News/UK / Ireland
UK - GMT-backed Primesight acquires Titan assets
Outdoor advertising company Primesight Limited, backed by private equity firm GMT Communications Partners, has acquired the roadside assets of Titan Outdoor Advertising Limited for an undisclosed sum.
UK - South East Growth Fund reaps 5x return on BioAnaLab exit
Regional venture investor South East Growth Fund (SEGF) has wholly exited its investment in biotechnology company BioAnaLab through a trade sale to Millipore Corporation, generating a return of 5x money and an IRR of 28%.
UK - Hargreave joins board of Keydata AIM VCTs
Giles Hargreave, the chief executive of Hargreave Hale, has joined the board of two of Keydata's AIM VCTs as non-executive director.
EUROPE - 3i may sell venture portfolio to Coller and HarbourVest consortium
3i is now reportedly in exclusive talks with a consortium led by secondary investors Coller Capital and HarbourVest Partners regarding the sale of its venture portfolio, with the price tag thought to be in the region of £100m.
UK - Osmosis Capital appoints new partner
London-based low carbon investor Osmosis Capital has hired Gerrit Heyns as a partner to the firm.
UK - Darwin acquires Hampson Aerospace for £23.7m
Darwin Private Equity has acquired the aerospace machining division of Hampson Industries plc in deal worth close to £24m.
UK - Maven invests £1m into Vamosa
Maven Capital Partners, via the Capital Enterprise Fund, has invested £1m in Vamosa, a provider of software for Enterprise Content Governance.
UK - Octopus leads £4.5m KeTech investment
Octopus Investments, through the Octopus Capital for Enterprise Fund, has invested £2m into systems integrator company KeTech Group as part of a £4.5m funding round for the business. Centric Commercial Finance provided £2.5m of invoice discounting...
UK - VC-backed Zoopla acquires PropertyFinder
Octopus Ventures- and Atlas Venture-backed Zoopla, a provider of residential property value data, has acquired rival PropertyFinder from News International and the REA Group for an undisclosed sum.
UK - Existing backers invest $11m into Ubiquisys
Existing VC backers have invested $11m in specialist femtocell company Ubiquisys, in a third round of funding for the business. The company has previously raised $42m from Accel Partners, Advent Venture Partners, Atlas Venture, Google and T-Mobile Venture...
UK - Probitas appoints two from Deloitte placement team
Placement agent Probitas Partners has announced the appointment of James Coleman and Vincent le Hodey to its London office as managing director and director respectively. Both come from the placement team at Deloitte, which is said to be winding down.
UK - Hermes appoints new COO
Hermes has hired John Mould as COO of the company.
GLOBAL - LGT Capital holds $268m first close of secondaries fund
LGT Capital Partners has held a first close of its global secondary fund, Crown Global Secondaries II (CGS II), on $268m.
GLOBAL- TA Associates closes 11th fund on $4bn
Private equity firm TA Associates has closed its latest fund, TA XI, on $4bn, comfortably surpassing its $3.5bn target.
UK - SEP et al. invest further $16m into VirtenSys
Returning backers Scottish Equity Partners (SEP), Celtic House Venture Partners and Gimv have completed a $16m series C round of funding for information communications technology company VirtenSys.
UK - SEP et al. invest further $16m into VirtenSys
Returning backers Scottish Equity Partners (SEP), Celtic House Venture Partners and Gimv have completed a $16m series C round of funding for information communications technology company VirtenSys.
UK - Zeus backs £30m Air Energi MBO
Zeus Private Equity has backed the £30m management buyout of international recruitment company Air Energi Group.
UK - AnaCap to purchase CIF for £70m
AnaCap Financial Partners has agreed to acquire invoice financier Cattles Invoice Finance (CIF) from Cattles plc for £70m.
UK - HSBC-backed Amtech up for grabs
Inspection software provider Amtech, backed by HSBC Private Equity, has reportedly been put up for sale by its private equity owner and management, with the price tag thought to be around £40m.
UK - ISIS EP increases holding in AIM-listed WIN
Private equity house ISIS Equity Partners (ISIS EP) has acquired another 130,000 shares in AIM-listed WIN, a provider of interactive mobile entertainment and information, bringing its total stake in the business to 12.8%.
UK- LTF et al. invest £1m into Novacem
The London Technology Fund, Imperial Innovations and the Royal Society Enterprise Fund have invested over £1m in cement company Novacem.
UK - SpinVox secures £15m in emergency funds
London-based provider of voice-to-screen messaging solutions, SpinVox, has reportedly raised in excess of £15m in an emergency round of funding from existing backers.
SWEDEN/UK - Wellington et al to back Spotify with futher USD 50m
Existing investors Wellington Partners, Northzone Ventures and Creandum is believed to be participating in a USD 50m round for music streaming service Spotify, led by the Hong-Kong based Li Ka Shing foundation.
UK - Close Brothers CF appoints managing director
Close Brothers Corporate Finance (CBCF) has hired Jonathan Tyler as new managing director of its chemicals sector team.