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May 2019. Axon Partners Group has completed the first investment of its industrial investment strategy in “Premium Brands”, with the acquisition of restaurants “Le Pain Quotidien” (LPQ) in Spain as well as the Master Franchise for Spain and Portugal. Currently, LPQ operates four restaurants in Madrid and one in Barcelona.

Le Pain Quotidien was founded in Brussels in 1990 and now has nearly 300 restaurants in 21 countries. LPQ offers a wide variety of organic bakery items and plant-inspired healthy dishes available from breakfast to dinner based on its strong conviction that delivering delicious options that are good for guests and the planet is the now and the future (www. lpq.es).

To complete the investment, Axon has partnered with International Group Services, bringing extensive knowledge of the restaurant and franchise sector. This group operates more than 500 restaurants in Latin America through 19 different brands, including KFC, Juan Valdez, Baskin Robins and Wendy’s, among others.

The investment strategy includes an expansion plan with openings in the main cities of Spain and Portugal with the target of reaching at least the 50 restaurants in the next 10 years. These targets are based on the known growth of this sector and the increased representation of restaurant brands at the expense of independents in this region.

Francisco Velázquez, President of Axon Partners Group comments: “This is Axon’s first investment in the branded restaurant business and we consider it an excellent opportunity as it is a brand of recognized prestige in the world and that still has a long way to go, hoping to position the brand as one of the reference restaurants in its segment in Spain and Portugal. “

Juan Carlos Serrano, President of International Group Services, comments: “We are very happy to have made our first investment in the restaurant sector in Europe where we wanted to have presence after analyzing different opportunities in the Spanish market. It is a sector that we know well and where we hope to provide all our know-how to achieve a rapid and orderly growth of the brand in Spain and Portugal”.

Jerry Gamez, CEO from Le Pain Quotidien comments: “We believe that Healthy Food Ventures (a joint venture between Axon Partners Group and Juan Carlos Serrano) is the ideal partner to develop the brand in Spain and Portugal. We are confident that Healthy Food Ventures, with their shared values as well as their 30 years of experience & track record of growth developing restaurant brands, will deliver our ambitious plans for the region.”

For further information please contact with the Marketing Departmert:
marketing@axonpartnersgroup.com
T. +34 913102894

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Austin, Texas,May 7, 2019 – Pretzels, Inc. (“Pretzels” or the “Company”), a portfolio company of Peak Rock Capital, a leading middle-market private investment firm, announced plans to expand its state-of-the-art manufacturing facility in Plymouth, Indiana. Pretzels is a leading manufacturer of pretzels and other snack products, and the expansion increases capacity across a range of products and capabilities. It is anticipated that the additional capacity will be operational in the second quarter of 2020.

Greg Pearson, Chief Executive Officer of Pretzels, said, “This expansion exemplifies Pretzels’ commitment to exceed our customers’ expectations by significantly enhancing our capabilities and capacity. Pretzels’ management and employees are executing on several strategic growth initiatives, including this expansion, which will enable us to support our customers’ commercial success for years to come. On behalf of the entire Pretzels team, I want to thank our loyal customers, dedicated employees, and supportive community for being an integral part of our growth.”

Robert Strauss, Managing Director of Peak Rock Capital, added, “Enhancing Pretzels’ manufacturing capabilities and capacity reflects our belief in the company’s strong growth prospects and is emblematic of how Peak Rock supports its businesses in achieving their growth objectives. We are pleased with Pretzels’ progress to-date and look forward to finding additional ways to support its growth plan in the future.”

The expanded Plymouth facility will complement Pretzels’ current operations in Bluffton and enhance Pretzels’ depth and breadth of offerings to its diverse customer base. Pretzels will add over 120,000 square feet to its existing Plymouth facility, which will create space for additional state-of-the-art production and packaging lines, as well as increased efficiency with existing operations. The facility expansion will also enhance employee amenities and be a catalyst for new jobs in the Plymouth community.

ABOUT PRETZELS, INC.

Founded in 1978, Pretzels, Inc. is a leading manufacturer of pretzels and extruded snack products. Based in Bluffton, Indiana with an additional facility in Plymouth, Indiana, the Company manufactures and distributes traditional, peanut butter filled, flavored, seasonal, and gluten-free pretzels, as well as extruded snack products, to a diverse, blue-chip customer base that includes leading grocers and national brands.

