News/Deals
GERMANY – Arques Industries buys seven plants from MöllerGroup
German Arques Industries is set to acquire seven plastics components plants from MöllerTech International in Nuneaton, subsidiary of Bielefeld-based MöllerGroup. The seven plastics components plants subject to the deal are based in France, Spain, and...
FRANCE - 360 Capital Partners invests EUR 2.4m in art posters
360 Capital Partners acquired a minority stake in Yellow Korner, a company which prints and sells photographs for which it owns exclusive rights.
UK - LDC-backed Epi-V completes its first investment
Specialist oil and gas private equity fund Epi-V has completed its first transaction, investing £3m in Aberdeen-based Brinker Technology. The £50m Epi-V fund was launched in August 2007 with the aim of making equity investments of between £2m and £10m...
FRANCE - Online shoe shop raises EUR 4.3m
Spartoo, an online shoe retailer, is said to have raised a significant first round of institutional funding from CM-CIC Capital Privé and A Plus Finance.
FRANCE - Astorg backs Trescal's spin-off from Air Liquide
Astorg Partners has supported the management buyout of calibration and measurement services specialist Trescal from its parent company.
FRANCE - Initiative & Finance backs MBI of ham and cheese specialist
Initiative & Finance has backed the management buy-in of Primo, a company which provides a range of food products to large retailers.
SPAIN - Doughty Hanson buys FCC and Veolia's bus unit
Infrastructure players Fomento de Construcciones y Contratas (FCC) and Veolia have sold its bus unit, Corporacion Espanola de Transportes (CTSA) to Doughty Hanson for approximately EUR 80m.
SPAIN - Nazca buys stake in e-learning business
Nazca Capital has purchased a 45% shareholding in eduactional consulting and e-learning business élogos from its founding family Baratech. The founders will retain the majority stake.
UK - Oak Hill backs £945m SBO of Firth Rixon from Carlyle and Lehman
Oak Hill Capital Partners is backing the secondary management buyout of Firth Rixson Ltd from The Carlyle Group and Lehman Brothers Co-Investment Partners. The deal values the business at £945m. Firth Rixon is a supplier of highly engineered rings, industrial...
UK - Phoenix to sell handbag maker Radley for £150m
Phoenix Equity Partners has put its up-market hangbag portfolio company Radley on the block. It is understood that the business it acquired in February 2006 for £45m could fetch up to £150m at auction. Exponent Private Equity, MidOcean Partners and...
UK - 3i-backed Chorion acquires The Copyrights Group
Chorion Ltd, the UK-based owner and manager of classic and contemporary literary-based brands owned by 3i, has acquired The Copyrights Group Ltd, an independent licensing business, for an undisclosed sum. 3i delisted Chorion in a £134m transaction in...
FRANCE - Crédit Agricole invests over EUR 7m in Emalec
Crédit Agricole Private Equity has invested in excess of EUR 7m in the owner buyout of maintenance company Emalec along with the founding owners, taking a minority stake in the company.
UK - SEGF achieves 27% IRR from Hockway exit
The South East Growth Fund (SEGF) has wholly exited its stake in Hockway Ltd, a supplier of cathodic protection equipment, in a secondary management buyout for an undisclosed sum, realising an IRR of 27%.
SWITZERLAND – Argos Soditic to reap 12x return with Maillefer
unquote” has learned that Argos Soditic will announce its exit from Swiss company Maillefer next week.
UK - Dubai investment arm acquires SmartStream from TA Associates for £200m
DIFC Investments, the investment arm of the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC) has acquired SmartStream Technologies from TA Associates for approximately £200m in a tertiary buyout deal.
POLAND - bmp Media Investors and Mangrove invest in Republika Kobiet
bmp Media Investors and Mangrove Capital Partners have each taken 17.5% of shares of Republika Kobiet.pl, which aims to build a web 2.0 lifestyle portal targeted at women. The deal represents Mangrove's first investment in Poland.
BELGIUM - Gilde portfolio company Ablynx raises EUR 75m in Euronext Brussels
Gilde portfolio company Ablynx has raised EUR 75m in the largest biotech IPO on Euronext Brussels. The IPO was priced at EUR 7 per share. Pursuant to the offering, 10,714,285 new shares, equivalent to EUR 75m will be issued by Ablynx, and additionally,...
UK - ECI backs £52m buyout of Kelvin Hughes
ECI Partners has backed the £52m buyout of navigational technology business Kelvin Hughes from Smiths Group Plc, the listed technology company. The purchase price comprises £48m which was paid in cash on completion of the purchase and a deferred payment...
NORWAY - InnovationsKapital et al invest in SantoSolve
DnB Nor, Gezina and Glastad Invest, together with existing investors, InnovationsKapital and Teknoinvest have completed a further $7m funding round for SantoSolve, an Oslo-based biotech company. The investment will be used to support trasition into phase...
FRANCE - PAI, TPG, Carlyle and Providence circle Numericable
PAI partners, Texas Pacific, Carlyle and Providence are reported to have been selected in a second round of negotiations for the acquisition of half of Cinven's 70% stake in cable group Numericable.
UK - YFM backs Drivestyle with £200,000
The Yorkshire and Humber Equity Fund (YHEF), a regional venture capital fund managed by YFM Group, has invested £200,000 in Williams of Harrogate, a luxury car dealership that trades under the name Drivestyle.
UK - White Rose backs Pro-Cure Therapeutics with £550,000 of funding
White Rose Technology Seedcorn Fund, managed by Aberdeen Asset Managers, has invested £250,000 as part of a £550,000 funding round for Pro-Cure Therapeutics Ltd, a company which is developing potential treatments for prostate cancer from stem cell research.
UK - Final stages of Jaguar Land Rover auction faces pension trouble
The final stages of the auction to divest Ford's Jaguar and Land Rover divisions are being hindered by a reported £1bn deficit in the group's pension fund. The shortfall means that Ford is likely to have to sweeten the deal for Tata and One Equity Partners,...
UK - Glitnir Total Capital backs MBO of Arthouse
Glitnir Total Capital has financed the management buyout of Arthouse Ltd, a design house supplying wall coverings, art, tiles and coving to the UK retail market. This is Total Capital’s third investment in 2007.