Southern Europe
EUROPE - LODH holds second closing of Euro Choice IV on EUR 409m
LODH Private Equity has reached the second closing of Euro Choice IV and its related investment vehicles on EUR 409m. The final closing is scheduled for 27 February 2009.
SPAIN – ProA bids for Acciona's parking business
According to reports, ProA Capital is among the five offers selected in the bid for Acciona's parking business which is valued at EUR 200m.
SPAIN - Clave Mayor invests EUR 1m into Ikatz
Clave Mayor, via the Ronda Inovación fund, has taken a minority stake in photography specialist Ikatz in a deal valued at EUR 1m. The transaction encountered some delay because of Ikatz's acquisition of Fotosistema, and took about nine months to complete....
SPAIN - Highgrowth and BCN Emprèn merge
Venture capital firms Highgrowth and BCN Emprèn have merged. The combined entity will henseforth trade under the name bcnHighgrowth.
ITALY - Alpha appoints new associate
Independent private equity house Gruppo Alpha has appointed Marco Bernardi as associate to its Italian buyout and development capital team.
GLOBAL - PIP to raise £49.5m from issue of loan notes
Quoted private equity fund-of-funds Pantheon International Participations Plc (PIP), which is managed by Pantheon Ventures Ltd, has announced that it has entered into an agreement with institutional investors to raise up to ТЃ49.5m through the issue of...
SPAIN - Doughty Hanson interested in Trapsa
According to reports, Doughty Hanson is among the parties interested in acquiring bus company Trapsa.
GLOBAL - Allocation concerns dominate LPs
According to the latest Coller Capital Global Private Equity Barometer , produced in association with private equity consultancy IE Consulting, limited partners are increasingly concerned about their private equity allocation, with two-thirds of respondents...
EUROPE - Study reveals positive impact of private equity on employee relations
A new study, conducted by the Centre for Management Buyout Research (CMBOR) in association with the EVCA, has revealed that private equity ownership rarely harms employee relations and, in many cases, actually has a positive impact.
SPAIN - Clave Mayor and Caja Burgos back Gadea
Clave Mayor, through its Seguranza fund, and Caja Burgos have each acquired an 8.5% stake in life sciences firm Gadea Pharmaceuticalas part of a capital increase.
PORTUGAL - Amorin launches EUR 100m private equity fund
Market rumour suggests that the Amorim Group, established by the Amorim family, has launched Amorim Global Investors, a EUR 100m private equity fund.
SPAIN - Tvikap postpones second close
Tvikap, a hybrid private equity and opportunistic fund, has postponed its fundraising due to current market conditions.
ITALY - Apax et al. seek Weather Investments capital increase
Apax, TA Associates and Madison Dearborn-backed telecommunications holding company Weather Investments has agreed to a $554m capital increase.
ITALY - IP Investimenti leads acquisition of Sorin Unit
A consortium of investors led by IP Investimenti e Partecipazioni has acquired Sorin's Vascular Therapy Business Unit.
EUROPE - Oaktree closes on EUR 1.6bn
US-headquartered investor group Oaktree Capital Management has closed OCM European Principal Opportunities Fund II LP, its second European fund dedicated to opportunistic private equity and distress-for-control investments, on around EUR 1.6bn.
Welcome to the jungle
As the year ends, we can definitely say 2008 was an annus horribilis. The stormy skies observed from afar in the summer of 2007 did little to prepare us for the vicissitudes of the market. It feels like hurricane season in the Caribbean: you are barely...
ITALY - Aksìa acquires a 55% stake in Plastiape
Private equity firm Aksìa has acquired a 55% stake in packaging manufacturer Plastiape from the Magni, Citterio and Colombo families, in a deal valued at EUR 20m.
SPAIN - KKR interested in Telvent
According to reports, US private equity group KKR is contemplating a takeover bid for Abengoa's Nasdaq-listed technology unit Telvent GIT.
ITALY - Alcedo closes third fund on EUR 178m
Alcedo has held a final closing of its third fund, Alcedo III, on EUR 178m.
ITALY - Sator interested in Belstaff
Reports suggest that Sator could carry out a capital increase in Clothing Company, the holding company of the Belstraff clothing brand.