Financing
Candover's Alma Consulting in refinancing talks
Alma Consulting, a French corporate cost-reduction advisory business owned by Candover, could be taken over by its mezzanine lenders, according to local reports.
KKR provides debt financing to Spain’s Uralita
KKR Asset Management, KKR‘s sub-investment grade manager, has provided a €320m seven-year facility to Spanish building materials firm Uralita.
LBO France's Médi-Partenaires hopes to raise €385m on high-yield market
Médi-Partenaires, a French chain of clinics backed by LBO France and Equistone, is understood to be aiming to raise €385m on the high-yield bond market.
Mezzanine makes its comeback
Mezz bounces back
Advent, Bain in £340m WorldPay dividend recap
WorldPay, a card payment services provider acquired by Advent International and Bain Capital in 2010, has secured a £700m refinancing including a dividend recap for the private equity owners, according to reports.
Banks arrange debt for sale of 3i and Allianz's Scandlines
A debt package of up to €1bn is being put together for the sale of German ferry operator Scandlines, owned by 3i and Allianz Capital Partners, according to reports.
Qualium to re-inject €30m into Quick as part of amend-and-extend
French investor Qualium is set to invest a further €30m of equity in restaurants chain Quick while the company's lenders have agreed to extend the terms of its debt, which was due to mature in 2015.
DLA Piper survey highlights rise of unitranche
Unitranche financing is predicted to be the most popular form of debt funding after senior-only provision in 2013, according to a new DLA Piper survey.
German banking reform threat to private equity
The German government's draft proposals for banking reform, based on the Liikanen Report, are seen by many in the private equity industry as yet another threat from legislators, despite the unclear effect it may have on the asset class. Carmen Reichman...
Axa Private Equity arranges €220m unitranche for IPH buyout
Axa Private Equity has arranged a €220m unitranche debt facility for the secondary buyout of industrial supplies distribution company IPH by PAI partners – a transaction which saw vendor Investcorp reap a €210m windfall.
Austrian private equity market gathers momentum
Austria’s private equity scene could be on the verge of a mini-boom as January’s deal activity has already outperformed last year’s first quarter.
BVCA calls for return of taper relief
The BVCA has called for the return of the controversial taper relief for capital gains tax (CGT) in some cases.
Vendors and banks amenable to strong 2013 in UK
Good signs for 2013
Axa PE to arrange unitranche for IPH buyout
PAI partners is believed to be looking to raise a €180m unitranche facility from Axa Private Equity to finance its buyout of industrial supplies distribution company IPH.
EBRD loans RUB 1.7bn to Orient Express Bank
The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) has provided Orient Express Bank (OEB) with a three-year loan totalling RUB 1.7bn.
Biffa: A rubbish buyout?
A rubbish buyout?
The pitfalls of turnaround investing
Turnarounds are in the news once again, with the decision by specialist investor OpCapita to put struggling electricals retailer Comet into administration. Last week, Deloitte took over the administration of the business, and on Monday made over 300 staff...
Silicon Valley Bank provides credit to Carlyle's The Foundry
Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) has provided a new credit facility to Carlyle's software holding The Foundry.
Buyout loan issuance down 38% YoY, says Baird study
European figures for leveraged and buyout loan issuance are down 46% at €20bn and 38% at €10bn respectively, according to recent research by Baird.
Escaping the equity black hole
The European M&A market continues to be depressed - as are many of the advisers in the sector. However, there are a number of tactics that interested parties and their advisers can pro-actively employ to help facilitate a transaction when it might otherwise...
Palio plans £150m debt fund IPO
Debt fund Palio is planning an IPO to raise more than £150m for investment in debt opportunities for UK lower mid-market companies.
Leveraged finance “at tipping point”
Royal Bank of Scotland, Lloyds TSB, Barclays, HSBC – all names that can be seen on high streets across Britain. From credit cards to mortgages to investment banking and acquisition finance, these powerful institutions once had the UK’s credit market...
Arle completes Stork refinancing
Arle has completed the refinancing of two of its portfolio companies, despite having to pull a high-yield bond issue last month.