News
AUSTRIA - BAWAG looking to serve Cuban customers
Cerberus Capital Management portfolio company BAWAG PSK is said to be exploring the possibility of obtaining the permission from US authorities to serve Cuban customers.
GERMANY - Blackstone under fire from unions
According to German press, the umbrella trade union UNI Global Union is threatening to stop investing in the Blackstone Group’s funds, in case the financial investor continues to support the plans of Deutsche Telekom to outsource 50,000 jobs. According...
NORWAY - Eqvitec Technology Fund III invests in TraceTracker Innovation ASA
Eqvitec Technology Fund II has invested in TraceTracker Innovation, a Norwegian software provider of electronic traceability solutions for the food industry.
SPAIN - ACS to receive offers for Continental today
Five prospective buyers for Continental Auto are understood to be presenting their offers for the transport group today.
GERMANY - DZ Equity Partner exits KUMAgroup
DZ Equity Partner has sold its stake in German IT solutions provider KUMAgroup to WaBeKu GmbH. The transaction value has not been disclosed. The financial investor had acquired the stake at the end of 1998 from the company’s founders.
UK - Femeda completes £2m funding round led by NorthStar
NorthStar Equity Investors has led a £2m funding round for Femeda, a female health products developer. Stargate Capital Management, Acceleris Corporate Ventures and existing investor Enterprise Ventures also took part. The funding will assist the development...
UK - Further backing for e-Therapeutics led by Katalyst Ventures
Biology drug discovery company e-Therapeutics has announced a seven-figure investment from a consortium of investors comprising Katalyst Ventures, Novotech Investment and NorthStar Equity Investors. The new investors join RAB Capital in backing the company.
NL - Aletra to acquire DA Retailgroep
Aletra Capital Partners has reportedly agreed to acquire DA, a retailer of cosmetics and beauty products.
UK- ECI sells Anix IT
ECI Partners has sold Anix IT, a reseller of storage hardware and software solutions to Xploite plc for £10.45m.
UK- NVM grows Reading office
Richard Gibson has moved from the Edinburgh office of NVM Private Equity to its Reading office.
FRANCE - Apax-led syndicate sells Cartesis to Business Objects
Apax Partners, Advent Ventures Partners, Caisse des Dépots et Placements du Québec and Partech International have sold their interests in finance and performance management software developer Cartesis, to business intelligence solutions provider Business...
NORWAY - Cubera sells Marratech to Google
Cubera Secondary has sold Marratech to Google for an undisclosed sum, but the IRR is claimed to be "very satisfactory". Marratech is one of the 11 companies that Cubera has had in their portfolio since acquiring the Aumar portfolio form Sjätte AP Fonden.
FRANCE - Turenne backs online lottery business Mediastay
Turenne Capital Partenaires has invested in the owner buyout of Mediastay via its listed fund Turenne Investissement and its FIP Hexagone Croissance I.
NORWAY - HitecVision aquires 49% of Sørco
HitecVision Private Equity has agreed to acquire 49% of the Sørco Group, a major provider of systems and services to the Norwegian and international oil and gas industry. HitecVision Private Equity specialises in investing in growth companies in the...
FINLAND - CapMan exits Synerco
CapMan has exited from Synerco, the Swedish provider of integrated facility, security and office services. Capman will sell its stake to Service Management company Addici Holding AB, supported by its major private equity investor Argan Capital.
IRELAND - Edgestone Capital Partners leads extra $5m funding round for RedMere
Edgestone Capital Partners has led a $5m top-up funding round for fabless semiconductor company RedMere Technology. Existing investor Celtic House Venture also participated in the round which brings the amount invested in under six months to $13.5m.
SPAIN/PORTUGAL- Private equity crowd hits the audiovisual arena
The Iberian audiovisual sector has experienced a noteworthy level of private equity activity this week.
UK - Advent Venture backs new home moving web services
Advent Venture Partners and seed investors, The Accelerator Group, have provided new home moving web service Moveme.com with early-stage funding. Moveme.com is a online service which will enable millions of people moving home to save significant time;...
UK - Creative Capital Fund backs performance company with EUR 2.53m
The Creative Capital Fund has led a EUR 2.53m fund-raising for The Creative Experience Company Ltd. The investment was led by Leisure and Media VCT Plc, which is managed by North Atlantic Value LLP, part of the J O Hambro Capital Management Group. The...
UK - FF&P Private Equity backs MBO of insurance broker
FF&P Private Equity has backed the management buyout of RFIB Group Ltd, the international Lloyd's insurance and reinsurance broker from its retired shareholders. The value of the transaction, which is subject to regulatory and other approvals, was not...
UK - Boots bidding war on
A bidding war has broken out for Alliance Boots, the FTSE 100 retail and pharmaceutical group. After KKR upped its offer for Alliance Boots to £10.90 per share in an attempt to see off a rival £10.85 per share bid from Terra Firma, Terra Firma trumpted...
EUROPE - ECB survey says private equity poses limited systemic risk to banking sector
European leveraged buyout activity poses a limited systemic risk to the European banking sector, says a report by the Banking Supervision Committee of the European Central Bank.
ITALY/FRANCE - Eurazeo and Banca Leonardo join forces to invest in Italy
French private equity firm Eurazeo and Italian investment boutique Banca Leonardo have launched Euraleo, a 50/50 joint venture exclusively dedicated to the Italian private equity market.
Quote’’ - Peter Cornelius, Head of Research at AlpInvest Partners
‘Even if default rates go up, they will be nowhere near the levels seen previously,’ said Peter Cornelius this morning at the Benelux unquote" Private Equity Congress in Luxembourg. He explained that in the early 1990s and in 2001 default rates hit...