Davis Polk advised TerraVia Holdings, Inc. in connection with its sale of a majority interest in the Algenist skincare brand to Algenist Holdings, Inc., an affiliate of Tengram Capital Partners, in exchange for $20.2 million in cash, approximately 20% of the fully diluted equity of Algenist Holdings and the assumption of substantially all of the liabilities related to the Algenist skincare business. The transaction closed on August 16, 2016.

Based in South San Francisco, California, TerraVia is a next-generation food, nutrition and specialty ingredients company that harnesses the power of algae. Tengram Capital Partners is a private equity firm that focuses exclusively on leading consumer and retail companies that own strong recognizable brands.

The Davis Polk corporate team included partner Alan F. Denenberg and associates Jeffrey C. Lau, Emily Roberts and Dongbiao Shen. Partners Rachel D. Kleinberg and Michael Mollerus and associate Lena X. Qiu provided tax advice. Counsel Cynthia Akard provided executive compensation advice. Associates Michelle Ontiveros Gross and Jason J. Bang provided intellectual property and technology advice. Members of the Davis Polk team are based in the Northern California and New York offices.