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October 06, 2020

Cyndx Insights is your daily window to the business world, focusing primarily 
on M&A activities, capital markets, and important technology trends.

Daily Insights reports and categorizes financial news from
U.S.Europe and Asia for full global insights.

U.S. & Canada

Brystol Myers to Buy Heart Drug Developer MyoKardia For ~$13B

Bristol Myers Squibb Co BMY.N said on Monday it would buy MyoKardia Inc MYOK.O for about $13 billion to bolster its portfolio of heart disease treatments, as it seeks to reduce some of its dependence on cancer drugs. Bristol Myers gains mavacamten, an experimental heart disease therapy with huge potential.

Read more on Reuters.com
Image: nitpicker / Shutterstock.com

Macquarie, Siemens Units Create U.S.  Distributed Energy JV

Units of Macquarie Group MQG.AX and Siemens AG SIEGn.DE are forming a venture named Calibrant Energy, that will invest in the emerging energy-as-a-service (EaaS) sector in the United States, according to a joint statement on Monday. 

Read more on Reuters.com
Image: jittawit21 / Shutterstock.com

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2020 - Relearning an Old Lesson: Financing Decisions are Strategic

Insights from Cowen:
The last four decades have been defined by major market events that were “game changers” for the global economy: the beginning of the savings and loan crisis, the dot-com bubble burst, the global financial crisis, and now the Covid-19 pandemic. With each stress they faced, the companies that moved decisively to evaluate their balance sheets and preserve and/or raise capital emerged even stronger, while those that did not often had to be restructured or liquidated...

Read more on Cowen.com
Image: metamorworks / Shutterstock.com

Family Offices, Wealthy Investors Wary of Investment Risks

Three in four family principals and office heads in a new survey indicated a mostly cautious investment outlook for the coming 12 months, Citi Private Bank reported last week. The online survey was conducted by the private bank’s Family Office Leadership Program among 179 participants from 103 countries, 71% of whom had family offices; the remaining 29% were ultra-high net worth individuals without a family office.

Read more on Thinkadvisor.com
Image: 88studio/ Shutterstock.com

Apple Sues Recycling Partner

Apple is suing former recycling partner GEEP Canada — now a part of Quantum Lifecycle Partners — for allegedly stealing and reselling at least 103,845 iPhones, iPads, and Watches it was hired to disassemble. 

Read more on Theverge.com
Image:  pio3 / Shuttestock.com

$11.5 Billion Australian Merger Could Trigger a Global Gold Rush

There’s a new member of the world’s mining elite with a friendly merger in Australia creating a top 10 gold producer in a move which could potentially act as a trigger for a wave of similar deals.

Read more on Forbes.com
Image: Parilov / Shutterstock.com

Lenders are Ready, Willing and Able to Help Private Equity Rebound

Middle-market lending activity came to a screeching halt in the second quarter. Leveraged lending levels fell by 80 percent from January through April 2020, according to Dealogic. Deal volume also took a hit.  Today, the private equity market is making its way back to a new norm thanks in part to lenders ready to lend.

Read more on Themiddlemarket.com
Image: ra2 studio / Shutterstock.com

U.S. House's Antitrust Report Hints at Break-Up of Big Tech Firms

The U.S. House of Representatives antitrust report on Big Tech firms contains a “thinly veiled call to break up” the companies, Republican Congressman Ken Buck said in a draft response seen by Reuters.

Read more on Reuters.com
Image: Koshiro K / Shutterstock.com

U.S. Funding & Capital Raising Round Up

The following capital raises were reported yesterday and this morning:

