early 2023. Power companies in Britain have been hit by the government's plans to increase a windfall tax to 35% from its current rate of 25% and extend it to power generation firms in an effort to raise tens of billions of pounds to plug a major hole in public finances. ($1 = 0.8258 pounds)Reporting by Radhika Anilkumar in Bengaluru; editing by Uttaresh.V and Savio D'SouzaOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ FTX: Inside the crypto giant's downfall
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-18 | by ( Allison Morrow | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

Crypto contagionThe crypto industry is on edge, waiting for the next dominoes to fall. Soon after FTX went down, crypto firms were inundated requests from customers seeking to claw their money back — the crypto equivalent of a run on the bank. The pain isn’t confined to crypto companies. SBF had become a fixture in Washington, too, where he regularly traveled to lobby lawmakers for greater regulatory clarity for the crypto industry. “It’s about fraud and the power of virtue signaling.”He added: “This scandal, far from destroying crypto, practically ensures that crypto will be around for a long, long time.”

☆ FTX flop evokes history’s great financial swindles
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-18 | by ( Edward Chancellor | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +7 min

As Walter Bagehot wrote in “Lombard Street” in 1873, “The good times too of high price almost always engender much fraud. As cryptocurrencies declined in value, FTX provided a line of credit to BlockFi, a stricken crypto-lender. He talked about Three Arrows Capital, the failed crypto hedge fund, as engaged in “punting”. His firm launched a product based on a basket of crypto assets that it called Shitcoin Index Perpetual Futures, with the unsubtle ticker SHIT-PERP. He commissioned an advertisement, aired during the Super Bowl, in which the comedian Larry David casts doubt on the viability of FTX.

☆ 'We're going to dream a little less': Sequoia's Doug Leone on fallout from FTX's collapse
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-18 | by ( Ryan Browne | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Doug Leone, managing partner at Sequoia Capital LLC, speaks during the Bridge Forum conference in San Francisco, California, U.S., on Wednesday, April 17, 2019. The event brings together leaders in finance and technology from Asia and Silicon Valley to connect and share insights. HELSINKI, Finland — Billionaire venture capitalist Doug Leone said there wasn't much his firm Sequoia Capital could do to predict the solvency crisis at FTX. Without mentioning FTX by name — though strongly hinting at it ("I'm not going to mention any acronyms") — Leone, Sequoia's global managing partner, said Sequoia had done "careful due diligence" on FTX. Sequoia was one of numerous blue-chip funds that backed FTX before its demise.

☆ Breakingviews: FTX affords a turning point in venture governance
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-17 | by ( Liam Proud | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

The new chief executive of the collapsed cryptocurrency exchange, insolvency veteran John Ray, uncovered giant financial gaps and signs of looting. Ray’s first in-depth account, submitted to the court on Thursday, reveals a brazen lack of controls and governance. Financial statements dated to Sept. 30, when founder Sam Bankman-Fried was in charge, contain no record of customer liabilities at either the U.S. subsidiary or the international division. Many of the FTX corporate entities never had board meetings. Ray also criticised his predecessor and FTX co-founder Sam Bankman-Fried for making “erratic and misleading public statements”.

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