News
UK - BA considering selling Air Miles
British Airways is considering selling loyalty scheme Air Miles for around ТЃ25m reports the Times today. The sale of BA's wholly owned subsidiary would generate cash to bolster the airline's troubled pension fund.
UK - MFI retail chain auction enters final stages
This week, MFI Furniture Group Plc will meet with the remaining bidders, including Merchant Equity Partners, Apax and Argyll Partners, in the auction for its retail arm.
SWEDEN - Procuritas buys North Trade
Procuritas Capital Investor III has acquired a majority shareholding in meat products importer North Trade AB. Going forward, North Trade plans to launch new products and expand geographically.
UK - Partnership law reform welcomed by BVCA
Following a sustained campaign by the BVCAтs Legal and Technical Committee, the Minister for Trade, Investment and Foreign Affairs, Ian McCartney, yesterday issued a statement that HM Government will be taking forward the Law Commissionsт proposals for...
SPAIN - All eyes on Pullmantur
A number of private equity firms are courting Pullmantur, one of the primary tourist divisions of the group Marsans. The travel operator, specialised in tours, cruises and charter flights is looking for a financial partner willing to buy between 30 and...
UK - Takeover dilemma for McCarthy & Stone
The largest builder of retirement homes in the UK, McCarthy & Stone, recommended a joint offer by Permira and Barclays Capital earlier this week. However, now a rival consortium made up of HBOS, the Reuben brothers and West Coast Capital has indicated...
NORWAY - Norvestor's Life Europe buys more shares in Life Scandinavia
Norvestor Equity’s Life Europe AB has increased its shareholding in Norwegian health food retailer Life Scandinavia AS to 89%. The seller of the stake is Validius, which will continue to own 11% of the shares. Following the transaction, Norvestor owns...
UK - Hedge fund tries to scupper Fortress/Telent deal
The Financial Times today reports that Fortress Investment Group's proposed take-private of Telent was uncertain due to the tactics of US hedge fund Polygon. The board of the Marconi telecommunications equipment business has already approved the offer...
UK - Bridgepoint's Pets at Home in £288m refinancing
Pets at Home, the UK pet food and product retailer, has secured ТЃ288m of new debt facilities following its announcement last week of revenues of ТЃ276.9m and EBITDA of ТЃ40.7m for the year ended 31 March 2006. Following completion of the refinancing,...
NORWAY - Norvestor's SCAN Geophysical completes NOK 315m private placement
SCAN Geophysical ASA has completed a private placement of approximately NOK 315m. The offering included 24,230,000 new shares with a share price of NOK 13. SCAN will now be listed on the OTC list, and the pricing implies a market capitalisation of the...
ITALY - Aletti acquires majority stake in Lovato
Aletti Private Equity has purchased 70% of Officine Lovato from its founders, via the Dimensione Network fund. According to reports in the Italian press, the transaction is worth around EUR 25m.
SPAIN - Bridgepoint buys Dorna from CVC
Bridgepoint has won the competitive auction to replace CVC Capital Partners as a shareholder in Dorna, a motorcycle sports business that promotes and manages MotoGP (the Motorcycle Road Racing World Championship). Other private equity firms involved in...
UK - Sovereign Capital expands its team
Sovereign Capital Partners is expanding its investment team with the recruitment of Mark Williams as investment manager, bringing Sovereignтs investment team to 17. Mark joins from BA Capital Partners Europe - Bank of America Bank, where he worked on...
UK - Aggregator television attracts £9m from 3i, Amadeus and Intel Capital
3i, Amadeus Capital Partners and Intel Capital are co-leading a ТЃ9m series-A financing round for London-based digital TV operator Aggregator Limited. The funding will be used to roll out a series of products over the next two years.
ITALY - Carlyle may sell stake in Avio to a private equity firm
The Carlyle Group may choose to sell its majority stake in Avio Holding, an aerospace engine maker, through a private sale instead of a planned IPO.
UK - Catapult Venture Managers back Exmet
Catapult Venture Managers has led a syndicate of investors to provide a ТЃ600,000 funding package for Kingswinford-based Exmet Limited, the supplier of the See20/20 specialist management software system for single and multi-site ophthalmic practices....
UK - ABN AMRO Capital acquires Amtico in £98.25m deal
ABN AMRO Capital has agreed to acquire Amtico International, the high end flooring designer and manufacturer, from Electra Private Equity. The transaction, which is expected to complete in around four weeks subject to customary approvals, values the business...
SPAIN - Litexco announces investment in Alliance to Business Solutions
The investment group Litexco, via its private equity arm, has announced a first round of funding in Alliance to Business Solutions SL, a company specialised in services for the insurance sector. It has secured capital of EUR 140,000.
BELGIUM - KBC Private Equity sells I-PAC Technologies
KBC Private Equity has signed an agreement to sell its 18.90% stake in I-PAC Technologies, a specialist in the development of new technologies for the plastic packaging industry. InnoConcepts NV, the principal stakeholder, will acquire the stake for EUR...
BELGIUM- KBC invests in Tailormade Logistics and Tailormade Transport
KBC Arkiv has invested EUR 1m in Tailormade Logistics and Tailormade Transport, two Flemish companies specialising in integrated logistics services.
ITALY - Wise acquires majority stake in SpII SpA
The private equity firm Wise SGR, via the funds Wisequity II & Macchine Italia, has acquired a majority stake in SpII SpA, an industrial automation player for the logistic sector, from its founders for an undisclosed sum.
UK - Esprit join Atlas and Benchmark in funding round for Newnham
Newnham today announced it has raised $13.25m in a series-B extension round of venture capital to help the company expand the development and worldwide marketing of its interactive networked display software and semiconductor technology. Following this...
SPAIN - SEPIDES to finance expansion of e-Cultura
The private equity fund Banesto ENISA SEPI Desarrollo has agreed to purchase a minority stake in e-Cultura Net S.A for EUR 3m. This is part of an expansion strategy led by the fund’s vehicle SEPI Desarrollo Empresarial S.A (SEPIDES).
FRANCE - Tornier announces investment by Warburg Pincus
Tornier, a global orthopedic company based in Grenoble, France, announced today that it closed a transaction with an investor group led by Warburg Pincus to acquire a majority interest in the company. The terms of the transaction were not disclosed. In...