The Federal Trade Commission has asked a judge to temporarily stop the transaction to allow the agency’s in-house judge to decide the case. In the past, the side lost in federal court often conceded and the in-house process was scrapped.

On Wednesday morning, Activision Blizzard CEO Bobby Kotick and Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella are also scheduled to testify. Judge Jacqueline Scott Corley will decide on the lawsuit, which is being handled in federal court in San Francisco.

According to the FTC, the deal would provide Microsoft exclusive access to Activision games, leaving Sony Group (6758.T) and Nintendo (7974.T) in the cold. Microsoft has offered to license the popular video game “Call of Duty” to competitors to allay antitrust concerns.

Microsoft has stated that licensing the games to everyone will benefit its financial situation. Many governments have approved the agreement, however, the FTC in the US and the UK’s Competition and Markets Authority have challenged it.

The post Microsoft and Activision CEOs Seek US Judge’s Approval for $69 Billion Merger Revision appeared first on Enterprise Viewpoint.

Texas-based NI, formerly known as National Instruments, specializes in producing automated testing and measuring instruments to help in the research and validation of new technologies. On Tuesday Emerson was in advanced discussions to purchase NI, which services the semiconductor, transportation, aerospace, and defense industries.

Last month, NI judged that Fortive Corp (FTV.N) and Keysight Technologies Inc (KEYS.N) have the potential to beat Emerson’s earlier $7 billion deal reported, citing three people familiar with the situation.

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With 2,400 GW of renewables expected to come online by 2027, the globe will install as much renewable energy capacity in the next five years as it did in the previous two decades. With market change comes the possibility of major merger and acquisition (M&A) activity, with the character of this activity projected to evolve.

Throughout 2020 and 2021, M&A activity for renewables surged as valuations for platforms, which included project portfolios and corporate development teams that manage them, reached all-time highs. Now with increasing capital deployment rates, there is a shift from majority platform M&A activity to transactions in which investors could take a minority stake.

“Investors are providing growth capital in the form of a minority stake, often receiving preferred equity in a company that has the potential to grow and expand in the post-IRA world, in which company value could increase substantially over the next few years,” said CohnReznick in a whitepaper.

There is a growing trend of international players acquiring experienced U.S. developers with strong project portfolios, and CohnReznick said it expects this trend to continue in 2023. International independent power producers and infrastructure funds see the acquisition as an efficient tool to enter or expand their presence in the growing North American market. Corporate M&A activity that includes developer experience and a portfolio of projects offers scale and transaction efficiency that the acquisition of individual projects aren’t able to match.

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The value of worldwide M&A deal-making plummeted from $2.2 trillion in the first half of 2022 to $1.4 trillion in the second half, according to the Financial Times (FT), citing statistics from data provider Refinitiv. According to the study, this is the largest movement — up or down — since the business began collecting data in 1980.

The volume of M&A activity was also lower. According to the research, the number of agreements completed globally in 2022 was 36% lower than in 2021 — the greatest dip recorded since 2001 — although it remained higher than in 2016 and 2017.

The research ascribed the sharp reduction in M&A activity to weaker global market confidence and increased financing costs, adding that activity will reach a new peak in 2021 as a result of stimulus measures and interest rate cuts undertaken in reaction to the epidemic.

According to the research, more regulatory scrutiny, slower deployments by private equity firms, and banks’ reduced capacity to finance new investments have all contributed to the dip. In one recent example of the tendency, special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) Crypto 1 Acquisition Corp. declared on Dec. 9 that it would dissolve and liquidate.

The move happened one year after the company’s $230 million first public offering, as PYMNTS noted at the time (IPO).

“The company anticipates that the company cannot consummate an initial business combination within the time period required by its amended and restated memorandum and articles of association,” Crypto 1 Acquisition said. 

On the other hand, Latin America may see more M&A activity in 2023, with bankers expecting it to grow by as much as 20% in that year.

The report attributed this anticipated growth to investors looking at the region after moving away from activity in Russia and China — the former due to the war in Ukraine and the latter because of concerns about COVID, tensions with the United States, and a lack of transparency among Chinese firms. 

