Private equity's medical adventure has taken another detour to the ER, with the Senate Budget Committee releasing a bipartisan report that slams the industry's stewardship of hospital chains.

Why it matters: This caps off a year in which federal politicians zeroed in on private equity ownership of health-care providers, including the Steward Health debacle, and pushes Congress one step closer to new regulations.

Zoom in: The report focused on two hospital chains, owned respectively by Leonard Green & Partners and Apollo Global Management.

• In both cases, the report found that financial interests were prioritized over patient interests, and that certain promises weren't kept.
• Leonard Green was hit harder than was Apollo, in part due to the former's use of a dividend recap and hospital closures. But Apollo, which didn't provide the committee with as much financial information, did pull management fees from its hospitals while stopping certain services that it had pledged to maintain.
• Leonard Green tells Axios that it "respectfully disagree(s) with the findings in the report," while Apollo said that it's investment has helped maintain care in underserved rural areas. Neither firm would do an on-the-record interview about the report.

Catch up quick: This particular investigation was launched by Sen. Charles Grassley (R-Iowa), after revelations that a male nurse at an Apollo-owned hospital sexually assaulted nine incapacitated female patients. That nurse later overdosed on drugs acquired from the hospital.

The intrigue: The Senate soon will be asked to confirm Stephen Feinberg as deputy secretary of Defense, following a nomination from President-elect Trump.

• Feinberg is the co-CEO and chief investment officer of Cerberus, the private equity firm that owned and controlled Steward Health (despite its weird claims to the contrary). Got to wonder if that experience will play a role in his hearing and a subsequent vote.

The bottom line: Legislation to change the rules on private equity's health investments has languished, and the industry clearly has more political power now than it did two months ago, but at some point these bipartisan investigations and reports could reach a critical mass.

Constellation Energy (Nasdaq: CEG) is nearing a $30 billion deal to acquire power producer Calpine, a Houston operator of gas-fired power plants, per multiple reports.

Why it's the BFD: This would force a major messaging shift for Constellation, a nuclear power giant that touts how most of its energy is "emissions free."

By the numbers: Calpine was taken private in 2018 for $17 billion by Energy Capital Partners, Access Industries, and CPP Investments.

• Constellation, which spun off from Exelon in 2022, saw its share price more than double last year, which is what would enable it to buy Calpine.

The bottom line: This is all about rising U.S. energy demand, particularly from data centers.

🚑 Verdiva Bio, a British developer of GLP-1 drugs for obesity, raised $410m in Series A funding. Forbion and General Atlantic co-led, and were joined by RA Capital Management, Orbimed, Logos Capital, Lilly Asia Ventures, and Lyfe Capital. axios.link/3PukjVy

🌎 XOcean, an Irish provider of ocean data for offshore energy companies and governments, raised €115m from S2G, Climate Investment, Morgan Stanley's 1GT fund, and CC Industries. axios.link/4fSiigL

🚑 Geneoscopy, a St. Louis-based provider of gastrointestinal diagnostics, raised $105m in Series C funding. Bio-Rad Labs led, and was joined by Petrichor, Labcorp, Morningside Ventures, Lightchain Capital, NT Investments, Granger Management, Mercy Health, and Tri Locum Partners. geneoscopy.com

• OnPay, an Atlanta-based payroll and benefits startup, raised $63m in Series B funding led by Carrick Capital Partners, with participation from AB Private Credit Investors. axios.link/4j0MOI5

🚑 Coave Therapeutics, a Paris-based genetic medicines developer, raised €32m in Series A funding. Novo Holdings and Bpifrance co-led, and were joined by Invus, UI Investissement, and insiders Seroba Life Sciences, Fund+, Kurma Partners, Omnes Capital, and Turenne Capital. axios.link/3PtWblL

• Grand Games, a Turkish mobile gaming studio, raised $30m in Series A funding. Balderton led, and was joined by insiders Bek Ventures and Laton Ventures. axios.link/426A64b

• PrettyDamnQuick, an operational data platform for commerce, raised $25m in Series A funding. Peakspan Capital led, and was joined by insiders TLV Partners and Moneta. prettydamnquick.com

• Parsyl, a Denver-based supply chain insurer, raised $20m Series C funding. The Lightsmith Group led, and was joined by insiders HSCM Ventures, GLP Capital Partners, Lineage Ventures, and FirstTracks Ventures. axios.link/3DOB23m

🚑 Anatomy Financial, a provider of financial automation tools for health care, raised $19m in Series A funding led by Canapi Ventures. axios.link/3DZgC7y

🚑 Nema Health, an at-home trauma and PTSD care startup, raised $14.5m in Series A funding, per Axios Pro. Deerfield and CVS Health Ventures co-led, and were joined by insiders .406 Ventures, Optum Ventures, and GreyMatter. axios.link/4h7fr4l

