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Hello {{first_name|friends}}, Friday delivered a full slate.
Infinity Natural Resources raised $350M in convertible preferred to deepen its Utica Shale position, with Quantum and Carnelian writing the checks.
Upstart closed the week with $533M in auto capital — a $333M portfolio sale to Bayview and a $200M forward-flow with Wafra. BBK Capital hit its $262.5M hard cap on a debut SBIC fund. Nine M&A bullets round out the day: energy, RegTech, wealth management, logistics, and American-made construction tools.
Let's dive in.
Quantum Capital Group / Carnelian Energy Capital
Infinity Natural Resources/Antero Ohio Utica Shale
Infinity Natural Resources (NYSE: INR) raised $350M in Series A Convertible Preferred Stock to increase its stake in the $1.2B Antero Ohio Utica Shale acquisition from 51% to 60%.
Quantum Capital Group took $275M; Carnelian Energy Capital took $75M. The preferred carries an 8% annual dividend for five years, stepping to 12% thereafter, convertible at $21.39/share — a 30% premium to the five-day VWAP. BofA Securities acted as sole placement agent. CEO Zack Arnold stays on; Carnelian's Matt Kelly joins the board at closing. Expected close: end of Q1 2026.
Peak Rock Capital
UL Solutions EHS Software → PureEHS
An affiliate of Peak Rock Capital signed a definitive agreement to acquire the Employee Health & Safety software business of UL Solutions, with a Q2 2026 close expected.
The business rebrands as PureEHS and serves 900+ customers across four products: PureOHS, OHM, SYSTOC, and LearnShare. CEO Anthony DiSimone called it a "mission-critical EHS software" opportunity; MDs Preston Thomas and Joe Garigliano highlighted the platform's compliance-driven, high-growth end markets. Classic middle-market carve-out playbook — defensible software, recurring revenue, room to invest.
Upstart
Auto Platform Capital Transactions
Upstart announced $533M in auto-related capital transactions this week across two separate deals. The first: a $333M portfolio sale to affiliates of Bayview Asset Management, marking the first transaction between the two firms.
The second: a $200M inaugural auto forward-flow agreement with Wafra, structured as a 12-month arrangement under which Wafra will purchase newly originated auto loans on an ongoing basis. Taken together, the back-to-back deals signal real institutional appetite for Upstart's maturing auto platform.
From our Sponsor:
BBK Capital
SBIC Critical Technologies Fund I
Dallas-based BBK Capital closed its inaugural fund at the $262.5M hard cap — oversubscribed, with $87.5M in private capital and up to $175M in SBA leverage.
Licensed as an SBICCT by the SBA in partnership with the Office of Strategic Capital, the fund deploys into lower middle-market companies across aerospace & defense, advanced manufacturing, and industrial technology. BBK also acts as a reinvestor SBIC, making LP commitments to other PE and credit funds. Co-Managing Partners: Max Korenvaes, Tyler Brous, and Nick Breedlove.
i80 Group
Yendo Vehicle-Secured Credit Card Platform
Dallas-based fintech Yendo secured an additional $200M warehouse facility from i80 Group (~$29B AUM) to fund new credit card originations. Yendo's vehicle-secured card delivers average credit limits 8x higher than standard unsecured products; the company has saved customers $150M+ in interest and fees to date, operating across 45 states. CEO Jordan Miller and i80 MD Peter Frank both commented.
Tailwater Capital — Tailwater Capital (via Tailwater E&P) acquired a 35,000-acre non-operated leasehold in the northern Delaware Basin across Lea and Eddy counties, NM — 97%+ held by production, with exposure to 900+ gross wells and 250+ near-term DUC, AFE, and permitted locations. Operators include Coterra, Mewbourne, Devon, and Matador. Partner Doug Prieto cited AI data center demand and LNG tailwinds.
Palisade Infrastructure / MicroGrid Networks — Palisade Infrastructure (part of Palisade Group, 45 active investments) made a strategic minority investment in Brooklyn-based MicroGrid Networks (MGN), which has 250+ MWh of battery energy storage under construction in NYC. SER Capital Partners retains majority. Guggenheim Securities advised MGN/SER; A&O Shearman advised Palisade.
Ancient / Sotheby's Financial Services — Alexander Klabin's Ancient exited its ~5-year investment in Sotheby's Financial Services via prearranged sale to Sotheby's controlling shareholder. SFS's loan portfolio grew by $1B+ and profitability tripled — highlights include Wall Street's first-ever art-loan securitization and new products like classic car lending.
Stone Point Capital / Amber River — Stone Point Capital backed UK wealth manager Amber River (~£14B AUM). Founding PE backer Penta Capital remains invested. Closes a weeks-long period of uncertainty.
Renovus Capital / Angeion / MedQuest — Renovus Capital-backed Angeion Group acquired MedQuest Ltd, a 40-year-old legal services firm specializing in personal injury and medical malpractice litigation support — life care plans, future medical cost projections, and medical record reviews. Angeion's fourth acquisition since Renovus's 2024 majority investment.
Hg / Cube / 4CRisk — Hg-backed Cube (1,000+ customers) acquired Silicon Valley RegTech 4CRisk.ai. 4CRisk's AI platform uses proprietary Specialized Language Models to map corporate policies to regulatory obligations up to 50x faster than manual processes. Both named to RegTech100 for 2026.
Centralis Group / Pine Advisor Solutions — Luxembourg-based Centralis Group (500+ professionals, 13 countries, 2,000+ clients) acquired Denver-based Pine Advisor Solutions (70+ professionals), which distributes $25B+ in ETF assets and provides outsourced CCO/PFO services for US registered funds. Centralis's US fund services market entry. Expected close: early Q2 2026. PWC and Dorsey & Whitney advised Centralis; Macquarie Capital and DLA Piper advised Pine.
Lone View Capital / CargoSprint / Dray Dog — Lone View Capital-backed CargoSprint acquired Dray Dog, a port drayage software platform providing data-driven tooling for motor carriers. Second acquisition since Lone View's 2024 investment, building on CargoSprint's 2024 acquisition of Advent eModal.
Gridiron Capital — Six early 2026 promotions. Scott Harrison elevated to Managing Partner & COO. Jessica Kurys promoted to Managing Director & CFO. Andrew Kahn promoted to Managing Director. Investment team: Julen Uriguen to Principal, Pranav Maganti to Senior Associate, Spencer Oakes to Assistant Controller, Funds.
ShoreView Industries — Jimmy Unger joins Minneapolis-based ShoreView Industries as Vice President. Previously VP at Golden Gate Capital with a stint at Crosspoint Capital Partners. Started as an investment banking analyst at Morgan Stanley.
Saluda Grade — Patrick Lo appointed Co-CIO at Saluda Grade, joining existing Co-CIO Timothy Carr. Lo leads expansion into broader asset-based finance. Previously Co-CIO at Waterfall Asset Management and Head of International at Waterfall London.
Flip Electronics — O2 Investment Partners-backed Flip Electronics appointed David Kalinske to its Board of Directors. Kalinske is a TOPGUN graduate and former fighter squadron Commanding Officer who transitioned to senior executive roles in aerospace, defense, advanced manufacturing, and AI. Endorsed by two U.S. Presidents. CEO Jason Murphy cited his background as a perfect fit for Flip's core markets.
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That's the wrap. More deals coming your way tomorrow.
- Private Markets Minute Team