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Extreme M&A

July 7, 2008 - The exploration of strategic alternatives has gone extreme. Extreme sports, that is. The popularity of apparel and merchandise geared towards people who participate in extreme sports or action sports-unconventional sporting activities like skateboarding, snowboarding, in-line skating and BMX biking-is yielding new business for investment banking firms in time for the summer recreation rush.

Merrill Snags UBS Muni Bankers

July 7, 2008 - Merrill Lynch has scooped up nearly 30 public finance bankers from the ranks of the now-shuttered municipal group at UBS Securities--taking advantage of a 'once-in-a-decade opportunity' as its Wall Street neighbors shed staff to cope with subprime market-related losses, according to the firm's municipal chairman.

Deutsche Bank To Buy ABN Assets

July 7, 2008 - Deutsche Bank said last Wednesday it will buy commercial banking businesses of ABN AMRO in the Netherlands for €709 million, or $1.13 billion, in cash. The deal is expected to close in the fourth quarter.

Mitsubishi UFJ Grows Private Placement Presence

July 7, 2008 - Mitsubishi UFJ Securities (USA) Inc. said last Tuesday that it hired Conrad Owen to run its new private capital markets group, a move designed to expand into an area of finance that is expected to see heightened activity amid tightening credit market conditions.

Good Sports

July 7, 2008 - Some of the most notable names in private equity, Steve Pagliuca and Tom Hicks, have made personal investments in sports franchises, but rarely have these deal makers pursued similar bets on behalf of the firms listed on their business cards. Institutional money, though, may be slowly creeping into ball parks, race tracks and even soccer fields.

An Influx of European FIG PIPEs?

July 7, 2008 - When TPG announced it would inject £179 million into UK financial institution Bradford & Bingley, it didn't only signal the first capital infusion by a private equity firm into a UK bank. It also heralded the possibility of additional private investment in public equity (PIPE) issues by European financial services firms.

Carlyle Bolsters FIG Team

July 7, 2008 - The Carlyle Group has hired Wachovia veteran James Burr as a managing director in its global financial services group. Burr, who was most recently Wachovia's corporate treasurer, will start on Aug. 1 in Carlyle's New York office.

LBO Debt Seeps Into Tough Loan Market

July 7, 2008 - The syndicated loan financing business is certainly in a funk, but newly priced LBO debt offerings signal that all may not be as bad as it seems.

No Monkey Business

July 7, 2008 - It's not always easy coming up with something to write about in this space every seven days, but on occasion it's a breeze. Obviously, this was one of those weeks. A chimp's eighth attempt to get a Hollywood Star, and an MIT grad walking the streets for a job in investment banking, in the same week? It almost writes itself.

A Package Deal

July 7, 2008 - Hicks Acquisition Co., a Dallas special purpose acquisition company established by private equity financier Thomas Hicks, reached a definitive agreement to go public with Graham Packaging Holdings in a $3.2 billion transaction with The Blackstone Group, marking one of the largest transactions to be executed between a blank check entity and industrial company.

M&Ain't

July 7, 2008 - By now, it's a well-worn tale, this one relayed by an investment banker: A private equity firm in the process of acquiring a company in a deal that would normally take six months will now spend a year hoping to get it done. But at least they're trying. Extended deal time frames and the falloff by private equity firms in buying companies have been the hallmark of the first half of this year, and while industry participants predict a slight uptick, overall not much will change in the remaining six months of the year. Regardless, Wall Street banks, which have laid off thousands of bankers due to the market slowdown, will continue to feel pressure in their M&A business the remainder of the year.

Citi, Goldman Plan More Layoffs

June 30, 2008 - Wall Street banks continue to slash headcount, with the latest cuts reportedly coming from Citigroup and Goldman Sachs.

Modern Bank Taps Former Bear Executive

June 30, 2008 - Modern Bank, a private bank that caters to high net-worth clients, said last Tuesday it hired the former chairman and chief executive of Bear Stearns' asset management group, Jeffrey Lane, as its new chief executive. Opened in 2006, Modern Bank is the first independent, private client bank to be licensed by the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency in 25 years.

Barclays To Raise $9B From Foreign Investors

June 30, 2008 - Barclays said last Wednesday it plans to raise $8.9 billion through the sale of 1.6 billion shares to buttress its capital base and boost its capital ratios. Proceeds will be used to 'provide additional financial resources to allow Barclays to capture opportunities for growth,' the bank said in a statement.

Standing Out

June 30, 2008 - In IDD's latest roundtable, a group of seasoned buyout market dealmakers convened in the magazine's New York offices to explore various aspects of the M&A market and the topic of buyer differentiation. Transaction structures, seller expectations, deal sourcing, private equity firm marketing and the value of operations talent were issues that took center stage in the discussion attended by Benesch, Friedlander, Coplan & Aronoff executive chairman James Hill, Red Diamond Capital managing director Bret Russell, Lazard Middle Market co-chief executive David Solomon, Altus Capital Partners senior partner Elizabeth Burgess and Wynnchurch Capital managing director Charles 'Chip' Grace.