Cooler Screens, which replaces the glass doors in store cooler aisles with interactive digital displays, is announcing that it has raised more than $80 million in Series C funding. The round comes from Verizon Ventures, Microsoft’s M12 venture fund, Great Point Ventures, Silicon Valley Bank and others. Techcrunch.com
HDT Bio Corp., a Seattle, WA-based biotechnology company enabling global access to immunotherapies for oncology and infectious disease, closed its seed financing round totaling ~$3m. The round was co-led by Zoic Capital and joined by angel investors from multiple biotechnology hubs. Finsmes.com
Strike Graph, which is launching today and announcing a $3.9 million seed funding round, wants to automate security audits as much as possible. The company’s funding round was led by Madrona Venture Group, Techcrunch.com
Abridge has combined a consumer app with artificial intelligence to securely transcribe any medical conversation that a patient chooses to record. The company announced $15 million in funding led by investor Union Square Ventures. Forbes.com
Danimer Scientific said on Monday it has agreed to go public by merging with blank-check acquisition company with Live Oak Acquisition Corp LOAK.N in a deal which values the U.S. bioplastics company at around $890 million. Reuters.com
Priority Software Ltd., a global provider of Enterprise Resource Planning software, received a growth investment from TA Associates. TA joined existing investor Fortissimo Capital as an institutional investor in the company. Finsmes.com
Braintrust, a San Francisco, CA-based global network of highly-skilled technical and design talent, raised $18m in strategic funding. The round was led by ACME and Blockchange Ventures. Finsmes.com
Citi has invested in low code platform Genesis Global Technology in an effort to drive business workflow efficiencies across multiple business lines. Finmses.com
ECI Software Solutions, a Fort Worth, Texas-based provider of cloud-based business management solutions, acquired BOLT Software, a cloud-based construction business management solution. The amount of the deal was not disclosed. Finsmes.com
MBS Highway, a Holmdel, N.J.-based provider of mortgage technology solutions, received an equity investment led by Integrity Growth Partners. Integrity Growth Partners was joined by Cohesive Capital Partners and other investors. Finsmes.com
GrubMarket, which provides a B2C platform for consumers to order produce and other items for delivery, and a B2B service as well, has raised $60 million in a Series D round from funds and accounts managed by BlackRock, Reimagined Ventures, Trinity Capital Investment, Celtic House Venture Partners, Marubeni Ventures, Sixty Degree Capital, Mojo Partners. Techcrunch.com
White Star Capital, a global multi-stage technology venture capital investment platform, held the first close of its new $30M Digital Asset Fund. The new fund will invest in crypto-networks and blockchain-enabled businesses at each layer of the tech stack including protocols, infrastructure and applications. Finsmes.com
Icon Health & Fitness, a Logan, Utah-based provider of connected fitness equipment and software, received a $200m growth investment. The round was led by L Catterton, joined by existing investor Pamplona Capital Management. Finsmes.com
AccessFintech, a NYC-based fintech company operating through data and workflow collaboration, completed its Series B funding round of $20m. The round was led by Dawn Capital. Existing investors J.P. Morgan, Citi and Goldman Sachs contributed to the round. Finsmes.com

U.S. & Canada
Deals of the 
Day: M&A and Strategic Investments

Romeo Systems Inc, a battery maker for electric vehicles, will go public through a merger with blank check company RMG Acquisition Corp in a $1.33 billion deal, the companies said on Monday. Reuters.com
Quorum Software, a Thoma Bravo portfolio company and the leader in digital transformation for the oil and gas industry, acquired Landdox, a provider of cloud-first land tech solutions. The amount of the deal was not disclosed. Finsmes.com
Vistaprint announced today that its parent company Cimpress has acquired freelance design marketplace 99designs. The financial terms of the acquisition were not disclosed. Techcrunch.com
Calfrac Well Services Ltd investor Wilks Brothers LLC on Monday raised its hostile bid for the oilfield services company to as much as 25 Canadian cents per share from a prior 18 Canadian cents. Reuters.com
ECI Software Solutions, a Fort Worth, Texas-based provider of cloud-based business management solutions, acquired BOLT Software, a cloud-based construction business management solution. Deal details were not disclosed. Finsmes.com
Vya, a Cincinnati, OH-based provider of simplified marketing execution for distributed organizations, acquired Direct Options, a customer data and analytics firm. The amount of the deal was not disclosed. Finsmes.com
Altamont Capital Partners today announced an equity investment in Cornerstone Advisors, Inc., a leading provider of advisory services to banking institutions. VCAonline.com
DeFiner, a Minneapolis-based decentralized finance network for crypto savings, loans, and payments, received a new investment from SNZ Holding. The amount of the deal was not disclosed. Finsmes.com
CC Capital, a private investment firm focused on investing in and operating high-quality businesses for the long term, and Motive Partners, a specialist private equity firm focused on growth and buyout investments in technology-enabled financial services companies, today announced an agreement to acquire Wilshire Associates, a global investment technology and advisory company. VCAonline.com

CyndInternational News - Europe & Asia

Facebook, Belgian Watchdog Face Off 

Facebook and Belgium’s privacy watchdog sparred on Monday at Europe’s top court over which data protection authority has the power to police the U.S. social media giant in a case that could escalate its privacy fights across the EU.

