News Archive: March 2007

NanoDimension launches a dedicated €45m nanotech venture fund
30/03/2007. NanoDimension, a nanotechnology venture capital firm started in 2002, has established their new fund the NanoDimension Limited Partnership with €45m (approx. $60m) in committed capital. The fund will focus exclusively on investments in nanotechnology companies.

Baird Capital Partners hires Thomas E Costello
30/03/2007. Baird Capital Partners, the US-based buy-out arm of Baird Private Equity, has added Thomas E Costello as an associate on their business services team, working out of the Chicago office.

Cognetas acquires Saint-Gobain Desjonquères for €670m
30/03/2007. Cognetas, a mid-market European private equity firm, has purchased a majority stake in Saint-Gobain Desjonquères together with Sagard, the French private equity house. SGD is a manufacturer of specialised glass packaging for the cosmetics and pharmaceutical industries.

Emerald holds €135m close on its Cleantech Venture Capital Fund II
30/03/2007. Emerald Technology Ventures, formally SAM Private Equity, has held a final close for its second cleantech-focused venture fund with commitments of €135m (CAN$210m). The firm will use the new fund to continue investing in early and expansion stage companies primarily located in North America and Europe.

ICG closes €2.25bn mezz fund
30/03/2007. Intermediate Capital Group PLC, a provider of mezzanine finance and fund manager in Europe and Asia, has held a final close of its €2.25bn European Fund 2006, representing €1.25bn of equity interests and €1.0bn of leverage. Almost 70 per cent of the commitments come from European investors, 19 per cent from Asia and the remainder from North America and the Middle East.

Warburg Pincus floats emgs
30/03/2007. ElectroMagnetic GeoServices (emgs) has priced its IPO on the Oslo Stock Exchange at NOK135 per share. emgs is a provider of SBL services, a technology that enables the detection of hydrocarbons beneath the seabed prior to drilling.

HgCapital exits Hirschmann Car Communication to its management
29/03/2007. HgCapital, a private equity investor focused on the European mid-market, has announced the sale of German firm Hirschmann Car Communication GmbH to its management. The transaction is expected to be completed by the end of April.

The VMF backs EDF Ventures
29/03/2007. The Venture Michigan Fund I, a $95m venture capital fund investment program formed under the Michigan Early Stage Investment Act of 2003, has made an investment commitment to EDF Ventures, an Ann Arbor-based venture capital firm focused on making seed and early stage investments in Michigan life sciences and information technology companies.

Paul Capital Partners hires Lara S Sullivan as principal
29/03/2007. Paul Capital Partners has appointed Lara S Sullivan, MD, as a principal of the firm's healthcare team, effective April 23, 2007. She will be based in the firm's New York office.

Investcorp Technology Partners targets Moneybookers in €105m buy-out
29/03/2007. Moneybookers Limited, a European online payment provider and the UK's first FSA-licensed e-money issuer, has announced that Investcorp Technology Partners, the technology private equity arm of the international investment group Investcorp, is backing the buy-out of the company for €105m.

GEM appoints Natalie Yukselen-Alink as managing director
29/03/2007. GEM Private Equity Partners has hired Natalie Yukselen-Alink as managing director in the firm's effort to expand its investments and its team to meet investor interest in the Turkish private equity market.

VSS in $1.142bn secondaries deal for Advanstar
29/03/2007. DLJ Merchant Banking Partners, the private equity investment affiliate of Credit Suisse, has sold Advanstar Holdings Corp. to Veronis Suhler Stevenson in a transaction valued at $1.142bn.

Raytheon sells Raytheon Aircraft Company to Goldman Sachs and Onex for $3.3bn
28/03/2007. Raytheon Company, a supplier specialising in defence, homeland security and other government markets, has completed the sale of Raytheon Aircraft Company to Hawker Beechcraft, a new company formed by GS Capital Partners and Onex Partners for approximately $3.3bn in cash.

