Deals
SWEDEN - SciBase secures SEK 100m in growth funding
SciBase AB, a Swedish medical technology company, has secured a SEK 100m investment. The investors include Investor Growth Capital, SEB Företagsinvest and CapMan. Following the transaction, the three venture capital groups control 80% of the company.
UK - Ingenious backs Travis album
Ingenious has announced that its Music VCT funds have made their latest investment by backing Travis’ fifth album, currently scheduled for release later this year. Travis has been working on their forthcoming album with producer Nigel Godrich who has...
UK - CBPE backs MBO of Rosemont Pharmaceuticals for £93m
Close Brothers Private Equity (CBPE) has announced that it has backed the management buyout of Rosemont Pharmaceuticals, a leading developer and manufacturer of oral liquid medicines. The purchase from previous owners, Savient Pharmaceuticals Inc, a NASDAQ-quoted...
UK - Ventus invests in Craig Wind Farm Ltd
The Ventus group of funds have invested £2.7m in Craig Wind Farm Ltd. The proceeds of the investment will be used to construct a 10 megawatt wind farm on Craig Farm, an active sheep farm in Dumfriesshire, Scotland. Electricity generated from the site...
UK - Summit sells shareholding in Global Address
The Summit Group, the independent venture capital business specialising in seed and development capital, and its 41.5% owned investment company, Summit Alpha, announce the sale of their investment in Global Address (formerly Optima Database Management...
UK - Quester realises investment in Sibelius
Quester has announced the realisation by Quester VCT Plc of its investment in Sibelius Software Ltd, the leading music applications software company, through its acquisition by Avid Technology Inc, a NASDAQ-listed technology company.
UK - Possible Macquarie bid for Thames Water to be strengthened
Terra Firma's bid for Thames Water faces intensified competition as the Sunday Times reports that Macquarie may be teaming up with Alinta, the Australian infrastructure group to make a bid for RWE-held Thames Water.
UK - Further activity in the gym industry
The Sunday Times reports that there is to be further consolidation in the gym industry as the owners of both Esporta and Cannons look to sell their businesses. Esporta is held by Duke Street Capital which is expected to be able to sell the company for...
UK - Candover to bid for Trinity Mirror's newspapers
According to a report in the Observer, Candover is expected to emerge as a bidder for Trinity Mirror's newspapers that include the Daily Mirror, the Liverpool Echo and the Sunday Mirror. The announcement last week that the group was to conduct a strategic...
NL- KKR, Silver Lake and AlpInvest to acquire Philips' chip division
Royal Philips Electronics has announced that it has signed an agreement with KKR, Silver Lake Partners and AlpInvest Partners NV regarding the sale of an 80.1% stake in Philips' Semiconductors business. Philips will retain a 19.9% stake in the business....
UK - Signet Group eyed by Apax and KKR
Apax and KKR are reported to be considering a bid for Signet Group Plc, the company which owns the H Samuel and Ernest Jones shops in the UK and Kay Jewelers in the US.
UK - Qatar and UBS enter race for Thames Water
According to the Financial Times today a new competitor has entered the running to acquire Thames Water. Qatar's state-owned investment fund is reported to have teamed up with UBS's Global Infrastructure fund to make a bid for the company which could...
UK - Carlyle et al. exit from Trema
The four largest shareholders in Trema, The Carlyle Group, Investcorp, ABS Ventures and Norks Vekst announced the sale of Trema to Wall Street Systems, a portfolio company of Warburg Pincus. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed. Trema is a leading...
NETHERLANDS - Cinven and Warburg Pincus to acquire Essent Kabelcom
Cinven and Warburg Pincus have announced that they have reached an agreement to acquire Essent Kabelcom from Essent NV for EUR 2.6bn. The acquisition follows the recent agreement for Cinven and Warburg Pincus to acquire Casema, another Dutch cable company...
UK - Investec Private Bank funds acquisition of Sugar Puffs
Investec Private Bank’s Growth & Acquisition Finance division has backed Big Bear Ltd in the acquisition of the Sugar Puffs cereals and Harvest cereal bars businesses. Investec initially backed Big Bear with a composite senior, mezzanine and minority...
UK - Phoenix backs secondary MBO of Gaucho Grill
Phoenix Equity Partners has structured and led the funding of a £55m secondary buyout of Gaucho Grill in partnership with the management team of the business led by Zeev Godik, the founder and chief executive. Gaucho, the Argentinean restaurant group,...
SPAIN - Investindustrial exits Grupo Care
The Spanish branch of Investindustrial has agreed to sell its interest Grupo Care, a Madrid-based residential care company, to the Orpea Group for an undisclosed amount. Grupo Care has reported a turnover of EUR 15.6m last year and expects to reach EUR...
UK - 3i sells portfolio company CH4 Energy Ltd
3i has announced the sale of its portfolio company CH4 Energy Ltd, a privately owned, UK-headquartered E&P company to Venture Production Plc for EUR 224m (£153m). 3i has been involved with CH4 since its start-up in 2002. 3i provided the initial start...
ITALY - Stirling Square backs MBI of Metroweb SpA
Stirling Square Capital Partners, the pan-European private equity firm, has announced that it has signed a definitive agreement to acquire Metroweb SpA. from Milan-based utility AEM SpA. Stirling Square is backing a team of experienced telecom managers...
UK - Back Pain Management Experts raise £250,000 from The Capital Fund
The RealHealth Institute, an independent healthcare company that offers expert advice and treatment for back pain and other musculoskeletal disorders, has raised £250,000 from The Capital Fund. The company’s management team will use the new funding...
SWITZERLAND - ESBATech raises SFr 50m for expansion
A syndicate of new investors led by SV Life Sciences, Clarus Ventures, HBM BioVentures and HBM BioCapital has invested SFr 50m in ESBATech AG alongside existing investors. The series B financing is aimed at further developing the company's lead product,...
SPAIN - Carlyle courts Ason
The Carlyle Group and Layetana, a Catalan real estate company, are considering a bid for Spanish real estate group Ason, according to Spanish newspaper Cinco Dias. Bids are due next week for the firm, which is expected to be valued at about EUR 700m.
FRANCE - 21 Centrale Partners in Batisanté secondary buyout
21 Centrale Partners has bought health and safety services provider Batisanté from CDC Entreprises, following an auction process run by Transaction R.
GERMANY - Equita exits woodwork specialist
Equita has sold a 19.7% stake in German sawmill and wood working enterprise Klenk Holz AG via the Klenk family to WestLB AG. The remaining 10% stake was sold to the Klenk Holz AG itself as treasury stock. Equita was invested in Klenk Holz AG through its...