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Weekly Deals and Funds Roundup: 8 October 200808/10/2008. 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.
Private equity firm H.I.G. Capital has made a strategic investment in Epic Production Technologies. Financial terms were not disclosed. Epic was formed through the merger of Q1 Production Technologies and Ed & Ted's Excellent Lighting, providers of lighting systems for concert tours, theatrical productions and corporate and special events. H.I.G. partnered with management to make the deal. The firm specialises in providing capital to small and medium-sized companies.
The Carlyle Group has invested $75m in financial services business Boston Private Financial Holdings. Carlyle's investment is a central component of BPFH's overall capitalraising plan which has generated in excess of $185m in new equity capital, in part through a $110m public offering of common stock completed on 29 July 2008, the company said in a statement.
FF&P Private Equity, the private equity division of Fleming Family & Partners, has made an investment in Ikon Science, a provider of software and quantitative interpretation services to the upstream oil and gas sector. As a result of the restructuring, FPE will become the largest shareholder in the company and is prepared to make further capital resources available to Ikon in order to fund the expansion of the business, according to a statement. As part of the restructuring, Henry Sallitt, director of FPE, has joined the board as non-executive director. FF&P Private Equity has over £285m of funds committed to its discretionary management. The firm typically invests between £5m to £20m of equity per transaction.
MMA Renewable Ventures and photovoltaic manufacturer Suntech Power Holdings have established Gemini Solar Development Company a joint venture to develop and finance photovoltaic projects. MMA Renewable Ventures, Suntech, and third-party finance partners will co-own and operate the projects built by Gemini Solar. MMA Renewable Ventures is a subsidiary of Municipal Mortgage & Equity, the firm develops, finances, owns and operates renewable energy and energy efficiency projects in the US.
The Riverside Company has realised its investment in Richter Chemie-Technik, a supplier of pumps, valves, controls and related services to the chemical and pharmaceutical industries. The sale represents the first platform company to exit the Riverside Europe Fund III. Riverside focuses on the smaller end of the mid market. The firm has over 180 professionals in 18 offices worldwide.
Finnish private equity investor Sentica Partners has acquired DWT Engineering from Markku Sihvonen and Timo Kivimäki. DWT specialises in sludge treatment and will merge with Sentica portfolio company Cavia. DWT generates a net turnover of some €7.5m and employs 30 people. Sentica focuses on acquiring and developing medium-sized and small companies.
EQT Opportunity together with the Pfaff family and company management has agreed to sell Pfaff-silberbla to Columbus McKinnon Corporation, a supplier of lifting, material handling and actuator products. EQT acquired Pfaff-silberblau from the Pfaff family in November 2006. The family remained a minority shareholder in the company. With about 300 employees, Pfaff-silberblau had sales of €62m in 2007.
Biotechnology company Intradigm Corporation has raised $18.5m in a Series B financing. The financing was led by Lilly Ventures with participation from other new investors Roche Venture Fund and MP Healthcare Venture Management. Existing investorsFrazier Healthcare Ventures, Alta Partners, MediBic Alliance Technology Fund and Novartis Venture Fund also participated in the round. In connection with the financing, Bryan Dunnivant, principal at Lilly Ventures, will join Intradigm's board of directors.
New York-based private equity firm Arsenal Capital Partners has agreed to acquire Ferro Corporation's Fine Chemicals business, a manufacturer of electrolytes used in the manufacture of lithium ion batteries, for $66m. The new company will be named Novolyte Technologies and has manufacturing facilities in both the US and China. Earlier this year, Arsenal announced plans to acquire DSM Special Products, a business unit of Royal DSM that manufactures specialty ingredients used in a range of applications. Arsenal's current investments in the specialty chemicals sector include Velsicol Chemical.
CEE-focused private equity firm Mid Europa Partners has agreed to acquire an additional 37.3 per cent stake in Falcon Group from their consortium partner Lehman Brothers taking their ownership in the Group to 74.6 per cent. Falcon Group owns 100 per cent of Ceske Radiokomunikace and 39.2 per cent of T-Mobile Czech Republic, which it acquired in November 2006. Mid Europa Partners advises and manages funds with committed capital of approximately €3bn.
Houston-based rock physics companyIngrain has secured a second round of funding totalling $15m. Investors included venture capital firms Energy Ventures, Shoaibi Group, Klaveness Invest, Kommunal Landspensjonskasse and Stanford University, as well as members of Ingrain's management team. Energy Ventures focuses on upstream technology.
