News/UK / Ireland
UK - Bank of Scotland strengthens Integrated Finance team
Bank of Scotland Corporate has announced the strengthening of its Integrated Finance team with two senior appointments.
UK - Noble and Co appoint new Corporate Finance director
Noble and Co, the corporate advisory and broking subsidiary of Noble Group, has appointed Andy Yeo as Corporate Finance director.
UK - DLJ and Lydian Capital linked to Emap radio assets
DLJ Merchant Banking Partners and Lydian Capital, through its Global Radio portfolio company, are thought to have submitted first stage bids in the auction for Emap's radio assets. Emap is selling its portfolio of radio stations which includes Magic 105.4...
UK - Mercia Fund leads investment into Warrick Effect Polymers
The Mercia Technology Seed Fund has led an investment in biopolymer company Warrick Effect Polymers (WEP).
UK - 3i et al. lead $26m funding round for Light Blue Optics
3i together with German group Earlybird Venture Capital and Belgium-based Capital-E have led a $26m funding round for miniature projection technology company Light Blue Optics. NESTA also participated in the deal which follows the $2.5m of seed funding...
UK - Seraphim Capital invests £2m in MirriAd
Seraphim Capital has led a £2m funding round for embedded advertising specialist MirriAd Ltd. Seraphim Capital is a £30m enterprise capital fund.
UK/GERMANY - General Atlantic announces promotions
General Atlantic has announced the promotions of Oliver Thum to managing director and Jan-Daniel Neumann to principal in Düsseldorf. In London, Gabriel Caillaux and Jan Hammer have been elected to the position of principal.
UK - Endless exits H&L Garages one year on
Endless has realised its investment in H&L Garages Ltd, a Mercedes-Benz commercial dealership, through a sale back to management. Endless supported the £8.5m mangement buyout of the business from PD Ports in September 2006.
UK - FL Partners acquires Racing Post for £170m
FL Partners, the Dublin-based private equity investment firm, has acquired the Racing Post from Trinity Mirror Plc for £170m. The purchase includes the Racing Post newspaper together with its website, a number of weekly and annual racing publications,...
IRELAND - Balderton portfolio company alphyra to merge
Balderton Capital portfolio company alphyra Holdings Ltd, a consumer payments and cash distribution company, is to merge with AIM-listed Cardpoint Plc. The merged entity, named Payzone, will be domiciled in Ireland and listed on AIM.
UK - Bridgepoint sells Protocol Skills to CBPE
Bridgepoint has sold Protocol Skills, a business training company, to Close Brothers Private Equity. The value of the deal has not been disclosed.
UK - Lord Browne joins board of 3i-backed Foster + Partners
Lord Browne, former CEO of BP, has joined the board of 3i portfolio company Foster + Partners. Browne joins the architectural practice as a senior non-executive director. Until August 2007, Lord Browne was chairman of the Apax Partners Advisory Board....
UK - TA Associates delays SmartStream float
The bookbuilding period on TA Associate's flotation of software portfolio company SmartStream has been extended until next week. Conditional trading was expected to start today. News of the delay follows a reduction in the price of the offering by £100m...
UK - Sovereign Capital completes portfolio acquisition
Sovereign Capital portfolio company Alkare Holdings Ltd, a Swansea-based residential health provider for people with mental health needs and learning difficulties, has completed the acquisition of Cardiff-based Positive Lifestyles Ltd for an undisclosed...
UK - Barclays realises IRR of 22% from MBB of Benlowe Group
Barclays Ventures has exited its stake in joinery products manufacturer Benlowe Group in a deal which has generated returns of 2.16x the investment and an IRR of 22%.
UK - Imperial Innovations takes 38% stake in EVO Electric
Imperial Innovations has invested £375,000 as part of a £1.5m round of funding in EVO Electric Ltd, a developer of electrical motors and generators, and increased their stake in the company to 38%.
UK - Graphite achieves 3x return from Golden Tulip sale
Graphite Capital has wholly exited its stake in the UK subsidiary of budget hotel group Golden Tulip in a trade sale to Whitbread plc worth £44m; generating a return of 3x its investment.
UK - Kolade tells conference it's time to separate fact from fairytale
Wol Kolade, chairman of the BVCA, today called on the private equity industry to fight back against the myths that surround it. Speaking at the Capital Creation conference in Monte Carlo, he said it was time to ‘separate the facts and figures from the...
UK - gateway2investment expands focus to bridge 'investment gap'
Gateway2investment, the start-up investment programme which currently focuses on technological investments, is expanding its service to encompass all sectors of the economy.
UK - Graphite sells hotel chain for £44m
Graphite Capital has sold budget hotel group Golden Tulip to Whitbread Plc for £44m. Golden Tulip manages five 3-star Tulip Inn hotels and one 4-star Golden Tulip hotel in the UK with a total of 770 rooms. It also has nine more hotels in the planning...
UK - Lyceum sells NBG for £91m
Lyceum Capital has wholly exited its stake in National Britannia Group, a specialist provider of health and safety compliance services, in a trade sale to Connaught Plc worth £91m.
UK - Pension Corporation makes play for telent Plc
Pension Corporation has made a 600p per share offer for telent, the only part of former industrial giant Marconi that remains independent. The deal represents a market capitalisation of £389m and has been recommended by telent's board. The trustees of...
UK - Octopus opens office in Leeds
Octopus Private Equity has announced the opening of its first regional office in Leeds.
UK - Synergis appoints new director
Synergis Technologies Ltd has announced the appointment of Fiona Sterns as a director to the Synergis Board.