Read more on Reuters.com
Image: Mehaniq / Shutterstock.com

Microsoft to Build Hub for Cloud Services in Greece

Microsoft Corp. MSFT.O is to build a data centre hub in Greece as it invests in cloud services infrastructure in the country, a boon to an economy weakened by a decade-long debt crisis and the coronavirus pandemic.

Read more on Reuters.com
Image: Nopparat Khokthong / Shutterstock.com

With Blackstone's Backing, Murka Stakes a Claim in Social Casino Games

In the saturated social casino game market, battling the big brands is tough. But Kyiv, Ukraine-based Murka has undertaken this challenge with some success. Through growth that accelerated this year, Murka has become a top 10 player with 5 million monthly active users.

Read more on Venturebeat.com
Image: rawpixel.com / Shutterstock.com

Alibaba Acquires Stake in Duty-Free Retailer Dufry

Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. agreed to buy as much as a 9.99% stake in Dufry AG, giving the Swiss duty-free giant a lifeline as the pandemic hammers the business. Dufry said Monday it’s proposing a capital increase that will raise up to 700 million Swiss francs ($763 million), and Alibaba will participate. 
 
Read more on themiddlemarket.com
Image: Piotr Swat / Shutterstock.com

Nvidia Pledges to Build Britain’s Largest Supercomputer

U.S. chipmaker Nvidia pledged Monday to build a £40 million ($52 million) supercomputer in Cambridge, England, weeks after announcing it intends to buy British rival Arm for $40 billion. The supercomputer — named “Cambridge-1” and is intended for AI research in health care.

Read more on Cnbc.com
Image: Hairen / Shutterstock.com

India to Benefit from Enormous Data Resource: Mukesh Ambani

Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL) chairman Mukesh Ambani said data is a vital national resource that will act as raw material for artificial intelligence (AI)-led development. He said India will have an advantage over its peers in the future due to its enormous digital capital.

Read more on Livemint.com
Image: Royyan Wijjaya / Shutterstock.com

PM Narendra Modi Calls for Responsible AI

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday underlined the vision of a New India that aspires to become a global leader in digital revolution by leveraging the potential of artificial intelligence (AI) in bringing transparency, inclusiveness, trust, and empowerment to the people.

Read more on Yourstory.com
Image: Xtock / Shutterstock.com

Europe & Asia Funds & Capital Raising Round Up

The following capital raises were reported yesterday and this morning:

Seaya Ventures, one of Spain’s leading venture capital firms, has announced today that its third fund, Seaya Ventures III, has reached a first close of €85 million. With a target size of €125 million, the fund will remain open to new investors for the next few months. Eu-startups.com
White Star Capital announced the first close of its new around €25.5 million Digital Asset Fund. The new fund will invest in crypto-networks and blockchain-enabled businesses at each layer of the tech stack including protocols, infrastructure and applications. Eu-startups.com
Priority Software Ltd., a global provider of Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) software, received a growth investment from TA Associates. TA joined existing investor Fortissimo Capital as an institutional investor in the company. Finsmes.com
Nu Quantum, a Cambridge-based quantum photonics company, raised £2.1m in seed funding. Backers included existing investors Amadeus Capital Partners. Ahren Innovation Capital, IQ Capital, Cambridge Enterprise and Martlet Capital and Seraphim Capital. Finsmes.com
Unnati, an India-based agritech startup, said it raised $1.7 million in Pre-Series A round from NABVENTURES — NABARD’s agriculture-focused venture fund. Angel investor Sumeet Seraf also participated in the round and advised the startup on the deal transaction. Yourstory.com
Acculi Labs on Monday announced that it had raised Rs 5 crore (about $700,000) in a seed funding round from PirE Ventures, an investment firm based out of Mumbai. Started in May 2017, by Rupam Das, Acculi Labs aims to make home-based care available to the last person at the bottom of the pyramid. Yourstory.com
Picker, an app that lets you discover and buy products recommended by people you follow, has raised €1.3 million in seed funding. Backing the Barcelona-based startup is Berlin’s Btov. Techcrunch.com
Uni, which is building the modern age consumer credit card for the India market, announced it has raised $18.5 million in its seed financing round led by Lightspeed and Accel. Techcrunch.com
Acesso Digital Tecnologia da Informação S.A., a São Paulo, Brazil-based SaaS company, raised R$580 million (US$108m) in Series B financing. The round was led by General Atlantic and SoftBank. Finsmes.com
Elaphe Propulsion Technologies Ltd., a Ljubjana, Slovenia-based world leader in electric in-wheel-drive technology for electric vehicles, raised €4.2m in Euro A+ funding. EIT InnoEnergy made the investment. Finsmes.com
Dryad Networks has secured seed funding of €1.8 million to develop an IoT network for the ultra-early detection of wildfires. Seed investors are: STIHL Digital, LEAG, ISAR AG; and Brandenburg Kapital. Eu-startups.com
Sensolus, a provider of IoT-based asset tracking solutions, has closed a financing round of €3.5 million, led by btov Partners’ Industrial Technologies Fund. Eu-startups.com