Goldman Sachs is raising up to $20bn for new buy-out fund
28/03/2007. Goldman Sachs is raising up to $20bn for its new private equity fund, according to various reports referring to comments made by CEO Lloyd Blankfein at a company meeting.

Radius Ventures hires Dr Sanuj Ravindran as principal
28/03/2007. Radius Ventures, a health and life sciences-focused venture capital firm seeking investments across sectors including biotechnology and pharmaceuticals, medical devices, services, and healthcare/life sciences information technology, has announced that Dr Sanuj K Ravindran has joined the firm as a principal.

TA Associates takes stake in fund of hedge funds K2
28/03/2007. TA Associates, a firm providing management buy-out, leveraged recapitalisation and growth equity capital primarily for business services, consumer, financial services, healthcare and technology businesses, has acquired a minority interest in K2 Advisors, a $5.5bn fund of hedge funds. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

Welsh, Carson to sell Ruesch to Apax portfolio company Travelex
27/03/2007. US private equity firm Welsh, Carson, Anderson & Stowe has agreed to sell Ruesch International, a Washington, DC-based business-to-business payments services company, to Apax portfolio company Travelex for $440m.

Jens Bisgaard-Frantzen leaves ATP Private Equity Partners
27/03/2007. Managing partner Jens Bisgaard-Frantzen, is leaving Copenhagen, Denmark-based fund of funds manager ATP Private Equity Partners to start a new business within the alternative asset investment market.

TPG to buy HealthSouth's surgery division in $945m transaction
27/03/2007. HealthSouth Corporation has agreed to sell its surgery division to TPG for approximately $945m. The purchase price consists of a cash consideration of about $920m and an equity interest whereby HealthSouth has the opportunity to participate in the future success of the newly-formed company. This future consideration is estimated to be worth $25-$30m, assuming a five-year horizon.

Goodyear to sell Engineered Products business to Carlyle for $1.5bn
26/03/2007. The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company, a large manufacturer of tyres, engineered rubber products and chemicals, has agreed to sell substantially all of its Engineered Products business to EPD, an entity sponsored by Carlyle Partners IV, for $1.475bn.

Industri Kapital makes ten times its money in Prevesta transaction
26/03/2007. Oslo Børs-listed housebuilder Block Watne Group has agreed with the Industri Kapital 2004 Fund to buy 100 per cent of the shares in Prevesta, a Swedish producer of prefabricated houses. Sources told AltAssets that Industri Kapital will make an implied return of ten times its original investment, with an implied IRR of 332 per cent. The purchase price amounts to SEK1.9bn (approximately €204m) which includes the transfer of debt and shareholder loans of SEK381m.

Bridgepoint secures two deals: Wolters Kluwer Education and Fat Face
26/03/2007. Bridgepoint has acquired Wolters Kluwer Education, the educational division of quoted Dutch-based global information services and publishing company Wolters Kluwer, in a transaction which values the company at €774m. In a separate deal, the pan-European private equity firm has agreed to acquire UK clothing retailer Fat Face from Advent International in a transaction totalling £360m.

Matrix appoints Guy Blackburn as investment manager
26/03/2007. US-based smaller buy-out specialist Matrix Private Equity Partners has appointed Guy Blackburn as investment manager. Blackburn will join the new deals team, working on origination and focusing on establishing and building contacts for the firm.

Investor group to acquire Vertrue for $800m
23/03/2007. An investor group consisting of One Equity Partners, Oak Investment Partners and Rho Ventures, and the management of Vertrue Incorporated, has agreed to acquire Norwalk, Connecticut-headquartered internet direct marketing services company Vertrue in a transaction valued at approximately $800m.

Apax to acquire stake in Trader Media Group
23/03/2007. Apax Partners has announced the proposed acquisition of a 49.9 per cent stake in Trader Media Group from the Guardian Media Group. GMG will retain a 50.1 per cent stake in the business. The transaction values Trader at £1.35bn.

