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Bain Capital to buy Guidehouse from Veritas for $5.3bn; Audax files countersuit against HIG over Mobileum

Good morning, Hubsters. MK Flynn here with the Wire.

Finally, a deal worthy of the Merger Monday moniker.

Bain Capital is buying consulting services provider Guidehouse from Veritas Capital for $5.3 billion.

On the opposite end of the spectrum, there’s an update on the nasty legal battle between Audax and HIG over their co-investment in Mobileum.

And we’re continuing to see sports-related deals.

Let’s start with the Big Deal.

Differentiated model

Bain Capital Private Equity has agreed to buy Guidehouse, a global provider of consulting services, from Veritas Capital for $5.3 billion.

Upgrade to the premium version of the Wire to learn more about the deal.

Small ball

The year of the add-on continues, and today is no exception. Here’s a quick look at one of the deals just announced:

PE-backed sports deals are having their day in the sun this year. PE Hub has reported on a lot of them.

Now, Underdog & Company, which is backed by NewSpring Holdings, has acquired Altius Sports Partners, an advisor to collegiate athletics departments.

We expect to see many more sports-related deals, especially as the NFL is considering loosening ownership rules.

For ongoing coverage of deals throughout the day, check out PE Hub’s News in Brief, written by Iris Dorbian and Irien Joseph.

Now for the drama.

Who’s to blame? 

As PE Hub predicted, Audax Private Equity has countersued HIG Capital over Mobileum.

While it might be tempting to regard this as an isolated incident, I can’t help thinking that the challenges of today’s dealmaking market may be wearing on everyone’s nerves, and perhaps this is just the beginning of a new era of competition in private equity.

To learn all about it, including HIG’s response to the countersuit, upgrade to the premium version of the Wire.

As I’ve said before, this type of action is rare in the world of private equity, where firms have a symbiotic relationship, depending on each other for buying and selling and coinvesting.

In this new era of high interest rates, slow dealmaking and gaps between buyer and seller expectations, I’m wondering if this public argument between two well-known PE firms is a sign of things to come?

Do you think we’ll see more lawsuits involving PE deals? I’d love to hear your thoughts. Email me at mk.flynn@pei.group.

That’s all for today. Obey Martin Manayiti will write to you tomorrow, as Craig McGlashan takes some well-deserved time off.

Cheers,

MK

Read the full wire commentary on PE Hub ...

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