Get The Wire in your inbox each morning! Just send us an email.

Trump Hotels and Casino Resorts Inc. has entered into an exclusivity agreement with DLJ Merchant Banking Partners, an affiliate of Credit Suisse First Boston, in regards to a proposed $400 million recapitalization. If the deal is consummated, Donald Trump would remain as chairman and CEO, but CSFB would be controlling shareholder. www.trump.com

 

Krish Prabhu has been named CEO of Tellabs (Nasdaq: TLAB), which means that he will leave his partnership post with Morgenthaler Ventures. Prior to joining Morgenthaler, Prabhu had served as CEO of Alcatel USA. www.tellabs.com 

 

Vendavo Inc., a Palo Alto, Calif.-based provider of price management software, has raised $6 million in Series D funding. Return investors included DCM-Doll Capital Management, InterWest Partners, St. Paul Venture Capital, Sigma Partners and Spectrum Equity Investors. In related news, the company has named former GE executive and venture capitalist Al Crites as president and CEO. Crites worked for 15 years at GE and, before that, spent 12 years as a general partner with InterWest Partners. He had been on the Vendavo board for the past three years, and will maintain that seat. www.vendavo.com

 

BroadLight Inc., a Ramat Gan, Israel-based producer of communication semiconductors, has raised $11.5 million in Series C funding. Israel Seed Partners led the deal, and was joined by return backers Star Ventures and Delta Ventures. www.broad-light.com

 

MDG Medical Inc., a Cleveland-based provider of an automated pharmaceutical dispensing system for use in hospitals and long-term care facilities, has raised $7.5 million in Series B funding. Investors include LSWK Investment, RSL Investment Management (the VC arm of Estee Lauder Cosmetics heir Ronald S. Lauder) and Michael Siegal, CEO and president of Olympic Steel. www.mdgmedical.com

 

Integrian Inc., a Research Triangle Park-based provider of mobile and digital video technologies, has raised $5.5 million in Series A funding. InterSouth Partners led the deal, and was joined by Motorola Ventures and Wakefield Group. In related news, the company has named Peter Durand as its new CEO. Durand most recently served as president of Entivity Inc. www.integrian.com

 

Olliance Group, a Palo Alto, Calif.-based provider of open source consulting services, has received a strategic investment from CIGNEX Technologies Inc. No financial terms of the deal were disclosed. www.olliancegroup.com

 

GTCR Golder Rauner has agreed to acquire consumer products company Prestige Brands International Inc., whose portfolio includes brands in the household cleaning, over-the-counter drug and personal care categories. Prestige was launched as a platform company in 1999 by MidOcean Partners, which acquired Prell shampoo from Proctor & Gamble. Other firms involved in Prestige’s creation include Provender, Jefferson Capital, Swander Pace and Peak Capital. No financial terms of the acquisition were disclosed. www.prestigebrands.com

 

Clayton, Dubilier & Rice has completed its $2.4 billion cash sale of Kinko’s Inc. to FedEx Corp. www.kinkos.com

 

Sentinel Capital Partners has acquired Nivel Partners and Manufacturing Co., a Jacksonville, Fla.-based subsidiary of KODA Enterprises Group. No deal terms were disclosed. Nivel is an independent distributor of golf cart replacement partners and accessories.

 

Wind Point Partners is providing equity funding for Active Media Interest Inc.‘s acquisition of Home Buyer Publications, a Chantilly, Va.-based publisher of special interest consumer magazines like Log Home Living and Timber Frame Homes. No deal terms were disclosed. www.activeinterestmedia.com

 

Affordable Residential Communities Inc., a Denver-based operator of manufactured home communities, will begin trading on the NYSE today under ticker symbol ARC. The company yesterday priced 24.5 million shares at $19 per share (low end of its $19-$21 offering range), for a total IPO take of $392 million. The only selling shareholder was Nassau Capital, which owned the company alongside Thomas H. Lee Partners and UBS Capital Americas. The majority of capital raised will be used by Affordable Residential to acquire Hometown America LLC. www.arc-hs.com

 

