The Daily Deal articles from April 2002

The Daily Deal archives from April 2002

Brazil selling most of BEM.
April 29, 2002... The Brazilian government, which federalized northern Maranhao state bank BEM, will sell an 89.2% stake in the bank. The two qualified bidders for the auction are Banco Bradesco SA and Banco Itau, Brazil's two largest private banks. These two...

Candy maker Callebaut enriches its business.
April 29, 2002... Swiss chocolate maker Barry Callebaut AG expects to bolster its position in Germany, the world's second-largest chocolate market, after the U.S., through the acquisition of Cologne-based Stollwerck Group. The Swiss company, which announced...

Elektrim demands return of deducted funds.
April 29, 2002... Cash-strapped Elektrim SA, teetering near bankruptcy, is asking a court to order two Polish creditors, BRE Bank SA and Bank Pekao SA, to return Zl 100 million ($25 million) they deducted from Elektrim's accounts to repay some debt. Elektrim...

Globix emerges from bankruptcy proceedings.
April 29, 2002... Web-hosting company Globix Corp. said Friday it has emerged from Chapter 11 protection after a United States Bankruptcy Court found the company satisfied all the conditions necessary for its reorganization plan to take effect. In January,...

Icahn may push biotech Cadus toward acquisition.
April 29, 2002... Financier Carl Icahn said in a Securities and Exchange Commission filing last week that small cap biotechnology company Cadus Pharmaceutical Corp. is undervalued and he's considering possibilities that could lead to New York-based Cadus...

Matsushita merging two units.
April 29, 2002... Japan's Matsushita Electric Industrial Co. is doing an in-house shuffle. The Osaka conglomerate, famed for its Panasonic electronic products, said Friday it will acquire and then merge Kyushu Matsushita Electric Co. and Matsushita Graphic...

Numerex talking to BT Group.
April 29, 2002... Atlanta wireless data specialist Numerex Corp. confirmed Friday it's negotiating to buy the BT RedCARE division of British telecom BT Group plc. Neither company would disclose details. Numerex said that talks are continuing but cautioned...

PSINet sheds European unit.
April 29, 2002... Bankrupt Ashburn, Va., Internet service provider PSINet Inc. said Friday it has sold its PSINet Europe BV subsidiary for $9.5 million in cash to ClearBlue Technologies Holdings Ltd. and Tel Aviv's Israel Corp. The deal needs the approval of...

Preparing for sale, Gas Natural names Enagas head.
April 29, 2002... Gas Natural SDG SA, Spain's largest gas distribution company, has named a new chairman of its Enagas distribution unit ahead of the planned share sale this year. Antonio Gonzalez-Adalid will lead the division as Gas Natural prepares to sell...

Sefas Innovation.
April 29, 2002... French document-management software developer Sefas Innovation SA of Paris announced its fourth round of funding Thursday. The company's [Euro]2.3 million ($2 million) round, which was provided by previous investors Sofinnova Partners, SPEF...

Sigma Technology Group.
April 29, 2002... British venture firm Sigma Technology Group plc of London has staged a first close for its fund with [pound]17.5 million ($24.8 million) committed and has identified its first investment. Bank of Scotland and Scottish Widows Investment...

TIC Enterprises on the block.
April 29, 2002... Bedminster, N.J., natural gas utility NUI Corp. said Friday it intends to sell its telecom sales outsourcing unit TIC Enterprises llc. NUI said it would begin discussions with bidders and hopes to close a sale by Sept. 30. NUI claims its...

Warburg Pincus.
April 29, 2002... New York private equity firm Warburg Pincus expects to announce today a final close on its eighth fund targeting $5 billion. A $2.8 billion initial close was announced in July 2001 with a final close anticipated this fall. The fund aims to...

