PRINT THIS PAGE Weekly Deals and Funds Roundup: 5 March 200805/03/2008. Source: AltAssets. 
A selection of the latest deals and funds news from across the globe - essential reading for those who need to keep up-to-date with the industry's key developments.
Boston and London-based Fidelity Ventures, alongside existing investor Balderton Capital, has led a €6.5m Series B financing round for digital lifestyle solutions company NewBay Software. Balderton Capital first backed the company in 2003. As part of the deal, Simon Clark, a partner at Fidelity Ventures, will join the company's board of directors.
LNK Partners, a private equity firm focused on the consumer/retail sector, has completed a recapitalisation of US restaurant chain Au Bon Pain. LNK and company management acquired a majority ownership interest in the company with more than $100m invested in the deal. Boston-based Au Bon Pain operates 226 bakery cafés across the US and internationally. In 2007, the company generated sales revenue of almost $300m, according to a statement. LNK Partners is led by former head of Apax Partners David Landau, amongst others. The firm's investment in Au Bon Pain will be the second the firm has made from its inaugural $400m fund.
Munich-based venture firm TVM Capital and GE Healthcare Financial Services now jointly hold 25.4 per cent of shares in German pharmaceutical company Riemser Arzneimittel. TVM Capital gained a ten per cent share in the company at the end of last year. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. Dr Christoph Schröder, TVM Capital partner, is also a member of Riemser's supervisory board.
Weather-focused risk management company Storm Exchange, has gained $7.2m of expansion capital from a group of private equity firms, including original backers RRE Ventures and Venrock Associates. Storm Exchange operates an online financial market to help businesses plan for and manage their weather-related risks. RRE Ventures manages $850m in assets dedicated to investing in mainly in the IT sector.
Secondary investor Saints Capital has agreed to acquire growth-stage technology and life sciences holding company Safeguard Scientifics, in a deal worth approximately $100m. Safeguards's six companies included in the transaction are: Acsis, Alliance Holdings Group Associates, Laureate Pharma, NextPoint Networks, Neuronyx, and ProModel Corporation. Saints also targets direct investments sectors including technology, healthcare, consumer and industrial.
Dallas, Texas-headquartered private equity fund Treadstone Capital Management has acquired a controlling interest in Nichols Brothers Boat Builders. Treadstone invests in the debt and equity of distressed operating companies, and acquired the assets through a bankruptcy sale. Treadstone and co-investor, Drum Capital Management expect to invest up to $15m, according to a statement.
3i is selling it stake in Blueberry Group to Close Growth Capital for £12m. As part of the deal, Mike Thorne will become CEO of Blueberry. The company supplies and distributes specialty ambient food to the independent retail market. During 2007, Blueberry's sales neared £20m, according to a statement. The company was originally purchased by 3i in 2005. During the past 18 months CGC has made investments in Wrap Film Systems, Killby & Gayford Group, Eldapoint, the MBI of Toms Confectionery, the acquisition of the confectionery arm of Burton's Foods, the acquisition of Monkhill from Cadbury and the £32m secondary buy-out of A-Gas International.
New York-based private equity firm Arsenal Capital Partners is to acquire DSM Special Products from Royal DSM, for an undisclosed sum. DSM Special Products manufactures specialty ingredients used in food, pharma and animal feed, and also industrial applications. The company has sales of about $150m, according to a statement. Upon completion of the deal, DSM will be renamed Genovique Specialties and headquartered in Sittard, Netherlands. Arsenal Capital Partners invests in mid-market companies in the specialty industrial, healthcare and financial services industries.
Latin American private equity fund NAFTA Fund of Mexico, together with coffee chain Cafeina, has backed ice cream retailer Baskin-Robbins to franchise its operations in Mexico. The newly formed joint vehicle, 'Helados de Norte America' plans on opening or re-opening more than 68 Baskin Robbins stores over the next five years, the first of which will be located in Mexico City, Cancun and the Bajio region in central Mexico. NAFTA Fund of Mexico has been making private equity investments in Mexico since 2003. To date, Nafta Fund has made investments in manufacturing, transportation and logistics, printed media, telecommunications and consumer goods.