ABN AMRO Capital makes 2.4 times return on Park Resorts
22/03/2007. ABN AMRO Capital, the private equity business of Dutch bank ABN AMRO, has sold UK-based caravan park operator Park Resorts Group to private equity firm GI Partners for £440m. Close Brothers Private Equity also sold its stake in the business as part of the transaction. ABN AMRO Capital's investment in Park Resorts has generated a money multiple of 2.4 times with an IRR of 47 per cent, according to a statement. Exchange and completion took place simultaneously.

Magnum Venture Capital renames itself Magma Venture Partners
22/03/2007. Magnum Venture Capital, an early stage venture capital firm that specialises in investments in Israeli-related communications and semiconductor companies, has changed its name to Magma Venture Partners.

Warburg Pincus hires Asia expert Leo Puri
22/03/2007. Warburg Pincus has appointed Leo Puri as a managing director. Initially he will work from the firm's New York office and later he will be based in Mumbai. Puri is expected to help expand the firm's business in India and he will also assist in building Warburg Pincus's financial services investment activities in selected markets across Asia.

RREEF closes secondary and co-investment fund on $775m
22/03/2007. New York-headquartered RREEF Alternative Investments, the alternative investments business of Deutsche Bank's asset management division, has closed its DB Secondary Opportunities Private Equity Fund on $775m. The fund will be managed by RREEF Alternative Investment's private equity business and marks its first private equity offering.

Axiom Asia closes its first Asia-focused fund of funds
22/03/2007. Singapore-headquartered Axiom Asia Private Capital Pte has closed its first Asia-focused fund of funds, Axiom Asia Private Capital Fund I, on $440m. The fund had an original target of $350m.

Commerzbank to sell Jupiter to its management team and TA Associates
21/03/2007. US buy-out firm TA Associates has agreed to back Jupiter's senior management team in its €1bn MBO. The transaction will lead to an extraordinary capital gain for Jupiter's current owner, German bank Commerzbank, in the region of €300m, according to a statement.

Paul Capital Partners appoints John Leone as partner
21/03/2007. John R Leone has joined Paul Capital Partners as a partner. Based in the New York office, Leone will be part of the firm's healthcare team.

Kaupthing raises £500m for first third-party private equity fund
21/03/2007. Iceland's Kaupthing Bank is raising its first third-party private equity fund, Kaupthing Capital Partners II.

Global venture capital investment in Web 2.0 companies increases to $850m in 2006
21/03/2007. Venture capitalists around the world invested $844.4m into 167 Web 2.0 deals in 2006, more than twice as much capital and nearly twice as many deals as occurred in 2005, according to Ernst & Young and Dow Jones VentureOne.

F&C holds first closing on new European private equity fund of funds
20/03/2007. F&C Investments has launched a new private equity fund of funds with a focus on the European mid-market. The new fund, F&C European Capital Partners, has held a first closing on €112m and is expected to raise in excess of €200m by the end of this year.

Genstar appoints Edmund Carpenter as operating partner
20/03/2007. San Francisco-based buy-out firm Genstar Capital has appointed Edmund M Carpenter as operating partner to help identify investment opportunities and enhance the operations of Genstar's businesses in the industrial technology sector.

AIG New Europe Fund II closes on €522.5m
20/03/2007. AIG Capital Partners, part of the AIG Global Investment Group, has closed AIG New Europe Fund II on €522.5m.

Royalton Capital Investors sells Ella Bank to AXA
20/03/2007. Royalton Capital Investors, a private equity fund focused on making investments in the CEE region, has sold together with the management and EDHI, a company affiliated with the management of Ella Bank, 100 per cent of Hungarian retail bank Ella Bank and its affiliates, Ella Kft and Ella Services Romania, to AXA Holdings Belgium, an AXA Group subsidiary.

