GB Merchant Partners’ 1903 Equity Fund, the institutional private equity affiliate of Gordon Brothers Group, has acquired Ashley Stewart, a retailer in the plus-size fashion industry.  Headquartered in Secaucus, New Jersey and founded in 1991, Ashley Stewart currently operates over 200 stores and a complementary e-commerce business.  The company is

Wheb Ventures, a European clean technology private equity firm, has changed its name to Wheb Partners. "Wheb has evolved during the last three years from being a relatively small cleantech venture capital firm into a diversified but integrated environmental specialist fund management firm," says James McNaught-Davis, managing partner. "We have

Matrix Private Equity Partners, the small buyout specialist, has invested GBP5m in the management buyout of RDL, the European recruitment provider within the pharmaceutical, business intelligence and IT sectors. The purchase comes amidst a crop of private equity takeovers in the recruitment sector, following a rebound in the jobs market

GT Solar International, a provider of polysilicon production technology and sapphire and silicon crystalline growth systems and materials for the solar and LED markets, has entered into a definitive agreement to repurchase shares of common stock from GT Solar Holdings, whose members include all of the company’s private equity investors.

Technology company Edwards saw its net sales rise by 75 per cent to USD257.3m for the three months ended 30 September 2010, up from USD147.3m in quarter three 2009. Ebitda (IFRS) increased by 552 per cent to USD74.0m from USD11.0m the previous year. Cash and cash equivalents increased to USD187m

Doughty Hanson, a European private equity firm, is to acquire Vue Entertainment, a UK developer and operator of multiplex cinemas, from Cavendish Square Partners, affiliated investment funds of Och-Ziff Capital Management Group and the existing management team.  The Vue management team, including chief executive Tim Richards who established the company,

Insurance brokers Equity Risk Partners and Lipscomb & Cathey have formed a joint venture which will cater to the needs of the private equity space in Texas. The new partnership, called ERP-Texas, will combine the niche expertise of San Francisco-based ERP with the longstanding reputation of Lipscomb & Cathey in

Palladium Equity Partners, a private equity firm based in New York, has sold Castro Cheese to Dairy Farmers of America.  Terms were not disclosed.    Castro Cheese is a manufacturer, marketer and distributor of queso fresco and other varieties of Hispanic cheeses and creams. The company’s products are marketed under the

Funds advised by Lion Capital are acquiring the operating companies of Bumble Bee Foods, a portfolio company of Centre Partners Management. The transaction is expected to be completed by year-end.   Bumble Bee is a North American supplier of shelf-stable seafood. The company produces and markets shelf-stable tuna, salmon, sardines,

BNY Mellon, a provider of asset management and securities servicing, has maintained its position as the number one fund administrator in Ireland with assets under administration totalling USD270.4bn across 498 funds, according to Lipper’s 2010 Ireland Fund Encyclopaedia. The annual report by Lipper, the Thomson Reuters research company, reveals that