Deals
UK - Private equity wants to muscle in on Severn Trent's planned IPO of Biffa
Severn Trent's planned IPO of its Biffa waste business later this year is no longer a certainty after a team formed by KKR and Apollo Management expressed an interest in acquiring Severn Trent. The bid for the company would be in the region of ТЃ5bn....
UK - Sun European Parnters sells light commercial vehicles company LDV
Sun European Partners, the European adviser to Sun Capital Partners Inc, has announced the sale of its affiliate LDV Holdings Ltd to GAZ International Limited. Under the deal, LDV, the specialist manufacturer of the multi award winning range of Maxus...
UK - Strathdon Investments launches secondaries venture capital fund
Strathdon Investments Plc, the technology investment company, has announced that it has formed a new LP fund with a major investor and that the first transactions have been completed. Strathdonтs subsidiary, Strathdon Finance Ltd, will manage the specialist...
ROMANIA - GED completes Romanian deal
GED Private Equity, a mid market investor in Iberia and South Eastern Europe, has acquired a majority stake in four Romanian mobile phone distributors in a EUR 4.5m deal. The investor plans to consolidate and rebrand the companies at the beginning of...
UK - New developments in Birds Eye auction
The ТЃ1.2bn Birds Eye auction is reported by the Sunday Times to have a new competitor following the teaming up of Kerry Foods with Blackstone and JP Morgan Partners. Kerry Foods is Ireland's eight largest listed company and is one of the largest suppliers...
UK - Hermes set to acquire Beacon Bingo chain
According to a report in the Sunday Times, the private equity arm of Hermes is set to acquire Thomas Holdings, the parent company of the Beacon Bingo chain.
UK - Kennet Venture Partners sells Cramer to Amdocs
Kennet Venture Partners Ltd, a venture capital firm focused on the technology sector, had announced the sale of portfolio company Cramer to Amdocs, an industry leader in solutions that enable integrated customer management, for ТЃ205m ($375m). Cramer...
SPAIN - Carlyle and Vista Capital acquire Iberostar for EUR 800m
Carlyle Group, which had already signed an agreement of intention to purchase tour operator Iberostar, has partnered with Vista Capital, the private equity firm backed by the Banco Santander, in an acquisition deal reportedly worth EUR 800m.
UK - LDC acquires digital dictation specialist BigHand
Digital dictation specialist BigHand is targeting rapid global growth after being bought by a management team backed by LDC. London-based BigHand supplies software that allows users to dictate directly onto their firmтs computer network from anywhere...
SPAIN - Mercapital sells its stake in Grupo Hospitalario Quiron
Private equity firm Mercapital has sold its 32% stake in Grupo Hospitalario Quiron, a hospital group to Portuguese firm Jose de Mello.
SPAIN - Advent acquires Euroloc
The global private equity firm Advent International has announced the acquisition of Euroloc de Maquinaria S.L., a leading equipment rental company serving the Spanish construction sector, from Fides Capital and family shareholders.
SWEDEN - Procuritas sells NSG Logistics to John Nurminen
Procuritas Capital Partners II has sold NSG Logistics to John Nurminen Oy. John Nurminen Oy has acquired the share capital of NSG Logistics, which means that the company will become the owner of AB SkandiaTransport, SkandiaTransport A/S and Göteborgs...
GERMANY - Brenntag goes to BC Partners
Bain Capital has sold chemical distribution firm Brenntag GmbH to BC Partners for an undisclosed sum. The deal remains subject to approval from the cartel authorities. Bain Capital intends to retain a minority shareholding in the company following the...
UK - Promethean Investments acquires Cambria Automobiles
Private equity firm Promethean Investments has invested ТЃ2.6m as part of the management buy-in of Cambria Automobiles Ltd (CAL) and Sudbury (Swindon) Ltd.
ITALY - Capitalia Sofipa acquires half of Lediberg's capital
Capitalia Sofipa Sgr has recently acquired a stake in the marketing product manufacturer Lediberg via its funds Sofipa Equity Fund and Sofipa Equity Fund II, in a deal reportedly worth EUR 25m. The private equity firm has taken a 49.9% stake and the remaining...
FRANCE - French WiMAX chips supplier raises additional EUR 19m
In its third round of funding, Sequans Communications has raised $24m (approximately EUR 19m) from a syndicate of investors, led by Kennet Venture Partners.
UK - London University spin-out company raises £930,000 with help from The Capital Fund
IXICO Ltd, a London University spin-out company that has developed innovative software to automate the analysis of digital clinical images used in drug discovery and development, has raised ТЃ930,000. The Capital Fund provided ТЃ100,000, investing alongside...
UK - Endless acquires Peter Black
Peter Black, designer and supplier of footwear, cosmetics and gifts to Marks and Spencer, Tesco and Next has been acquired by Endless. Peter Black was taken-private in 2000 by its management team.
FRANCE - Apax Partners agrees to buy FTMSC from France Telecom
Apax Partners has signed a agreement to acquire 100% of France telecom Mobile Satellite Communications SA (FTMSC).
ITALY - Private equity consortium to buy stake in Pirelli Tyre
Gruppo Banca Leonardo, the investment group formed by dealmaker Gerardo Braggiotti, is part of a banking association set to buy a 39% stake in Pirelli Tyre later this week.
GERMANY - Barclays Private Equity buys into shipping packaging solutions
Barclays Private Equity alongside company management has acquired a majority stake in Pliening-based Ratioform Gruppe. The financial investor bought its stake from Thomas Krieg, who will retain a 19% participatory stake in the company, with the management...
ITALY - Permira set to list Ferretti
Luxury yacht group Ferretti has confirmed that it will be returning to the Milan stock exchange this year. The IPO, which is likely to happen in the autumn, had been widely anticipated ever since it was purchased by private equity fund Permira and subsequently...
ITALY - L Capital buys Piazza Sempione
L Capital, the private equity arm of the group LVMH, has acquired a majority stake in Piazza Sempione, a high-end fashion company, from its founding family. The consideration has not been disclosed.
UK - Design LED Products receives Braveheart investment
Braveheart has invested ТЃ250,000 in Design LED Products, a spin-out company from the Hillington Innovation Centre, Glasgow, with which Braveheart has strong links. This is the first investment from its Alpha EIS Fund.