Europe & Asia
Deals of the 
Day: M&A and Strategic Investments

Italy’s Intesa Sanpaolo is purchasing a 69% stake in Swiss private bank REYL & Cie, the groups said in a joint statement on Monday, in a deal that will merge the Italian lender’s Swiss private banking subsidiary with REYL. Reuters.com
TC PipeLines LP TCP.N said on Monday top shareholder TC Energy Corp TRP.TO offered to buy the rest of the natural gas pipelines operator in a deal that valued the company at about $1.48 billion. Reuters.com
Inpixon's (INPX +4.2%) wholly owned subsidiary, Inpixon GmbH, entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Berlin-based Nanotron Technologies GmbH, a global location awareness technology company, via a share purchase agreement. Seekingalpha.com
Acrotec, which makes components for watchmakers including Rolex and Patek Philippe, is being readied for a sale worth up to 950 million Swiss Francs ($1 billion) including debt by its private equity owner Castik Capital, three people close to the matter said. Reuters.com
Refinitiv has today acquired The Red Flag Group, significantly expanding its suite of due diligence offerings with the addition of a leading provider of workflow, data, due diligence and ratings solutions that help corporate compliance customers to evaluate money laundering, bribery and corruption, reputational and ESG risk. Finextra.com
Ÿnsect, the startup building the world’s most high tech bug colony, have added $224 million in equity and debt. Investors backing the company include the Los Angeles-based investment firm Upfront Ventures and the FootPrint Coalition, an investment vehicle financed by celebrity superhero Robert Downey Jr. Techcrunch.com
Danone DANO.PA on Tuesday said it would sell its remaining 6.6% stake in Japanese probiotic yogurt maker Yakult Honsha 2267.T in a move that will strengthen the French food group's balance sheet. Reuters.com
Premier Oil abandoned its plans to buy North Sea fields from BP for $210 million after Premier was taken over by rival Chrysaor, marking a small dent in BP’s $25 billion disposals target. Reuters.com
ClearCourse Partnership LLP, a group of innovative technology companies providing integrated software solutions to businesses announced the acquisition of two UK-based payments businesses, Adelante and E-Novations. Finextra.com
France’s Veolia <VIE.PA> edged closer to buying a big stake in rival Suez <SEVI.PA> on Monday after another suitor walked away, but still faces strong resistance to its ambition of a full takeover to create a global waste and water giant. Financialnewsletter.com

Making the News

The following stories have made financial news:

Johnson & Johnson JNJ.N will pay more than $100 million to settle over 1,000 lawsuits that allege the company's Baby Powder caused cancer, Bloomberg news reported on Monday. Reuters.com
Antivirus software pioneer John McAfee was indicted by the U.S. Justice Department on Monday for tax evasion and failing to file tax returns, capping years of outrageous and erratic behavior from the tech entrepreneur. Forbes.com
The U.S. House of Representatives antitrust report on Big Tech firms contains a “thinly veiled call to break up” the companies, Republican Congressman Ken Buck said in a draft response seen by Reuters.
A U.S. judge on Monday ordered Cisco Systems Inc to pay $1.9 billion to a Virginia company that accused it of copying its cybersecurity patents. Reuters.com

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