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Private equity investors see healthcare as one of few bright spots
31/07/2001. The healthcare sector has emerged as one of the few bright spots in an otherwise gloomy investment firmament, private equity investors say.
UK government proposes major reforms to bankruptcy laws
31/07/2001. The UK government looks set to tackle one of the most symbolically important obstacles to the creation of a truly entrepreneurial culture with a series of proposed reforms to the country's bankruptcy laws.
New York teachers' pension funds consider upping VC exposure
30/07/2001. Public sector pension funds are still thinking about increasing their exposure to private equity despite a growing rash of poor results, if the New York State Teachers' Retirement System is anything to go by.
New $25m VC fund set up to invest in India
30/07/2001. A new $25m venture capital fund, Everclear International, has been launched to invest in the Indian sub-continent.
Hands seen dropping plans for major bank role in new fund
30/07/2001. Guy Hands, the stellar private equity chief looking to extricate his Principal Finance Group from Nomura, may ditch the idea of teaming up with a big investment bank as a major investor in his planned £2bn fund, according to the Financial Times.
Private Equity Holding blames venture funds for first quarter loss
30/07/2001. Swiss investment firm Private Equity Holding has reported a CHF28.7m loss in the first quarter of the financial year and has blamed its venture portfolio.
Avlar announces first close at £38m of second biotech fund
30/07/2001. Avlar Bioventures, the Cambridge-based venture firm, has announced the launch and first closing of its second fund with £38m of a targeted £75m.
Berkshire Partners announces first closing of $1.5bn fund
27/07/2001. Boston-based Berkshire Partners has announced the first closing of its sixth investment fund Berkshire Fund VI LP at $870m
NatWest Development Capital team keeps on growing in London
27/07/2001. NatWest Development Capital has hired yet another new team member in London, taking the total over the past year to nearly 20.
UK private equity exits drop 42 per cent on the year
26/07/2001. Exits from private equity investments in the first half of the year have fallen 42 per cent on the same period in 2000, according to research from the Centre for Management Buy-Out Research.
UBS warns of further losses at private equity arm
26/07/2001. UBS has piled further gloom on its private equity arm UBS Capital by warning of big losses in the second half of the year stemming from a review of its portfolio valuations and divestment prospects.
Israeli VCs warn sector is contracting and call for government tax breaks
25/07/2001. Israeli venture capitalists are warning that their once irrepressible industry is showing serious signs of contracting and have called on the government to introduce tax breaks to reinvigorate the flow of foreign funds into the country.
Energy firms launch new private equity joint venture
25/07/2001. A trio of major energy firms have launched a new private equity joint venture to invest in early stage companies that specialise in developing alternative energy systems.
German VC Knorr Capital unveils ‘impressive' half-year results
25/07/2001. German venture capital firm Knorr Capital Partner has described its half-year results as ‘impressive' despite a 35 per cent fall in earnings per share.
Jerusalem Venture Partners announces $350m interim closing of JVP IV
24/07/2001. Israeli firm Jerusalem Venture Partners has announced the interim closing of its latest and largest fund with $350m in commitments.
Matrix Partners appoints general partner
23/07/2001. US venture firm Matrix Partners has named technology specialist Shirish Sathaye as a new general partner.
Leman Capital expands ahead of new fund raising
23/07/2001. Swiss-based buy-out specialist Leman Capital is readying itself to raise a new E400m pan-European fund by boosting its numbers.
Prospects bright for European private equity
19/07/2001. European governments have undergone a sea change in their attitudes to private equity and have in recent years embarked on an irreversible course to promote investment in the asset class, according to proprietary research from AltAssets.
AGF Private Equity installs Baviere as chief exec
19/07/2001. Christophe Baviere has been appointed as chief executive of the private equity division of French insurance firm AGF to replace the departing Antoine Valdes.
