News
SWEDEN - Industrifonden recruits two new professionals
Industrifonden has hired two new investment managers, Stefan Jakelius, formerly head of seed financing at the Energy Agency, and Tore Tolke, formerly investment manager at Småföretagsinvest.
SWEDEN - Ferd Venture invests NOK 80m in Nanoradio AB
Ferd Venture has invested NOK 80m in Swedish chip producer, Nanoradio AB, as part of a NOK 160m round with existing investors Nordic Venture Partners, Innovacom, Teknoinvest og Industrifonden. The new capital will be used to fuel internationalisation...
FRANCE - Activa continues to grow
Mid-cap private equity firm Activa Capital has hired Julien Di Marco as an Investment Analyst.
GERMANY - Alantos Pharmaceuticals sold to Amgen for $300m
Heidelberg Innovation, Earlybird and Forbion Capital Partners have exited their stakes in Alantos Pharmaceuticals Holding to US-based biotechnology company Amgen. Under the terms of the agreement, Amgen will pay $300m in cash to acquire Alantos.
GERMANY - Blue Lion receives multi-million financing
German mobile internet start-up Blue Lion mobile has closed a multi-million Euro financing round from Bertelsmann Digital Media Investments.
ITALY/AUSTRIA - Riverside sells PPC to Seves Group
The Riverside Company has sold insulators manufacturer PPC Insulators to Italian Seves Group. Following the transaction Vestar-backed Seves is expected to record revenues of more than EUR 400m.
ITALY - ElectroPS receives backing from 360º Capital Partners
Venture house 360º Capital Partners has agreed to provide total funding of up to EUR 5m to energy sector business Electro Power Systems (ElectroPS) in return for a minority stake.
SWEDEN - Malmöhus Invest makes 14x on exit of HARDI Electronics
Malmöhus Invest has sold HARDI Electronics AB to Synplicity Inc in California, making a 14x return in cash, and an IRR of 140%.
FINLAND - Eqvitec acquires outstanding shares of StyroChem
Eqvitec Technology Fund III has acquired the outstanding shares in StyroChem Finland Oy, a producer of expandable polystyrene (EPS), from Wincup. The investors will also offer management ownership in the compnay.
IRELAND - Doughty Hanson leads $14m investment in AdaptiveMobile
Doughty Hanson has led a $14m second round of funding for AdaptiveMobile. Additional investment came from Noor Financial Investment Company and existing investor, Intel Capital.
FRANCE - Summit Partners takes 20% of Vente-Privée.com
Summit Partners has made a growth capital investment in online clothing retailer Vente-Privée in exchange for a 20% equity stake.
FRANCE - Unigrains appoints new president
The board of directors of agriculture-oriented investor Unigrains has appointed Philippe Pinta as president, replacing Henri de Benoist.
DENMARK - Unifeeder is acquired by Montagu for over EUR 400m
Montagu Private Equity has acquired feeder operator Unifeeder from its management for over EUR 400m. The investors acquired 100% of the company, but the management will take a significant stake in the business going forward. Unifeeder was sold via an...
FRANCE - Ciclad sells remainder of shares in Entrepose Contracting
Small-cap private equity investor Ciclad has sold its 11.45% shareholding in energy contractor Entrepose Contracting to construction group Vinci, which intends to acquire the whole business.
FRANCE - Towerbrook makes 3x from sale of InfoPro to Apax
Towerbrook Capital Partners has generated 3x its money on the sale of professional information group InfoPro Communications to Apax Partners SA.
UK - Graphite Capital sells Avery Healthcare to Southern Cross for £96.5m
Graphite Capital has sold its majority shareholding in Avery Healthcare to Southern Cross Healthcare Group realising returns of 2.7x. The deal values Avery, which owns and operates care homes for the elderly, at £96.5m. Southern Cross is buying 16 of...
UK - HgCapital acquires stake in RidgeWind
HgCapital has acquired a substantial equity stake in Oxfordshire-based wind developer, RidgeWind Ltd. HgCapital’s investment includes the acquisition of a majority stake in the company, expansion capital and long-term equity for RidgeWind’s wind development...
UK - ABN AMRO portfolio company Volution acquires Manrose
ABN AMRO Capital portfolio company Volution has acquired Manrose Holdings Ltd from its private owner. This represents the first step of a buy-and-build strategy for Volution, the ventilation and heating company ABN AMRO acquired in a secondary management...
UK - Adverse rumours surround potential tertiary buyout of New Look
Reports that interest in value fashion retailer New Look is lacklustre continue to dog the auction process being run by Merrill Lynch. Apax and Permira, the current owners of New Look, had considered a float of the business but decided instead to sell...
UK - Enterprise Ventures completes further investment in H20 Networks
Enterprise Ventures has completed a further investment in H2O Networks Ltd through its Coalfields Enterprise Fund. Enterprise Ventures first invested in the company during late 2006 to finance the company’s growth plans and this follow-on round of funding...
NORWAY - Ferd Ventures invest EUR 2m in Kvaleberg
Ferd Ventures has invested EUR 2m in Kvaleberg, a mobile software company located in Oslo. The investment will be used to accelerate international growth.
FRANCE - AXA Private Equity backs buyout of payment software business
In a management buyout, AXA Private Equity has acquired the majority of the shares of Welcome Real-time, a provider of payment software for financial institutions and payment networks.
NL - Amsterdam Molecular Therapeutics launches IPO
VC-backed human gene therapy specialist Amsterdam Molecular Therapeutics (AMT) has launched an offering of up to 5 million new shares, for a price range of EUR 8-10.
UK - Close Ventures backs Point 35 Microstructures with £1.95m investment
Close Ventures has invested £1.95m in Point 35 Microstructures, a supplier of refurbished semiconductor wafer processing equipment. The funding round totalled £2.1m.