Investors fear the coronavirus may end the bear market. We check in with dealmakers from Riverside, Merrill Corp. and Paul Hastings about the potential impact on mid-market M&A. In deal news, Pepsi buys Rockstar to expand energy drink line.
Thermo Fisher buys coronavirus test maker Qiagen in biggest healthcare of the deal of the year. Bregal Sagemount raises third fund. In more PE news, AEI, GTCR and FP make deals.
When a new coronavirus emerged out of China in January, Qiagen got to work on a test to detect the virus in bodily fluids. The test is now being evaluated at four hospitals in China and one in France. The diagnostic gives results in about one hour.
Audax, HarbourVest and Genstar ranked as the top three most active private equity firms in 2019, based on the volume of completed deals in the U.S., according to PitchBook. Cornerstone buys talent software firm. Searchlight and Forgelight purchase stake in Unvision. Intuit's Credit Karma acquisition is official. More deal news from IOP and Mondelēz.
Mergers & Acquisitions looks at the impact of the coronavirus on middle-market M&A. TurboTax maker Intuit is reportedly close to buying Credit Karma. Ghost kitchens attract investors.