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An Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (Adia) subsidiary became a significant minority shareholder in Froneri, a UK-based ice cream maker jointly owned by Nestlé and private equity firm PAI Partners and whose brands include Haagen Dazs, according to a press release. The fund and PAI reportedly jointly invested EUR 1.4 bn in Froneri, as part of the private equity firm’s plan to raise EUR 3.6 bn in equity, sources familiar with the matter told Bloomberg.
A new CV to hold the asset: PAI Partners also created a single-asset continuation vehicle (CV), raising USD 1.8 bn from investors to keep its stake in Froneri, which is valued at USD 15 bn including debt. The oversubscribed CV, one of the largest of its kind in Europe so far, marks the second time PAI has used a CV to hold its Froneri stake, having created a similar vehicle in 2019 and raising roughly USD 2 bn. PAI had initially acquired UK-based R&R Ice Cream in 2013 from an Oaktree Capital-backed group, then merged it with part of Nestlé’s ice cream operations in 2016 to form Froneri.
The next steps? PAI sees room for further business growth for Froneri through future mergers and acquisitions transactions, the sources said.
ADVISORS- Evercore was the sole financial adviser to PAI on the CV transaction and Rothschild provided corporate finance advice to Froneri. Meanwhile, Deutsche Bank served as exclusive financial adviser to Adia.
It’s not Adia and PAI’s first rodeo together: Adia and PAI have partnered before to acquire a controlling interest in French ground support equipment firm Alvest during the summer, and Adia bought a minority stake in European Camping Group from PAI earlier this year.
It's been a strong year for the sovereign wealth fund so far, which ranked second in MENA sovereign investment activity in 9M 2025 with USD 9.6 bn deployed across multiple markets. Since its establishment, the fund has also emerged as the region’s fourth-largest outbound state investor, committing USD 162.7 bn across 337 transactions.
OTHER M&A NEWS-
Deliveroo UAE folds into DoorDash: Deliveroo UAE — the local arm of the British delivery giant — is now officially part of DoorDash after the Nasdaq-listed e-commerce company closed its buyout of Deliveroo, according to a press release. Deliveroo works with some 178k restaurants, grocers, and retailers and 130k riders across nine markets, serving about 7 mn active customers. The Deliveroo tie-up comes as consolidation accelerates in the sector, with DoorDash also said to be eyeing Mubadala’s stake in Turkish delivery company Getir.
New management: While the company will continue to operate under the Deliveroo brand, Miki Kuusi, co-founder of food and retail delivery company Wolt, will take over as CEO alongside his role as DoorDash’s head of international, relocating to London in the coming months.
REFRESHER- DoorDash first announced the USD 3.9 bn takeover in April, in a transaction that has since been awaiting regulatory and shareholder approvals. The move expands DoorDash’s footprint to more than 40 countries, with the combined group handling about USD 90 bn in gross order value last year and serving 50 mn monthly active users.