Atheros Communications Inc., a Sunnyvale, Calif.-based maker of wireless LAN chipsets and software, began trading yesterday on the Nasdaq under ticker symbol ATHR. The company priced nine million shares of common stock on the Nasdaq at $14 per share (above its $11.50 to $13.50 offering range), for a total IPO take of $126 million. The company had raised around $83 million in VC funding since its 1998 inception, with investors including New Enterprise Associates, Foundation Capital, August Capital, Fidelity Investments, Levensohn Venture Partners, Mitsubishi Corp., Bowman Capital and Evercore Partners. Atheros closed its first day of trading at $17.50 per share. www.atheros.com

 

Corgentech Inc., a South San Francisco-based biotech company focused on therapeutics that regulate gene expression, began trading on the Nasdaq yesterday under ticker symbol CGTK. The company priced six million shares of common stock at $16 per share (high end of its $14-$16 per share offering range), for a total IPO take of $96 million. The company had raised over $95 million in VC funding, from investors like JPMorgan Partners, Alta Partners, Bear Stearns Health Innoventures, HBM BioVentures and Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. Corgentech closed its first day of trading up at $21.40 per share. www.corgentech.com

 

MarketAxess Holdings Inc., a New York-based operator of a global securities exchange website, has filed to raise $150 million via an IPO of common stock on the Nasdaq under proposed ticker symbol MKTX. The company has raised over $100 million in private equity funding since its 2000 inception. Investors include Banc of America Capital Investors, JPMorgan Partners, Capital Z Partners and PAI Partners. www.marketaxess.com 

 

Corcept Therapeutics Inc., a Menlo Park, Calif.-based drug company focused on psychiatric and neurological diseases, has refiled IPO registration papers, after having pulled an offering in October 2002. The company’s latest attempt at the public markets is designed to raise $80 million on the Nasdaq under proposed ticker symbol CORT. Corcept has raised around $40 million in VC funding since its 1998 inception, including a $12.8 million round in late 2002 at a post-money valuation of approximately $125 million. Company investors include Sutter Hill Ventures, Maverick Capital and Alta Partners. www.corcept.com 

 

B&G Foods Holding Corp., a Parsippany, N.J.-based producer of shelf-stable food products, has filed to raise $565 million via an IPO on the AMEX. Company shareholders include Bruckmann, Rosser, Sherrill & Co., Canterbury Mezzanine Capital, and CIT Group. www.bgfoods.com 

 

Starfish Ventures Pty. Ltd., an Australia-based VC firm focused on technology investments, has held an AUD$62.5 million (approx. US$49.47 million) first close on its inaugural fund. Limited partners include the Development Australia Fund, Macquarie Funds Management, Quay Partners, Westcheme and Mitsui & Co. www.starfishventures.com.au

 

NEWS FROM THURSDAY 12/12

Warburg Pincus and Blackstone Capital Partners are investing $300 million into Dallas-based Kosmos Energy LLC to develop oil and gas ventures in West Africa. The deal is viewed as more risky than typical oil and gas-related private equity investments, since the company is new and hinges upon finding oil rather than transporting it, for example. Specifically, Kosmos will jointly explore an area along the west coast of Africa extending from Morocco in the north through Angola in the south. The company is led by chairman and CEO James Musselman, who was previously CEO of Triton Energy. www.kosmosenergy.com

Chinese chipmaker giant Semiconductor Manufacturing International, has filed with the SEC to raise as much as $714 million in an initial public offering. Backed by investors including H&Q Asia Pacific, Walden International and Motorola, the company will offer American Depositary Shares, which will accompany a public offering of ordinary shares in Hong Kong. The IPO will be managed by Credit Suisse First Boston and Deutsche Bank.

Centre Partners-owned Bumble Bee Seafoods has merged with Canadian sardine canner Connors Bros. Income Fund in a $385 million transaction, creating North America's largest branded seafood company. The deal follows Centre's $200 million acquisition of Bumble Bee from ConAgra Foods Inc. in May 2003. Christopher Lischewski, President and CEO of Bumble Bee, will be CEO of the combined entity, while Connors CEO Edward McLean will become executive vice president, sardine operations and procurement. The combined company will be Canada's largest consumer products income

fund, with pro-forma revenue of C$918 million and EBITDA of C$101 million for

the 12-month period ended Sept. 30, 2003.