KKR and Accel Partners join up again to focus on telecoms
19/07/2001. Buy-out giant Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co has joined forces again with venture capital firm Accel Partners, this time to focus on opportunities in the telecoms industry that have followed the collapse in financial markets.
US VC returns still falling in Q1 on weak markets
19/07/2001. Weak public and private markets continued to take their toll on venture capital returns in the first quarter in the US, according to the latest report from Venture Economics and the National Venture Capital Association.
Belgian FLV Fund absolves itself after Korea scandal, but CEO steps down
19/07/2001. Belgian FLV Fund has absolved its management of blame after an internal inquiry into the embezzlement of $30m from its Korea fund but announced the resignation of the fund's chief executive and the managing director of FLV Management, Philip Vermeulen.
Eiger Capital launched in Luxembourg as manager of tech fund of funds
19/07/2001. A new private equity management firm, Eiger Capital, has been launched in Luxembourg with the aim of specialising in technology fund of funds. It is a joint venture between its management and Financiere Natexis Banques Populaires
US Blackstone Group joins forces with German consultancy
18/07/2001. The Blackstone Group, the giant US investment firm, has become the latest private equity operator to form an alliance with a European partner to reinforce its interests in the continent.
Calpers reveals performance of its private equity holdings
18/07/2001. US public pension fund giant Calpers has lifted the lid on the performances of the private equity funds in its multi-billion dollar portfolio to reveal a yawning gap between the top and bottom.
JP Morgan Chase blames private equity collapse for dismal Q2 results
18/07/2001. US banking giant JP Morgan Chase has blamed a collapse in its private equity portfolio for its dismal second quarter results.
HgCapital appoints Karsten to Frankfurt team
17/07/2001. HgCapital, formerly Mercury Private Equity, has appointed Dr. Karsten Hartmann as an associate director to join the ICT investment team in Frankfurt. He becomes HgCapital's sixth ICT expert in Europe, with the team split between London and Germany.
US firm Quadrangle near closing $1bn media fund
17/07/2001. The New York-based Quadrangle Group is on the brink of closing its first fund with more than $1bn to invest in media and telecommunications projects in Europe and the US.
Pension funds expect greater private equity exposure
17/07/2001. UK pension funds expect to increase their investment in private equity following the Myners Review on institutional investment, but it will be some time before the change becomes evident.
Final closing for Banc of America Equity Partners
16/07/2001. Banc of America Equity Partners (BAEPE) has announced the final closing of its second European fund at E590m.
Loyens & Loeff bolsters private equity team
16/07/2001. Benelux-based legal firm Loyens & Loeff has taken on three partners from Caron & Stevens/Baker & McKenzie in a bid to boost its private equity team.
High-profile VC predicts more technology gloom, apologises for dot.com mania
16/07/2001. John Doerr, one of Silicon Valley's biggest VC names, has said that the US high-tech recession could last right through to mid-2002.
Hutton leaves MGPE as Deutsche drops spin-off plans
13/07/2001. Graham Hutton has left his position as chief executive of Morgan Grenfell Private Equity after parent Deutsche Bank dropped plans to spin off the firm.
West Sussex County Council pension fund moves into private equity
12/07/2001. West Sussex County Council pension fund has become the latest UK local government fund to move into private equity and is actively looking for someone to manage its £40m mandate.
HgCapital appoints Humphries to ICT team
11/07/2001. HgCapital, the UK-based private equity firm, has appointed Nic Humphries as a director to join its information and communications technology investment team in London.
US venture-backed IPOs slow to trickle in second quarter
11/07/2001. Venture-backed IPOs slowed to a trickle in the second quarter of this year, falling to just nine from 11 in the first quarter and a recent peak of 78 in the third quarter of 2000, according to a new report.
Investors say biotech sluggish, but prospects bright
11/07/2001. The biotechnology sector is wading through difficult times, but the medium-term prospects remain bright.
