Deals
FRANCE - Naxicap, Spef LBO and Eurocapital back secondary buyout of Factum
The trio of private equity firms affiliated to Natixis has won an auction run by Aforge Finance, to back the secondary owner buyout of IT systems rental business Factum.
UK - Sovereign makes Dependable portfolio acquisition
Sovereign Capital has led the acquisition of cleaning company Dependable Services Ltd on behalf of portfolio company London Property Maintenance Ltd (LPM), a provider of contract cleaning security and maintenance services, for an undisclosed sum.
FRANCE - CDC CI leads tertiary buyout of Carré Blanc
CDC Capital Investissement Mezzanine Management has backed the tertiary buyout of home fabrics group Carré Blanc, from CIC LBO Partners and CIC Finance.
SWEDEN - STING Capital invest in Zebor Technology
STING Capital has invested in Zebor Technology, a seller and promoter of a “green” operating system.
ITALY - 3i leads EUR 730m SBO of lawnmower maker
3i acquired Global Garden Products (GGP), a manufacturer and distributor of lawn mowers and powered garden equipment, from ABN AMRO Capital and AAC Capital Partners (the former Dutch, Nordic and UK buyout teams of ABN AMRO Capital).
SWEDEN - Ledstierna acquires 20% of Katshing Netsales
Ledstierna AB, the Swedish listed venture capital firm, has invested SEK 6m in return for a 20% stake in Katshing Netsales AB, an internet company for mobile technology. The agreement stipulates that Ledstierna acquires 20% of the shares in Wazoo Holding...
NORWAY - Ferd lists Pronova BioPharma with market-cap of NOK 6.9bn
Ferd Private Equity (FPE I) has listed Pronova BioPharma (previously Pronova Biocare), a Norwegian manufacturer of Omega-3 pharmaceutical products, on the Oslo Stock Exchange for an offer price of NOK 23 per share. The total offer size is NOK 2.7bn (including...
UK - Gresham acquires West Cornwall Pasty Co.
Gresham has backed the buyout of West Cornwall Pasty Company (WCPCo) from its shareholders. Debt facilities were provided by Lloyds TSB Corporate Markets.
SWITZERLAND - BPE in PREMIUMcommunications buyout
Barclays Private Equity has acquired Swiss technology support company PREMIUMcommunications.
UK - ETF leads £5m investment in Perpetuum
Environmental Technologies Fund (ETF) has led a £5m series-B funding round in Perpetuum, a manufacturer of vibration energy harvesting devices.
NORWAY - Verdane Capital invests in Fjord Media
Fjord Media, a developer and seller of routing, signal processing and optical transmission equipment to the broadcast, multimedia and telecom industries, has attracted growth capital from Verdane Capital. The funding will be used to expand its sales and...
UK - US private equity groups circle Northern Rock
US private equity group Lone Star is thought to be interested in Northern Rock, the beleaguered Newcastle-based bank. Lone Star joins a host of US buyout firms also thought to be sniffing around. JC Flowers is already carrying out due diligence on the...
UK - Inflexion acquires Orchard Electronic on behalf of portfolio company Aspen
Inflexion Private Equity has completed the acquisition of printed circuit board manufacturer Orchard Electronic on behalf of portfolio company Aspen Pumps, a producer of condensate pumps, for an undisclosed sum.
UK - Pension disagreement to overturn Sainsburys deal for a second time?
Failure to reach an agreement with the trustees of Sainsbury's pension fund is threatening to scupper Delta Two's potential takeover of the supermarket chain. It is understood the trustees are asking for an additional £1.75bn, £750m more than Delta...
GERMANY – AUCTUS buys Entitec AG
AUCTUS Management GmbH & Co KG has acquired a majority stake in Hamburg-based IT service provider Entitec AG for an undisclosed amount. The financial investor plans to further increase its engagement in the IT sector.
TURKEY - KKR completes $1bn+ shipping company buyout
KKR -owned newco Trieste Bidco Denizcilik ve Tasimacilik A.S. has acquired 97.6% of the shares in U.N Ro-Ro Isletmeleri A.S. and majority shareholdings in each of its three affiliates (together the U.N. Ro-Ro Group). The transaction values the U.N Ro-Ro...
UK - 3i increases stake in AES Engineering to 40%
3i has made a further investment in AES Engineering Ltd, the holding company of the AESSEAL Group, a mechanical sealing business. 3i first invested in AES in 1996. This secondary investment increases its equity stake to 40% and values the business at...
SPAIN - Danish business angel backs Wamba with EUR 3m
Social community site Wamba has received EUR 3m in funding from Morten Lund, a well-known business angel who previously invested in Estonian software business Skype.
UK - Katalyst-backed E-Therapeutics to float on AIM
Drug discovery company E-Therapeutics is planning a flotation on AIM later this month. The Newcastle-based company, which counts new therapy candidates in 11 clinical areas including MRSA, asthma and diabetes amongst its portfolio, is backed by Katalyst...
DENMARK - NorthCap Partners invests in Visiopharm
NorthCap Partners has invested an undisclosed sum in Copenhagen-based software company Visiopharm.
SWEDEN - Industrifonden leads $6m investment in ChromoGenics
ChromoGenics, a Swedish developer of electrochromic technology, has closed a $6m second round of funding lead by Industrifonden. Industrifonden invested $3m, while existing investors Volvo Technology Transfer and Innovationsbron also participated in the...
UK - Ingenius invests £824,000 in debut album by The Orange Lights
Ingenius has invested £824,000 to back the debut album by The Orange Lights, a five-piece band formed by Paul Tucker, the ex-Lighthouse Family Songwriter.
UK - NiTech Solutions benefits from £800,000 of second round funding
PUK Ventures has invested £800,000 in mixing technology developer NiTech Solutions.
GERMANY – capiton acquires FBS
capiton AG has acquired a majority stake in the business unit construction systems division (FBS) from Freudenberg & Co. KG. The value of the transaction has not been disclosed. L-Eigenkapitalagentur (L-EA) and management also invested and take a significant...