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Clinton Township, MI – December1, 2022 – Salute Mission Critical, a global data center services provider, announces the acquisition of Iconicx Critical Solutions, a provider of commissioning, testing and consulting services for data centers and mission critical environments. Through this strategic acquisition, Salute will expand its capabilities in commissioning and quality assurance/quality control (“QA/QC”),helping its customers eliminate risks and optimize the handoff from deployment to operations.

“I am thrilled to bring our two companies together. Salute’s holistic approach to critical facility management offers a breadth of on-site functions to ensure optimal staffing, efficiency and best-in-class service. The ability to partner with a leading QA/QC firm will elevate Salute’s operational capabilities. In addition, our shared approach of enabling technology to reduce costs and risks for our clients will drive even greater value to the industry and our clients,” says Salute CEO, Jason Okroy.

Iconicx is a leading commissioning and QA/QC provider in the U.S. with strong relationships across hyperscale and colocation data center customers. Iconicx serves as a true partner to its customers with its focus on the highest quality customer service and technical knowledge. Commissioning and QA/QC are critical services at deployment as well as when retrofitting existing environments to ensure 24×7 uptime regardless of the pace of change.

“Iconicx takes great pride in our work. We value innovation, adaptability, integrity and commitment to quality – core values that we share with Salute. We are excited about what this combination will mean not only for our customers, but also for our employees, as this partnership will bring expanded opportunities to our team,” says Iconicx Co-Founder, Stefanie Crichton.

“As both companies approach their 10-year anniversaries, we are excited to enter this next chapter of growth together. Joining forces with Salute will help Iconicx continue to scale its operations and teams, particularly as we look toward international expansion. We’re thrilled to partner with Jason and the Salute team,” says Iconicx Co-Founder, Christopher Benson.

About Salute Mission Critical
Salute Mission Critical is a global data center services provider that delivers critical facility management services to hyperscale, colocation and edge leaders. Clients around the world rely on Salute to sustainably operate data centers throughout their lifecycle.

Learn more: https://salutemissioncritical.com/about/. Follow us on Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn.

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“We are excited to welcome AMS Helix into the Salute team. We share a passion to transform the critical infrastructure industry with innovative service models powered by technology and operational efficiency. I have collaborated and competed with Martin Murphy over the years. He is a thought leader and I respect his integrity, business acumen and growth-oriented mindset,” said Salute Mission Critical CEO, Jason Okroy.

This acquisition strengthens Salute’s Europe and UK presence and positions the company for accelerated international growth. AMS Helix’s team of proven leaders and subject matter experts will strengthen Salute’s ability to serve its global critical infrastructure customers that are accelerating their investment in the EMEA region.

“I can think of no better path for AMS Helix than joining Salute. We are both passionate about serving the Data Centre industry by delivering best-in-class service through a flexible delivery model. We see significant growth in our region, and as part of Salute, we will be better able to serve our customers across the entire lifecycle from deployment through ongoing operations,” said Martin Murphy, Co-founder and Partner at AMS Helix.

“Combining our companies is a significant milestone that will help drive even greater change in the data center industry. Jason and Martin are two of the most innovative leaders I have had the pleasure to work with in my 30 years in the industry. As we approach our 10th anniversary, I am even more excited about the next 10 years of working together to deliver the industry’s most innovative and environmentally sustainable digital infrastructure solutions,” said Salute’s Co-founder, Lee Kirby.

About Salute Mission Critical

Salute Mission Critical is a globaldata center services provider that delivers critical facility management services to hyperscale, colocation and edge leaders. Clients around the world rely on Salute to sustainably operate data centers throughout their lifecycle.

Learn more: https://salutemissioncritical.com/about/. Follow us on Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn.

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Activity decreased from the second quarter when 13 deals brought in a record-breaking $19.2 billion. However, the patterns pointed to merger and acquisition activity being lower than it was before the outbreak. Additionally, compared to Q3 2021, the number of transactions and revenue increased.

Ten merger and acquisition transactions occurred in Q3 2022 compared to seven in Q3 2021. In Q3 2022, the average transaction size for the smaller party was $834 million, up from $619 million in Q3 2021. The average size of the smaller party was close to $1.5 billion in Q2 2022.