Hayward, Calif.-based Zyomyx Inc., which develops biochips for protein analysis, has

raised $10 million in a venture capital financing.  Led by CSFB Private Equity, the deal also attracted existing backers Alloy Ventures, Lilly BioVentures, Hambrecht & Quist Capital Management, Mediphase Venture Partners and Bio*One Capital Pte Ltd., the dedicated Biomedical Sciences investment arm of the Singapore Economic Development Board. Zyomyx president and CEO Bob Monaghan called the investment a "late stage round" in the press release. www.zyomyx.com

 

New York-based Platform Learning, which offers tutoring services in the Northeast, has raised $4.1 million in a series B round of financing. Led by Quad Ventures, the deal also attracted Ascend Venture Group LLC. Platform also announced that Ronald E. Mason, formerly of Empire Blue Cross Blue Shield, has joined as senior vice president of human resources. www.platformlearning.com

 

.comDominio, a Brazilian Internet service provider, has raised an undisclosed amount of venture capital from Stratus Investimentos, a Brazilian venture capital firm, according to Business News Americas. The company, which provides IT outsourcing services, web hosting and Internet access through its BigHost ISP, counts JPMorgan Partners and Votorantim Ventures among its investors. www.comdominio.com.br  

 

Buffalo, N.Y.-based Synacor, whose software supports the delivery of bundled online services, has closed a new round of financing. Led by Advantage Capital Partners, the deal also included Access Technology Capital LLC, Rand Capital, Walden International Investment Group and Crystal Venture Capital. Advantage Capital manages a $65 million fund under the CAPCO program, which is dedicated to small businesses in the state of New York. www.synacor.com

 

Visible Path, a New York-based social networking software company, has raised $3.7 million in venture capital financing from Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, Reuters is reporting. www.visiblepath.com

 

Associated Press is reporting that Oaktree Capital Management will buy a controlling stake in Spirit Airlines for as much as $125 million. The deal, which is expected to close by tomorrow, would allow Spirit to double its fleet by 2009. Miramar, Fla.-based Spirit is a discount airline that flies to 16 cities. www.spiritair.com

 

Toronto-based Alias, a special-effects software company that won an Oscar last year for technical achievements, is being shopped to a private equity firm, according to several news reports. Silicon Graphics Inc., which currently owns the company, is expected to hold a conference call today at 5 p.m.

Wayne Wen-Tsui Tsou has joined The Carlyle Gruop as managing director, leading venture investments in the Asia-Pacific region.  Tsou comes to Carlyle from Warburg Pincus, where he was managing director and head of Asian technology investments since 1998.  Tsou will be based in Hong Kong and will start on March 1.  Carlyle said his appointment allows Tony Jansz to lead a number of new corporate projects in the region.

Dr. Ronald C. Clark, a co-founder of Lewis & Clark Ventures LLC and former president of the Ohio Polymer Enterprise Development Corp., died Monday evening of an apparent heart attack. The 55-year-old was working with Robert Acri, a principal of Kenilworth Asset Management LLC, to raise more than $100 million for Midwest startups. Acri told the Akron Beacon Journal that the fund will continue. In his prior role at OPED, Clark helped link polymer entrepreneurs with investors. Dr. Clark leaves his wife, Dr. Rebecca Martin, and four children: Alexis, Christian, Rachel and Aaron. Funeral services will be held at 10:30 a.m. Saturday at Kuiper Funeral Home, 9039 Kleinman Ave., Highland, Ind.

 

To help win its unsolicited bid for Walt Disney, Comcast is calling on two people intimately involved with the private equity market:  Felix Rohatyn, the former Lazard Freres chief who advised Suez SA on its $2.2 billion sale to Blackstone Group, Apollo Management and Goldman Sachs Capital Partners last year; and Steven Rattner, managing principal of Quadrangle Group.

 

Vinod Khosla, general partner with Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, will make his first visit to Hyderabad, India, on Feb. 20, to meet entrepreneurs, according to The Economic Times. His visit is timed with the relaunch of the Hyderabad chapter of The Indus Entrepreneurs, a group Khosla helped found.

