Thomas H. Lee Partners is joining Linden Capital Partners as an equal investor in orthodontics chain Smile Doctors, at a $2.4 billion valuation, sources tell Axios.
Look ahead: Linden next year plans to run a secondaries process that would move Smile Brands into a continuation fund, one of the sources said, providing it with more time and capital to manage, and ride, Smile Doctors' growth.
A new generation of social media networks are planning to go public in 2022, while Big Tech rivals face massive regulatory and competitive pressures.
Why it matters: As more industries move online — including commerce, gaming and gambling — more social networks will rise and use Wall Street to finance growth.
A Louisiana-based oil company will pay $43 million in civil penalties and damages and $432 million to a clean-up trust fund over a spill in the Gulf of Mexico, the Justice Department announced Wednesday.
Why it matters: Taylor Energy's former Gulf of Mexico offshore oil production facility is the source of the longest-running oil spill in U.S. history, ongoing since 2004, per a Department of Justice statement.
A.P. Moller-Maersk, the world's largest container shipper by volume, agreed to buy pan-Asian warehouse operator LF Logistics for around $3.6 billion in cash. The sellers are Hong Kong-based logistics firm Li & Fung and Singapore sovereign wealth fund Temasek.
Why it matters: This reflects not only how Maersk has reaped billions in profit from the global supply chain crisis, but also how it's using some of that surplus to bulk up on landbound logistics for when shipping fees ease.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has opened a probe into some Tesla models over a feature that lets drivers play video games on the front-center touch screen while the car is in motion, it said in a filing on Tuesday.
What they're saying: "This functionality, referred to as 'Passenger Play,' may distract the driver and increase the risk of a crash," the auto regulator wrote.
MicroAcquire, an M&A marketplace for small profitable internet businesses, tells Axios that it's raised an additional $5 million at an $80 million valuation, just months after closing $6.3 million in seed funding from firms like Shrug Capital.
Why it matters: Only a small percentage of startups raise venture capital, and an even smaller sliver make it to IPO or a broker-led sale process, so platforms like this could open more realistic exit paths for typical entrepreneurs.
The roll-off of pandemic-era government support for families is showing up in the form of increased financial vulnerability among those at the lower end of the income spectrum.
Driving the news: About 32.3% of adults earning less than $50,000 per year said in December that their savings wouldn't cover one month of expenses — that's up from 28.4% who said so last month.
We've had laser tag studios, indoor golf and even indoor skydiving, and now a ping-pong pro wants to bring his favorite sport to a corner near you.
What's happening: A team of entrepreneurs, including a table tennis phenom from the Philippines, has started up Pingpod, which operates two indoor studios in New York City (with more coming soon, including one in Philadelphia).
People can play ping-pong on demand 24/7 at its studios, and book tables online.
"We call it an autonomous concept: There are no employees working here onsite, so you make a reservation, you show up, you play, you walk out, and we have a great security system to make sure everyone is following protocol and keeping the place safe," David Silberman, one of the business partners, told NY1.
Another partner is Ernesto Ebuen, a six-time Philippine national table tennis champion.
Details: Not only can players find partners online through the "Pingpod community," they can also play against a paddle-wielding robot.
"If everyone in New York has a place to play within 20 blocks of them, I think that a lot more people will play a lot more regularly," NY1 quotes Silberman as saying.
My thought bubble: With pickleball now a national phenomenon, could ping-pong be next?
Pallets of sodas,jewelry boxes and baby car seats competed for attention with 75-inch TVs, snow blowers, and crates of bolts for bridges — all at a delivery warehouse on Monday. Each was destined for one of about 75 XPO Logistics trailers waiting to be loaded and moved, in freezing conditions.
Why it matters: The mix of consumer goods that a company like XPO has to transport is at its highest since the onset of the pandemic, which instigated a host of supply chain snarls.
2020 saw a surge in charitable giving, and 2021 could top it.
Why it matters: We're navigating another COVID wave, and inflation is squeezing budgets — but amid all the bleakness this holiday season, Americans are still finding ways to give back.
Before the pandemic, the retail sector was more known for bankruptcies than for blockbuster M&A deals or high-profile leveraged buyouts.
Not anymore: 2021’s global retail M&A volume reached $227 billion as of Dec. 16, a year-over-year increase of 59%. That nearly keeps up with the broader increase of about 64% across all industries, according to data provided by Refinitiv.
The Food and Drug Administration announced Tuesday an investigation into listeria infections in multiple states linked to Fresh Express packaged salads, which has recalled of some of its products in response to the outbreak.
Driving the news: The outbreak "has been associated with 10 illnesses, 10 hospitalizations and one death" in eight states from July 26, 2016 to Oct. 19, 2021, per an FDA statement. Fresh Express said Monday some items made in its Streamwood, Illinois, facility had the "potential to be contaminated" with listeria monocytogenes.
