Acquisitions in Ohio in 2018

Alera Group, a national independent insurance agency based in Deerfield, Illinois, has acquired Cincinnati-based Bailey & Company Benefits Group, an employee benefits firm. The acquisition expands Alera's employee benefits capabilities and local presence in the Cincinnati market; terms were not disclosed.

American Financial Group, Inc. agreed to acquire ABA Insurance Services Inc. from American Bankers Mutual Insurance, Ltd. for approximately $28 million in cash. ABAIS, based in Shaker Heights, Ohio, will continue to operate under its brand and become Great American Insurance Group’s 34th specialty P&C business unit; the business is expected to contribute about $50 million in annual net written premiums.

International private equity firm Cinven has completed the final sell down of its remaining shares in Nasdaq-listed Medpace, realising its investment from the Fifth Cinven Fund. Medpace, a Cincinnati-based global contract research organisation (CRO), expanded internationally and grew its workforce substantially under Cinven's ownership before its August 2016 IPO and subsequent sell downs, with the final sell down achieved at a significant premium to the IPO price.

SYNNEX Corporation, via its Concentrix division, agreed to acquire Convergys Corporation for approximately $2.43 billion in a deal expected to close in 2018. The transaction will integrate Convergys into Concentrix to create a larger global customer engagement and CRM BPO services provider, delivering scale, expanded capabilities and geographic reach.

ParkerGale Capital has made a majority investment in Rippe & Kingston, a Cincinnati-based provider of financial and practice management software for law firms. ParkerGale will invest in product development, support and sales and marketing to scale Rippe & Kingston while founder George Kingston will remain involved as a board member.

Frontage Laboratories Inc., a global contract research organization based in Exton, Pennsylvania, acquired Concord Biosciences (formerly Ricerca Biosciences), a preclinical CRO near Cleveland, Ohio. The acquisition adds Concord’s preclinical, toxicology, bioanalytical and agrochemical testing capabilities to Frontage’s early-stage product development services, broadening its service offering across pharmaceutical, agricultural and animal health markets.

A joint venture called TH2 formed by Thor Industries and Tourism Holdings is acquiring Cincinnati-based Roadtrippers alongside Roadtrippers Australasia, Cosmos (an RV fleet/CRM platform), New Zealand peer-to-peer rental firm Mighway, and CamperMate. Thor is making an initial investment of about $50 million in TH2, which will be headquartered in Cincinnati and led by Airstream’s top executive; financial terms for the acquisitions were not disclosed.

Tradesmen International, a portfolio company of private equity funds managed by Blackstone Capital Partners, acquired Construction Labor Contractors (CLC) from Silver Oak Services Partners. CLC, headquartered in Richfield, Ohio, is a temporary staffing provider for skilled trades in the commercial construction market, operating 19 locations and serving clients nationwide; the deal is an add-on to Tradesmen’s platform to expand geographic coverage and capabilities.