For further information about Pretzels, Inc., please visit www.pretzels-inc.com

ABOUT PEAK ROCK CAPITAL

Peak Rock Capital is a leading middle-market private investment firm that makes equity and debt investments in companies in North America and Europe. Peak Rock’s equity investment platform focuses on opportunities where it can support senior management to drive rapid growth and profit improvement, with expertise in corporate carve-outs and partnering with families and founders seeking first-time institutional capital. Peak Rock’s credit platform focuses on providing bespoke primary financings and making investments in secondary loans for corporate debt and commercial real estate. Peak Rock’s principals have deep expertise in complex situations and cross-border transactions, with the ability to provide tailored capital solutions and close transactions quickly where speed and certainty are priorities. For further information about Peak Rock Capital, please visit www.peakrockcapital.com.

Media Contact: Daniel Yunger Kekst CNC 212-521-4800

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InfraVia today announces it has agreed to sell to Valorem SA its 49% stake in
Force Hydraulique Antillaise SAS (“FHA”), the leading developer and operator
of hydro power plants in the French Caribbean islands.
FHA provides essential renewable electricity generation services in the French
Caribbean islands, a territory heavily dependent on fossil fuels.
With this transaction, Valorem acquires 51% of FHA from InfraVia and its founder
Raphael Gros (who keeps a 49% stake in the company).
InfraVia had invested in FHA in 2010 when the company operated a portfolio
of 1MW. Today, FHA owns 10.4MW of small scale operational plants, 6.4MW of
ready-to-build assets and has a further pipeline of c.100MW.
For this transaction, InfraVia has been advised by Astris (M&A) and Weil, Gotshal
& Manges (legal).

ABOUT INFRAVIA
InfraVia is an independent investment manager dedicated to the infrastructure
sectors. Founded in 2008, InfraVia manages several infrastructure funds, all
positioned as long-term investors across the European infrastructure mid-market.
InfraVia manages EUR 4 billion of assets with 32 people, deployed through 30 portfolio companies across 11 countries in Europe.
www.infraviacapital.com

ABOUT VALOREM
Valorem was founded in 1994 and is based in Bègles. Valorem is an independent
renewable energy company which develops renewable energy projects for its own
account and on behalf of third parties. Its services include technical assistance and
development, engineering, construction and operation and maintenance. The company
predominantly develops onshore wind farms, as well as solar and hydro power plants in
France and internationally.
www.valorem-energie.com

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Acquisition expected to close on March 29, 2019

Tokyo, Japan – Global investment firm The Carlyle Group (NASDAQ: CG) today announced that it completed its tender offer[1] to acquire shares in Orion Breweries Ltd., Japan’s fifth largest beer brewery, on March 22, 2019. This is a joint acquisition with Nomura Capital Partners Co., Ltd., and is expected to close on March 29, 2019. Carlyle’s equity for this investment will come from Carlyle Japan Partners III, L.P., an investment fund advised by Carlyle Japan L.L.C.

Following the transaction, Carlyle will own a 49% stake in Orion Breweries while Nomura will own a 51% stake in the company.

Headquartered in Urasoe, Okinawa Prefecture, Orion Breweries has produced and distributed alcoholic beverages and soft drinks since 1957. Its main products are “Orion” branded beer and beer taste products produced in its own factory in Nago, Okinawa. It has long been the largest beer brand in Okinawa. In 1975, the firm entered into the Okinawa hotel market with the opening of the Hotel Royal Orion in Naha, and later, Hotel Orion Motobu Resort and Spa in 2014.

Takaomi Tomioka, Managing Director of the Carlyle Japan buyout advisory team, said, “Orion Breweries has expanded its business over the past 60 years on the back of high brand value and support from the Okinawa community, making it Okinawa’s top beer brand. Carlyle will support the firm’s management teams and employees to realize further growth and entrench the pride that the people of Okinawa have in Orion Breweries. Carlyle is fully committed to sharing its knowledge and experience to strengthen Orion’s management capabilities, drawing upon our global network for support while collaborating with Nomura, a prominent Japanese financial company, to fully leverage our combined strengths.”

