UK / Ireland
Candover story: Media picture lacks clarity
The announcement by Candover Investments plc that it is abandoning new investments to focus on returning cash from the sale of its remaining portfolio assets has certainly grabbed many headlines in recent days. But is the mainstream press sensationalising...
Cinven finally scents deal with Spice
Cinven's revised offer of 70p per share for Leeds-based utility support services group Spice is likely to be recommended by the company's management.
LDC acquires stake in Mountain Warehouse
LDC has acquired a significant minority stake in the outdoor specialist Mountain Warehouse valuing the company at over £50m.
Q&A: The evolution of due diligence
Due dilience can be a time consuming process, and seems to be taking longer since the crisis. Emanuel Eftimiu talks to Dr Joachim Scholz of Rothgordt & Cie about the increased emphasis on due diligence in the current environment.
KKR-owned Alliance Boots offloads pension liabilities
Alliance Boots, owned by Kohlberg Kravis Roberts (KKR) and private investor Stefano Pessina, has offloaded the pension liabilities of 3,000 former Alliance UniChem employees, according to reports.
Standard Life head warns against opportunistic takeovers
Standard Life's head of UK equities David Cumming has advised shareholders to resist opportunistic takeover bids, following the £2.89bn take private of Tomkins.
Take-privates: Playing hard to get?
Shares in troubled care provider Southern Cross leaped 67% late last week after it declined an approach from TowerBrook. Having suffered a massive fall in its share price this year, it may have seemed an easy target for private equity bidders, but has...
Candover to sell-off Equity Trust
Candover is rumoured to be in talks with Doughty Hanson to sell its Equity Trust portfolio company.
Rabo leads €3.6m round for Voltea
Voltea Limited has received €3.6m from a group of investors led by Rabo Ventures.
Key injects £5m in Dwell
Key Capital Partners (KCP) has invested £5m in furniture retailer Dwell to support its expansion strategy.
unquote” Events Roundup
As autumn approaches, unquote” has a busy schedule of events covering all aspects of the private equity industry, while providing excellent networking opportunities. With the Italia and Deutsche conferences rapidly approaching, and not forgetting the...
CalPERS private equity manager steps down
Leon Shahinian stepped down as head of the private equity portfolio at CalPERS amid a fraud lawsuit.
Dubai Capital-owned Alliance Medical launches sale process
Dubai International Capital (DIC) portfolio company Alliance Medical has launched a sale process, which will run alongside restructuring plans, according to reports.
Dealflow: Autumn boom expected after slow summer
As the summer holiday season draws to a close, Europe’s private equity market is set to pick up. While activity has slowed significantly in some regions, industry players are expecting a deal-doing boom in the coming weeks and months.
Foresight invests in Vertal and Closed Loop
Foresight Group has injected further funding into London recycling specialists Vertal and Closed Loop Recycling.
US and UK law firms mull over merger
US-based Squire, Sanders & Dempsey L.L.P. and UK-based Hammonds LLP are evaluating the possibility of a merger.
LDC exits Vision Security Group
FTSE 100 company Compass Group has acquired LDC-backed security services specialist Vision Security Group (VSG) for £64m.
Exits: Private equity IPO prices fall
With a number of high-profile exits so far this year, selling companies has been a hot topic, particularly after the many difficulties of 2009. However, the IPO market has been difficult for private equity players, and new figures show just how tough...
Turnaround investments: A waiting game
With the UK economy sliding into recession at the beginning of last year, many expected 2010 to be the year of turnarounds. So far though, the flurry of deals has not materialised. Greg Gille investigates
Rutland acquires Brandon Hire for £43m
Turnaround specialist Rutland Partners has acquired UK equipment hire business Brandon Hire from Wolseley, in a £43m deal.
Milestone backs BIMBO of Compre
Milestone Capital Partners has backed the buy-in management buyout of UK insurance group Compre Holdings Limited.
Yorkshire Bank appoints Lumsden and Campbell as managers
Yorkshire Bank Corporate & Structured Finance (CSF) has promoted Ross Lumsden and Stephanie Campbell as managers.
Exits: Carving out value
With exit maximisation key in today’s economically unstable times, a number of private equity funds have recently chosen to sell their assets in smaller chunks, in the hope of attracting more specialist buyers. John Bakie reports
DIC mulls £600m sale of Alliance
Dubai International Capital (DIC) is reportedly exploring the option of selling its UK-based hospital equipment portfolio company Alliance Medical for £600m, if restructuring talks fail.