Aurora Capital bets on real estate tech, Bain's $1b dessert deal

The Wire

April 27, 2021

Aurora Capital buys Grace Hill, Bain bets $1b on Dessert Holdings

Happy Tuesday, everybody!

To begin with, we've got an update on the sale process for Stone Point Capital's Grace Hill. In a matter of just a few weeks, the real estate technology platform has been snapped up by Aurora Capital Partners, sources told PE Hub. In early April, PE Hub reported that Stone Point hired William Blair as sell-side financial adviser for an auction that was yet to kick off. The deal was signed around a week ago and is pending closure, the sources said. Get more details on the process in Milana's story.

Sweet deal: Leveraging a longstanding relationship with CEO Paul Lapadat, Bain Capital prevailed in the auction for Dessert Holdings. The deal, announced yesterday, was valued at nearly $1 billion, a source familiar with the matter told PE Hub, confirming a previous DealBook report. Bain's acquisition will provide an exit for San Francisco's Gryphon Investors, whose majority investment dates back more than five years.

Read the full wire commentary on PE Hub...

That's it for me! Have a great week, and as always, hit me up at karishma.v@peimedia.com with your comments, tips and anything else!

Also of note (may require subscriptions)

Secondary activity: Waterland Private Equity completed a deal to move its portfolio company United Petfood out of its sixth fund and into a continuation pool to continue growing the company, sources told Buyouts. The United Petfood single-asset deal is among a slew of such deals driving activity in the secondaries market.