T-Mobile Venture Fund and private equity investor Granville Baird plan to purchase Siemens Wireless Modules business as part of a leveraged buy-out. Financial terms were not disclosed. T-Mobile will maintain a minority interest in the company going forward. Germany-based Siemens develops mobile communication modules for the machine-to-machine communication market. T-Mobile Venture Fund is the venture capital entity of Deutsche Telekom and seeks to provide the company with innovation and commercial synergy. Granville Baird is a private equity firm specialising in mid-market German companies.
Aureos South-East Asia Fund has invested $3.7m in Thailand-based Eurotech Engineering International. EEI is a steel fabrication firm that provides special equipment for power plants. ASEAF's investment will be utilised to expand EEI's steel fabrication business, according to a statement. ASEAF is an initiative of Aureos Capital, a private equity firm specialising in providing expansion and buy-out capital to middle-market businesses in emerging markets.
Netherlands-based pharmaceutical firm PanGenetics has raised €23m through a series C fundraising round. Investors included Forbion Capital Partners, Index Ventures, Credit Argicole Private Equity, Edmond de Rothschild Investment Partners, Biogen Idec New Ventures and Fortis Private Equity. Forbion Capital Partners invests in European and US life sciences companies and has broadened its investor base by becoming independent in December 2006.
Communications company Mzinga has secured $32.5m in a new round of financing. The company generates more than $30m in annual revenues, according to a statement. The growth round of funding was led by private equity firm W Capital Partners and also included institutional investors Bluecrest Capital Finance, GE Equity and Knowledge Industries, alongside company management.
Semiconductor company Qcept Technologies has raised $9.5m in a Series C funding round led by Siemens Venture Capital and also including Pittco Capital Management and other existing investors. This latest round brings Qcept's total financing to nearly $25m. Siemens Venture Capital is the corporate venture organisation for electronics and engineering company Siemens. SVC targets sectors including energy and environmental care, automation and control, industrial and public infrastructure and healthcare.
Aberdeen Asset Managers Private Equity has invested £7m in UK fleet support business FMG Support. The company recorded revenues in 2007 of over £60m, according to a statement. The investment in FMG Support represents Aberdeen's fourth transaction in the last 12 months, following investments in regeneration specialist EDSR, oil and environmental services provider Adler and Allan and the sale of Plaxton.
European online restaurant reservations and marketing network Livebookings has secured £6.5m of funding led by venture capital firm Balderton Capital. Livebookings offers real-time internet booking and restaurant confirmation service. London-based Balderton invests across a wide variety of technology sectors and geographies, including throughout Europe and in the US and China. Investments include Bebo, Betfair, Codemasters, Habbo Hotel, MySQL and Setanta Sports.
ISIS Equity Partners, investing funds from the Baronsmead VCTs, has completed the £11m MBO/MBI of Leeds, UK-based vehicle rental company Nexus Vehicle Management. Neil McCrossan, who led the acquisition, will join Nexus as CEO. ISIS previously backed the growth of Reed & Mackay corporate travel and SLR environmental services. ISIS operates from offices in London, Birmingham, Leeds and Manchester. The firm focuses on investment in unquoted companies in the UK and Europe, targeting sectors including business services, financial services, consumer markets, healthcare & education, media and IT.
Sleep Solutions, a developer of medical technologies for the sleep disorder market, has raised $20.5m in a fundraising round led by TPG Biotechnology, through its TPG Biotechnology II fund, alongside existing investors including MedVenture Associates, Dr Thomas Fogarty/Emergent Ventures and Lava Ventures. The additional investment will be used to build a national sales and marketing capability, expand facilities, and continue driving the company's development of innovative applications for its proprietary medical devices, according to a statement. As part of the deal, Grossman and Ned Brown, also a managing director of TPG Biotech, have joined the company's board of directors. TPG Biotech is part of the venture capital investment platform of private investment firm TPG.
Copyright © 2008 AltAssets
|