CDC-led investor group wins exclusivity for Saur
19/03/2007. European private equity firm PAI partners has granted exclusivity to a consortium comprised of Caisse des Dépôts et Consignations, Séché Environnement and Axa Investment Managers, regarding the sale of its interests in the share capital of Novasaur, the holding company of Group Saur, on the basis of an equity value of €1.72bn for 100 per cent of the shares.

DSC buys UK biscuit maker Burton's Foods
19/03/2007. London and Paris-based mid-market private equity firm Duke Street Capital has acquired Burton's Foods. Financial details of the transaction were not disclosed, but sources said that the purchase price was in the area of £200m.

CD&R to acquire ServiceMaster for $5.5bn
19/03/2007. An investment group led by Clayton, Dubilier & Rice has agreed to acquire The ServiceMaster Company for $5.5bn, including the assumption of debt.

CBPE sells UTI to InterBulk Investments for £80m
16/03/2007. UK mid-market private equity firm Close Brothers Private Equity has sold United Transport International, a global logistics firm for the movement of liquid and dry bulk materials, for £80m to InterBulk Investments.

Mike Ellwein, Rod Young join Three Arch Partners as venture partners
16/03/2007. Three Arch Partners has appointed medical technology industry veterans Michael D Ellwein and Roderick A Young as venture partners.

Gresham backs UK company ICM Computer Group in £105m deal
16/03/2007. UK mid-market private equity firm Gresham Private Equity is backing the MBO of ICM Computer Group, which is currently listed on the London Stock Exchange, in a 100 per cent cash offer worth £105m, subject to shareholder approval.

Abingworth hires Vincent Miles as venture partner
15/03/2007. Abingworth has appointed Dr Vincent Miles as venture partner, based in the firm's Waltham, Massachusetts office. His responsibilities will include evaluating new investment opportunities and supporting portfolio companies.

GE teams up with Blackstone to acquire PHH Corporation for $1.8bn
15/03/2007. GE Capital Solutions, the business-to-business leasing, financing and asset management unit of General Electric Co., and US buy-out giant The Blackstone Group have agreed to acquire PHH Corporation in an all-cash transaction for $31.50 per share or approximately $1.8bn.

Castle Harlan sells Gravograph and Technifor
15/03/2007. New York-based private equity firm Castle Harlan has sold the Gravograph-Technifor Group, a specialist in the manufacture of permanent marking machines, devices, accessories and related consumables, to LBO France for an undisclosed amount.

Israeli venture capital fundraising down to $473m last year from $1.46bn in 2005
14/03/2007. Israeli venture capital funds raised only $473m in 2006, representing a 67 per cent decline from the $1.46bn raised in 2005, according to the Annual Survey of Israeli Venture Capital Fund Raising, conducted by IVC Research Center.

CVC hires Robert Berner III
14/03/2007. Robert L Berner III has joined CVC Capital Partners as a partner, based in the firm's new New York office. Berner was most recently a managing director at Ripplewood.

Montagu Private Equity to sell UK waste management company Cory Environmental
14/03/2007. European mid-market private equity investor Montagu Private Equity has agreed to sell Cory Environmental to an infrastructure investor consortium consisting of ABN AMRO Global Infrastructure Fund, Finpro SGPS and Santander Private Equity, on behalf of Santander Infrastructure Funds I and II. The deal values the business at £588m.

3i to sell NCP car parking business to Macquarie for £790m
14/03/2007. 3i has split UK parking services company National Car Parks into two separate businesses - the traditional car parking business (NCP) and the outsourced services business (NCP Services) - and has agreed to sell the car parking business to Macquarie European Infrastructure Fund II in a £790m transaction.

Monomoy appoints David Kreilein, John Stewart as operating partners
13/03/2007. Monomoy Capital Partners, a New York-based private equity firm specialised in turnaround investments in mid-market companies, has hired two additional operating partners, David Kreilein and John Stewart, to help manage the firm's growing portfolio.