 

Hopewell Ventures has retooled its Midwest-focused venture capital fund and expects to raise $150 million, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch is reporting. The fund initially planned to invest $25 million in small companies throughout Southern Illinois, western Kentucky and eastern Missouri, but after pleas from investors expanded its reach to include nine Midwestern states. The fund is now called Woodland Venture Management and expects to raise $100 million of its $150 million target from the Small Business Investment Co., based on a 2-to-1 commitment from the SBIC. The fund has already collected $30 million of private investor commitments. www.hopewellventures.com

 

The UK’s Advantage West Midlands, a regional development agency, is setting up a 60 million pound fund for small businesses in the region, the Financial Times reported. About 40 million pounds comes from the government and the European Union, while the other 20 million pounds will be raised in the private sector.

 

The News & Observer is reporting that North Carolina is considering a plan that would create 100,000 biotech jobs by 2023 and funnel as much as $250 million more of state pension fund money into venture capital funds. The proposal, which also includes tax credits for new companies, investment grants, and more money for research and training, was presented by a committee appointed by Gov. Mike Easley.

 

San Francisco-based Vx Capital Partners, which invests in commercial aircraft and aviation assets, could invest $20 million to $40 million into Hawaiian Airlines if the latter’s bankruptcy reorganization plan is accepted, the Associated Press is reporting. The airline filed for Chapter 11 protection last March. www.hawaiianair.com

 

CVC Capital Partners-backed Halfords, a British car parts and bicycle retailer, has selected Merrill Lynch and Citigroup to lead its initial public offering, scheduled to occur in the second half of 2004, The Times reported. However, the story indicated the two investment banks may also be considering a sale to a rival company or private equity firm.

 

NEWS FROM WEDNESDAY 12/11

Arsenal Capital Partners has acquired Science Protein Laboratories Inc. from Wyeth (NYSE: WYE). SPL is a Wunakee, Wisc.-based producer of active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) used in the formulation of finished drug products from Wteth. The transaction was valued at approximately $81 million, with Arsenal provided the equity and Ableco Finance LLC provided the debt. www.spl-pharma.com

 

Liquid Engines Inc., a Sunnyvale, Calif.-based provider of cash-flow and tax management software, has raised $9.2 million in Series C funding. The Carlyle Group led the deal, and was joined by return backers Advanced Technology Ventures, Charles River Ventures, Catamount Ventures, Oak Hill Venture Partners, and Silicon Valley Bank. Liquid Engines has raised a total of $21 million since the company’s March 2000 inception, including a $10 million Series B deal in early 2001 at a post-money valuation of approximately $20 million. In related news, Liquid Engines has named Gwen Spertell as its new president and CEO. She previously served in a similar role with Intelligent Results Inc., and as COO of BackWeb Technologies Inc. www.liquidengines.com

 

Thomson Venture Economics and the National Venture Capital Association have released VC-backed M&A data for the fourth quarter of 2003. The quarter witnessed $2.3 billion of VC-backed M&A deals, with the average value of deals rising by 29% over the third quarter. For more information, go to www.VentureEconomics.com.

 

TransChip Inc., an Israel-based maker of camera solutions for mobile phones and other multimedia-enabled devices, has raised $19 million in new venture capital funding. Redpoint Ventures led the deal, and was joined by return backers Mission Ventures, Cadence Design Systems Inc., Ray Stats (co-founder and chairman of Analog Devices) and Andrew Viterbio (co-founder of Qualcomm). www.transchip.com

 

Immatics Biotechnologies GmbH, a Tübingen, Germany-based immunotherapeutics company focused on still-untreatable forms of cancer, has raised €7.75 million in first-round funding. Wellington Partners and 3i Group co-led the deal, and were joined by Grazia Equity, L-EA/Seed and Merifin Capital. www.immatics.com

 

Physicians Endoscopy LLC, a Doylestown, Pa.-based owner and operator of endoscopic ambulatory surgery centers, has received an investment of an undisclosed amount from Mellon Ventures. www.pellusa.com

 

DBassociates IT, a Burlington, Mass.-based provider of backup and recovery solutions for Microsoft SQL servers, has raised $9 million in Series A funding from Insight Venture Partners. In related news, the company has named Walter Scott as its new CEO. He most recently served as vice president of worldwide sales with Embarcadero Technologies Inc. www.dbassociatesit.com

 

Elliptec AG, a Dortmund, Germany-based maker of mini-motors, has raised €8.5 million in new venture capital funding. Apax Partners led the deal, and was joined by return backer Intelligent Venture Capital. www.elliptec.com

 

Reuters is reporting that Sequoia Capital has led an $11 million second round of funding for Integration Associates, a Mountain View, Calif.-based semiconductor company. Return backers include Stanford University and Chess Ventures. www.integration.com

 

Metro Waste, a Utah-based construction and demolition waste hauler, has received a $1.25 million equity investment from Ridgeview Capital.

