News highlights
News analysis
Recruitment drive set to continue
VCs play dominant role as London Stock Exchange’s IPO markets pick up
Polish government to launch venture fund
UK spin-outs feel pinch of tax ruling?
News
Former placement agent sets up fund raising support service
University spin-outs: could do better?
ISIS and F&C merge
LGV closes fund and separates French and UK businesses
ABN AMRO makes partial exit from French venture business
VCT consolidation underway?
CAD III throws banks PE lifeline
Healy opens Hellman & Friedman’s London office
AXA PE moves step closer in Credit Agricole deal
UK private equity gets boost from private investors
Fund news
Exponent reaches final close
Carlyle fund raises
Baronsmead VCT offers innovative incentive
SVG Diamond Private Equity launches
CapMan reaches first close on Mezzanine IV
Second close on Iris Capital’s second fund
Final close for Cape Natexis fund
LGV closes fund and separates French and UK businesses
Poteza holds final close on Adriatic Fund
Italian Investitori Associati closes 4th fund
Pantheon closes $900m secondaries fund
NVM reopens its 3rd VCT to new funds
Accent Equity Partners closes on €250m
Duke Street launches 3rd CDO
Final close for EQT IV
Auda closes secondary fund
Apax starts fund raising on Apax Europe VI
Exit news
Phoenix sells HPI
Imagesound lists on AIM
GIMV sells Scottish food group to Young’s Bluecrest
LDC sells Prologic
Fives-Lille in secondary buyout
Premier Foods IPO signals PE exit
ABN AMRO Capital makes first Spanish exit
RBS funds Nightfreight secondary buyout
MB Funds sell stake in Engel Group
Doughty Hanson sells Dunlop Standard Aerospace
Alchemy exits Four Seasons
GIMV exits Belgian metallurgical company
Bridgepoint exits office supplies group OyezStraker
Bridgepoint makes gain on Navimo sale
Israeli tech company bought by Cisco
CVC sells German sausage covering company to Montagu
Inflexion exits Ster Century
Gresham out of uniform
3i sells Palletways to Phoenix Equity Partners
Argos Soditic sells Italmatch to Investindustrial
Cozart IPOs on AIM
Spirit Group sells Premier Lodge to Whitbread
Cyclacel shelves IPO plans
3i bids goodbye to Morning Noon & Night
ARGUS sells FiberNet
NewMedia SPARK sells Pricerunner
AMJPE exits Webfell Group
Italian PE funds exit domestic fridge manufacturer
Segulah acquires Swedish IT company
Alchemy sells ASSE division
3i sells Malmberg to Sanoma
Graphite sells Paperchase to Borders
Alchemy sells Paramount Hotels
BA Capital Partners sells Alfatherm in Italian secondary buyout
AMRO Capital partial exit from De Dietrich PtP
Electra Partners sells Safety-Kleen in secondary buyout
People
Rutland name change
Pomona appointment
Finatem hires new MD
Fund manager climbs mountain
AMJPE appoints investment manager
Philip Rattle joins Kleinwort Capital
Dewey Ballantine adds to German private equity team
Lehman Brothers creates private equity advisory group
AGF appoints
Baring Vostok hires two partners
Interregnum get two but lose one
Ex-Israeli PM becomes PE partner
Hess joins Cinven
Jeffries expands into Europe
BoS reshuffle
PIP gets new chairman
Pomona chief awarded Mother Teresa medal
Lazard adds PE partner
Osborne Clarke promotion and departure
Close Investments appoints new fund manager
Italians launch private equity award
Ratos appoints senior investment manager
New manager for business angel network
Deutsche Bank appoints new sales director
Features
Fund-of-funds: are the smart guys selling up?
Pantheon sold to Russell Group; Hamilton Lane bought by Bill Gates’ Cascade Investment among others; Dallas-based Crossroads Group acquired by Lehman Brothers. A gradual consolidation appears to be on the cards in the fund-of-funds market. Tom Allchorne reports.
Nordic LPs go international
The Nordic region has one of the largest pools of capital in Europe available for private equity investment. Until recently, most of that capital went to local funds. But times are changing and LPs are looking further afield. So where are they investing? And what does this mean for local firms, asks Vicky Meek?
Retail therapy
Retail is back in fashion. The activity of specialists in the sector such as Icelandic group Baugur, which has been on a retail spending spree over the last few years with its acquisitions of Coast, Karen Millen, Oasis and most recently Goldsmiths, is proof of this. But competition for deals in the UK market has become fierce and there is a risk of over-paying for businesses in competitive auction processes. What makes a good retail investment in private equity and what should investors be wary of in the sector? Angela Sormani takes a look at the ups and downs in retail.
Lead Buyouts:
UK Pensions Bill amendments spell bad news for private equity firms
The private equity industry is locking horns with the UK Government over proposed amendments to the new Pensions Bill. Buyout experts claim the changes will remove their limited liability to companies with defined benefit pension schemes and make buyouts far more expensive and that, if the offending amendments are not revised, investment in the UK could plummet. Joanna Hickey reports.
LP Corner:
Is it possible to benchmark private equity performance?
Given the fall in public and private asset investment returns expected to materialise over the coming decade, the asset allocation debate is raging right across the fund management industry. This is leading to a closer look at the returns the private equity asset class can be expected to offer and what role it can play within a portfolio. And applying benchmarks is seen as one way to try to measure the effectiveness of private equity allocations in terms of the degree in which they are expected to enhance returns. The trouble is benchmarking can, on closer inspection, sway between the meaningless to the downright illogical. So how should fund managers make them logical and meaningful and in so doing avoid the charge of irresponsible corporate governance? Lisa Bushrod reports.
Legal & Regulatory
BDCs and the bumps in the IPO road
A crush of leading US buyout firms set out to tap the US public equity markets with business development companies (BDCs) earlier this year. Lately, however, the wheels seem to have fallen off these fee-fuelled funding vehicles. Joanna Gant reports.
Private equity news
Recruitment drive set to continue
Venture Capital News
VCs play dominant role as London Stock Exchange’s IPO markets pick up
Polish government to launch venture fund (also under country reports)
UK spin-outs feel pinch of tax ruling?
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