Expansion
MTI leads £3.8m round for Manchester Uni spinout Arvia
MTI Partners, Sustainable Technology Investors Limited, Park Walk Advisors and other investors have backed technology company Arvia Technology with £3.8m.
Sofimac et al. in €2.5m round for Jet Metal Technologies
Sofimac has joined existing investors Viveris Management, Aster Capital, Naxicap Partners and Rhône-Alpes Création in a €2.5m funding round for French surface treatment specialist Jet Metal Technologies (JMT).
Larger UK buyouts pick up in Q1
Larger buyout activity is picking up pace once again after suffering in late 2011, according to the latest finding of the unquote” UK Watch, in association with Corbett Keeling.
Industrifonden and SEB Venture back Clavister
Industrifonden and SEB Venture Capital have backed Swedish IT security firm Clavister with a SEK 40m investment.
OpenGate adds Réponse à Tout! to Fleurus Presse
OpenGate Capital has acquired French consumer publication Réponse à Tout! as a bolt-on to its portfolio company Fleurus Presse.
La Caixa and Cabiedes back Deskidea
Caixa Capital Risc and Cabiedes & Partners have participated in a €350,000 funding round for Deskidea, a Spanish online retailer of office equipment.
YFM takes 30% stake in Zutux
YFM Equity Partners has invested £950,000 for a 30% stake in British furniture maker Zutux.
FSI leads €24m round for Viadeo
Fonds Stratégique d’Investissement (FSI) has led a €24m funding round for Paris-based professional social network Viadeo.
BaltCap commits €1m to Clusterpoint
BaltCap has invested €1m in Latvian data management company Clusterpoint.
SGCP invests €800,000 in Materiel-Velo
Société Générale Capital Partenaires (SGCP), the growth capital arm of Société Générale, has invested €800,000 in French cycling equipment distributor Materiel-Velo.
Foresight et al invest £2.1m in Biofortuna
Foresight has led a £2.1m round for medical diagnostics company Biofortuna.
CDC Innovation et al. in €4.7m round for ASK
Historical backer CDC Innovation has led a €4.7m round for French contactless technology company ASK, alongside new investors.
Piper backs Loungers
Piper Private Equity has injected £16m into UK café-bar chain operator Loungers in exchange for a significant minority stake.
RBVC leads €5m funding round for Intrinsic-ID
Robert Bosch Venture Capital (RBVC) has joined Prime Ventures in supporting Dutch IT security company Intrinsic-ID with a €5m commitment.
Novo and Almi in SEK 25.5m round for Denator
Novo Seeds and Almi Invest have participated in a SEK 25.5m financing round for Swedish biotech company Denator.
Target Partners et al invest in free games
German venture capital firms Target Partners, High-Tech Gründerfonds and Estag Capital AG have invested between €1-10m in a series-A round for GameGenetics.
Business Growth Fund backs Mexican street food
The Business Growth Fund has invested £3.25m in Manchester-based Mexican street food chain Barburrito.
EQT invests in German online retailer
EQT Expansion Capital II has bought a minority stake in German online retailer Internetstores for €30m.
State-funded FSN PME invests €1m in TalentSoft
FSN PME, the French State's €400m venture fund, has made its second investment by providing €1m to HR solutions software developer TalentSoft.
Business Growth Fund: Myth versus reality
The newest kid on the block – made up of lots of the old boys in the industry – is struggling to make friends. People say the Business Growth Fund (BGF) is too big and too threatening. But is the BGF’s reputation warranted? Kimberly Romaine investigates
Idinvest and Entrepreneur Ventures invest in animation house
Idinvest Partners and Entrepreneur Ventures have invested $5m in French animation house Cyber Group Studios.
Accel Partners backs Hailo
Accel Partners has led a $17m series-A funding round for London-based mobile taxi app Hailo.
Entrepreneur Venture invests in Société Financière JF3H
Entrepreneur Venture has made a growth capital investment in Société Financière JF3H, the holding company of French coach travel operators Regnault Autocars and Nouvelle Aisne Tourisme.
CEE's mid-market boom
CEE activity was subdued but with encouraging signs in 2011. Q1 saw just €1.7bn clocked up, but this was twice the sum of the whole of the previous year. Also, although activity in H2 was quiet, year-end figures nearly doubled to €2.6bn year-on-year.