Technology company Crocus Technology has raised a combined €11.5m in its second round of funding. The round saw participation from Crocus' current investors AGF Private Equity, CDC Innovation, NanoDimension, Sofinnova and Ventech, raising €8.5m. The company was also awarded an additional €3m in funding from OSEO, a French agency supporting advanced research and development programmes.
Small buy-out specialist Matrix Private Equity Partners has backed the MBO of UK publishing business Metropress. Metropress publishes the Antiques Trade Gazette and currently employs 53 people, with annual revenue in excess of £6m. Matrix targets businesses valued between £5m and £20m.
Mortgage holding company Amherst Holdings has received a $225m investment from a group of private investors led by financial services-focused private equity firm Stone Point Capital and also unnamed institutional investors. According to a statement, Amherst intends to use the capital to enhance its strong capital and liquidity positions, bolster its loan-level analytic tools and expand the sales and trading activities of its established broker-dealer subsidiary, Amherst Securities Group, in the residential mortgage-backed securities and related markets. Stone Point made the investment from its Trident IV fund.
Alien Technology has secured $38m in a new round of financing, led by existing investors Advanced Equities, New Enterprise Associates, Rho Ventures and Sunbridge Partners. Alien Technology provides UHF Radio Frequency Identification products and services to customers in retail, consumer goods, manufacturing, defence, transportation and logistics and pharmaceuticals industries. In April of last year, Alien Technology raised $33m from Advanced Equities, Sunbridge Partners, Rho Ventures and NEA. To date, the company has raised $329m.
Diversified private equity house AXA Private Equity and French state-owned bank Caisse des Dépôts have agreed to sell their stakes in HIME, the Saur Group holding company, to CUBE Infrastructure, an investment fund sponsored by Natixis group which invests in equity of companies involved in infrastructure and services for local authorities. Caisse des Dépôts will sell its nine per cent stake and AXA Private Equity its three per cent stake. HIME's equity will be divided between four shareholders: Caisse des Dépôts (38 per cent), Séché Environnement (33 per cent), AXA Private Equity (17 per cent) and CUBE Infrastructure (12 per cent). This transaction is designed to stabilise Saur's equity capital via long-term shareholders with the shared aim of establishing a new environmental services company in France, according to a statement.
European private equity firm Argos Soditic has acquired a majority stake in information securities companyLEXSI (Laboratoire d'Expertise en Sécurité Informatique) through an MBO. No financial terms were disclosed. Based in France, LEXSI provides information systems security consulting specialising in risk protection. Earlier this year, Argos Soditic launched a new European mid-market mezzanine fund, Argos Expansion, with a target of €150m.
London Business School has received a multi-million pound commitment from the J Coller Foundation to help create an institute for private equity education and research, the Coller Institute of Private Equity. The first chairman of the Coller Institute will be Professor Eli Talmor. The Coller Institute conducts research into issues important to the private equity industry and its stakeholders. The J Coller Foundation is a philanthropic foundation which, since 2002, has supported a number of educational, medical research, community and environmental causes.
Clinical stage biopharmaceutical company Biolex Therapeutics has closed a $60m Series D financing led by biotechnology investor Clarus Ventures, with life sciences venture capital investor OrbiMed Advisors participating as a new investor. Existing investors participating in the financing included Intersouth Partners, Quaker BioVentures, Johnson & Johnson Development Corporation, Investor Growth Capital, Polaris Ventures, Mitsui & Company, The Dow Chemical Company, JP Morgan Securities and the North Carolina Economic Development Fund. As part of the deal, Jeffrey Leiden, managing director of Clarus Ventures, and Klaus Veitinger, venture partner with OrbiMed Advisors, have joined Biolex's board of directors.
Gordon Brothers Group, an advisory, restructuring and investment firm specialising in the retail, consumer products, real estate and industrial sectors, has established GB Investment Management Group, a wholly owned subsidiary responsible for managing all of Gordon Brothers' funds and legacy investments, including GB Merchant Partners, the 1903 Equity Fund, the 1903 Debt Fund and the 1903 Offshore Debt Fund. GBIMG currently has over $500m under management. The group focuses on private equity, structured loans and secondary debt investments.