 

Golden Gate Capital has completed its $145 million acquisition of Concerto Software Inc. (Nasdaq: CRTO), a Westford, Mass.-based provider of call center software and services. Golden Gate will merge Concerto with fellow portfolio company Melita International Ltd. Oak Investment Partners, which also participated in the Melita acquisition, joined Golden Gate on the Concerto transaction. www.concerto.com

 

Fidelity National Financial Inc. has agreed to purchase Aurum Technology Inc. from Willis Stein & Partners. With more than 1,100 customers and $193 million in 2003 revenue, Aurum is a provider of outsourced and in-house information technology solutions for the community bank and credit union markets. Under the terms of the agreement, FNF will pay $305 million to acquire Aurum, composed of approximately $175 million in cash and $130 million in FNF stock. FNF will not assume any bank debt or transaction related expenses.

 

Lightyear Capital has completed its previously announced acquisition of DeepGreen Bank‘s home equity lending platform and operations from Cleveland-based Third Federal Savings and Loan Association. No deal terms were disclosed. www.deepgreenfinancial.com

 

Bartlett Nuclear Inc., a Plymouth, Mass.-based provider of radiological protection services to the U.S. nuclear industry, has received an undisclosed investment from Berkshire Partners and Summit Partners. Company founder Bruce Bartlett will retain a significant ownership position and will serve as chairman of the company’s board of directors. New board members will include Kevin Callaghan and Michael Ascione of Berkshire Partners, and Marty Mannion and Gabriel Gomez of Summit Partners. No deal terms were disclosed, except that new debt financing was provided by Merrill Lynch Capital and the Royal Bank of Scotland. www.bartlettinc.com

 

J.W. Childs Associates has agreed to acquire the Joseph Abboud fashion business of RCS MediaGroup SpA for $73 million. The deal is expected to close by the end of the quarter.

 

Michael Berk has been named a principal with TA Associates, where he will focus on leveraged buyouts and recaps of growth companies in the consumer, financial services and business services sectors. Berk comes to TA Associates from JLL Partners, where he served as a senior vice president. www.ta.com

 

Baring Private Equity Partners Asia has exited its investment from Shanghai-based fast food chain Shanghai YongHe King. Philippines-based fast food chain Jollibee Foods has paid $22.5 million for an 85% stake in Yong He, which has 77 branches in China. 

 

SiRF Technology Holdings Inc., a San Jose, Calif.-based maker of chipsets and software solutions for the GPS navigation and wireless communications markets, has filed to raise $100 million via an IPO on the Nasdaq under proposed ticker symbol SIRF. The company had originally filed for an IPO on October 2000, but withdrew that offering in April 2001 due to adverse market conditions. The company has raised over $65 million in venture capital funding since its 1995 inception, with investors including Conexant Systems Inc., Tallwood Venture Capital, Pacific Venture Partners, Hitachi America Inc., Mitsubishi Corp., Transatlantic Capital Corp. and Wasatch Venture Fund. www.sirf.com

 

NEWS FROM TUESDAY 2/10

3PARdata Inc., a Fremont, Calif.-based provider of utility storage solutions, has raised $32 million in fourth-round funding. Menlo Ventures led the deal, and was joined by return investors Mayfield, Worldview Technology Partners, Oracle Venture Fund, Sun Microsystems and Veritas Software. www.3pardata.com

 

Ample Communications Inc., a Fremont, Calif.-based supplier of silicon to network, communications and computer equipment vendors, has raised $15 million in third-round funding. Lead investors on the deal were Kinetic Ventures and David Mirman, vice chairman of Milestone Merchant Partners. Return backers include CenterPoint Ventures, InterWest Partners, Rho Ventures and Storm Ventures. The company now has raised approximately $53 million in total VC funding since its 2000 inception, including a $21 million Series B deal in 2002 at a post-money valuation of approximately $60 million. www.amplecomm.com