* * * * *

About The Carlyle Group

The Carlyle Group (NASDAQ: CG) is a global investment firm with deep industry expertise that deploys private capital across four business segments: Corporate Private Equity, Real Assets, Global Credit and Investment Solutions. With $216 billion of assets under management as of December 31, 2018, Carlyle’s purpose is to invest wisely and create value on behalf of our investors, portfolio companies and the communities in which we live and invest. The Carlyle Group employs more than 1,650 people in 31 offices across six continents.

The Carlyle Group is the only global investment firm that has dedicated Japan buyout funds denominated in Japanese yen. Carlyle’s Japan buyout funds, which have made 24 investments in Japan, have a track record of supporting Japanese companies’ business expansion overseas, enhancing their operational efficiency and strengthening their management infrastructure. In September 2015, Carlyle announced that it raised ¥119.5 billion (approximately $1.0 billion) for its third Japanese buyout fund, Carlyle Japan Partners III.

About Orion Breweries

Company name: Orion Breweries, Ltd.

Established: 1957

Representative Director: Kiyoshi Yonamine (CEO)

Headquarters: 1985-1 Gusukuma, Urasoe, Okinawa, Japan

Main Businesses: Manufacturing and sales of beer and beer taste products. Sales of soft drinks, Operations of hotels

Media Contact:

The Carlyle Group

Tammy Li

Phone: +852 2878 5236

Email: tammy.li@carlyle.com

Public relations agency: Ogilvy Public Relations Worldwide (Japan) K.K.

Contact persons: Yusuke Yamanaka, Abi Sekimitsu

Tel：03-5791-8725/5793-2388

E-mail：CarlylePress.Tokyo@ogilvy.com

[1] For details of the tender offer, please refer to the attached [“Notice of Results of Tender Offer for Shares in Orion Breweries, Ltd. (Unlisted)”] issued by Ocean Holdings Co., Ltd. Ocean Holdings Co. Ltd., which is jointly managed and operated by The Carlyle Group and Nomura Capital Partners Co., Ltd., has been established solely to acquire shares of common stock in Orion Breweries.

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(Hong Kong, 15 February 2019) Private equity arm of CITIC Capital Holdings Limited (“CITIC Capital”) is pleased to announce that, CITIC Capital Asian Foods Holdings Limited, a company wholly owned by its investment funds (Note 1), has completed the acquisition of the global business of the Amoy Brand, including the Hong Kong-based headquarters, Amoy Food Ltd, (collectively referred to as “Amoy Food” or “the Company”) from Ajinomoto Co., Inc. (“Ajinomoto Co.”). In addition, Ajinomoto Co. will subscribe 15% shares in CITIC Capital Asian Foods Holdings Limited to work with CITIC Capital to explore opportunities in China. This is the sixth carve-out deals CITIC Capital has completed within two years (Note 2).

Established in 1908 in Xiamen city, Fujian Province, Amoy Food enjoys a long history of success in seasonings/sauces and frozen foods market and has developed into one of the leading Asian brands with global reach. Headquartered in Hong Kong, Amoy Food serves both foodservice and retail customers across over 40 countries with deep roots in Hong Kong, the U.S., Mainland China, and Europe. Amoy Food has been a well-recognized household brand for Asian foods in global Chinese community.

Following the transaction, CITIC Capital will leverage its extensive network and track records in creating values for portfolio companies to further expand Amoy Food’s businesses in Asia and other overseas markets and continue to drive growth for the company.

Yichen ZHANG, Chairman & CEO of CITIC Capital, said: “We are excited about the opportunity to invest in Amoy and work closely with Ajinomoto Co., who is the global leader of high-quality seasoning and foods and pioneer of “Umami” with 110 years history and wide-ranging portfolios. Leveraging the strong shareholders and century-long brand equity, we see solid growth potential for high-quality Asian sauces and frozen foods across global Asian population. We look forward to leveraging CITIC Capital’s unique resources to grow the business alongside with the management team.”
Latham & Watkins LLP and JunHe LLP served as legal counsel to CITIC Capital.

Note 1: The investment is made through CITIC Capital China Partners and CITIC Capital Japan Partners.
Note 2: Recently completed carve-out deals include McDonald’s business in Mainland China and Hong Kong, sexual wellness company LifeStyles, Wall Street English, financial information database operator Global Marketing Intelligence Division, and leading supply chain pooling solution provider China Merchants Loscam.

