CEE
EUROPE – 3i Group acquires 3i Quoted
3i Quoted Private Equity today agreed to be acquired by 3i Group in a deal that values 3i QPEP at ТЃ355.2m. The acquisition will be effected through a solvent liquidation of QPEP, allowing 3i to acquire the 55% stake in 3i QPEP it did not already own....
EUROPE - 3i sells stake in Infrastructure
Listed private equity firm 3i has reduced its stake in its infrastructure fund to a third after selling 77 million shares. The placing raised ТЃ61m towards the ТЃ2bn debt pile the investor has accrued; half of which is due in the next three years.
EUROPE - Debt-free deals see sharp rise in Q4
According to unquote" data, more than a quarter of the 237 buyouts completed across Europe in the last three months of 2008 contained no acquisition leverage, while in the beleaguered UK a staggering 40% of Q4 buyouts were all-equity deals.
EUROPE - Candover downsizes fund
UK buyout house Candover has become to latest large-cap investor group to succumb to the pressures facing firms at the top of the market by announcing a reduction in the size of its latest fund.
EUROPE – Activist shareholder mulls 3i QPE takeover
AIM-listed investment group Crystal Amber has taken a stake in 3i's Quoted Private Equity and is reported to be in talks with management and 3i regarding delisting the fund.
UK/EUROPE - BNP Paribas and Northern Lights to partner
According to reports, BNP Paribas Investment Partners is to announce a strategic partnership with US-based Northern Lights Ventures, a private equity firm focused on the institutional asset management industry.
GLOBAL - KKR appoints Donohue as managing director
Kohlberg Kravis Roberts has announced that Suzanne Donohoe will join the firm's global capital and asset management group as managing director and global head of the client and partner group.
POLAND - Enterprise Venture Fund makes first investment
Central & Eastern Europe-focused Enterprise Investors has invested EUR 3.2m into Polish marketing companyBio-Profil, taking a 36% stake in the business.
AUSTRIA/CEE - Schoenherr establishes distressed M&A team
Austrian law firm Schoenherr has established a dedicated distressed M&A team.
GLOBAL - Permira bulks up Technology team
Permira has strengthened its technology team with the appointments of Brian Ruder and Bruce Chizen as a partner and senior advisor, respectively.
CEE - Grispeth launches investment advisory boutique
Grispeth Holdings has announced the launch of an investment advisory boutique focused on project and venture finance in Russia and Eastern Europe, as well as in Central & South America and Asia.
GLOBAL - LPs 'will find a way out'
"There's no question, that on our new deals, we'll have the availability to get out," said Rafael Stone of Washington State University's Board of Regents, speaking at the unquote" South African Private Equity Congress in Cape Town this morning.
ROMANIA - GED to acquire Diamedix for EUR 15m
Spanish private equity firm GED Capital is set to acquire a controlling interest in Romania-based medical equipment distributor Diamedix in a deal thought to be valued at approximately EUR 15m.
UK/NETHERLANDS - HgCapital to close Amsterdam office and consumer team
HgCapital has announced that it is to close its office in Amsterdam and its London-based consumer and leisure team.
EUROPE - Clemens Vedder branches out into private equity
Clemens Vedder's Goldsmith Investments has launched a private equity fund targeting EUR 700m to EUR 1bn of assets.
GLOBAL - Siemens launches venture capital fund-of-funds
Siemens Venture Capital GmbH has launched Siemens Global Innovation Partners I GmbH & Co. KG (SGIP I), a $200m fund-of-funds that will invest in venture capital funds worldwide as well as select growth capital funds.
BULGARIA - 3TS Capital Partners supports Investor.bg
3TS Capital Partners, through the 3TS Cisco Growth Fund, has invested an undisclosed sum into Investor.bg AD, an online media company based in Bulgaria, taking a 17% stake in the company.
Shaken and stirred
The overcommitment policy LPs adopted in the past is gone for good. The industry is waving good-bye to the convenient means of funding future capital calls with future fund distributions
2009 already written off
Europe will not see signs of a return to economic health until 2010 at best, suggests a new survey
GLOBAL - TPG downsizes fund
TPG Capital is to cut its $6bn fund designed to invest in distressed financial companies by 25%, reports suggest.
EUROPE - Dubai Int'l Cap replaces PE CEO
Dubai International Capital has appointed David Smoot as its new private equity chief executive, to be based in Dubai.
EUROPE - PEREP appoints three board members
Private equity data platform PEREP_Analytics has appointed Sergey Sheshuryak, Sophie Manigart and Peter Rosenhoom to its governing board.
EUROPE - Baugur to collapse
Baugur is set to go into administration after its main banker, Landsbanki, ended restructuring talks with the once-prolific Icelandic investor.
RUSSIA - PPF to acquire 51% stake of Eldorado
Czech Republic-based private equity firm PPF Group is said to be in the process of acquiring a 51% stake in Russian electronics retailer Eldorado.