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Madison Dearborn reportedly advances auction for IPL; Jeff Aiello traces path to Agellus Capital

Good morning, Hubsters. Michael Schoeck here with you for the Thursday Wire. It’s the first day of August and it’s looking like another wall of heat and humidity in the Big Apple today.

First up today is a scoop by yours truly on IPL Plastics, a rigid plastic containers manufacturer that recently entered the second round of an auction undertaken by Madison Dearborn Partners.

Next up is a Dealmakers to Watch profile by Obey Martin Manayiti on Agellus Capital, a new PE firm launched by ex-principals of Thompson Street and Audax.

And last up in deal news we find Avista -backed Wellspring Consumer Healthcare acquiring feminine over the counter brand vH Essentials from Gardner Standard-backed Wisconsin Pharmacal.

First up today is a plastic packaging scoop.

Rigid plastic growth

Private equity firms are among the bidders that have advanced to the second round of an auction process for IPL Plastics, a Madison Dearborn Partners portfolio company, sources briefed on the matter told PE Hub.

Sign up for the premium version of the Wire for more details.

Companies for sale

Since the beginning of the year, I’ve been tracking more than 150 companies that sources have told me are on the market, or coming to the market in a matter of months, potentially attracting PE buyers.

If you’ve got any tips about companies for sale, shoot me a note at Michael.S@pei.group.

We’ll shift from rigid plastics over to a new Dealmakers to Watch interview on a new private equity firm formed by Audax and Thompson Street alums.

Aiello forms lower mid-market firm

After 13 years in the private equity world, first at Audax and then Thompson Street, Jeff Aiello co-founded Agellus Capital, a Clayton, Missouri-headquartered firm earlier this year. 

PE Hub touched base with Aiello this week for another edition of the Dealmakers to Watch series of profiles of new PE movers.

Sign up for the premium version of the Wire to access the full interview.

Womens health roll-up

PE Hub reporter John R Fischer recently rounded up online pharmacy deals. 

This morning Avista Healthcare Partners-backed WellSpring Consumer Healthcare, an OTC pharmaceuticals company, announced the acquisition of womens personal care brand vH Essentials from Gardner Standard-backed Wisconsin Pharmacal for undisclosed terms.

Sign up for the premium version of the Wire to read up on more pharmacy deals.

That’s a wrap for me today. Stay cool out there and keep an eye out for the Friday Wire tomorrow with Obey Martin Manayiti.

Cheers,

Michael

Read the full wire commentary on PE Hub ...

Also of note (may require subscriptions)

Wellspring Capital, which earlier this year completed a nearly $1 billion multi-asset continuation fund process, expanded the scope of the deal by giving liquidity options to co-investors in the biggest asset, according to the firm and sources. (Buyouts)

KKR "turning away" LPs keen on oversubscribed Ascendant Fund: The fund oversubscribed on its $4.6 billion hard-cap, head of investor relations Craig Larson said, putting KKR in "a pretty advantageous spot at the moment." (Buyouts)

Meanwhile, over on Private Equity International, we learn that KKR is on track to gather more than $300 billion of fresh capital over the next two years, underpinned by strong appetite from both institutional investors and the private wealth channel.

Telecom Italia's FiberCop spin-out is a first of its kind in Europe and a boon for the KKR-led team that bought it. Could it set off a wider wave of structural unbundling? (Infrastructure Investor)

https://www.infrastructureinvestor.com/inside-the-e18-8bn-deal-for-the-backbone-of-italys-digital-economy/

As floods, wildfires, storms and sabotage threaten the world’s infrastructure, distributed systems will provide resilience. (Infrastructure Investor)

More than four-fifths of impact investors have found the financial performance of their investments to be at least in line with expectations, according to a survey from Switzerland-based impact firm Blue Earth Capital. (New Private Markets)

Of the more than 220 secondaries funds in the market, 10 are dedicated private debt secondaries vehicles, according to Secondaries Investor data.

Galvanize Climate Solutions, the impact firm founded by alternatives mogul Tom Steyer, is raising a real estate decarbonization fund. (New Private Markets)

They said it

“The thing that I’m most proud of in the last 10 years in private equity is not the returns generated, but the relationships that I’ve built with talented, great founders and CEOs. When I left to go start my own firm, I had a very long list of references and people who were willing to step up and advocate for me to both investors, executives, and sellers.”

— Jeff Aiello, managing partner at Agellus Capital, on getting into the private equity market.