Christopher Witkowsky

The Canadian private equity firm has been amassing the bankrupt casino operator’s senior debt. Onex made the investment from its third buyout fund, which is nearing a $3.5bn close.

Delegates at an emerging markets conference in Washington DC yesterday argued that emerging managers, now more than ever, have a responsibility to the communities in which they invest.

The turnaround specialist will work with private equity firms to restructure struggling portfolio companies.

Hicks Sports Group, which owns professional sports teams the Dallas Stars and the Texas Rangers, is in default after missing a $10m interest payment on its more than $500m debt load.

The turnaround specialist, which has seen about 10 of its portfolio companies tumble into bankruptcy since last year, has extended debtor-in-possession loans to two of its bankrupt companies and plans to control them after they emerge from Chapter 11.

The mega-buyout firm, which has been struggling with some of its larger portfolio companies in the financial crisis, is offering a 51% premium to Legacy Reserves’ unitholders over the average closing price of the units over the last 30 days.

A report from Pitchbook Data shows that investments by private equity investing has slowed, but investors are out looking for deals, activity that wasn’t happening in the fourth quarter of 2008.

The Boston-based firm has purchased a 51% stake in Fifth Third Bancorp’s financial institutions processing business as it continues to build its pay processing platform.

Fortress shares doubled after the US Treasury outlined plans this week to buy up to $1trn in toxic assets by combining public and private equity. Blackstone and Och-Ziff have also seen their stocks rise.

Lone Star paid $660m for regional US supermarket chains Bi-Lo and Bruno's in 2004. In 2007, the private equity firm began trying to sell Bi-Lo, a Southern US supermarket operator that has been unable to refinance a maturing term loan amid current credit market conditions.