UBS postpones private equity arm spin-off, loses chief executive
11/07/2001. Swiss banking giant UBS has postponed plans to spin off its private equity business, UBS Capital, because of the weak state of financial markets.
Israeli VC firm changes name to avoid confusion
11/07/2001. Israeli firm Polaris Venture Capital has changed its name to Pitango to avoid being confused with the US-based Polaris Venture Partners.
West Yorkshire local authority launches new private equity fund
10/07/2001. The West Yorkshire Pension Fund, which oversees the local government pension scheme in the area, has announced the launch of a new private equity fund to invest in businesses in the north of England and Scotland.
Calpers names new manager for its private equity investments
10/07/2001. The California Public Employees' Retirement System (Calpers), the biggest pension fund in the US, has appointed Richard J Hayes to manage its substantial private equity investments.
Index Ventures announces closing of $300m technology and biotech fund
09/07/2001. Index Ventures, a pan-European VC firm, has announced the closing of a $300m fund that will invest in technology and biotechnology.
Duke Street adds to French knowledge on advisory board
09/07/2001. UK-based venture capital firm Duke Street Capital has strengthened its sectoral and regional expertise by appointing Remy Sautter and Michel Jaouen to its advisory board.
Europe sets new record in second quarter for VC funds raised
09/07/2001. A string of mega-funds have helped push the total value of private equity raised in the second quarter to a record in Europe, according to a new report.
Buy-outs still strong in spite UK of M&A collapse
09/07/2001. The UK buy-out market has continued to power ahead despite the collapse in M&A activity, according to new figures from the Centre for Management Buy-Out Research.
Foreign and Colonial Private Equity Trust unveils strong performance
06/07/2001. It's not all bad news. Foreign and Colonial Private Equity Trust has run against the tide by unveiling a strong set of results for the latest financial year.
Noble Fund Managers beefs up private equity with McMicking appointment
05/07/2001. Noble Fund Managers, the fund management arm of the Edinburgh-based Noble Group, has strengthened its private equity activity with the appointment of Charles McMicking.
Dotcom deaths may be levelling off
04/07/2001. The brutal death rate for dotcom companies looks as though it may be reaching a plateau, according to preliminary global figures from Webmergers.
Tough exit market hits Germany's oldest private equity player
04/07/2001. Deutsche Beteiligungs, Germany's oldest private equity firm, has said that this year's profits will be well below expectations because of a dearth of exit opportunities.
Global M&A activity grinds to a halt
04/07/2001. Global M&A activity slowed to a standstill in the second quarter of the year and is well behind the levels reached in the same period of 2000.
New venture fund launched in Germany aiming at academia
04/07/2001. A new venture fund has been launched in Germany to invest specifically in technology developed in academic institutions.
Inflexion announces small loss but upbeat about prospects
04/07/2001. UK private equity firm Inflexion has blamed weak financial markets for a £3m loss in the latest tax year but said the same circumstances will offered some hope in the medium term.
Digital Networks closes first round at E47.5m
03/07/2001. European venture capital company Digital Networks has announced the first closing of its new technology fund at E47.5m.
No signs of uplift in UK IPO market
03/07/2001. The UK's IPO market remains lifeless and there is little hope of it stirring in the near future, according to the latest report from KPMG Corporate Finance.
UK railways pension fund to up private equity allocation
03/07/2001. The UK railways pension fund is to increase its exposure to private equity as a way of diversifying holdings and offsetting weaker performances from more traditional assets.
Japan records strong growth in MBOs in 2000
02/07/2001. Japan's struggling economy is still managing to energise the MBO market, says the Mitsubishi Research Institute.
Private equity star performer for UK local authority pension funds
02/07/2001. Venture capital and private equity were comfortably the strongest performing asset class for UK local authority pension funds last year, according to a new report.
Penta Capital launches new UK and Eire technology fund
02/07/2001. There's still some life in early stage technology investment, if the launch of a new fund by Penta Capital is anything to go by.
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