Westfield closes $756M shopping center purchase.
April 29, 2002... Real estate investment trust Westfield America Inc. of Los Angeles said Friday it completed its $756 million cash and equity purchase of nine regional shopping centers from The Richard E. Jacobs Group. Westfield acquired the malls for $210...

eCompanyStore.
April 29, 2002... Atlanta-based eCompanyStore Inc. has secured $5 million in an equity funding round designed to help fuel the firm's growth. ITC Holding Co., a Valley, Ala.-based investment firm that was already a shareholder, provided the capital....

Pinnacle turns to Fortress, Greenhill to survive.
April 29, 2002... Byline: Jonathan Berke Private equity firms Fortress Investment Group and Greenhill Capital Partners llp next month will invest $205 million in Pinnacle Holdings Inc., receiving a majority equity stake in the struggling communications...

Fleet Street; Fleet Stree.
April 29, 2002... Byline: Peter Moreira Two of Europe's biggest banks, Deutsche Bank AG and Lloyds TSB Group plc, may soon unveil billions of euros worth of deals, according to Britain's Sunday newspapers. The Business newspaper reported that Deutsche...

Granada, Carlton to resume merger talks.
April 29, 2002... Byline: Peter Moreira in London British broadcasters Granada plc and Carlton Communications plc, facing lawsuits over their failed ITV Digital joint venture, are considering restarting the merger talks that broke off just two months ago....

Koor Industries unit begins $200M buying spree.
April 29, 2002... Byline: Neal Sandler TEL AVIV ? As part of its $200 million global acquisition strategy, Koor Industries Ltd. subsidiary Makhteshim Agan Industries Ltd. said April 29 it would acquire privately held German distribution company Feinchemie...

Huaneng Power invests in Three Gorges Dam.
April 29, 2002... Byline: Shu-Ching Jean Chen HONG KONG ? The largest independent power producer in China, Huaneng Power International Inc., said April 26 it would take as much as a 3% stake in the Chinese company that will operate the multibillion dollar...

TRW agrees to talk to bidders.
April 29, 2002... Byline: David Marcus Takeover target TRW Inc. announced April 26 that it had signed confidentiality agreements with several unidentified parties ahead of its May 3 shareholders meeting to vote on Northrop Grumman Corp.'s unsolicited $6.7...

(042902_VCdealflow) Deal Flow ? April 29.
April 29, 2002... Byline: George White COMPUTER SOFTWARE AND HARDWARE Sefas Innovation French document-management software developer Sefas Innovation SA of Paris announced its fourth round of funding Thursday. The company's ?2.3 million ($2...

Kirch comes up short on soccer payments.
April 27, 2002... Byline: Jonathan Braude BERLIN ? Bankrupt Kirch Media GmbH & Co KGaA agreed April 26 to pay ?21 million ($19 million) to cover the broadcast rights for the final two days of the German soccer league season, far short of the ?100 million...

Bidders merry-go-round starts at Jazzland.
April 27, 2002... Byline: Terry Brennan Several potential buyers are lining up to acquire the assets of Jazzland Theme Park after the collapse of a $30.3 million stalking-horse agreement by Entertainment Associates to buy the New Orleans amusement park....

Bankrupt PSINet to sell European unit.
April 27, 2002... Byline: Soma Biswas Bankrupt PSINet Inc. said April 26 that it has signed a definitive agreement to sell PSINet Europe BV and its subsidiaries to a group of investors led by Israel Corp. and ClearBlue Holdings Ltd. for $9.5 million in...

Motient to exit bankruptcy May 1.
April 27, 2002... Byline: Shanon D. Murray Motient Corp. said April 26 that it plans to emerge from bankruptcy protection Wednesday, after a judge confirmed its amended joint reorganization plan that will give bondholders 97% of the company, which owns a...

Comdisco to reorganize into 3 units.
April 27, 2002... Byline: Eric Young Bankrupt equipment leasing firm Comdisco Inc. expects to make a $2 billion payment to its unsecured creditors and ultimately wind down its primary businesses over the next three years, the company told a bankruptcy...

