Deals
SPAIN - Carlyle acquires Applus for EUR 1.5bn
After fending off competition from BC Partners and Eurazeo, The Carlyle Group has agreed the acquisition of Applus from its shareholders Agbar, Unión Fenosa and Caja Madrid for an enterprise value of EUR 1.48bn. With headquarters in Barcelona, the company...
GERMANY – BayBG invests in Proteros Biostructures
BayBG Bayerische Beteiligungsgesellschaft mbH has participated in a EUR 4.2m second round of financing for protein analysis specialist Proteros Biostructures GmbH. BayBG invested EUR 1m as a ‘stille Beteiligung’.
GERMANY – Barclays PE acquires Siteco from JP Morgan Partners
Barclays Private Equity has acquired German lighting fixtures group Siteco from JP Morgan Partners. The transaction value has not been disclosed. JPMorgan Partners acquired Siteco in October 2002. Under its stewardship, Siteco underwent a substantial...
FRANCE - Eurazeo wins exclusivity for EUR 2.3bn tertiary buyout of Elis
Eurazeo has won a period of exclusivity for the acquisition of textile rental business Elis from PAI partners, in a deal which values the business at approximately EUR 2.3bn.
UK - JC Flowers expected to swoop on Friends Prov and Resolution merger
Private equity is expected to swoop on the £8bn tie-up between UK insurers Friends Provident and Resolution. JC Flowers, the US private equity group, has been named in association with a break-up bid. It has looked at a potential takeover of Friends...
DENMARK - EQT sells Contex to Ratos for $240m
EQT has agreed to sell Contex Holding , a developer, manufacturer and supplier of innovative 2D and 3D digital image solutions, to Ratos for $250m.
SPAIN - Carlyle, BC Partners and Eurazeo chase Applus+ deal
Carlyle, BC Partners and French buyout house Eurazeo are reported to have all made bids for vehicle inspection group Applus+.
SPAIN - MCH beats Magnum on competition for Eptisa
Engineering business Eptisa has received a bid of EUR 90m from MCH Private Equity, according to press reports.
UK - ECI-backed wireless networks company makes £24m acquisition
ECI Partners portfolio company Aerial Facilities (AFL) has acquired its Swedish-based competitor, Avitec AB for up to £24m. Avitec was formerly owned by CapMan, 3i and a number of private investors. AFL designs, manufactures and installs specialist products...
FRANCE - De Agostini buys Marathon from Bridgepoint
Bridgepoint and the management of TV producer Marathon have sold their entire stake in the company to Italian group De Agostini.
UK - 3i acquires financial adviser Bestinvest
3i has acquired independent investment managers and financial adviser Bestinvest. The terms of the acquisition are not disclosed. The deal enables the founder of Bestinvest to realise some value from the company which he established in 1986. Financial...
FRANCE - Dailymotion raises extra EUR 20m
Video sharing website Dailymotion has received EUR 20m in a second round of funding, according to French press reports.
DENMARK - watAgame secures $3m for web 2.0 game from Accel Partners et al.
WatAgame has secured a $3m funding round from Accel Partners for its social networking game, goSupermodel, for teenage girls centered around fashion and user generated content. Seed Capital and Vækstfonden have also participated in the investment round.
UK - YFM Group Backs £21m buyout of The RMS Group
YFM Group has completed its biggest single deal with £5.5m of funding to support the £21m buyout of shipping and logistics specialist RMS Group. YFM has invested from several of its managed funds: the Chandos Fund, Partnership Investment Finance, and...
UK - 3i invests in listed Venture Production
3i, alongside ArcLight Capital Partners, has invested in oil and gas firm Venture Production. The total investment of over £200m consists of newly issued convertible unsecured bonds, the conversion of one of ArcLight's existing joint investments with...
UK - Accel, Advent and Atlas back Ubiquisys with $25m series-B funding
Accel Partners, Atlas Venture and Advent Venture Partners have been joined by Google on a $25m series-B funding round for Ubiquisys Ltd. Ubiquisys is a pioneer of intelligent 3G femtocell access points for the residential market. The Ubiquisys ZoneGate...
GERMANY – HgCapital acquires SLV Group
HgCapital has acquired German lighting producer SLV Group from its founders. The transaction is executed on the basis of an enterprise value of EUR 320m and still requires the approval of the German Federal Cartel Office.
SPAIN - BuyVIP receives second round of funding from 3i
A 3i-led consortium has invested EUR 7m in a second round of funding for e-commerce community BuyVIP. 3i invested EUR 5.75m, with Active Capital Partners and several business angels providing the balance.
ITALY - Finlombarda and Innogest invest EUR 1.5m in IT security business
Finlombarda Gestioni and Innogest Capital Fund have announced their joint investment in HT S.r.l, a Milan-based firm focused on the development and trading of innovative IT security intelligence products and services.
UK - Synergis commits £500,000 to Warwick Audio Technologies
Synergis Technologies and Mercia Technology Seed Fund have committed £500,000 to Warwick Audio Technologies Ltd. A spinout from the University of Warwick, Warwick Audio has developed an innovative mid-range loudspeaker that is ultra-thin, lightweight,...
FRANCE - Shoe maker Luxat subject of secondary buyout
LCL Régions Développement and Avenir Entreprises have backed the secondary buyout of Luxat, a shoe manufacturer in the Basque region.
FRANCE - CIC LBO Partners backs Sinéquanone
CIC LBO Partners has backed the buyout of Sinéquanone, a clothing chain with 220 retail points.
SPAIN/FRANCE - Imperial Tobacco offers 32% more than CVC for Altadis
Imperial Tobacco has offered EUR 50 per share for Franco-Spanish business Altadis in the latest chapter of the tobacco company saga, which has been dragging on for nearly five months.
UK - Apax in the running for Loot?
Daily Mail and General Trust is reported to be selling classified advertising magazine Loot. Apax the co-owner of the Autotrader classified magazine brand with Gaurdian Media Group is understood to be interested in the title. Loot was valued at £190m...