News highlights
Private equity news
Proposed pension changes may boost PE market
Coller buys Abbey portfolio
Inflexion buys LMS portfolio
CDC restructured to form Actis
Acanthus and MMC join forces
European fund raising down 40%
Russell acquires Pantheon
Northern Venture Managers goes independent
nCoTec & Frontiers Capital merge
Part’Com renames and reaches first close
Residex Ventures formed
NStar seeks fund managers for NE England fund
AXA PE buys BdW
Venture capital
US venture capital looking up
AngelNews spreads the word
Pre-Budget Report: a boost for VCTs?
Israeli tech attracts $1bn
Funds
Standard Life breaks €1bn barrier
More funds for VCTs
Sigma launches Innovation Fund
Martin Currie boosts private equity offering
AMJPE closes buyout fund
Interim close for Gresham III
Activa Capital fund oversubscribed
CSFB closes secondary fund
Carlyle closes first European property fund
Exits
Baxi Group refinancing provides exit
3M buys Hörnell
Cinven to exit Unique Pub Company
Partial exit for BS Private Equity
EQT to sell Vaasan & Vaasan
Cambridge Silicon Radio to float
eBay acquires mobile.de
Deutsche divests further PE interests
Q4 IPO recovery
Flightstore floats on AIM
Advent International sells Loxam
CapMan makes Swedish sale
NextGenTel to list on Oslo Stock Exchange
Bridgepoint and Electra sell Gower
Groupe Plastex in secondary buyout
3i and Quester benefit from trade sale
CapVis sells Tobler
Burren Energy manages IPO
Aspen celebrates IPO
BC Partners makes partial exit with Barbero
MidOcean sells Center Parcs ahead of IPO
Barclays Ventures achieves holidays exit
Trade sales bring food sector exits for 3i
L&GV and ABN AMRO complete deal with Schneider Electric
CapMan sells caravan company
Spain’s 1st secondary MBO provides 3i exit
L&GV buys LGC from 3i
Permira exits dental businesses
AIM float of Pixology
Secondary buyouts provide Bridgepoint exits
People
KPMG CF appts
Morton’s charity marathon
Brenner to Benchmark
Ward joins Apax
GMAC CF expands
Ultreia advisory board
CapMan expands
Acanthus & MMC merge
ECI moves
Dechert in Munich
McInnesCF recruits
O’Melveny & Myers appts
Pro-South Yorkshire launch
Lloyds TSB Corporate new MD
Mannheimer Swartling doubles PE
Rothschild builds mezz team
Unigestion appts PE head
Commerzbank expands lev fin
3 for CIBC’s Euro buyout team
DVC builds life science
Speechley to Macfarlanes
Permira promotes
Beringea appts
FitzGerald to Carlyle
Carlyle promotes
Acanthus recruits
Part’Com renamed Iris Capital
CBPE moves
CVC promotes
KPMG new head
Ashurst name change
Martin Currie forms panel
Gresham appts
AMJPE recruits
Lloyds TSB expands
Nordic Mezzanine appts
Keyhaven recruits
Features
Energy sector: the power and the glory?
Last year the lights went out in both New York and London as these major cities and areas of other developed countries such as Italy, Sweden and Denmark, suffered large-scale power cuts. Suddenly people’s attention turned to the challenges facing the energy sector. Where there’s change there’s opportunities for the private equity industry and a number of drivers mean the energy sector is likely to be the focus of increased investment activity in the years to come. Louise Cowley looks at what and where the opportunities are and who’s best placed to take advantage of them.
Asset-based lending hots up
Recent asset-based lending activity in the US has further reinforced this finance tool as a popular mainstream option with recent deals for well-known companies such as Levis Strauss, Sachs of Fifth Avenue and Polaroid funding some of their business development this way. While UK and continental European deals may be a long way off the $600m working capital facility completed by San Francisco-based Levis Strauss last year, many deals are now topping £100m and so are appealing to larger companies than before. There are strong expectations in the market that a deal in excess of £200m will be signed in Europe before 2004 is out. Anthony O’Connor reports
Buyouts: IPO prospects for 2004
After four years in the doldrums there finally appears to be some wind in the sails of the IPO market. Louise Cowley considers the relationship between VCs and fund managers and asks, ‘how private equity-backed offerings will fare in 2004?’
Legal & Regulatory Exchange: VCTs seek new investor base
December 10, 2003 saw UK Chancellor Gordon Brown announce the proposed changes to the VCT subscription reliefs, as part of his pre-Budget statement. These changes have not been confirmed and may be subject to amendment. But it is probable that as of April 6, 2004 capital gains tax (CGT) deferral will be abolished and from April 2006 a new income tax-based incentive will be introduced of an equivalent value to CGT deferral. In addition, the government has proposed it will pay an extra 20% of the amount raised from investors directly to VCTs for the next two years. What does this mean for VCTs and is it likely to kick-start the industry opening doors to a whole new investor base? asks Angela Sormani
LP Corner: Succession
Succession is increasingly becoming an issue institutional investors feel under pressure to devote their time and attention to as many of the founders and senior partners in their funds edge into their mid 50s and beyond. But in many private equity and venture capital firms the subject is strictly off limits. Why, and will that change now that some institutional investors seem prepared to force the issue into the open before they commit to the next surge of fund raisings? Lisa Bushrod reports
These stories and more can be accessed with a username and password to www.evcj.com or by subscribing to the magazine version of European Venture Capital (& Private Equity) Journal.