UK / Ireland
UK - Kelso Place Asset Management backs Anya Hindmarch
Kelso Place Asset Management has acquired a stake in Anya Hindmarch in a transaction which values the business at approximately £20m. Over the past 12 years the business has successfully grown from its original first floor shop on London’s Walton Street...
UK - 3i targets Countrywide
Listed estate agency chain Countrywide has confirmed that it has received an approach from 3i. Shares in the company have risen by 13% since Thursday, giving the group a market value of £890m.
UK - Braveheart announces new appointment to corporate finance team
Braveheart, the venture capital and investment management business, announces today that it has strengthened its corporate finance team with the appointment of Lesley Jardine as technology analyst. Jardine joins from the Scottish Executive and will be...
UK - Risk Capital Partners hooks up with Seafood Holdings
Luke Johnson’s private equity fund, Risk Capital Partners, has purchased a substantial minority equity stake in Seafood Holdings – a leading independent fresh fish and seafood distributor to the catering trade. The deal values the company in excess...
UK - International Private Equity Services announces new hires
International Private Equity Services, the private equity fund administrator and outsourcing provider, is pleased to announce new changes to its senior management team. Dominic Jones has joined IPES as executive director, and chief executive officer designate....
UK - Nomura International appoints new director of new energy and clean technology ventures
Nomura International Plc has announced the appointment of Russell Pullan as director of New Energy and Clean Technology Ventures. He has joined Nomura from The Carbon Trust where he was head of venture capital. This new venture will have an international...
UK - HgCapital acquires SHL
HgCapital has acquired SHL, a psychometric testing and assessment company with clients that include Abbey National, Marks & Spencer and Tesco.
UK - Och-Ziff Capital backs take-private of Whitehead Mann
City executive recruitment firm, Whitehead Mann has been acquired by Och-Ziff Capital Management in association with Palladian Investments, an investment vehicle owned by Piers Marmion.
UK - Blackstone only bidder left in final stages of auction for United Biscuits
Blackstone is the only contender left in the £1.7bn auction to acquire United Biscuits (UB), the foods company owned by Cinven, PAI and MidOcean Partners, after Premier Foods was forced to pull out as it could not raise the cash. The blow to the Premier...
UK - Octopus Investments acquires Golddigga for £18.5m
The Golddigga fashion brand has been acquired in an £18.5m buyout by its management team and Octopus Investments. Octopus led and arranged the deal, introducing buy-in candidate Daniel Morris who joined the company in June as CEO. The founder and vendor,...
UK - Scottish Widows Investment Partnership appoints new investment manager
Scottish Widows Investment Partnership (SWIP), the asset management arm of the Lloyds TSB Group, has appointed Mirja Lehmler-Brown as investment manager, to its private equity team. Lehmler-Brown will report to Billy Gilmore, investment director private...
UK - Listing of Hogg Robinson at between 140p and 220p a share
Permira is set to list Hogg Robinson, the business travel management company it has held since 2000. It is reported that it has set a price range for shares of between 140p and 220p.
UK - Mezzanine Management appoints two new directors
Mezzanine Management, the mezzanine and private equity firm, today announces that it has appointed Bal Johal and Ian Wallis as Directors. They will join Mezzanine Management on 1 November 2006 and will be based in the London office.
UK - Cinven gains access to Gondola's books
The largest listed restaurant company in the UK, Gondola, has allowed Cinven access to its books. Cinven made a takeover approach to the owner of Pizza Express, ASK and Zizzi late last week and is considering making it a formal offer of 415p a share.
UK - LDC backs commercial mortgage lender with £27m investment
Commercial First, the specialist commercial mortgage lender, has secured the backing of private equity firm LDC to help grow the business ahead of a possible stock market flotation. Established in 2002 by financial industry experts Marty Finegold and...
UK - The Capital Fund invests £250,000 in Local Data Company
The Local Data Company, which operates the UK’s most accurate database of in-depth information on UK city centre retail businesses and other urban points of interest, has raised £250,000 from The Capital Fund. The company’s management team will use...
UK - Advent International exits Financial Dynamics
Financial Dynamics (FD), the business and financial communications consulting firm has been acquired by FT Consulting, Inc, a consulting and technology service provider to major corporations for £137m. The transaction represents an exit for Advent International...
UK - Carbon Trust appoints Gilbert Chalk to its board
The Carbon Trust Investments Clean Energy Fund, a fund established with the support of the Carbon Trust and focused on private equity investment in the low carbon and clean energy technology sectors, announced that Gilbert Chalk has agreed to join the...
UK - Finance Wales participates in £5m funding round for TES Aviations
Finance Wales has reached its 1,000th deal with an expansion capital investment into TES Aviation. A funding package of more than £5m was supported by international financiers, the company itself and by Finance Wales, the organisation created by the...
UK - 3i offloads portfolio of 10 mid-market buyout investments
Saints Capital, in partnership with Lexington Partners and Fortress Investment Group, announced that it has acquired a portfolio of 10 mid-market buyout investments from 3i. The transaction involved privately held industrial companies all based in the...
UK - Permira Funds acquire Principal Hotels
Permira has announced the acquisition of Principal Hotels from Royal Bank of Scotland by Permira Funds.
UK - Cinven to delist Pizza Express parent?
Market sources report that Gondola, the owner of Pizza Express and ASK restaurants that was floated in 2005, has received an approach from Cinven. The £559m offer attaches a 415p price to Gondola shares.
UK - TA Associates acquires SmartStream from 3i
SmartStream Technologies, the software provider which through its Transaction Lifecycle Management solutions provides services to 70 of the world's top 100 banks, has been acquired by TA Associates. The deal represents an exit for previous majority shareholder...