ITV administrators want quick sale.
April 27, 2002... Byline: Nicola Hobday LONDON ? British digital television provider ITV Digital has enough money to last for the next week but must be sold by then or it will be broken up and sold off or closed, according to its administrators at...

Aderis postpones pricing on $77M offering.
April 27, 2002... Byline: Andrew Morse Aderis Pharmaceuticals Inc., an early-stage drug development company, delayed pricing of its initial public offering April 26 as market conditions for new pharmaceutical shares deteriorated. Based in Hopkinton,...

Japanese builders join forces.
April 27, 2002... Byline: Charles Smith TOKYO ? Two mid-sized construction companies, P.S. Corp. and Mitsubishi Construction Co., both linked to the Mitsubishi financial and commercial group, said April 26 they would merge to attempt to overcome crisis...

Gabelli puts pedal down on Southwest Gas.
April 27, 2002... Byline: Ron Orol in Washington Southwest Gas Corp. is no stranger to takeover battles. The company remains in a bitter legal struggle with Oneok Inc. and Southern Union Co. over a failed 1998 deal involving the companies. Now Southwest is...

Arbs: Hewlett's odds of winning at just 5% to 20%.
April 27, 2002... Byline: Scott Stuart With post-trial briefs still under wraps April 26, risk arbitrageurs figured that Walter Hewlett has only a slim chance of winning his court challenge to the vote by Hewlett-Packard Co. shareholders on HP's $18.5...

TRW signs confidentiality agreements.
April 27, 2002... Byline: Eric Young TRW Inc. said late April 26 that it has signed confidentiality agreements with several firms interested in bidding on the company and that it will begin sharing non-public information with interested parties. It...

American Realty makes offer for Prime Group.
April 27, 2002... Byline: Jonathan Berke Dallas real estate firm American Realty Investors Inc., said late April 26 it was making an unsolicited offer to acquire Prime Group Realty Trust in a deal worth $117.75 million in cash. Under the terms, Prime...

Rabble Babble.
April 27, 2002... Byline: Stacy Mosher The news never rests, and nowhere is it busier than on the Internet bulletin boards. This column excerpts the choicest messages on the latest deals. Postings are selected from several sources, including Yahoo!,...

Interpistas board rejects Acesa bid.
April 27, 2002... Byline: Mike Elkin MADRID ? The board of Spanish highway-maintenance company Iberica de Autopistas SA on April 26 rejected a hostile takeover bid by sector leader Autopistas Concesionaria Espa?ola SA. Autopistas Concesionaria...

Heinberg: M&A banking standard rising.
April 27, 2002... Byline: Paul Bonanos One might expect Marshall Heinberg to cite his work on some of the biggest technology mergers ever as the highlight of his career. After all, he advised optical networking giant JDS Uniphase Inc. in the company's $41...

M&A Calendar: Week of April 29.
April 27, 2002... www.TheDeal.com

Clarus looks for exit off long, lonesome road.
April 27, 2002... Byline: David Shabelman in San Francisco Prospective buyers are unlikely to scramble for a chance to acquire Clarus Corp., although the software company's cash hoard could prove tempting. Last week Clarus, an Atlanta-based vendor of...

Peru pushes $800M privatization plan.
April 27, 2002... Byline: Lucien Chauvin LIMA ? The Peruvian government must overcome mounting odds to reach its goal of raising $800 million from the privatization of state-owned assets this year. With nearly one-third of the year gone, President...

SunGard snares Guardian IT for $243M.
April 27, 2002... Byline: Brian Cattell in London and Tyson Freeman in San Francisco U.S. disaster recovery company SunGard Data Systems Inc. has come to the rescue of ailing U.K. counterpart Guardian IT. SunGard unveiled a friendly cash offer for...

Hynix union threatens strike over Micron deal.
April 27, 2002... Byline: Gina Chon SEOUL ? In a threat that could jeopardize a final agreement, the union at Hynix Semiconductor Inc. said April 26 that workers would quit their jobs if Micron Technology Inc. buys the company. Separately, one of...