 

GTCR Golder Rauner has acquired Medtech Holdings Inc., an Irvington, N.Y.-based marketer and distributor of health and beauty care products, from The Shansby Group. The buyout includes participation from Medtech management, including president and CEO Peter Mann. No deal terms were disclosed. www.medtechinc.com

 

SmartLink Radio Networks Inc., a Westport, Conn.-based provider of two-way radio communications networking solutions, has raised $12 million in Series A funding. General Catalyst Partners and Highland Capital Partners co-led the deal. www.smrlink.com

 

Widevine Technologies Inc., a Seattle-based provider of content security solutions to the video-over-IP market, has raised $13 million in new venture capital funding. Vantage Point Venture Partners led the deal, and was joined by return backers Constellation Ventures, Pacesetter Capital Group and Phoenix Capital Partners. www.widevine.com

 

Nanomix Inc., an Emeryville, Calif.-based maker of computer-related components and nanostructures, has raised $5 million in new Series B funding. Return backers this time around include Apax Partners, Sevin Rosen Funds and Alta Partners. The company had previously raised $9 million in Series B funding back in 2002. www.nano.com

 

Oplayo, a Helsinki, Finland-based provider of mobile video solutions, has raised €4.4 million in new venture capital funding. Return backers include Nokia Venture Partners, Zouk Ventures and Holtron. New investor Siemens Mobile Acceleration also participated. www.oplayo.com

 

 

Goldsmith Agio Helms has completed the sale of Agway Inc.’s energy business, which is composed of three wholly owned subsidiaries:  Agway Energy Products LLC, Agway Energy Services PA Inc. andAgway Energy Services Inc. to Suburban Propane Partners. 

 

Trinity Hospice Inc., a KRG Capital Partners portfolio company, has purchased Hospice of Tennessee from Home Care Solutions Inc. Hospice of Tennessee has locations in Nashville, Chattanooga, Dickson and Lebanon, Tenn. and will operate as Trinity Hospice of Tennessee going forward.  Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.

 

Carol Olsen has joined Apax Partners as a venture partner focused on healthcare investment opportunities. Olsen most recently served as chief commercial officer of Aviron, which was sold to MedImmune Inc. for $1.6 billion in 2002.

 

Randy Guggenheimer has joined The Nassau Group as a managing director. He has spent the past 15 years with Lehman Brothers, and most recently served as that firm’s managing director and co-head of healthcare M&A. www.thenassaugroup.com

 

Peter Shagory has joined Baird Venture Partners as a principal in the firm’s Chicago office. There, he will scout investments in the health care and life sciences sectors, focusing especially on biotechnology and medical device companies. Prior to joining Baird, Shagory was a vice president at Vector Fund Management in Chicago, where he managed venture investments in biopharmaceutical, biotechnology and medical device startups. He also was an investment banker with J.P. Morgan & Co. www.bairdventurepartners.com

 

The Wall Street Journal is reporting that Vodafone (NYSE: VOD) is looking to acquire Verizon Communications (NYSE: VZ) in a deal valued at approximately $150 billion. The apparent plan would be for Vodafone to retain Verizon Wireless (of which Vodafone already owns 45%) and to spin off the rest of the company’s businesses.

 

Xanodyn Pharmacal Inc., a Florence, Ky.-based drug company focused on cancer and pain management, has agreed to merge with Integrity Pharmaceutical Corp., an Indianapolis-based specialty pharmaceutical company specializing in urology and OB/GYN. Both companies were founded by Union Springs LLC, a private equity firm focused on life sciences investments. Xanodyne has raised over $18 million in VC funding from investors like Blue Chip Venture Co., Essex Woodlands Health Ventures, Union Springs and HealthCare Ventures. Integrity has raised around $30 million in VC funding from Blue Chip Venture Co., Coleman Swenson Booth, Essex Woodlands Health Ventures, Johnson & Johnson Development Corp., HealthCare Ventures and Union Springs. No financial terms of the merger were disclosed. www.xanodyne.com  www.integritypharma.com

 

Guidant Corp. (NYSE: GDT) has completed its previously announced acquisition of AFx Inc., a Fremont, Calif.-based medical device maker focused on microwave surgical cardiac ablation. The deal includes a $45 million up-front cash payment, plus subsequent payments dependant on the achievement of certain milestones. AFx has received VC funding from Alta Partners and Invesco Private Capital. www.afx-inc.com

 

DeltaPoint Capital Management has received SBA approval for its third VC fund to operate as an SBIC. DeltaPoint focuses on businesses based in New York State, and has received a $25 million LP commitment from the New York State Common Retirement Fund.

