Happy Wednesday. Here’s what we’ve got today…

• A look at Energy Capital Partners’ Calpine exit

• Plus, Thoma Bravo prepares for Sailpoint IPO

Stock-and-cash:

Energy Capital Partners is marking a four times return, reports Bloomberg, on its 2018 take-private of power generator Calpine Corp. after last week's $26.6 billion sale to Constellation Energy.

On an initial $5.6 billion equity check, ECP and co-investors CPP Investments and Access Industries are realizing cash proceeds of $4.5 billion (plus dividends taken over the hold) and walking away with Constellation shares worth $11.9 billion.

Post-close, ECP will become the largest non-index shareholder in Constellation with a 6.7 percent stake.

The chunky stock consideration reflects some of the practical constraints of such a sizeable exit, but ECP isn’t worried about the partial liquidity. President and managing partner Tyler Reeder says the firm is “in this case very excited to take a lot of stock here.”

"We don't in any way think this is the top of the market, so for us to own the stock over the next few years is a very comfortable place to be."

The deal includes a phased 18-month lock-up, meant to match Constellation's anticipated timeline for synergy realization: the business expects 20%-plus adjusted EPS accretion by 2026.

The outcome is a welcome vindication of ECP's contrarian bet on natural gas generation.

"When we took Calpine private, the view was that renewables were going to overtake natural gas and that the value of natural gas-fired plants was going to decline," said Reeder.

Instead, Calpine's EBITDA doubled over the hold.

That earnings growth was enough to secure the positive outcome despite mild valuation headwinds. ECP entered at a forward multiple of around 8.5 times, versus Constellation's purchase at just 7.9 times 2026 EBITDA.

Even with Washington’s newly-lenient regulatory environment, the deal’s approval process is still likely to be complex. Required clearances include the DOJ, FERC, Canadian authorities, and utility authorities in New York and Texas.

Otherwise, it’s ‘so far, so good’ for the sponsors: Constellation shares are already up more than 35 percent since the deal's announcement.

The eventual roll-out of yesterday's $500 billion Stargate AI infrastructure announcement might add to the momentum. Constellation (and its shareholders) will be hoping for more deals like September’s 20-year power purchase agreement with Microsoft, which separately sent Constellation shares up more than 26 on the day it was announced.

• OpenAI, Oracle, SoftBank, and MGX launched Stargate, a $500 billion joint venture to build AI infrastructure across the US, beginning with an initial $100 billion investment in its first year.

• H.I.G. Capital agreed to acquire Kantar Media, a global TV ratings and media measurement provider, from Bain Capital and WPP for $1 billion.

• Brookfield Asset Management is nearing a deal to acquire Divvy Homes, a single-family rental platform with 3,800 properties, for around $950 million.

• Redwire (NYSE: RDW) agreed to acquire Edge Autonomy, a California-based manufacturer of military uncrewed aircraft systems, from AE Industrial Partners for $925 million.

• SailPoint, a Thoma Bravo-owned identity security software provider, filed for a Nasdaq IPO that could raise up to $1 billion.

• Karman Space and Defense, a Trive Capital-backed defense systems provider, filed for a $100 million NYSE IPO.

• Conning & Company agreed to acquire a 77 percent stake in MGG Investment Group, a New York-based private credit manager with $6 billion in AUM, for $320 million from McCourt Global.

• Elm Company agreed to acquire Thiqah, a business services provider, from Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund for $906 million.

• Smithfield Foods, a WH Group-owned pork producer, filed for a Nasdaq IPO to raise up to $940 million, targeting a $10.7 billion valuation.

• Groww, an Indian retail stockbroker backed by Peak XV and Tiger Global, selected JPMorgan Chase and Kotak Mahindra Bank to lead its planned $750 million IPO at a potential $8 billion valuation.

• Leon Capital invested up to £70 million for a majority stake in Domna, a UK-based home energy retrofitting platform.

• AnaCap Financial Partners acquired a majority stake in DK Accountants, a Netherlands-based accounting and advisory firm.

• American Pacific Group invested in ServerLift, a Phoenix-based manufacturer of data center lifting equipment for IT infrastructure.

• Wafra invested in tech-focused private equity firm Niobrara Capital.

• 23andMe (Nasdaq: ME) is exploring the sale of Lemonaid Health, a telehealth provider it acquired for $400 million in 2021.

• Cre8tive Technology and Design, a Petra Capital Partners portfolio company, acquired San Diego-based EpiCenter ERP, a manufacturing software solutions provider.

• Tropolis Insurance Services, a Unity Partners-backed insurance brokerage, acquired four Michigan and Illinois-based agencies: R&A Insurance, Follmer Insurance Services, Madigan Pingatore Insurance Agency, and BDMH Insurance Services.

• Knack RCM, a portfolio company of LKCM Headwater Investments and Weave Growth Partners, acquired HealthyBOS, a U.S. and Philippines-based RCM provider for durable medical equipment.

• Burnout Brands, a Hidden Harbor Capital Partners portfolio company, acquired D&J Precision Machine, a precision machining services provider specializing in Cummins engine components.

• Exigent Group, a portfolio company of Huron Capital, acquired Premier Mechanical, an Ohio-based HVAC and mechanical services provider.

• Talon, a portfolio company of Equistone Partners Europe, acquired Out of Home Masters, a Netherlands-based out-of-home media agency.

• TRIGO, backed by Viola Growth and Red Dot Capital Partners, acquired Controreupe, a French aerospace and defense non-destructive testing provider.

