News
UK - Montagu and GIP get go ahead from Biffa's board
Montagu Private Equity and Global Infrastructure Partners (GIP) have had their 350p per share offer for waste group Biffa recommended by the company's board. The deal values Biffa, a former division of Severn Trent, at £1.2bn. Bank of Scotland and HSBC...
ITALY - Quantica backs hi-tech Kee Square
Quantica has acquired a 50% stake in hi-tech player Kee Square through the Principia I fund.
UK/FRANCE - AlixPartners appoints Helena Samaha as general counsel
AlixPartners, the global restructuring, consulting, and financial advisory firm, has announced the appointment of Helena Samaha as general counsel-Europe. She will be based in the firm’s Paris office.
ITALY - Cape acquires software company Xtel for EUR 5m
Cape Natixis acquired software company Xtel in a management buyout deal valued at approximately EUR 4.9m.
FRANCE - Industri Kapital acquires Groupe Etanco
Industri Kapital has acquired Groupe Etanco from the Lebraut family after a share purchase agreement. Industri Kapital acquired Etanco in partnership with company CEO Ronan Lebraut, members of the founding family and the management.
SWEDEN - Eqvitec hires Hadar Cars
Eqvitec Partners has strengthened its Swedish operations by hiring Hardar Cars as an investment director. He joins the firm from Teknoinvest where he has worked since 2004.
UK - Blackstone linked to M&B
Blackstone's name has been linked to a possible offer for pub operator Mitchells & Butlers (M&B). It is reported that Blackstone will team up with either CVC or KKR to table a joint bid for the owner of the Harvester and the All Bar One pub chains.
LATVIA - TeliaSonera challenges Blackstone’s Lattelecom bid
According to press reports, TeliaSonera yesterday challenged Blackstone’s bid for Lattelecom, the Latvian telecommunications company. Blackstone offered to acquire the business in September 2007 for $575m, but the new Latvian government (appointed after...
FRANCE – Sofimac and SGPE Lead OBO of APIA
Sofimac and SGPE both lead an OBO of APIA with an investment of EUR 1.05m each. Also investing were Centre Capital Development with EUR 350,000, Neoveris who invested EUR 300,000 and Centre Loire Expansion to the tune of EUR 100,000. Apia recorded a turnover...
UK - Skype-engineers ASI invest in Kindo
Ambient Sound Investments (ASI), Skype's founding engineers, have provided family network website Kindo with seed financing. ASI joins other seed investors including Saul and Robin Klein of The Accelerator Group (TAG), and Stefan Glänzer, first investor...
SWEDEN/GERMANY - EQT to pay EUR 20.6m in fines to German Competition Authorities
EQT has been forced to pay EUR 20.6m in fines for its portfolio company Munksjö Paper GmbH by German competition authorities, Bundeskartellamt.
SPAIN - TPG backs BA's shareholding in Iberia
Texas Pacific Group and British Airways (BA) have together acquired a further 0.2% stake in Spanish air carrier Iberia for EUR 4m. The purchase increases BA's stake to 10.1%.
FINLAND - Axel Technologies attracts financing from Nexit Ventures
Axel Technologies, a developer of mobile TV technologies, has attracted a financing round from Nexit Ventures and existing investor Finnish Industry Investments Ltd.
DENMARK - KKR et al. backed-TDC enters strategic partnership with Ericsson
Danish telecommunications business TDC, jointly owned by Apax Partners, The Blackstone Group, KKR, Permira Advisors and Providence Equity Partners, has entered a strategic partnership with Ericsson.
SOUTH AFRICA - SA private equity has backing of regulators; should continue growth
"Private equity and especially venture capital should be underpinning the investment drive into South Africa," according to the director general of South Africa's National Treasury, Lesetja Kganyago, speaking at the unquote" South Africa Private Equity...
UK - HSBC Private Equity backs the buyout of Transmission & Distribution Group
HSBC Private Equity has supported the buyout of Transmission & Distribution Group (TDG). TDG specialises in providing condition monitoring systems for electrical utilities and heavy industry. TDG is the parent company of Diagnostic Monitoring Systems...
SPAIN - Magnum acquires EUR 200m logistics firm
Magnum Industrial has signed the agreement for the acquisition of an 80% stake in infrastructures logistics firm Pretersa-Prenavisa.