BlackArrow, a provider of ad-management software, has secured $20m in venture financing to further product development, expand distribution platform support and increase worldwide sales and marketing efforts, according to a statement. Participating in the round are BlackArrow's existing investors Cisco Systems alongside venture capital firms Comcast Interactive Capital, Intel Capital, Mayfield Fund and Polaris Venture Partners. To date, BlackArrow has raised a total of $38m in private financing.
European buy-out firm 21 Centrale Partners has sold insurance company AFU to Amlin. AFU focuses on SME specialty businesses and operates through a network of over 1,300 independent retail brokers and underwriters. In 2007 the company established a joint venture with Grupo Galilea Puig to expand the business into the Spanish market. 21 Centrale closed its third private equity fund in November 2006, on €330m. The firm is part of the 21 Group, an equity investment group led by Alessandro Benetton and Gérard Pluvinet.
Growth private equity and buy-out firm TA Associates, through its TA Associates X fund, has made an investment in Radialpoint, a Montreal-based provider of managed internet services, for CAN$98m. According to a statement, TA Associates will support Radialpoint in further expanding the business through growth initiatives such as investing in new products and services, as well as increasing its market share, according to a statement. The firm has also completed a $60m minority investment in online market research business e-Rewards. The company employs more than 300 professionals located in Dallas, London, Los Angeles, New York, San Francisco, Chicago and Seattle. TA Associates manages more than $12bn in capital.
US private equity firms MSD Capital and North Peak Capital have acquired dental practice management company Dental One from SSM Ventures and ABN Amro. Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed. In early 2007, MSD and North Peak acquired dental practice business Dental Care Partners, based in Cleveland, Ohio. MSD Capital, manages in excess of $12bn in assets and is primarily focused on traditional private equity, real estate and publicly-traded securities. North Peak Capital invests in small- to medium-sized companies, primarily in the healthcare services and for-profit education industries.
Private equity firm Infinity Equity, through its Infinity I-China Fund has invested $20m in Chinese games company Oberon Media. The investment is part of a larger global strategy for Oberon Media and Infinity, which includes expanding the game publishing and distribution business and establishing new partnerships in China, according to the firm. Infinity Equity manages more than $600m through three funds with a portfolio of 45 companies and 20 successful exits. The Infinity I-China Fund, Infinity's second fund in China, focuses on Israeli-Chinese related opportunities.
Mid-market mezzanine investor Norwest Mezzanine Partners has invested $40.6m in subordinated debt and equity to support US buy-out firm Olympus Partners' acquisition of Norwesco, a manufacturer and plastics rotational molder. Norwesco has 17 plants currently in operation. Olympus manages in excess of $3bn on behalf of corporate pension funds, endowment funds, and state-sponsored retirement programs. NMP is currently investing its $500m NMP III fund.
A consortium of private equity firms comprising DFW Capital Partners, Meridian Venture Partners and Theo Capital Partners has sold Andrews Holding to mid-market investor Audax Group, a provider of private security and risk mitigation services to the entertainment, high-end retail, financial services, commercial property management, and education sectors. With offices in Boston and New York, Audax manages in excess of $4.3bn of equity, mezzanine debt and senior loan capital.
Menlo Park-headquartered venture capital firm Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers alongside Foundation Capital, JVB Propertiesand Northgate Capital has participated in a $75m financing round for US smart grid technology business Silver Spring Networks. The company provides smart grid technology, systems, and services to customers including Florida Power & Light Company, Pacific Gas and Electric Company, Modesto Irrigation District, Oklahoma Gas & Electric and Consumers Energy. KPCB has offices in Menlo Park, Beijing and Shanghai.
US Mobile software company Kineto Wireless has raised an additional $15.5m in funding, including a strategic investment from Motorola as part of a broader commercial relationship with the company. Existing venture capital investors Oak Investment Partners, Sutter Hill Ventures, Venrock, Seapoint Ventures and InterDigital also participated in the funding. Kineto's FMC solutions enable mobile operators to extend voice, data and IMS services over broadband access networks.
Nordic venture capital firm Via Venture Partners has invested $8m in mobile search company mobilePeople. The funding will enable the company to expand its international within the mobile search and advertising space, according to a statement. mobilePeople builds mobile presence, distribution and advertising for a number of handsets. Via Venture Partners is a multi-stage venture capital fund investing in the Nordic region. The company invests in internet, communication software and ICT growth companies.
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