• PrimeSource Brands, a Clearlake Capital Group portfolio company, acquired Keylink, a Pennsylvania-based aluminum railing systems manufacturer.

• Micross Components, a portfolio company of Behrman Capital, acquired Integra Technologies, a Wichita-based semiconductor assembly and test services provider.

• NAMSA, an ArchiMed-backed medical device testing and regulatory consulting firm, agreed to acquire WuXi AppTec's medical device testing operations in Minnesota and Georgia.

Tech, Vertical SaaS, & Misc. Enterprise

• Instabase, an unstructured data management platform, raised $100 million in Series D funding led by Qatar Investment Authority, with participation from Andreessen Horowitz, Greylock Partners, Index Ventures, and NEA.

• Render, a cloud application platform for developers, raised $80 million in Series C funding led by Georgian, with participation from 01A, avra, Addition, Bessemer Venture Partners, General Catalyst, and South Park Commons Fund.

• Vertice, a spend optimization platform for enterprise procurement teams, raised $50 million in Series C funding led by Lakestar, with participation from Perpetual Growth, CF Private Equity, Bessemer Venture Partners, and 83North.

• rhino.ai, an enterprise application modernization platform, raised $50 million in Series A funding led by Koch Disruptive Technologies.

• Paytrack, a Brazilian corporate travel and expense management platform, raised $37 million in new funding led by Riverwood Capital.

• Mitiga, a cloud and SaaS threat detection solution, raised $30 million in Series B funding led by SYN Ventures, with participation from ClearSky, Atlantic Bridge, Flint Capital, DNX Ventures, and Glilot Capital Partners.

• Sereact, a Stuttgart-based robotics software developer, raised €25 million in Series A funding led by Creandum, with participation from Point Nine and Air Street Capital.

• LeapXpert, a business communications compliance platform, raised $20 million in Series B funding led by Portage, with participation from Rockefeller Asset Management, Uncorrelated Ventures, and the Partnership Fund for New York City.

• ecoplanet, a Munich-based energy management software platform, raised €16 million in Series A funding led by EQT Ventures, with participation from HV Capital.

• Package.ai, a customer engagement and last-mile logistics platform for retailers, raised $14 million in Series A funding led by Susquehanna Growth Equity.

• Kraaft, a construction project management platform, raised €13 million in Series A funding led by Dawn Capital, with participation from Brick & Mortar Ventures, Chalfen Ventures, Stride VC, and OSS Ventures.

• Gravity, a carbon accounting platform, raised $13 million in Series A funding led by Ansa Capital, with participation from Eclipse, Hanover, Caffeinated Capital, Communitas Capital, Buoyant Ventures, and WEX Venture Capital.

• Belfry Software, a back-office platform for physical security providers, raised $12 million in Series A funding led by Base10 Partners, with participation from Bienville Capital and Aglaé Ventures.

• Merit Systems, a developer of attribution protocols for open-source software contributions, raised $10 million in seed funding co-led by Andreessen Horowitz's crypto fund and Blockchain Capital.

Fintech

• Phantom, a crypto wallet provider, raised $150 million in Series C funding co-led by Sequoia Capital and Paradigm, with participation from Andreessen Horowitz and Variant.

• Highnote, a card issuance and embedded finance platform, raised $90 million in Series B funding led by Adams Street Partners, with participation from Oak HC/FT, Costanoa, WestCap, and Pinegrove Venture Partners.

• Fundment, a tech platform for financial advisers, raised £45 million in Series C funding led by Highland Europe, with participation from ETFS Capital.

• Qomodo, a Milan-based physical payment solutions provider, raised €13.5 million in Series A funding co-led by RTP Global and LMDV Capital, with participation from Proximity Capital and Primo Capital.

Consumer & Media

• Men in Blazers Media Network, a U.S. soccer-focused media company, raised $15 million in Series A funding led by Avenue Sports Fund, with participation from Bolt Ventures, RR McReynolds, The Chernin Group, Ryan Sports Ventures, and Wheelhouse.

Healthcare

• Eleos Health, a behavioral health documentation platform, raised $60 million in Series C funding led by Greenfield Partners, with participation from F-Prime Capital, Eight Roads, Menlo Ventures, ION, Union Tech Ventures, and Centerstone.

• Percipio Health, a smartphone-based population health monitoring platform, raised $20 million in Series A funding from UPMC Enterprises, WAVE Ventures, Labcorp, and First Trust Capital Partners.

Industrials, Greentech, & Other

• H2SITE, a Spanish hydrogen separation startup, raised €36 million in Series B funding co-led by Hy24 and SC Net Zero Ventures, with participation from Breakthrough Energy Ventures, Enagas Emprende, Equinor Ventures, Exergon, Ezten, and MassMutual Ventures.

• Green Fusion, a Berlin-based developer of heating optimization software for apartment buildings, raised €12 million in Series A funding led by HV Capital and XAnge, with participation from BitStone Capital, Übermorgen Ventures, kopa ventures, Vireo Ventures, and Brandenburg Kapital.

• Bedrock Energy, a geothermal heating and cooling startup, raised $12 million in Series A funding led by Titanium Ventures, with participation from Energy Impact Partners, Sustainable Future Ventures, Wireframe Ventures, Overture Ventures, Toba Capital, Elemental Impact, First Star Ventures, and Cantos.

• Thoma Bravo raised $3.6 billion for its third credit fund focused on enterprise software senior secured debt investments.

• Ardian raised €3.2 billion for its sixth middle market buyout fund focused on European growth companies.

• Novacap raised $1 billion for its first Digital Infrastructure Fund targeting lower middle market connectivity and data services companies in North America.

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