About CITIC Capital Holdings Limited

Founded in 2002, CITIC Capital is an alternative investment management and advisory company. The firm manages over USD25 billion of capital across 100 funds and investment products through its multi-asset class platform covering private equity, real estate, structured investment & finance, and asset management. CITIC Capital has over 160 portfolio companies that span 11 sectors and employ over 830,000 people around the world.
CITIC Capital’s private equity arm, CITIC Capital Partners, focused on control buyout opportunities globally, has completed over 60 investments in the past years in China, Japan, U.S. and Europe. The private equity arm currently manages USD6.6 billion of committed capital. For more information, please visit www.citiccapital.com www.citiccapital.com

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Kinnevik AB (publ) (“Kinnevik”) today announced that it has committed to invest SEK 0.9bn in MatHem, Sweden’s leading independent pure-play online grocery retailer, in a combination of 0.4bn in primary capital and 0.5bn in secondary shares taking Kinnevik’s ownership to 38%.

The Nordic countries have long been held to be leaders in innovation, digital transformation and technological adoption with some of the world’s fastest broadband speeds, highest mobile penetration rates and a track-record of having created the highest number of unicorns per capita in the last decade. Yet in some areas the same Nordic countries are distanced by the true innovators.

Food is one such sector, but we believe that will change as the food sector is about to go through more transformation in the next ten years than it has in the past hundred. The strongest trend is a shift from offline to online, and with our deep understanding of e-commerce and of the digital consumer, we want to be driving this shift.

The benefits for the consumer of food moving online are significant. The online model enables significant time savings by removing travel time to and from stores as well as time spent in store. Today, time is a scarce resource and the potential of saving time will be an increasingly powerful addition to any company’s value proposition. Food can also be an expression of one’s identity, beliefs and desires, as well as a tool for managing wellness. Online food provides the customer with both a wider and deeper assortment as well as fresher food as the number of intermediaries in the value chain is reduced. The online business model can also contribute to us reducing the burden on our planet by cutting waste through better resource management and optimizing transportation.

MatHem is Sweden’s leading independent pure-play online grocery retailer with a strong household brand built over the past ten years. The company can deliver to more than half of the Swedish households and had a turnover of approximately SEK 1.5bn in 2018. Last year MatHem exceeded one million deliveries, highlighting the strategic value of a pure-play online grocery platform with regular and recurring delivery directly to people’s homes. MatHem’s partnership with Clas Ohlson is the first step to efficiently leverage that platform, delivering additional products and services on top of the company’s own food assortment.

Read more about our vision of the food sector and our investments at www.kinnevik.com

Georgi Ganev, CEO of Kinnevik, commented:

“I am proud of our investment in MatHem, our third investment in the Nordic food sector. This is a sector with huge potential given its significant share of household spend, its non-cyclical nature and attractive purchase patterns in terms of frequency and basket size. MatHem has built a strong brand and recently launched an updated platform which places the company in a strong position to continue to capture market shares as the shift to online accelerates within the grocery sector.”

Tomas Kull, Chief Executive Officer of MatHem, added:

“MatHem is ready to take the next step in its growth journey and with Kinnevik’s track-record of building successful digital brands and its insight into the digital consumer space, I believe that we have found the perfect partner. Building on our deep customer relationships, we will continue to develop our assortment and ensure a seamless customer experience to drive growth going forward.”

Closing is conditional on customary regulatory approvals and is expected during the first quarter of 2019.

This information is information that Kinnevik AB (publ) is obliged to make public pursuant to the EU Market Abuse Regulation. The information was submitted for publication, through the agency of the contact person set out below, at 08.00 CET on 14 February 2019.

For further information, visit www.kinnevik.com or contact:

Torun Litzén, Director Investor Relations
Phone +46 (0)70 762 00 50
Email press@kinnevik.com

Kinnevik is an industry focused investment company with an entrepreneurial spirit. Our purpose is to build digital businesses that provide more and better choice. We do this by working in partnership with talented founders and management teams to create, develop and invest in fast growing businesses in developed and emerging markets. We believe in delivering both shareholder and social value by building companies that contribute positively to society. Kinnevik was founded in 1936 by the Stenbeck, Klingspor and von Horn families. Kinnevik’s shares are listed on Nasdaq Stockholm’s list for large cap companies under the ticker codes KINV A and KINV B.

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