News
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 - Senior ICG manager to retire
ICG has announced that Sara Halbard, senior portfolio manager at ICG's fund management subsidiary ISML, will retire in June 2008.
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 - KSL Capital Partners to open London office
KSL Capital Partners, a Denver-based private equity firm, is to open a London office. KSL specialises in travel and leisure investments, backing hospitality, recreation, real estate and travel service companies amongst others.
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.
FRANCE - MBO Partenaires backs MBO of Santé Port-Royal
MBO Partenaires has completed the buyout of natural health magazines publisher Santé Port-Royal.
SPAIN - L Capital launches Madrid base
French firm L Capital has set up shop in Spain. The buyout house, owned by luxury goods group LVMH Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton, reportedly opened a Madrid office yesterday.
FRANCE - XAnge invests EUR 2m in online music label
XAnge Private Equity has injected EUR 2m in the first round of funding for Believe, a recently-created digital distribution music label.
UK - Lyceum Capital to acquire AIM-listed Synexus in £18m deal
Lyceum Capital Partners has announced a recommended cash offer of 78p per share to shareholders for Synexus Clinical Research Plc. AIM-listed Synexus is the largest European-headquartered business recruiting patients for late phase clinical trials on...
UK - Close Growth Capital acquires clingfilm company
Close Growth Capital has provided a hybrid debt and equity package to support the £20m+ management buyout of Wrap Film Systems, a provider of clingfilm dispensers to the catering industry and consumers. The deal represents an exit for the company's founder.
UK - Amadeus and JVP lead series-D funding round for Celltick
Amadeus Capital Partners and Jerusalem Venture Partners (JVP) have co-led a series-D financing round for mobile marketing company Celltick Technologies Ltd.
UK - Sovereign acquires childcare training provider
Sovereign Capital has enlarged its Employability and Skills Group (ESG) portfolio company with the addition of childcare traning provider Triangle Training. Midlands-based Triangle Training was founded in 1999 and offers apprenticeships, advanced apprenticeships...
FRANCE - Fondinvest hires two investment directors
Fund-of-funds and secondaries specialist Fondinvest has appointed Thomas de Cagny and Declan Feeney as investment directors.
SWITZERLAND – Capvis acquires de Sede Group
Capvis has agreed to acquire furniture manufacturer de Sede for an undisclosed sum. The transaction is part of the succession plan of owners Hans-Peter Fässler and Bernhard Schüler who continue to manage the company and remain shareholders in it.
FRANCE/GERMANY – Deutsche Telekom to announce media broadcast unit sale
According to press reports, Deutsche Telekom will sell its German media broadcast business to TDF, which is backed by Texas Pacific and AXA Private Equity. The transaction is estimated to be worth between EUR 700m and EUR 900m. Australian Macquarie Infrastructure...
BELGIUM - Waterland provides growth capital to medical laboratory group
Waterland Private Equity is to provide growth capital to the medical laboratory group MedHold, formed by the merger of AML-RIATOL and Medisch Labo D. Van Waes. With a turnover of EUR 37m, MedHold will be the second largest Belgian private clinical laboratories...
PORTUGAL - Change Partners reaps 20% IRR from Acacia sale
Change Partners, ISQ Capital and PME-FSCR have agreed to sell their entire stakes in Acacia Semiconductor to Irish electronics firm S3.
UK - Craig Armour joins LDC's new Scotland office from Penta
LDC has opened its first office in Scotland. The office, located in Edinburgh, will be headed up by Craig Armour. Armour previously spent seven years as a partner at Penta Capital, where he led buyouts in the consumer and business services sectors throughout...
NETHERLANDS - Permira-backed Provimi divests fish feed business
Permira -backed animal nutrition group Provimi SA has sold the majority of its fish feed activities to Biomar , a Danish supplier of fish feed. Biomar is taking over the fish feed activities in Chile, Denmark and Spain, which represent about 90% of Provimi's...
FINLAND - Martinson Trigon invests EUR 1.75m in Finnish online gaming
Martinson Trigon has invested EUR 1.75m in Apaja Online Entertainment, a Finnish online gaming community company.
FRANCE - Bridgepoint reaches squeeze-out for Alain Afflelou
A year and a half after acquiring 61% of shares, Bridgepoint has finally reached the 95% threshold needed to delist opticians chain Alain Afflelou from the French stock exchange.