CCMP to buy BOC Edwards' vacuum and semiconductor equipment business
13/03/2007. CCMP Capital, through affiliates of CCMP Capital Advisors and CCMP Capital Asia, has agreed to acquire BOC Edwards from The Linde Group in a deal valued at €685m, with an additional payment of €65m if CCMP Capital is successful in developing the business and subsequently exiting its investment.

Ex-BAR F1 boss Richards heads investor consortium in Aston Martin acquisition
13/03/2007. Prodrive chairman and chief executive, and former team principal of the BAR Formula One Team, David Richards, is heading a consortium, which also includes Kuwaiti-based investors Adeem Investment and Investment Dar, and US banker John Sinders, in the acquisition of Aston Martin from Ford for about £439m. Ford will retain a 15 per cent stake in the company.

Mezzanine Management holds first closing on second mezzanine fund
12/03/2007. Mezzanine Management, an independent mezzanine and private equity firm, has held a €100m first closing on its second CEE mezzanine fund, Accession Mezzanine Capital II. AMC said in a statement that it started pre-marketing the fund in October 2006. The firm did not want to confirm the target size of the fund. Sources told AltAssets that the target is in the €180-200m range.

Arsenal appoints James Kalish, Chip Broadhurst as operating directors
12/03/2007. New York-based mid-market private equity firm Arsenal Capital Partners has appointed James Kalish and Austin (Chip) Broadhurst as operating directors.

Amadeus closes third fund on $310m
12/03/2007. European technology venture capital firm Amadeus Capital Partners has closed its third fund, Amadeus III, on over $310m.

VSS to sell majority stake in BV Deutsche Zeitungsholding to Mecom Group
12/03/2007. Veronis Suhler Stevenson, a private equity firm focused on investments in the media, communications, information and education sectors, has agreed to sell its majority stake in German publishing group BV Deutsche Zeitungsholding to UK-based media company Mecom Group for €160m. Mecom currently holds a 15 per cent stake in BV Deutsche Zeitungsholding. VSS has also announced that, in a parallel transaction, it has agreed to purchase a minority interest in the shares of Mecom Group.

Crestview Partners buys Key Safety Systems
09/03/2007. Ewing Management has sold Sterling Heights, Michigan-headquartered Key Safety Systems to Crestview Partners and KSS management. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

LSP hires Dr Fouad Azzam
09/03/2007. Dr Fouad Azzam has joined the LSP investment team as general partner operating from the firm's Boston office.

Scale Venture Partners closes $400m Fund II
08/03/2007. Foster City, California-based Scale Venture Partners, formerly known as BA Venture Partners, has closed its latest fund, Scale Venture Partners II, on $400m. The fund focuses on development stage technology and healthcare investments.

Energy private equity veteran John Moon goes to Riverstone Holdings
08/03/2007. John J Moon has joined energy investment firm Riverstone Holdings as a managing director. Moon will be engaged in all investment activities and will serve on the investment committees of Riverstone's current funds.

Italian firm Consilium holds second closing on €74m
08/03/2007. Milan-based Consilium has held a second closing on its second fund, Consilium Private Equity Fund. To date the fund has raised €74.1m. It is expected to close on €100m by the summer. CPEF held a first closing on €57.5m in October 2006.

AIG Asian Opportunity Fund II closes on $410m
07/03/2007. AIG Global Investment Group has closed its AIG Asian Opportunity Fund II, an expansion stage private equity fund, on above $410m.

Lime Rock hires Townes Pressler as managing director
07/03/2007. Townes Pressler, formerly the co-founder of Peregrine Oil & Gas, has joined the Lime Rock investment team as a managing director in the firm's Houston office.

Venture Capital firms invest $508m in India during 2006
07/03/2007. Venture Capital firms invested $508m across 92 deals in India during 2006, according to a study by Venture Intelligence in partnership with the US-India Venture Capital Association. This was up from 44 deals totalling $268m in 2005.

