TPG bets on Trumid as covid-19 boosts digital adoption in credit trading, Behind the scenes: EQT’s Waystar unites with Francisco’s eSolutions, PODCAST: Rise of SPACs, demand for long holds and adjusting PE operations in the pandemic

Happy Friday!

We have some background on Clayton, Dubilier & Rice’s deal with HD Supply. The deal is multilayered: CD&R agreed to carve out the construction and industrial unit of HD Supply, called White Cap, and merge it with Construction Supply Group, a North American specialty concrete and masonry accessories distributor backed by Sterling Group.

CD&R and Sterling Group’s combined equity value in the combined company equates to about $1 billion, with Sterling rolling equity via its existing ownership in Construction Supply Group, writes Karishma Vanjani on PE Hub.

The merged company has a $4 billion enterprise value with $4 billion in combined revenue, making it one of the largest announced industrial LBOs post-covid 19, Karishma writes. Read more here on PE Hub.

Top Scoops
As covid-19 accelerates the move to digital bond trading, TPG is betting that its adoption is here to stay, John Flynn, a principal on the firm’s internet, digital media, and communications team, told Milana Vinn on PE Hub.

The remote-everything environment has sped up the trend of digitization and automation in general, and specifically, the adoption of electronic corporate bond trading, Flynn said.

“Years of technology adoption has taken place in the bond market over the last few months. Trumid provides a better way for both buy-side and sell-side market participants to trade corporate bonds: it saves traders time, while allowing banks to be more efficient with their balance sheets and providing enhanced liquidity to the market,” Flynn said. Read more here on PE Hub.

POD: The PE Hub and Buyouts crews recorded a new podcast, for those of you looking to switch up your content delivery mode. Here Sarah Pringle discusses the rise of SPACs and some of the forces driving this trend. We also talk about long holds, a theme we’ve pursued all year that is only accelerating in the pandemic downturn, including through secondaries. And Karishma Vanjani gives an overview of her project tracking portfolio companies that switched operations to deal with pandemic-related loss of revenue. Listen here!

Have a great weekend! Reach me with your thoughts, tips, gossip, whatever at cwitkowsky@buyoutsinsider.com, on Twitter or find me on LinkedIn.