PE HUB Wire Highlights, 10.9.18

Court Square to make 6.5x on $2 bln Rocket Software sale; TA preps PhysIOL for a sale; TPG eyes disruptive opportunities in education, healthcare and dying malls

It’s John Lennon’s birthday today, so in honor of the revolutionary Beatle I’d like to take a moment. I’m worried, Hubsters, about climate change. You may notice my daily complaints about the weather. It’s becoming much crazier. There’s also a U.N. report that says we have until 2040 before the Earth becomes unrecognizable. I want to do my part. So, firms, VC or PE, out there that are doing something to help Mother Earth, I want to hear from you. Are you coming up with ways to deal with all the plastic grocery bags people use? Email me. Have you devised something to get rid of straws? I wanna know. Also, worried? Hit me up at lbeltran@buyoutsinsider.com

State pension funds are showing a new willingness to confront PE firms over the human impact of their investments, according to the New York Times. The story points to the Toys “R” Us fiasco and how Minnesota’s pension plan temporarily halted investments to KKR after hearing about how the 30,000 Toys workers laid off were denied severance. (KKR and Bain are contributing to a $20 million hardship fund but Vornado has not indicated that it plans to participate, the NY Times said.)

Or, my favorite, the Oregon pension official who criticized TPG for its lack of diversity. Then, there’s New Jersey’s pension fund, which pushed PE firms not to foreclose on Puerto Rico residents after Hurricane Maria. About 35 percent of PE‘s money comes from public pensions, the story said, citing Preqin.

Funds: Chris has a story on Leonard Green & Partners, which is targeting up to $2 billion for its debut small-cap fund. Check out his story here.
                              
Deals: CDPQ and Generation Investment Management are buying a majority of FNZ, the UK fintech firm, in a deal valued at 1.6 billion pounds ($2.09 billion). General Atlantic and HIG Capital are selling two-thirds of their stake. Read the Reuters story here.

Bain Capital announced yesterday a near $2 billion buy of Rocket Software. The transaction will end a near decade-long hold for Court Square Capital Partners, which acquired Rocket back in 2009. It’s a big return for Court Square. Check out my story here.

Summit Partners has exited InfoArmor Inc, the provider of employee protection solutions and cyberintelligence services. Allstate has closed its $525 million buy of InfoArmor. Read our brief here.

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