France
H1 fundraising reaches second-highest level on record
Last three semesters represent a significant increase on the total sums raised for final closes, compared with historical levels
CD&R, Ardian sell 5.2% stake in Spie
Following the transaction, investors reaped €189.28m in gross proceeds
Change Capital exits Paule Ka
GP will retain a minority stake in the designer clothing brand following the transaction
Isai invests €7m in Vade Secure
Loans help push the overall amount secured by the cybersecurity firm in the round to €10m
Serena et al. inject €12m into Vekia
BPI France, Pleiade Venture, CapHorn and ZTP also take part in the round
Argos Soditic buys Zodiac Milpro in SBO
Equity for the transaction comes from Argos Soditic's seventh fund, closed on £248m in 2016
Pragma Capital sells CNN MCO to Endel Engie
Transaction marks the first exit for the Paris-based GP's Pragma III fund, which closed in 2015
Activa's Mecadaq bolts on Armoa
Deal represents the second bolt-on for the aerospace manufacturing business since Activa came on board
Silverfleet promotes three in London, Munich and Paris
Firm promotes Piasecki to head of financial services, and Maurer and ChУЂtillon to partners
Newcomer Essling poaches Amundi funds-of-funds team
Having recruited the four-strong team, Essling will launch its first fund-of-funds within the next few weeks
Sodero joins Ixo in Loubat capital structure reshuffle
Inked in late July, the deal will allow Ixo to partially realise its investment
Carlyle buys Prima Solutions
Carlyle draws equity from Carlyle Europe Technology Partners III, a €656m fund that closed in 2015
Re-Sources Capital buys Novatim stake from Siparex
Siparex injected €1m into the French IT outsourcing services business in 2012
Unigrains leads €4m round for Sodevat
Backers in the funding round include asset manager Idia Capital Investissement
Ardian-backed Bricoprivé acquires Racetools
Online DIY tool distributor further expands in continental Europe following the purchase
LBO France acquires pharmaceutical distributer Piex
Following the deal, the GP has nominated a new CEO alongside a new management team
Bridgepoint in running for 5àSec deal
If it goes ahead, the deal would mark the fifth PE ownership change for the dry cleaning business
ETF and Frog Capital in $20m round for Vulog
French car-sharing technology firm had previously raised тЌ8.4m from fund managers in September 2015
Ventech injects €3m into Mediarithmics
Data marketing platform had already raised €1.2m from Jaina Capital in 2013
François Fillon joins Tikehau Capital as partner
Fillon ran as candidate for France's Les Republicains party in the country's 2017 presidential election
Politics and private equity – the revolving doors
FranУЇois Fillon is the latest in a long line of politicians to make the move to private equity
Aerospace investments taking off for PE
As evidenced by the recent VistaJet and Pattonair deals, PE is increasingly looking at the aviation and aerospace sectors for opportunities
AlpInvest hires Bagijn as primaries business head
New managing director is joining from her previous role at Axa Investment Managers
Lexington, BC Partners agree $1bn stapled secondary deal
Lexington was previously reported to be considering acquiring up to тЌ1.2bn in secondary commitments