News
UK - 3i invests in listed Venture Production
3i, alongside ArcLight Capital Partners, has invested in oil and gas firm Venture Production. The total investment of over ТЃ200m consists of newly issued convertible unsecured bonds, the conversion of one of ArcLight's existing joint investments with...
UK - Noble Denton acquires Poseidon Maritime
HitecVision portfolio company Noble Denton, the global offshore and marine cosulting firm, has acquired Poseidon Martime, a marine service company, for ТЃ2.4m. The acquistion will create a major marine and marine safety consultancy service, primarily...
BELGIUM - Candover sells Bureu van Dijk Electronic Publishing to BC Partners
Candover has sold Bureau van Dijk Electronic Publishing(BvD EP), an electronic publisher of business information, to BC Partners. The deal is expected to complete in October 2007, subject to regulatory approval. The exit represents a return of 2.3x Candover's...
UK - Accel, Advent and Atlas back Ubiquisys with $25m series-B funding
Accel Partners, Atlas Venture and Advent Venture Partners have been joined by Google on a $25m series-B funding round for Ubiquisys Ltd. Ubiquisys is a pioneer of intelligent 3G femtocell access points for the residential market. The Ubiquisys ZoneGate...
RUSSIA - Mint Capital invests $8m in Russian beauty salons chain Mone
Mint Capital has agreed to make an $8m direct equity investment in Russian hairdressing and beauty salons chain Mone. The deal gives the private equity house a more than blocking stake in the company. Two of Mint Capital's representatives will join Mone's...
CEE - Equest Investment Balkans acquires stake in Romanian electronics retail business
Equest Investment Balkans has acquired a 75% stake in Domo Retail S.A., a Romanian consumer electronics and household appliances retailer, through its 75% owned subsidiary Lynx Property B.V. A shareholders agreement will require Domo's founding shareholders...
NORWAY - VIA Travel set for record year
FSN Capital-backed travel agency VIA Travel is set to deliver record-breaking results for its investors ahead of an expected IPO on the Oslo Stock Exchange in October 2007. It is anticipated that the business will list with a value of NOK 1.3bn. FSN Capital...
NL - Bain Capital's SigmaKalon receives EUR 2.2bn offer from trade buyer
Bain Capital portfolio company SigmaKalon Group has received a EUR 2.2bn offer from Pittsburgh-based paint company PPG Industries . Bain Capital carved out Dutch paint maker SigmaKalon from TotalFinaElf for approximately EUR 1bn in 2003. Bain Capital...
GERMANY – HgCapital acquires SLV Group
HgCapital has acquired German lighting producer SLV Group from its founders. The transaction is executed on the basis of an enterprise value of EUR 320m and still requires the approval of the German Federal Cartel Office.
SPAIN - BuyVIP receives second round of funding from 3i
A 3i-led consortium has invested EUR 7m in a second round of funding for e-commerce community BuyVIP. 3i invested EUR 5.75m, with Active Capital Partners and several business angels providing the balance.
ITALY - Finlombarda and Innogest invest EUR 1.5m in IT security business
Finlombarda Gestioni and Innogest Capital Fund have announced their joint investment in HT S.r.l, a Milan-based firm focused on the development and trading of innovative IT security intelligence products and services.
NL - Amsterdam Molecular Therapeutics raises additional EUR 5.67m
Venture-backed Amsterdam Molecular Therapeutics has raised an additional EUR 5.67m from the partial exercise of an over-allotment option. The company had launched an IPO of 5,000,000 new shares on Euronext Amsterdam for an offer price of EUR 10 per...
UK - Synergis commits £500,000 to Warwick Audio Technologies
Synergis Technologies and Mercia Technology Seed Fund have committed ТЃ500,000 to Warwick Audio Technologies Ltd. A spinout from the University of Warwick, Warwick Audio has developed an innovative mid-range loudspeaker that is ultra-thin, lightweight,...
FRANCE - Shoe maker Luxat subject of secondary buyout
LCL Régions Développement and Avenir Entreprises have backed the secondary buyout of Luxat, a shoe manufacturer in the Basque region.
FRANCE - CIC LBO Partners backs Sinéquanone
CIC LBO Partners has backed the buyout of Sinéquanone, a clothing chain with 220 retail points.
SPAIN/FRANCE - Imperial Tobacco offers 32% more than CVC for Altadis
Imperial Tobacco has offered EUR 50 per share for Franco-Spanish business Altadis in the latest chapter of the tobacco company saga, which has been dragging on for nearly five months.
UK - Apax in the running for Loot?
Daily Mail and General Trust is reported to be selling classified advertising magazine Loot. Apax the co-owner of the Autotrader classified magazine brand with Gaurdian Media Group is understood to be interested in the title. Loot was valued at ТЃ190m...
UK - Private equity gears up for Ford's UK assets
One Equity Partners, Ripplewood Holdings and Cerberus Capital Management are amongst the private equity groups gearing up to make bids for Ford's UK assets. Ford is selling off Jaguar and Land Rover to slash its debts. Trade interest in the deal is limited...
UK - Endless acquires Homebuy in £22m buyout
Endless has acquired electrical and household goods supplier Homebuy in a ТЃ22m management buyout. Homebuy had a market capitalisation on AIM of ТЃ100m before entering administration in September 2006. Endless's investment alongside debt provided by Landsbanki...
FRANCE - Advent International backs LBO of Sophis
Advent has acquired a majority stake in Sophis, a provider of cross-asset, front-to-back portfolio and risk management solutions.
UK - IQ Capital leads series-D funding round in OnRelay
IQ Capital has lead a Series-D funding round in OnRelay Inc. OnRelay is a London-based pioneer in fixed mobile integration with a patented market leading solution for mobilising corporate phone systems. IQ Capital invested alongside Richard Cunningham,...
UK - Alchemy acquires holiday park operator from Phoenix for £83m
Alchemy has acquired South West holiday park operator Weststar Holdings Ltd from Phoenix Equity Partners in an ТЃ83m transaction. Alchemy completed the deal through its portfolio company ParkDean. ParkDean was delisted by Alchemy in a ТЃ230m deal in May...
NORWAY - TH!NK attracts $60m investment
TH!NK Global, a Norwegian producer of environmently friendly cars, has completed a private placement of $60m from several investors including, DFJ Element and RockPort Capital Partners. Other private high-net worth Norwegian investors including Petter...
NL - KKR cancels EUR 1bn loan to refinance Maxeda LBO
It is widely reported that KKR has cancelled its plan to raise EUR 1bn of loans to refinance Dutch retailer Maxeda BV . The loss of investor confidence in high yield debt is attributed to losses in the US subprime mortgage market.