Deals
GERMANY - NORD Holding backs Unicor acquisition
NORD Holding has backed portfolio engineering company Unicor GmbH in acquiring the machinery business of Königsberg-based Fränkische Rohrwerke.
GERMANY - TCW leads EUR 70m agri funding
TCW Group has led a EUR 60m equity investment into biogas company agri capital, alongside returning investors Altima Partners, Green Partners, Halcyon and Ludgate Environmental Fund, with Ecofin providing a EUR 10m mezzanine loan.
FRANCE - Serena and A Plus invest EUR 6.47m into RSI
Serena Capital and A Plus Finance, alongside previous investors Galileo Partners, CDC Innovation and Techfund Europe Management, have backed video security company RSI Video Technologies with an investment of EUR 6.47m.
PORTUGAL - Explorer acquires Gascan
Private equity firm Explorer Investments has wholly acquired gas business Gasses Combustiveis (Gascan) SA for an undisclosed sum.
FRANCE - I-source and OTC invest further EUR 3.5m into Rhapso
I-Source Gestion and OTC Asset Management have invested EUR 3.5m into Rhapso, a software company, in a third funding round.
UK - AFM and EV invest further in TPS
Alliance Fund Managers (AFM) and Enterprise Ventures (EV) have made a further instalment of ТЃ275,000 in foreign exchange and payment services specialist TransGlobal Payment Solutions (TPS), as part of a ТЃ1m first round funding package agreed last November....
FRANCE - Sofinnova and Ventech complete $2.7m MXP4 investment
Sofinnova Partners and Ventech Capital have returned for a $2.7m second round of funding for digital music company MXP4.
FRANCE - Innovacom leads EUR 5.5m investment into Mixcommerce
Innovacom has invested EUR 3m into e-commerce company Mixcommerce as part of a EUR 5.5m financing round, with XAnge Private Equity providing the balance.
POLAND - Enterprise invests EUR 3m into R&C
Enterprise Investors, through the Enterprise Venture Fund, has pumped EUR 3m into Polish restaurant chain R&C Union, taking a 48% stake in the business.
UK - BPE-backed ATP acquires Instone from 3i in £37m deal
Barclays Private Equity-backed ATP International Group has acquired marine travel company Instone International from 3i, in a deal valued at ТЃ37m. Lloyds TSB Corporate Markets' acquistion finance team provided working capital facilities to support the...
UK - Hotbed backs buy-in of Sabel Cosmetics
Private investor network Hotbed has backed the management buy-in of UK-based hair care products manufacturer Sabel Cosmetics with an investment of ТЃ1.6m. Founder and vendor John Abel also participated in the deal.
GERMANY – EMBL Ventures leads EUR 4.5m vasopharm funding
EMBL Ventures, alongside HeidelbergCapital, Entrepreneurs Fund and KfW, has backed biotechnology company vasopharm GmbH with an investment of EUR 4.5m.
EUROPE - Close Brothers Corporate Finance acquired by Daiwa for £75m
Daiwa Securities SMBC Europe, the European subsidiary of Japanese investment bank Daiwa Securities SMBC Co, has agreed to acquire Close Brothers Corporate Finance from Close Brothers Group plc for ТЃ75m.
FRANCE - Wellington and Icso lead EUR 6m SuperSonic investment
Wellington Partners and Icso Private Equity have led a EUR 6m investment into medical equipment company SuperSonic Imagine, alongside Edmond de Rothschild Investment Partners, Auriga Partners, Crédit Agricole Private Equity, NBGI Ventures and BioAm.
FRANCE - Innovacom leads EUR 4m Streamezzo funding
Innovacom has joined returning investors Sofinnova Partners, Sofinnova Ventures, Qualcomm, NTEC and GET Valorisation in a EUR 4m funding round for Streamezzo, a provider of rich application software platforms for mobile.
SWEDEN - STF backs SEK 15m Swebo funding
Sustainable Technologies Fund (STF) has, alongside Norrlandsfonden, invested SEK 15m into Swebo Bioenergy, a supplier of heating devices based on bioenergy solutions for heating.
SWEDEN - Amadeus and Northzone lead EUR 16m Tobii funding
Amadeus Capital Partners and Northzone Ventures have led a EUR 16m series-B funding round for eye-tracking systems developer Tobii, alongside exisiting backer Investor Growth Capital, the venture capital arm of industrial holding Investor AB.
SPAIN - Creditors take over Cinven-backed USP Group
According to reports, Cinven-backed healthcare group United Surgical Partners (USP) has completed a restructuring with its lenders Barclays and Royal Bank of Scotland that will see the banks acquire a 65% stake in the business through a debt-for-equity...
Re-motivating management
The economic situation is affecting existing management shares incentives in companies with no equity value as well as - for those companies that can still use equity as an incentive - some of the more popular plans currently being implemented. Rebecca...
Venturing into the unknown
With distributions down since the internet bust, exit doors shut and fundraising at a standstill, the venture capital industry in the US - and elsewhere - is at a crossroads. Smaller firms, lower returns and adapting to a global market are the next likely...
FRANCE - Acto to purchase majority of Inventoriste
Acto Capital has agreed to acquire approximately 87% of the shares and voting rights in Alternext-listed retail services business Inventoriste from Berberine EURL, Amiral Gestion, B&G SARL, Financier John Beslay and Jean-Sebastien Beslay.
SPAIN - N+1-backed Eolia sells wind farms to RWE
According to reports, N+1-backed Eolia Renovables has agreed to sell its 49% stake in three wind farms in Soria to co-owner RWE.
FRANCE - Quilvest PE invests EUR 6.5m into Swoon
Quilvest Private Equity has backed JDI Fashion, the owner of children's clothing retail chain Swoon, with an investment of EUR 6.5m.