News
GERMANY - Dresdner Kleinwort Wasserstein to refinance APCOA
Dresdner Kleinwort Wasserstein has been mandated by Investcorp to lead the refinancing of German car parks operator APCOA. No equity will be taken out in the course of the refinancing.
ITALY - Strategia Italia closes its first transaction
The private equity firm Strategia Italia SGR has recently concluded its first transaction as a lead investor, in partnership with specialist investor Piemonte High Technology. The consideration has not been disclosed.
UK - Light Blue Optics secures $2.5m seed funding from 3i-led consortium
Light Blue Optics, developer of industry-leading miniature projection technology, today announced the closing of a $2.5m seed funding round. 3i Plc, the FTSE 100 listed global venture capital firm, led the round, which also included investment from NESTA,...
UK - Phoenix acquires NFT Distribution
Phoenix Equity Partners announces that it has reached agreement on the proposed acquisition of the business and assets of NFT Distribution (NFT) from Northern Foods Plc in a ТЃ51.2m management buyout. Contracts have been exchanged and completion is expected...
UK - Caudwell phone group sold to Providence Equity Partners and Doughty Hanson
The Times reports that this week will see the official announcement that John Caudwell's mobile phone empire has been sold to Providence Equity Partners and Doughty Hanson.
UK - Private equity wants to muscle in on Severn Trent's planned IPO of Biffa
Severn Trent's planned IPO of its Biffa waste business later this year is no longer a certainty after a team formed by KKR and Apollo Management expressed an interest in acquiring Severn Trent. The bid for the company would be in the region of ТЃ5bn....
UK - Sun European Parnters sells light commercial vehicles company LDV
Sun European Partners, the European adviser to Sun Capital Partners Inc, has announced the sale of its affiliate LDV Holdings Ltd to GAZ International Limited. Under the deal, LDV, the specialist manufacturer of the multi award winning range of Maxus...
UK - Strathdon Investments launches secondaries venture capital fund
Strathdon Investments Plc, the technology investment company, has announced that it has formed a new LP fund with a major investor and that the first transactions have been completed. Strathdonтs subsidiary, Strathdon Finance Ltd, will manage the specialist...
ROMANIA - GED completes Romanian deal
GED Private Equity, a mid market investor in Iberia and South Eastern Europe, has acquired a majority stake in four Romanian mobile phone distributors in a EUR 4.5m deal. The investor plans to consolidate and rebrand the companies at the beginning of...
UK - New developments in Birds Eye auction
The ТЃ1.2bn Birds Eye auction is reported by the Sunday Times to have a new competitor following the teaming up of Kerry Foods with Blackstone and JP Morgan Partners. Kerry Foods is Ireland's eight largest listed company and is one of the largest suppliers...
UK - Hermes set to acquire Beacon Bingo chain
According to a report in the Sunday Times, the private equity arm of Hermes is set to acquire Thomas Holdings, the parent company of the Beacon Bingo chain.
FRANCE - DLA Piper appoints new partner for its Paris office
DLA Piper Rudnick Gray Cary, the global legal services organisation, has announced the appointment of Frédéric Bucher as a partner in the Paris office's corporate group.
ITALY - Argos Soditic closes partnership to expand in China
Private equity firm Argos Soditic has chosen private equity firm Value Partners to manage its activities in the Chinese market. The partnership will allow the Italian firm to provide support to its portfolio companies with interest in developing business...
UK - Kennet Venture Partners sells Cramer to Amdocs
Kennet Venture Partners Ltd, a venture capital firm focused on the technology sector, had announced the sale of portfolio company Cramer to Amdocs, an industry leader in solutions that enable integrated customer management, for ТЃ205m ($375m). Cramer...
SPAIN - Carlyle and Vista Capital acquire Iberostar for EUR 800m
Carlyle Group, which had already signed an agreement of intention to purchase tour operator Iberostar, has partnered with Vista Capital, the private equity firm backed by the Banco Santander, in an acquisition deal reportedly worth EUR 800m.
UK - LDC acquires digital dictation specialist BigHand
Digital dictation specialist BigHand is targeting rapid global growth after being bought by a management team backed by LDC. London-based BigHand supplies software that allows users to dictate directly onto their firmтs computer network from anywhere...
SPAIN - Mercapital sells its stake in Grupo Hospitalario Quiron
Private equity firm Mercapital has sold its 32% stake in Grupo Hospitalario Quiron, a hospital group to Portuguese firm Jose de Mello.
SPAIN - Advent acquires Euroloc
The global private equity firm Advent International has announced the acquisition of Euroloc de Maquinaria S.L., a leading equipment rental company serving the Spanish construction sector, from Fides Capital and family shareholders.
SWEDEN - Procuritas sells NSG Logistics to John Nurminen
Procuritas Capital Partners II has sold NSG Logistics to John Nurminen Oy. John Nurminen Oy has acquired the share capital of NSG Logistics, which means that the company will become the owner of AB SkandiaTransport, SkandiaTransport A/S and Göteborgs...
FRANCE - Activa Capital refinances Mont-Blanc and Delpharm
Activa Capital has announced it had returned 75% of equity investment in Mont-Blanc to its investors, and 73% of commitments to Delpharm.
GERMANY - Brenntag goes to BC Partners
Bain Capital has sold chemical distribution firm Brenntag GmbH to BC Partners for an undisclosed sum. The deal remains subject to approval from the cartel authorities. Bain Capital intends to retain a minority shareholding in the company following the...
UK - Promethean Investments acquires Cambria Automobiles
Private equity firm Promethean Investments has invested ТЃ2.6m as part of the management buy-in of Cambria Automobiles Ltd (CAL) and Sudbury (Swindon) Ltd.
UK - First Reserve Corporation strengthens London office
First Reserve Corporation, a leading US-based private equity firm that specialises in the energy industry, has announced the strategic hire of Neil J. Hartley as director. He will be based at First Reserve International in London.
GERMANY - JC Flowers expands insurance portfolio
JC Flowers portfolio company Württembergische & Badische Versicherungs AG (Wüba) has acquired Darag Deutsche Versicherungs- und Rückversicherungs-AG. The value of the deal has not been disclosed.