Deals
UK - Barclays Ventures acquires Christy Group in £21m deal
Barclays Ventures has backed the ТЃ21m management buyout of Christy Group Ltd, a designer, importer and distributor of childrenтs dress-up costumes based in Barnsley. Christy supplies major retailers worldwide such as Walmart/ASDA, Tesco, Marks and Spencer...
FRANCE - Innovacom backs online data stocking software developer
Software developer Agematis has received its first round of funding from French investor Innovacom. The private equity investor injected EUR 2.5m in the company.
SWEDEN - AOL launches $900m offer for VC-backed TradeDoubler
AOL has made a cash tender offer to acquire online marketing solutions company TradeDoubler AB for SEK 215 per share. Funds managed by TowerBrook Capital Partners, Arctic Ventures, Prosper Capital and Four Seasons Venture (now called Verdane Capital)...
UK - Oak Hill to acquire United Utilities' outsourcing business
A private equity consortium headed up by Oak Hill, the US group, is to acquire the United Utilities' business outsourcing division, Vertex. The ТЃ220m deal follows United Utilities decision to sell Vertex due to falling profits within the division.
FRANCE - Argan Capital to back buyout of luggage maker Delsey
Mid-cap private equity firm Argan Capital has announced it has signed an agreement to back the buyout of the world's second largest travel luggage maker Delsey.
SWEDEN - 3i, InnovationsKapital and smac partners sell Nordnav for $75m
3i, InnovationsKapital and smac partners have sold Nordnav, a provider of GPS software solutions for mobile devices, to Camebridge Silicon Radio. The purchase price for all shares in the company is approximately $75m and InnovationsKapital has generated...
UK - Imperial Innovations invests in Equinox Pharma
Imperial Innovations Group plc has invested ТЃ250,000 in Equinox Pharma Limited, a company providing advanced software products to the pharma and biopharma industry. The investment in Equinox was part of a ТЃ500,000 seed funding round, which also included...
UK - Tate & Lyle Ventures makes first investment
Tate & Lyle Ventures, a fund launched with backing from the sugar refiner and ingredients producer to invest in next generation food ingredients, has completed its first deal. The fund has invested in food safety diagnostics company Lumora Ltd, a spin-out...
FRANCE - Novexel receives Europe's largest biotech fundraising in 12 months
Edmond de Rothschild Investment Partners has led a EUR 50m series-B funding for Paris-based Novexel, a laboratory which researches and develops novel types of anti-infectives for the treatment of bacterial and fungal infections.
ESTONIA - Celecure receives EUR 1.6m from four Skype founders
Ambient Sound Investments (ASI) has agreed to invest EUR 1.6m in Estonian biotechnology drug developer Celecure to accelerate the international breakthrough of its projects.
BELGIUM - Barclays Private Equity France acquires Desmet Ballestra
Barclays Private Equity France has acquired a majority stake in Desmet Ballestra, operative in the fields of engineering and supply of plants and equipment for the edible oil industry, the detergent-surfactants and related chemical industry and the oleochemical...
UK - Barclays Ventures exits Ancyra in £22m deal
Barclays Ventures has realised its investment in Care Holdings Ltd, an operator of care homes for the elderly which trades as Ancyra Health Ltd. The investor made the exit via a trade sale to Aermid Health Care Ltd following a direct approach to the vendors....
FRANCE - XAnge Capital raises EUR 15m
XAnge Private Equity's evergreen investment vehicle XAnge Capital has completed its second fundraising. The vehicle, which was created in April 2003, gathered EUR 15m from its previous investors.
UK - The Capital Fund provides instant messaging provider with £250,000
The Capital Fund has provided secure instant messaging service provider, Presence Networks, with ТЃ250,000 of expansion capital. One of a series of significant investments in Presence Networks, The Capital Fundтs backing will help take the companyтs products...
UK - Finance Wales invests £600,000 in animation company
Walesт largest independent animation studio is planning further international expansion after securing a ТЃ600,000 capital investment from Finance Wales which will see it take a minority stake in the company. BAFTA award-winning company, Calon, will develop...
ITALY - Mobango secures backing from Doughty Hanson
Doughty Hanson Technology Ventures has invested EUR 2m in Mobango, an online and mobile services developer.
UK - Activist shareholders put pressure on 3i's Countrywide offer
It has emerged that investment group Artisan Partners and hedge fund Boussard & Gavaudan have been joined by another Countrywide shareholder, Standard Life, in opposing 3i's 490p per share offer for the estate agency chain. The three investors argue that...
UK - ISIS backs £33m buyout of AITCL
ISIS Equity Partners has backed the ТЃ33m management buyout of Anglo Irish Trust Company Ltd (AITCL). The investor provided ТЃ13m from its ISIS III fund to acquire a significant minority stake in the Isle of Man-based offshore trust and company administration...
GERMANY - Buchanan Capital Partners acquires stake in time:matters
Funds advised by Buchanan Capital Partners have acquired a majority stake in time:matters GmbH, the Neu-Isenburg-based specialist logistics company, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Lufthansa Cargo AG.
UK - Wellington Partners leads EUR 18m investment in Truphone
Wellington Partners has led an EUR 18m series-A funding round for London-based mobile VoIP start-up Truphone. Also participating in financing Truphone are existing investors Eden Ventures and a number of business angels, as well as Independent News and...
UK - Bank of Scotland backs MBO of Willis & Gambier
Bank of Scotland Integrated Finance has funded the ТЃ55m management buyout of Willis & Gambier Ltd, taking a minority stake in the company.
UK - Bank of Scotland backs demerger of components division from Nylacast
Nylacast has agreed a demerger of its components division with backing from Bank of Scotland Integrated Finance in a deal worth over ТЃ30m. The components division of Nylacast supplies names such as Delphi, JCB, Caterpillar and GSK with highly engineered...
UK - More bad news for Countrywide deal
Sources report that UK hedge fund Boussard & Gavaudan has amassed a 5% stake in Countrywide and intends to oppose 3i's recommended 490p per share offer.
HUNGARY - GMT and Mid Europa sell Invitel for EUR 470m
GMT Communications Partners and Mid Europa Partners have announced that they have agreed to sell Hungary’s second largest fixed line telecoms operator Invitel Távközlési ZRt. to Hungarian Telephone & Cable Corp for EUR 470m. The two financial investors...