Schroder plans to rehabilitate Japanese chain.
April 27, 2002... Byline: Charles Smith TOKYO ? Japanese private equity firm Schroder Ventures is preparing to sponsor a restructuring of Niko Niko Do Co., a supermarket chain based in southwest Japan that failed under liabilities of ?97 billion ($754...

MBA entrepreneurs pitch VCs.
April 27, 2002... Byline: Katherine Goncharoff Entrepreneurship is not dead. And don't bother to tell aspiring dealmakers enrolled in M.B.A. programs throughout the U.S. that this is not a good time to raise money from venture capitalists. In fact, a...

What's Hot ? Week ended April 26.
April 27, 2002... Byline: George White This was a good time to be a biotech startup, as that sector made up 42% of the $528.7 million in venture capital raised for the week ended April 26. Total deal flow was 24% higher than the prior week's $423.8...

BBC unit closes door.
April 27, 2002... Two years after taking in private capital to build a British online powerhouse, the e-commerce unit of the British Broadcasting Corp. is cutting its losses and folding its operations into its venerable parent. BBC Worldwide, the...

AFC Enterprises getting J.P. Morgan, CSFB funding.
April 26, 2002... Private equity-backed AFC Enterprises Inc., an Atlanta operator of well-known restaurants such as Church's Chicken, Popeye's Chicken & Biscuits and Cinnabon among others, said Thursday that J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. and Credit Suisse First...

AT&T selling headquarters.
April 26, 2002... Peapack, N.J., drug maker Pharmacia Corp. said Thursday it would purchase the Basking Ridge, N.J., headquarters and corporate conference center of AT&T Corp. for $200 million. Pharmacia said both companies expect to complete the transaction...

Asia Global Crossing restructures two subsidiaries.
April 26, 2002... Working to clean up its books, Asia Global Crossing moved to restructure two joint venture subsidiaries into the operations of its Japanese partner, Vectant, a unit of Marubeni. The restructuring will give Asia Global Crossing 100% ownership...

Broncus Technologies.
April 26, 2002... Medical-device maker Broncus Technologies Inc. of Mountain View, Calif., confirmed Thursday it has received $20 million in a Series D round from new investor Boston Scientific Corp. and returning investors Menlo Ventures, Charter Venture...

INEA.
April 26, 2002... Toronto-based INEA Corp., a provider of enterprise analytics application software, has secured $10 million in a second round of financing led by New York's Apax Partners Inc. with participation from existing investor Ventures West. The firm's...

Intelligent Controls is sold.
April 26, 2002... Intelligent Controls Inc., a Saco, Maine, manufacturer of software and electronic measurement systems for the petroleum and utility industries, said Thursday it agreed to be acquired by Franklin Electric Co., a Bluffton, Ind., maker of motors...

Interplay sells Shiny division.
April 26, 2002... Interplay Entertainment Corp., an Irvine, Calif., maker of video games said Thursday that it has agreed to sell its Shiny Entertainment subsidiary to New York game making rival Infogrames Inc. for about $47 million. Interplay said it is...

Jore survives bankruptcies as buyout is approved.
April 26, 2002... Three months after narrowly averting liquidation, Jore Corp. is now officially out of bankruptcy. The U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Montana in Butte approved the power tool accessory and drill bit maker's sale to Western Mortgage...

OmniGuide.
April 26, 2002... Cambridge, Mass.-based OmniGuide Communications Inc. has secured $10.5 million in its Series B round led by new investor Alliance Technology Ventures with support from 3i Group plc and existing individual shareholders. OmniGuide is developing...

Pizza Delight, Afton Food merging.
April 26, 2002... Canadian food chains Pizza Delight Corp. of Moncton, New Brunswick, and Afton Food Group Ltd. of Burlington, Ontario, said Thursday they are merging in a C$31 million ($19.8 million) all-stock deal. Under the terms, Pizza Delight's...

