UK / Ireland
UK - MSIF invests £300,000 in carbon monoxide testing company
The Liverpool Seed Fund, managed by the Merseyside Special Investment Fund (MSIF), has invested £300,000 of seed funding in Detectagas, a carbon monoxide testing company.
UK - South Yorkshire Investment Fund backs acquisition of Enterprise Foods
South Yorkshire Investment Fund (SYIF) has supported the acquisition of Enterprise Foods Ltd through vehicle Maloney Ventures. SYIF provided £1m in the form of loan and equity alongside additional financial support from GE Commercial Finance.
UK - Blenheim Advisers acquired by Houlihan Lokey
Blenheim Advisers, the independant leveraged debt advisory firm, has been acquired by investment bank Houlihan Lokey.
UK/US - Carlyle appoints David Marchick as global head of regulatory affairs
The Carlyle Group has announced the appointment of David Marchick as managing director and global head of regulatory affairs.
UK - Balderton Capital appoints new partner
Venture firm Balderton Capital (formerly Benchmark Capital Europe) has announced the appointment of Tim Bunting as partner.
UK - Sovereign Capital appoint Tim Whittard to investment team
UK Private equity buy-and-build specialist Sovereign Capital has announced the appointment of Tim Whittard to its investment team.
UK - Monument Group hires Janet Brooks
Monument Group (UK) Ltd, a London affiliate of Boston-based private equity placement agent Monument Group, Inc., has appointed Janet Brooks.
UK - Graphite backs gas portfolio company's £22m acquisition
Graphite Capital has backed the £22m acquisition of Global Gas Supplies by Dominion Gas, an independent supplier of industrial gases to the offshore industry. Graphite supported the £30m BIMBO of Dominion in June 2007. Funding for the latest deal includes...
UK - LDC invests to fund expansion of drinks manufacturer
Mid-market private equity house LDC has invested an undisclosed amount to fund the continuing expansion of drinks manufacturer Intercontinental Brands.
UK - Hermes acquires Symington's food manufacturers
Hermes Private Equity has acquired food manufacturers Symington's from. Hermes backed management buy-in vehicle BPG Acquisitions Ltd which was led by new Symington's new CEO, David Salkeld, former CEO of Arla Foods Plc. The deal was supported by debt...
UK - Octopus invests over £600,000 in internet technology company
Octopus Investments has completed an investment of more than £600,000 in the development of internet technology firm True Knowledge Ltd. The deal represents the first round of funding for the company.
UK - Kennet Partners appoints new director
International growth equity investor Kennet Partners has promoted Evan Frank to the position of director.
UK - NVM recoups 3x investment from Ithaca exit
NVM Private Equity has sold Ithaca Business Media in a £14.25m trade sale to United Business Media Plc’s UK-based business information division, CMP Information. The deal realised a return of 3x NVM's original investment, with an IRR of over 60% achieved...
UK - Matrix invests further £3.7m in Blaze to support acquisition
Matrix Private Equity Partners has supported existing investee company Blaze Signs Holdings in financing its acquisition of a complementary business, Active Sign Maintenance from its founders. Matrix Private Equity Partners has invested a further £3.7m....
IRELAND - Trinity Venture Capital et al. exit Havok
Trinity Venture Capital and other investors ICC Venture Capital and Iona have realised their investments in Havok, an Irish Gaming Middleware company. The business has been acquired by Intel for an undisclosed sum.
UK - Sovereign Capital portfolio company acquires Orient Gold
Sovereign Capital-backed STL, a vocational training provider, has acquired Orient Gold, a national provider of apprenticeship and adult learning. The value of the deal has not been disclosed. The new combined group has over 240 employees and over 3000...
UK/US - Blackstone consortium bid for Cadbury drinks arm rejected
The Blackstone corsortium bidding for the US beverages arm of Cadbury Schweppes has had its offer rejected. Blackstone, together with KKR and Lion Capital are understood to have offered in the region of £6.5bn for the drinks business which includes the...
UK - Kaupthing sees 67% IRR from Costcutter exit
Kaupthing has sold Costcutter to transport and shipping group Biddy Line recouping 2x its investment on its 18 month holding period. The exit represented an IRR of 67%. Costcutter's growth has been driven by new franchise agreements and strong sector...
EUROPE - SLIPE to manage CalPERS' EUR 400m mandate
Standard Life Investments (Private Equity) Ltd (SLIPE) has been selected to manage a EUR 400m mandate focused exclusively on European private equity.
UK - Foresight completes £2.8m MBI of Heritage House
Foresight Venture partners has completed the £2.8m management buy-in of Heritage House Media. Foresight led the financing, investing £1.4m through its funds Foresight VCT II and Foresight VCT III, and was joined by IBIS Media VCT and Calculus Capital,...
UK - Braveheart appoints new non-executive director
Braveheart Investment Group Plc has appointed Ken Brown as non-executive director with effect from 12 September. Brown joins the AIM-listed technology commercialisation and investment management company from Kenmore Property Group where he was finance...
UK - Octopus acquires Smollensky's restaurant group
Octopus Private Equity has supported the acquisition of London restaurant group Smollensky’s. Octopus has committed £6m alongside senior debt from Alliance & Leicester to support the acquisition. Octopus is backing restaurateur Paul Lilley, whose past...
UK - Octopus Investments acquires majority stake in Katalyst Ventures
Octopus Investments has acquired a majority stake in Katalyst, the private investor group. The deal brings together Octopus' strengths in VCT fund management alongside Katalyst's skills in identifying strong, early-stage investment opportunities and helping...
UK - BOSIF backs SBO of M&H Plastics from CCMP Capital
Bank of Scotland Integrated Finance has backed the secondary management buyout of Maynard & Harris Plastics (M&H) from CCMP Capital. CCMP completed the deal on behalf of JP Morgan Partners, CCMP having spunout of JP Morgan Partners in August 2006. The...