🌎 Biosphere, a Oakland-based biomanufacturing startup, raised $8.8m in seed funding. Lowercarbon Capital and VXI Capital co-led, and were joined by Founders Fund, GS Futures, Caffeinated Capital, and B37 Ventures. axios.link/4j5Rmgb

• Advanced Ionics, a Milwaukee electrolyzer developer, raised $6.7m from JERA, Lummus Venture Capital, the Argosy Foundation, and insiders Clean Energy Venture Group, and BP Ventures. advanced-ionics.com

🚑 Grove AI, an SF-based developer of clinical trial tools, raised $4.9m in seed funding. A* led, and was joined by Afore Capital, LifeX Ventures, Pear VC, and Upfront Ventures. axios.link/4gKqctB

🚑 Red Rover Health, a Des Moines, Iowa-based developer of EHR integration tech, raised $4m in seed funding from NewShore Partners. axios.link/4fRT9Tk

🚑 VitVio, a London provider of operating room software, raised €1.8m in pre-seed funding led by LDV Capital. axios.link/4fO2fjU

• SoSoValue, a Singaporean investment research platform, raised $15m in Series A funding at a $200m valuation from Hongshan, SmallSpark, Mirana Ventures, and Safepal. sosovalue.com

• Mili, a Plano, Texas-based meeting documentation platform for wealth managers, raised $2m in seed funding co-led by Chiratae and BoldCap. axios.link/4gOPcAa

• Arcline acquired RMS, a Bethlehem, Pa.-based OEM of turbomachinery parts. rotatingmachinery.com

🚑 Ascend Capital Partners acquired Unison Therapy Services, an outsourced therapy provider for kids in school and community-based settings. unisontherapyservices.com

• Battery Ventures acquired Signiant, a Lexington, Mass.-based media software company that had raised over $30m from firms like Escalate Capital Partners, Boston Capital Ventures, and VIMAC Ventures. signiant.com

• Cuadrilla Capital acquired Gluware, a Sacramento, Calif.-based network automation that had raised around $100m from firms like Bain Capital and Acadia Woods Partners. axios.link/422w119

• Darktrace, a British cybersecurity company owned by Thoma Bravo, agreed to buy Cado Security, a London-based digital forensics platform that raised over $30m from Blossom Capital, Eurazeo, and Ten Eleven Ventures. axios.link/3PtU9lG

• DDN, a Chatsworth, Calif., data storage and analysis company, raised $300m from Blackstone at a $5b valuation. axios.link/3DMbggd

⚡EQT agreed to buy distributed energy and microgrid developer Scale Microgrids from Warburg Pincus. axios.link/408yuED

• Falfurrias invested in Oddball, a provider of digital services for government organizations to interact with constituents. oddball.io

• GTCR acquired Concord Servicing, a Scottsdale, Ariz., provider of loan servicing software. concordservicing.com

• Kian Capital Partners acquired Eden Brothers, an online retailer of flower seeds and bulbs. edenbrothers.com

⚡Lion Equity Partners acquired Global Compression Services, a Midland, Texas-based provider of parts for reciprocating natural gas engines and compressors, from Warren Equipment Co. global-compression.com

• Matic Insurance Services, a Columbus, Ohio-based insurtech platform, raised $30m from Vistara Growth. matic.com

• Recognize acquired a majority stake in Sprout, an IT asset disposition provider Sprout, from New Capital Partners (which retains a minority stake). sproutup.com

🚑 Swoop, a health-care marketing firm owned by New Mountain Capital, acquired MyHealthTeam, an SF-based patient social network that had raised $26m from firms like UCB, CVS Health, Adams Street Partners, The Westly Group, Hanawa Group, Qiming Venture Partners USA, HealthTech Capital, and Sand Hill Angels. swoop.com

🚑 Warburg Pincus invested $300m into Mashura, a Scottsdale, Ariz., maker of smart cabinets for veterinary and dental clinics. mashura.com

• Yingling Aviation, a portfolio company of AE Industrial Partners, acquired GETI, a Wichita, Kan.-based aircraft interiors service provider. yinglingaviation.com

• GCash (dba Mynt), a Philippines-based digital payments platform that's raised over $1b, picked banks for a local IPO, per Bloomberg. Backers include AC Ventures, MUFG Bank, and Warburg Pincus. axios.link/40rSNyn

• Odido, a Dutch telco owned by Apax Partners and Warburg Pincus, picked banks to manage an IPO that could raise more than €1b, per Bloomberg. axios.link/4fQZlL6

• Gladstone Investment (Nasdaq GAIN) acquired Nielsen-Kellerman, a maker of environmental and athletic performance measurement instruments, from Clearview Capital. nksports.com