In Q3 2022, there were 10 deals, two of which were mega transactions, indicating that the smaller entity’s yearly revenues were greater than $1 billion. These deals included Prime Healthcare buying nine hospitals and two medical office buildings from Medical Properties Trust, Inc., as well as Pure Health investing $500 million in stock in Ardent Health Services. The purchase of a majority stake in AdventHealth’s Great Lakes Region by UChicago Medicine represented the largest transaction in Q3.

Two of the transactions from Q3 2022 had a for-profit health system as the acquirer. One transaction had a religiously associated acquirer, while four transactions had academic/university-related acquirers. Acquirers of not-for-profit health systems were included in the final three transactions.

The for-profit sector was emphasized in the research because for-profit sellers have been involved in deals that aim to rebalance portfolio holdings and focus on key markets and assets. The percentage of deals involving a for-profit seller hit an all-time high of 58 percent in Q1 2022, continuing the portfolio realignment approach that was popular in 2021.

The post Healthcare Merger and Acquisition Revenues Totaled $8.3B in Q3 2022 appeared first on Enterprise Viewpoint.

For instance, the renowned cybersecurity business with more than 200,000 clients globally was bought by the international investment firm KKR. It bought the business from Thoma Bravo, another well-known name in the finance sector. This brings up another issue. Investment companies participate in the channel just as much as other businesses do.

18 businesses involved in M&A in August were chosen. Some transactions attracted notice due to their scale, with HP’s Poly purchase coming to an end. We saw the geographical reach of others. Included in this was Pax8’s purchase of Umbrellar, which enabled the cloud marketplace provider to grow its presence in New Zealand.

Lastly, it was focused on one acquisition across the pond: OpenText is acquiring its British rival, Micro Focus. Unfortunately, Micro Focus is dogged by a number of financial challenges. The bright side is that OpenText may be able to turn things around.

The post The Merger and Acqusition  Train Continues to Roll: IBM, Telarus, Google, and Others appeared first on Enterprise Viewpoint.

Frazier, a Seattle-based particular purpose acquisition company led by Chairman and CEO Jamie Topper, is in final talks with investors for private investment in public equity to support a transaction valued at more than $700 million, according to some of the people, all of whom requested anonymity because the talks are private. It’s possible that talks will fall through, as with any unfinished business.

Frazier Chief Financial Officer David Topper and a spokesperson from NewAmsterdam declined to comment.

NewAmsterdam, situated in the Netherlands, was founded in 2019 and is directed by CEO Michael Davidson. It is supported by venture capital firms Forbion, Morningside Ventures, and Ascendant BioCapital. In January 2021, the firm announced that it had raised $196 million from these and other investors, including Kaiser Foundation Hospitals, Peter Thiel, and Janus Henderson Investors.

NewAmsterdam said last month that it had inked a licensing deal with Italy’s Menarini Group to assist in the delivery of anacetrapib upon approval. The medication is currently in clinical trials. NewAmsterdam got an upfront payment of €115 million ($118 million) and €27.5 million in research and development financing as part of the Menarini agreement, for a total of €142.5 million. According to the company, the Dutch biotech might collect an additional €863 million dependent on clinical, regulatory, and commercial milestones.

In a December 2020 initial public offering, the Frazier SPAC raised $138 million. It is associated with Frazier Healthcare Partners. An investment firm focused on health care and life sciences.

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According to Bloomberg, which cited people familiar with the talks, the talks are still ongoing and there is no guarantee that they would result in an acquisition.
As of early Monday morning, neither VMware nor Broadcom had responded to CRN’s requests for confirmation.

If a transaction is reached, it will be a significant step toward Broadcom’s ambition of moving beyond its hardware stack roots and becoming a key player in IT infrastructure software, as it has done with Brocade Communications in 2017, CA Technologies in 2018, and Symantec Enterprise in 2019.

Broadcom’s position in the cloud ecosystem, where VMware is extensively involved, would be strengthened by the acquisition of VMware. Broadcom’s stock price fell over 5% in pre-market trade on Monday morning. VMware’s market capitalization is $40.3 billion, a fraction of Broadcom’s $221.7 billion valuation. In pre-market trade on Monday, its stock jumped more than 20%.

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