 

NEWS FROM MONDAY 2/10

Pronto Networks Inc., a Pleasanton, Calif.-based provider of carrier-class OSS solutions for large WI-Fi hotspot networks, has raised $11.3 million in Series B funding. BV Capital led the deal, and was joined by return backers Draper Fisher Jurvetson and the Intel Communications Fund. www.prontonetworks.com

 

Authentica Inc., a Waltham, Mass.-based provider of enterprise digital rights management software, has raised $8 million in Series C funding. Investors include North Bridge Venture Partners, Greylock, 3i Group, Norwest Venture Partners, Venrock Associates and Symantec Corp. The company now has raised approximately $40 million since its 1998 inception, including an $18 million infusion in early 2000 at a post-money valuation of $63 million. In related news, Authentica has named John Bruce, former chief marketing officer and executive VP of sales for Internet Security Inc., as CEO. www.authentica.com

 

Kadmus Pharmaceuticals Inc., an Irvine, Calif.-based biopharmaceutical company focused on the treatment of pain and obesity, has raised $15.3 million in new Series A funding. The companyt previously had raised $6 million over two tranches of Series A funding. Vengrowth Advanced Life Sciences Fund led the latest tranche, and was joined by fellow new investor Softbank Life Science Ventures. Return backers include Sanderling Ventures, NeuroVentures, CDP Capital, Gray Ghost LLC and Bio*One Capital, the investment arm of the Singapore

Economic Development Board. www.kadmuspharmaceuticals.com 

 

General Catalyst Partners and Accel Partners have agreed to acquire BBNT Solutions LLC, a Cambridge, Mass.-based research division of Verizon Communications (NYSE: VZ). No deal terms were disclosed.

 

One Equity Partners has acquired MSS*Group Inc., a Castle Rock, Colo.-based provider of telecom expense management solutions. No deal terms were disclosed. One Equity Partners received financial advisement by Mooreland Partners, and legal advice from Dechert LLC. Headwaters MB advised MSS*Group. www.mssgroup.com

 

Apax Partners is in advanced talks to acquire a majority take in Olympic Airlines, according to various European press reports. Olympic will be privatized following Greece’s general election in March. It is unclear whether or not Apax plans to buy the entire airline, which is valued at approximately $144 million.

 

Graham Partners has acquired Dynojet Research Inc., a Las Vegas-based provider of aftermarket engine performance enhancement products for motorcycles and ATVs. No deal terms were disclosed. www.dynojet.com

 

Dow Jones is reporting that The Blackstone Group has had talks with Aventis SA (NYSE: AVE) about carving out a group of older and under-performing drugs.

 

Dan Beldy has left Hummer Winblad Venture Partners, where he had served as a general partner.

Orbotech Ltd. (Nasdaq: ORBK), through its venture capital arm, has agreed to acquire all of Clal Industries & Investment Ltd.‘s shareholderings in Negevtech Ltd., an Israel-based maker of diagnostics equipment for the semiconductor industry. The $14.1 million deal will increase Orbotech’s holdings in Negevtech from approximately 10% to 32 percent. www.orbotech.com

 

Alphasmart Inc. , a Los Gatos, Calif.-based maker of computer peripherals, will begin trading on the Nasdaq today under ticker symbol ALSM. The company on Friday priced 4.4 million shares at $6 per share, for a total IPO take of $26.4 million. This is far lower than the $10 offering price AlphaSmart was looking for. Selling shareholders included Summit Partners, which held a 44.8% ownership stake pre-IPO, and a 25.6% ownership stake post-IPO. www.alphasmart.com

 

Click here for last week’s complete PE Week Wire

	This is a free sample of content available to paid subscribers of Private Equity Week. Click here for more information.