🚑 GSK (LSE: GSK) is nearing a $1b takeover of IDRx, a Plymouth, Mass.-based developer of precision combination therapies for cancer, per Bloomberg. IDRx raised over $240m from firms like a16z, Casdin Capital, Blackstone, RA Capital Management, Merck, Nextech Invest, and Forge Life Science Partners. axios.link/3Wbj55a

🚑 Highlander Health, a Dallas clinical trials company, acquired Target RWE, a Durham, N.C., developer of longitudinal real-world evidence datasets, from 22C Capital. axios.link/3DMwomq

🚑 Hologic (Nasdaq: HOLX) completed its $350m acquisition of Gynesonics, a Redwood City, Calif.-based developer of uterine fibroid procedures that had raised over $330m from MVM Partners, Amzak Healthcare, Endeavour Vision, Kaiser Permanente Ventures, Runway Growth Capital, and Bain Capital. axios.link/4fKz4ON

• Intercontinental Exchange (NYSE: ICE) acquired the American Financial Exchange (AFX), an electronic exchange for direct lending and borrowing, from 7Ridge. axios.link/4h6qMSf

🚑 Warburg Pincus is exploring a sale of Modernizing Medicine, a Boca Raton, Fla., medical software firm that could fetch more than $5b (including debt), per Reuters. axios.link/4arRWkF

• Leon Black is in talks to bankroll the $700m purchase of British newspaper The Daily Telegraph by New York Sun owner Dovid Efune, per the WSJ. axios.link/3C9OttZ

• JCPenney merged with Sparc Group, the owner of Aéropostale and Brooks Brothers, in an all-stock deal that creates a new company called Catalyst Brands. Sparc shareholders include Simon Property Group, Brookfield, Authentic Brands Group, and Shein. axios.link/4jc3goI

• Piers Morgan is buying his "Uncensored" media brand from Rupert Murdoch's News UK. axios.link/40tDJz5

• SoftBank and majority-owned chip designer Arm (Nasdaq: ARM) are considering a takeover bid for Ampere Computing, a Santa Clara, Calif., chipmaker that's raised $340m from Oracle, per Reuters. axios.link/3DQYFIv

🚑 Transcarent, an SF health-care navigation company valued by VCs at $2.1b, agreed to acquire Accolade (Nasdaq: ACCD), a Seattle health benefits navigator, $621m in cash, or $7.03 per share. axios.link/4fOxYl1

• TransUnion (NYSE: TRU) agreed to acquire the 70% stake it doesn't already hold in Monevo, a U.K. credit prequalification and comparison platform, from Quint Group. transunion.com

• Ares Management raised $1.3b for its second climate infrastructure fund, per an SEC filing.

• Defiant is raising $70m for its debut B2B SaaS and fintech-focused VC fund, with $30m already committed, per TechCrunch. The European firm is led by Joseph Pizzolato (ex-Felix Capital, Vitruvian) and Cam Rail (Stackup Risk). axios.link/42aQBfJ

• Flexstone Partners raised €200m for its third midmarket secondaries fund. flexstonepartners.com

• FTV Capital raised $3.4b for its eighth growth equity fund and $651m for an early-stage fund called Ascend. It also promoted Karen Derr Gilbert to COO, Mike Cichowski and Alex Malvone to co-heads of FTV Ascend, Brent Fierro to partner and CFO Paul Cabral to partner. ftvcapital.com

🚑 Valspring Capital, a Boston-based health-care PE firm, raised $255m for its debut fund. valspring.com

• Vistria Group of Chicago raised $3b for its fifth flagship PE fund. vistria.com

🌎 White Summit Capital of Switzerland raised more than €350m for a decarbonization PE fund. axios.link/3WfgaIW

• Amit Agarwal, former president of Datadog, joined Iconiq Capital as a general partner. axios.link/3W8iJfN

• Jimmy Canner has joined Drake Star as a partner covering software. He previously was with TD Securities. axios.link/4abYDqx

• Todd Hirsch joined Point72 Asset Management as head of private capital, a new business unit focused on private credit. He previously was with Blackstone. axios.link/4gQOoe8

• The Raine Group promoted Jake Vachal to partner, Logan Britt, Kenny Lee, and Joe Tillman to managing directors, and Avidha Chakrabarti, Dan Dozark, Teddy Kleinman, and Tommy Patterson to VPs. raine.com

• Vic Singh joined RRE Ventures as a general partner. He's a former RRE associate who later co-founded Eniac Ventures. axios.link/40fPyJ4

The bond market is telling President-elect Trump and Congress that there won't be a fiscal free lunch, Axios Macro's Neil Irwin writes.

• The recent surge in long-term borrowing rates implies that as Republicans seek to extend Trump's tax cuts beyond this year, let alone deepen corporate tax cuts, markets will pressure them to find spending cuts or other offsets.
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