Tracking when private companies are nearing a sale, recap, or financing event has always been a guessing game. With thousands of sponsor-backed firms spread across sectors and geographies, most deal teams are forced to react after the market moves.
Investors, bankers, and service providers struggle to know which private companies are gearing up for a transaction or capital raise. Signals are scattered, opaque, and nearly impossible to track across thousands of PE- and VC-backed businesses.
Dakota centralizes those signals (holding periods, funding rounds, platform acquisition dates, ownership changes, and exit timing patterns) into one predictive transaction-readiness tool. Instead of waiting for headlines, users can see which companies are showing the strongest likelihood of pursuing a sale, recapitalization, or new financing before the market knows.
Below is today’s list of five PE- or VC-backed companies that, based on their hold period, financing stage, and last transaction date, appear to be credible candidates for a sale or next-round raise.
Nothing is guaranteed, but these companies fall squarely within the timing windows where sponsors typically look to generate liquidity or secure additional capital.
Sourced from Dakota Sponsor Backed Companies.
1. Solenis
Solenis is a global producer of specialty chemicals for water-intensive industries, including pulp and paper, oil and gas, chemical processing, mining, biorefining, power generation, and municipal markets. The company offers a broad array of process, functional, and water treatment chemicals, as well as monitoring and control systems, enabling clients to improve operational efficiencies, enhance product quality, protect plant assets, and minimize environmental impact.
- Sector: Materials
- Industry: Chemicals
- Last known transaction date: Acquired Diversey Holdings Ltd. in July 2023 for $4.6B
- Major sponsors/backers: Led by Platinum Equity
- Why timing suggests a near-term transaction: The 2021 platform acquisition places Solenis at ~4+ years of PE ownership, consistent with the typical PE exit or recap window; the 2023 Diversey acquisition significantly increased scale and portfolio breadth, strengthening positioning for a sponsor exit, recapitalization, or strategic transaction
2. Aurorium
Aurorium is a chemical manufacturing company that provides specialty ingredients and performance-enhancing materials across various industries, including healthcare, personal and home care, infrastructure, mobility, and paper and packaging. Their product offerings include Haelium™ Pharmaceutical Solutions, NaOH Solutions, Castorlatum™ Emollient, Haelium™ Piperidine, and Xibond™ Additives, all designed to enhance product performance and sustainability.
- Sector: Materials
- Industry: Chemicals
- Last known transaction date: Acquired by Pritzker Private Capital in January 2021
- Major sponsors/backers: Pritzker Private Capital
- Why timing suggests a near-term transaction: The platform acquisition closed ~4.95 years ago (Jan 2021 → Dec 2025). That’s beyond the ~4-year PE hold-period window where sponsor-backed platforms often pursue a sale / recap / sponsor-to-sponsor / minority sale, so the “clock” says Aurorium is in a plausible exit/recap zone now.
3. Calyxia
Calyxia is a French company specializing in the design, manufacturing, and sale of high-performing, biodegradable microcapsules and microspheres. These products are engineered to protect active ingredients during industrial processes, ensuring their release at optimal times and locations to enhance performance. Serving industries such as agriculture, consumer care, and advanced materials, Calyxia enables manufacturers to develop products that are both effective and environmentally sustainable.
- Sector: Materials
- Industry: Chemicals
- Last known funding round: Series B, $35M, announced September 2024
- Major sponsors/backers: Lombard Odier Investment Managers, Bpifrance, Astanor Ventures
- Why timing suggests a near-term transaction: At ~15 months post–Series B by Dec 2025, Calyxia sits in the late part of the B → C ~18 months window and within your 12–18 month criterion—consistent with a likely Series C / strategic minority / M&A discussion as it scales production and commercialization.
4. Echion Technologies
Echion Technologies is a UK-based company specializing in niobium-based anode materials for lithium-ion batteries. Their proprietary XNO® technology enables batteries to fast charge safely in less than 10 minutes, with high energy density and a cycle life exceeding 10,000 cycles. This innovation is particularly beneficial for heavy-duty applications such as rail, off-road vehicles, high-utilization fleets, mining equipment, and high-performance hybrids.
- Sector: Materials
- Industry: Chemicals
- Last known funding round: Series B, Â29M ($38M), announced June 2024
- Major sponsors/backers: Led by Volta Energy Technologies, with participation from CBMM, BGF, and Cambridge Enterprise Ventures
- Why timing suggests a near-term transaction: ~18 months since Series B, right at the B → C expected window (~18 months) in your criteria. As interest in battery performance materials grows, Echion’s scaling of niobium-based anode materials positions it for a Series C, strategic minority investment, or M&A interest as adoption ramps.
5. Samsara Eco
Samsara Eco is an Australian enviro-tech company founded in 2021, specializing in infinite recycling technologies to address plastic pollution. Utilizing enzymatic processes, the company breaks down complex plastics into their original monomers, enabling the creation of new, virgin-grade plastics without the need for fossil fuels. This innovative approach allows for the continuous recycling of plastics, reducing environmental impact and promoting sustainability.
- Sector: Materials
- Industry: Chemicals
- Last known funding round: Series A2, $100 AUD, announced June 2024.
- Major sponsors/backers: Temasek Holdings, Main Sequence Ventures, DCVC, Hitachi Ventures, Lululemon Athletica, Titanium Ventures, Wollemi Capital
- Why timing suggests a near-term transaction: Treating A+ as Series A, A → B ~18 months. This round is ~17.7 months ago, i.e., right at the threshold—consistent with gearing up for a Series B, strategic minority check, or M&A.
Use Dakota’s Sponsor Backed Company Intelligence to Spot Likely Exits Before the Market Does
Dakota’s private company data gives you a real-time view into thousands of sponsor-backed companies, including platform acquisition dates, funding rounds, parent sponsors, add-on activity, and sector categorization.
Instead of guessing where companies are in their lifecycle, you can instantly identify which ones are approaching the typical timing windows for a sale or recap.
Fully integrated into Dakota Marketplace, this dataset enables deal sourcers, investor relations teams, and allocators to anticipate transactions, build targeted outreach lists, and stay ahead of market announcements, every single day.
To identify sponsor-backed companies approaching a sale, recapitalization, or next-round raise, before headlines break, book a demo of Dakota Marketplace and see how our transaction-readiness signals can sharpen your sourcing and outreach.
