Textbook rentals and academic services company Chegg priced its IPO at USD12.50 per share. The startup exceeded expectations after initially pricing its share at USD9.50 to USD11.50 per share.

Netherlands-based LED lighting solutions developer Ledzworld recently received USD5 million in funding to be used for the acceleration of its sales, manufacturing, and global expansion.

Brand Energy & Infrastructures Services Inc. proposed terms on a debt backing its leveraged buyout by Clayton, Dubilier & Rice. Western Refining, on the other hand, sought a loan for its Northern Tier acquisition.

New York-based consumer and retail-focused investment bank Financo announced its intention to raise USD75 million to USD100 million for the launching its private equity fund in 2014.

San Diego-based specialty pharmaceutical company Zogenix Inc planned to raise USD56 million by selling its common stock after suffering through losses and lack of capital.

US hotel chain Extended Stay America raised USD565 million in an initial public offering. 4.24 million shares remain in overallotment, which could further raise proceeds to USD649.75 million.

Berlin-based task management company 6Wunderkinder raised USD19 million in a Series B funding round to be used for the firm's expansion in the US and business development.

In a recent study, the National Bureau of Economic Research said that combined costs associated with private equity fund investments are significantly huge. This essentially makes PE investments not so great in the long haul.

Health device innovator Scanadu recently raised USD10.5 in a Series A funding led by Relay Ventures for the development and marketing of its urine analysis tool for smartphones.

California-based bills payment and invoicing startup Bill.com picked up USD38 million in a new financing round led by Scale Venture partners and other former investors.

Venture capital firms FirstMark Capital and Atomico raised USD225 million and USD476.6 million respectively. Said firms have been known for investments in early stage technology companies.

San Francisco-based alternative payday loans startup LendUp raised USD14 million in its first venture round led by Google Ventures to lend money to people with poor credit.

UK-based pet retailer Pets at Home will be put up for an initial public offering by American multinational private equity firm KKR & Co LP. Said listing would be worth GBP1.5 billion.

Virginia-based tech startup FoundationDB raised USD17 million in a financing round led by Sutter Hill to be used for the expansion of its reliable database project.

SmartThings received USD12.5 million in a Series A financing round led by Greylock and Highland Capital for its hub that allows smart devices to communicate with each other.

Yododo, the largest online travel community in China, raised USD4 million in Series A funding for the expansion and improvement of its products and services.

Majid Al Futtaim Holding LLC announced that it will be acquiring a Jourdan branch of the Middle East supermarket chain Spinneys. This year, the company also acquired a minority stake in Majid Al Futtaim Hypermarkets LLC.

Russian billionaire and fertilizer company owner Dmitry Mazepin was eyeing a 21.75% stake on the world's top potash miner Uralkali. Mazepin's net worth was at USD3.2 billion as of this year.

Fortune Global 500 and Malaysian oil company Petronas will be divesting its shale gas assets in Canada's Progress Energy Resources Co. Petronas was reportedly selling part of its stake to Indian Oil Corp.

Russian mobile real-time bidding platform AdMoment Russian mobile advertising startup AdMoment raised USD3 million from two venture funds. Prostor Capital and international fund e.

Boston-based tech startup Shuttersong raised USD1.675 in seed funding for the development of a unique app that lets users embed sound clips into JPEG images.

Biotechnology company Hologic Inc. announced a repurchase program for its common stocks worth USD250 million. Under said program, it will be allowed to buy back shares of its stocks in open markets and privately negotiated transactions.

Los Angeles-based startup Ninja Metrics raised USD2.8 million today from Tech Coast Angels and Harvard Business School to launch its predictive analytics tool Katana Analytics Engine.

California-based cloud connect platform Arrayent recently raised USD11.9 million from Doll Capital Management, Intel Capital, and Opus Capital, to be used for its planned expansion and growth.

Network connectivity services provider Emulex Corporation announced a private offering of USD125 million Convertible Senior Notes due 2018. Net proceeds of the offering would be used to buyback Emulex's shares of stocks.

US-based custom apparel company CustomInk recently secured USD40 million in funding from Revolution Growth, to be used for the expansion of its facilities in Northern Virginia, Charlottesville, and Nevada.

Connecticut-based Cara Therapeutics Inc. announced its recent filing with the SEC about the proposed initial public offering of the biotechnology company's common stock.

Australian diversified company Abacus Property Group raised USD75 million in a share sale, the proceeds of which would be used to more properties in New South Wales, Queensland, and Victoria.

Merz Pharma group recently bought Geneva-based aesthetics medicine specialist Antes SA for an unconfirmed amount in a transaction that would extend its product reach to North America

Fortune 500 Western Refining Inc. was negotiating a purchase of a majority stake in Northern Tier Energy LP for USD775 million to capitalize on the rising oil production in the US.