New On The Block
- Siemens Healthineers is chatting with major private equity firms about a potential sale of its diagnostics business. According to Bloomberg, Blackstone, CVC, KKR, and Montagu are interested. The segment is valued at over €6 billion ($7 billion). The company’s imaging and cancer-care-focused Varian units are not included. Siemens AG (OTC:SIEGY) remains the largest shareholder, with roughly a 71% stake. The auction comes at a time when the Munich-based company is restructuring and reducing staff.
Updates From The Block
- The clock is ticking on TikTok's sell-or-ban deadline, set for Sept. 17, but odds are President Donald Trump will once again punt the decision — despite a 2024 law requiring ByteDance to divest. Congress, once loudly united on TikTok as a national security threat, has gone strangely quiet. Behind the scenes, a divestiture framework has been in place for months. Bidders are circling, yet the White House has gone mute. Bottom line: Expect another extension. Meanwhile, in France, a parliamentary committee chairman has requested criminal charges against the platform, alleging it "deliberately endangered" minors' lives.
- Banco de Sabadell's board has urged shareholders to reject BBVA's (NYSE:BBVA) hostile $18 billion offer, calling it undervalued. The bid, first announced over a year ago, finally cleared regulators this week, but Sabadell insists it can thrive solo. BBVA's offer: one new BBVA share plus €0.70 cash for every 5.5483 Sabadell shares — and no plan to sweeten the deal. The acceptance window runs until Oct. 7, but it looks like Sabadell shareholders might be keeping their independence — at least for now.
- RaceTrac, the Atlanta-based convenience-store operator, will gobble up Chicago-based sandwich chain Potbelly for approximately $566 million in an all-cash deal. The transaction, expected to close in Q4, will keep both brands separate, with Potbelly aiming to expand toward its goal of 2,000 stores, according to the Wall Street Journal. Potbelly, which operates over 445 locations, reported adjusted earnings of 30 cents per share in 2024, up from 15 cents in 2023, though same-store sales slightly declined. This acquisition is RaceTrac's second major purchase in two years, following its 2023 acquisition of Gulf Oil.
- Carlyle, EQT, HSC Group, and Boyu Capital are each preparing final proposals for a controlling interest in Starbucks’ (NASDAQ:SBUX) China operations, according to Reuters.
- Hudson Glade and New State Capital Partners acquired ComNet Communications, a Bethel, Connecticut-based supplier of low-voltage infrastructure solutions.
- GTCR agreed to purchase Prague-based generic pharmaceutical company Zentiva from Advent International for €4.1 billion. Separately, GTCR also completed its acquisition of FMG Suite, a provider of marketing automation tools for financial advisors and insurance brokers, from Aurora Capital Partners.
- MBC Companies, a portfolio company of Entrepreneurial Equity Partners, acquired Alpha Foods, a Waller, Texas-based frozen pizza manufacturer.
- London-listed Anglo American and Canada's Teck Resources announced plans to merge, forming a new global copper-focused company, Anglo Teck. The deal, pending regulatory approval, would give Anglo American shareholders a 62.4% stake and Teck shareholders 37.6%. It ranks as the mining sector's second-largest merger ever.
- PNC will acquire Lakewood, Colorado-based FirstBank in a $4.1 billion deal, adding $26.8 billion in assets and 95 branches. The transaction, expected to close in early 2026, will triple PNC's presence in Colorado and strengthen its national expansion strategy. Privately held FirstBank serves roughly 700,000 customers across Colorado and Arizona. The acquisition aligns with PNC's ongoing investment in high-growth markets, including Denver and Phoenix, making Colorado one of its key markets.
- Seven months after Brighthouse Financial launched a sale process, major investors such as Apollo, Carlyle, and TPG have passed on or withdrawn from bidding, Bloomberg reports. This leaves Aquarian Holdings, a younger investment firm that has been acquiring smaller life insurers, reportedly in exclusive talks. The cautious interest reflects the challenges of turning around Brighthouse's declining finances while managing over two million life insurance and annuity contracts.
Off The Block
- Forward Industries (NASDAQ:FORD) completed a $1.65 billion private investment in public equity (PIPE) to develop a corporate crypto treasury centered on Solana, according to CoinDesk. Three lead investors contributed over $300 million, joined by Bitwise Asset Management, Borderless Capital, SkyBridge Capital, and several crypto founders and angel investors. Multicoin co-founder Kyle Samani was named board chairman, with Galaxy's Chris Ferraro and Jump Crypto's Saurabh Sharma as board observers.
- Terreno Realty Corp. purchased a three-building industrial distribution portfolio in Doral, Florida, and Kearny, New Jersey, for approximately $194.3 million. The 509,000-square-foot portfolio sits on 27.6 acres and is about 36% leased to five tenants. This acquisition completes a multi-market portfolio totaling roughly 1.2 million square feet for $426.9 million, following Terreno's August 2025 purchase of nine Seattle-area flex/industrial and manufacturing buildings for $232.6 million. The previous owner of the new assets was Link Logistics.
- Sonoco has agreed to sell its temperature-assured packaging unit, ThermoSafe, to private equity firm Arsenal Capital Partners for up to $725 million. The deal includes $650 million at closing on a cash- and debt-free basis, plus up to $75 million in performance-based consideration for 2025. The agreement, reached on September 7, is expected to close by year-end pending regulatory approval. Sonoco plans to use the proceeds to reduce debt, lowering its net leverage ratio to about 3.5x.
Bankruptcy Block
- Auto dealer Tricolor filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy in Texas court on Wednesday, moving to liquidate its business a day after Fifth Third Bank warned of alleged fraudulent activity at the company. Tricolor, the third-largest used auto retailer in Texas and California, has more than $1 billion in assets, Reuters reported.
- Illinois-based entertainment chain Pinstripes, known for dining, bowling, and bocce, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy on Sept. 8, citing around $143 million in debt. The company has secured $3.8 million in financing and is seeking a buyer to keep eight locations operating. Pinstripes thanked patrons for their support, pledging to continue delivering the experiences customers enjoy.
For the previous edition of Deal Dispatch, click here.
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