Vector-led group to acquire SafeNet for $634m
06/03/2007. An investor group led by Vector Captial has agreed to acquire SafeNet, a specialist in information security, in a transaction valued at approximately $634m.

Lightyear Fund II closes on $850m
06/03/2007. New-York-based buy-out firm Lightyear Capital has closed its second financial services buy-out fund, Lightyear Fund II, on over $850m, exceeding its $800m target.

MPM Capital closes $550m BioVentures IV healthcare venture fund
06/03/2007. MPM Capital, a US-based investment management firm focused solely on healthcare investing, has closed MPM BioVentures IV on $550m.

Blackstone to acquire The Tussauds Group, merge it with Merlin Entertainments
06/03/2007. The Blackstone Group has agreed to acquire The Tussauds Group and plans to merge it with its portfolio company Merlin Entertainments Group. Tussauds is currently owned by Dubai International Capital. DIC will receive £1.03bn in cash and retain a 20 per cent stake in the combined company, investing alongside Blackstone and LEGO Holding/KIRKBI Groups.

CMEA Ventures appoints James Kim as partner
06/03/2007. US-based CMEA Ventures has announced that James Kim has joined CMEA's energy and materials investing practice as a partner. Kim was most recently a vice president with the technology venture team at GE Commercial Finance.

Mithras Investment Trust to establish private equity fund of funds
05/03/2007. Following the decision to acquire Tandem Private Equity, Mithras Investment Trust plans to create a new private equity fund of funds management company. It will be called Mithras Private Equity and headed up by Gillian Brown, founder of Tandem.

Blackstone hires Ravi Ramanan
05/03/2007. Ravi Ramanan has joined Blackstone's private equity group as executive director. Ramanan will work with the firm's portfolio companies to enhance value.

ISIS sells UK fashion business Americana to HgCapital in £190m deal
05/03/2007. ISIS Equity Partners has sold Americana International, owner of the Bench and Hooch brands, to HgCapital in a transaction valued at £190m. ISIS invested in the Manchester-based fashion business in 2003 when it backed a £20m MBO.

Littlejohn raises additional capital for Fund III
05/03/2007. Greenwich, Connecticut-based mid-market buy-out specialist Littlejohn & Co. has completed raising additional capital for Littlejohn Fund III with total capital commitments of $850m.

Investindustrial to acquire Morris Profumi
05/03/2007. Southern European mid-market buy-out firm Investindustrial has agreed to acquire 100 per cent of Italy-based Morris Profumi from Henkel Group.

General Atlantic, Francisco Partners to acquire Aeroflex in $1bn deal
05/03/2007. General Atlantic and Francisco Partners have agreed to acquire Aeroflex Incorporated in a transaction valued at approximately $1bn.

BVCA launches industry working group to tackle transparency and disclosure issues
02/03/2007. The British Private Equity and Venture Capital Association has announced that it will form an industry working group to produce a voluntary code addressing the transparency of the UK private equity industry and levels of disclosure. The new industry working group will be chaired by Sir David Walker.

Nikko sells UK motorway service group RoadChef
02/03/2007. Nikko Principal Investments Limited, the principal finance arm of Nikko Cordial Corporation, and Vision Capital, have sold motorway services group RoadChef to a subsidiary of Delek Real Estate for £375m.

Bridgepoint acquires Dragenopharm in Germany, sells GraceKennedy in UK
01/03/2007. Bridgepoint has taken a majority stake in Dragenopharm Apotheker Püschl, a German contract manufacturing organisation for the European generic prescription drug market. In a separate transaction, the pan-European private equity firm sold UK food distribution company WT Foods to GraceKennedy.

Emerging markets private equity funds raise $33bn in 2006
01/03/2007. A total of 162 private equity funds focused on investing in the emerging markets of Asia, Eastern Europe, Latin America, the Middle East and Africa raised $33.2bn in capital commitments in 2006, according to data from the Emerging Markets Private Equity Association. This represents a 29 per cent increase over the $25.8bn raised in 2005.