RedWire.
April 26, 2002... Internet service provider RedWire Broadband Inc. has secured $1.8 million in equity and debt financing. Individual investors provided $1.3 million in Series B equity funding, while Silicon Valley Bank rounded out the deal with $500,000 in...

Suitors submit bids this week for Pfizer's Tetra.
April 26, 2002... New York pharmaceuticals giant Pfizer Inc. this week is taking first-round nonbinding bids on its Tetra aquarium and pond supplies division, according to several sources. Bidders, who may include J.W. Childs Equity Partners II LP-controlled...

Sungard Data reportedly eyeing Guardian IT.
April 26, 2002... Shares of British disaster recovery company Guardian IT plc soared 17% in Thursday trading at the London Stock Exchange on a newspaper report that Wayne, Pa.-based SunGard Data Systems Inc. is in exclusive negotiations to purchase the...

TXU mum on Seeboard purchase.
April 26, 2002... Dallas electricity generator TXU Corp. was silent Thursday on a report it was acquiring the Seeboard power plant in Britain from Columbus, Ohio, utility giant American Electric Power. Bloomberg reported that TXU was teaming with private...

Thios Pharmaceuticals.
April 26, 2002... Oakland, Calif.-based Thios Pharmaceuticals Inc. said Thursday it received $15 million in Series A funding. HealthCare Ventures of Washington, D.C., led the deal, which included Skyline Ventures as well as other private investors. -- Eric...

Van Houtte buying spree rolls on.
April 26, 2002... Continuing its North American expansion, Montreal coffee service provider Van Houtte Inc. said Thursday it has acquired two office coffee service companies for C$2.5 million ($1.6 million). Snackon Food Services Ltd., which buys more than...

iolon.
April 26, 2002... San Jose, Calif.-based iolon Inc., a supplier of tunable optical devices, said Thursday it has obtained $7.6 million after reopening its Series C round. The round, led by existing backer Bowman Capital, took in new investments from NTT...

Enron Watch: Week of April 22.
April 26, 2002... Byline: Jaret Seiberg Week of April 22 It's high times for dealmakers with a penchant for schadenfreude. From the continuing Andersen debacle to the New York attorney general's investigation of analysts to the widening IPO...

Judge wants Enron fees reviewed.
April 26, 2002... Byline: Terry Brennan A New York judge April 25 approved Enron Corp.'s sale of roughly 19,000 electricity contracts for $22.6 million and also approved the designation of an examiner to investigate the legal and other professional fees...

Judge OKs sale of Trade.com's trading system.
April 26, 2002... Byline: Shanon D. Murray Trade.com Global Markets Inc. received court approval April 25 to sell its online financial information distribution and trading software-based system to Raiffeisentrade.com Wertpapierdienstleistungs GmbH (RTC)...

Glencore snags bankrupt Vanalco.
April 26, 2002... Byline: Greg Johnson Bankrupt Vanalco Inc., a Vancouver, Wash.-based aluminum maker, has been sold to Switzerland's Glencore International AG for $24 million. The purchase was approved late April 24 by the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for...

Jore survives bankruptcy with buyout.
April 26, 2002... Byline: Greg Johnson Three months after narrowly averting liquidation, Jore Corp. has officially come out of bankruptcy. The Ronan-Mont.-based power tool accessory and drill bit maker was purchased by Western Mortgage and Realty Co....

Frankfurt exchange to tighten IPO practices.
April 26, 2002... Byline: Jonathan Braude BERLIN ? Dogged by a series of spectacular flops in what was once known as the "growth stocks" sector, Frankfurt stock exchange operator Deutsche B?rse AG has drawn up new rules for initial public offerings on...

Dov dies on debut.
April 26, 2002... Byline: Heidi Moore The market has been unkind to biotech and pharmaceutical initial public offerings of late, and Dov Pharmaceutical Inc. was no exception. The IPO traded significantly below its offering price in its debut April 25....

