Deals
UK - Frog Capital leads £5m investment into eCommera
Growth capital investor Frog Capital has led a ТЃ5m second round of financing for eCommera, a provider of e-commerce services to the retail industry, alongside West Coast Capital.
UK - Octopus Ventures backs £5m GetOptics buyout
Octopus Ventures has backed the ТЃ5m merger of contact lens businesses GetLenses and PostOptics, creating the new entity GetOptics.
GERMANY - Private equity circles Primondo
According to press reports, Cerberus, Golden Gate and Sun Capital Partners are among potential suitors for Primondo GmbH, which is being sold by administrator Klaus Hubert Görg.
UK - Blackstone sells Cineworld stake
Blackstone has sold close to two thirds of its 57% stake in UK cinema chain Cineworld, prompting a sharp drop in the company's share price of 13 pence.
FRANCE - AXA PE abandon Avera pursuit
AXA Private Equity has pulled out of a possible deal to acquire state-backed Areva's power distribution unit.
FRANCE - Ventech and Auriga invest EUR 2m into BonitaSoft
Ventech and Auriga Partners have invested EUR 2m into software company BonitaSoft.
GREECE - Apax, TPG consider Wind Hellas debt
Apax Partners and TPG are considering investing new money into Greek telecom giant Wind Hellas (formerly TIM Hellas) as the company looks to restructure its EUR 3.2bn debt pile.
GERMANY - KKR And GS provide EUR 100m loan to KION
KKR and Goldman Sachs Capital Partners have provided portfolio company Kion Group, a manufacturer of warehouse equipment, with a EUR 100m loan, provided on the same terms as the company's existing senior debt, in a deal that also sees the business' covenants...
ITALY - BlueGem and MPS acquire Neomobile
UK-based private equity fund BlueGem and existing investor MPS Venture have acquired a controlling stake in mobile marketing business Neomobile.
SWEDEN - Pod invests in Transmode
Swedish investor Pod Venture Partners has acquired a 42% stake in Transmode, a developer of optical networking solutions, from private and institutional backers.
FRANCE - AXA PE subscribes to Carbone Lorraine capital increase
AXA Private Equity has participated in a EUR 63m capital increase for portfolio company Carbone Lorraine, a graphic solutions company, maintaining its 16% interest in the business.
BELGIUM - Gimv pumps EUR 5m into Alfacam
Belgium-based Gimv has invested EUR 5m into listed television service supplier Alfacam Group, taking its stake in the business to close to 5%.
GERMANY – Capvis-backed Bartec acquires Vodec
Capvis portfolio company Bartec, a provider of industrial safety technologies, has acquired sector rival Vodec Ltd for an undisclosed sum.
NETHERLANDS - PPM Oost backs GreenGran
Participatiemaatschappij Oost Nederland (PPM Oost) has invested an undisclosed sum in thermoplastic company GreenGran, in exchange for a 20% stake in the business. The transaction was also supported by ERDF/EU funds and a contribution from the province...
UK- Foresight and Octopus invest £1.5m in iProfile
Foresight Venture Partners and Octopus Group, via its Titan VCT fund, have invested, alongside private investors, in online CV and career profile provider iProfile, in a funding round worth more than ТЃ1.5m.
ITALY - S+R and Alcedo to sell GTS to Alfaparf
It is understood that S+R Investimenti e Gestioni and Alcedo Sgr have agreed to sell their combined 72% stake in cosmetics company GTS Group to trade buyer Alfaparf, in a deal estimated at EUR50-60m.
GERMANY - Private equity circles ratiopharm group
Private equity firms have shown interest in acquiring drugs company ratiopharm group, which is being put up for sale by VEM Vermögensverwaltung GmbH.
EUROPE - Growth Capital to take the lead in 2010
In a market starved for debt, growth capital investments are in line to become the favoured deal type of 2010, as highlighted in Nordic editor Rikke Eckhoff's interview with Louis Elson, co-founder and managing partner of Palamon Capital Partners. See...
AUSTRIA - DZ Equity's Illichmann enters administration
DZ Equity Partner's portfolio company Illichmann Aluminiumguss GmbH has filed for insolvency. Austrian press reports suggest that Illichmann's lenders have refused to provide additional loans to the company, while also cancelling its existing credit facilities....
UK - ETF et al. invest £10m in Nujira
The Environmental Technologies Fund (ETF), alongside existing backers Bank Invest, 3i, Amadeus, Mitsubishi UFJ Capital and private investors, has participated in a ТЃ10m series D round of funding for cleantech company Nujira.
UK - Crescent Point Group et al. invest in XConnect
Crescent Point Group, alongside return backers Accel Partners, Grazia Equity and Venrock, has invested $10m in telecom company XConnect, as part of a series B funding round for the company.
SPAIN - Crédit Agricole in EUR 3.75m round for ERA Biotech
Crédit Agricole Private Equity has led a series-B investment round for ERA Biotech, raising EUR 3.75m from existing backers BcnHighgrowth, Axis, and Uninvest as well as private investors.
NETHERLANDS - PPM Oost backs Ingrepro
Participatiemaatschappij Oost Nederland (PPM Oost) has invested an undisclosed sum in biotech company Ingrepro.
GERMANY – NRW Bank and Cine Plus join DFT backers
NRW Bank and strategic investor Cine Plus have subscribed to a capital increase for broadcaster DFW Deutsche Fernsehwerke GmbH.