Japan Telecom is not selling cable TV holdings.
April 26, 2002... Byline: Charles Smith TOKYO ? The No. 3 Japanese telecom operator, Japan Telecom Co., on Thursday denied a local report that it has decided to sell its minority stakes in more than 20 regional cable-TV companies. The Nihon Keizai...

Deals Interrupted ? April 26, 2002.
April 26, 2002... Byline: Gerald C. Magpily ? A deal's announcement is just the beginning of a long process. Legal challenges, alternate bids and internal dissent are just some of the land mines that lie between a merger's inception and its...

Maynard Oil agrees to $82.9M buyout.
April 26, 2002... Byline: Claire Poole HOUSTON ? After nine months of trying to find a buyer, Dallas-based Maynard Oil Co. said April 25 it agreed to be acquired by Plantation Petroleum Holdings llc, a Thomasville, Ga.-based privately-held oil explorer...

Daewoo, GM still face delays.
April 26, 2002... Byline: Gina Chon SEOUL ? The head of Daewoo Motor Co.'s main creditor said April 25 that a final contract to sell assets of the ailing carmaker to General Motors Corp. may not be signed this month, as planned. During an interview...

Lukoil enters talks to buy Polish refinery.
April 26, 2002... Byline: Patricia Koza WARSAW ? In a new twist to Poland's tortuous efforts to privatize its oil sector, the government unexpectedly announced that Russia's Lukoil has joined talks to acquire the country's second-largest oil refinery....

Trustbusters likely to clear Micron-Hynix deal.
April 26, 2002... Byline: Gina Chon SEOUL ? Antitrust regulators in Korea and the United States likely will approve the deal to sell assets of Hynix Semiconductor Inc. to Micron Technology Inc., analysts said April 25. Combined, the companies control...

HSR early terms - April 25, 2002.
April 26, 2002... Byline: compiled by TheDeal.com staff The Federal Trade Commission said April 25 that it does not have antitrust objections to Ciena Corp.?s $900 million stock acquisition of ONI Systems Corp. Also receiving early termination notices...

Linklaters cruises on, even without Dutch firm.
April 26, 2002... Byline: Nicola Hobday LONDON ? Despite the collapse of on-again, off-again merger talks with Dutch firm De Brauw Blackstone Westbroek earlier this month, British law firm Linklaters & Alliance is still upbeat about its European...

Network Associates scraps McAfee deal.
April 26, 2002... Byline: Tyson Freeman and David Shabelman in San Francisco Network Associates Inc. announced April 25 that newly discovered accounting errors have derailed its acquisition of the outstanding equity in subsidiary McAfee.com Corp. A...

Heritage's stale IPO not encouraging.
April 26, 2002... Byline: Jonathan Berke While real estate wags don't think Heritage Property Investment Trust's tepid reception in the initial public offering market earlier this week was a result of its ties to the Teamsters union, they do believe it...

McAfee.com Corp/Network Associates Inc.
April 26, 2002... www.TheDeal.com

Over the hedge.
April 26, 2002... Byline: Stephen Taub T. Boone Pickens Jr., 74, the legendary '80s raider, greenmailer and self-described shareholder advocate, is once again shaking up the oil patch. These days Pickens presides as chairman and CEO of TBP Investments...

Capital Calls ? April 26, 2002.
April 26, 2002... Byline: compiled by John E. Morris It looks for all the world like a Wall Street analyst's report, complete with bullet points analyzing earnings per share and peer-group price/earnings multiples for the upcoming $163 million secondary...

Middle Market Monitor - April 26, 2002.
April 26, 2002... Byline: compiled by George White KPS, Pegasus bid for Republic Tech Republic Technologies International llc, the bankrupt Fairlawn, Ohio, maker of specialty bar steel, said Wednesday that it has agreed to sell itself to two private...