Mid-market private equity firm Palamon Capital Partners has acquired a majority stake in QualitySolicitors, a leading UK brand of high-street solicitors for individuals and SMEs. Details of the transaction have not been disclosed.   QualitySolicitors was founded in 2009 with the aim of building a national legal brand focused on providing

Lithuania SME Fund managed by BaltCap, the largest private equity and venture capital investor in the Baltic countries, has invested in Impuls LTU, operator of the leading Lithuanian health and fitness club chain.  With eight gyms in Lithuania’s main towns, Impuls LTU will be the largest health club chain in

Mid-market private equity firm LDC has funded the acquisition of US based MetricTest for portfolio company Microlease, the international provider of rental and asset management services to the test equipment market. LDC originally backed the GBP30m management buyout of Microlease in 2006, investing a further GBP8.3m in 2009 to provide

Saffar Holdings Limited has retained Arma Partners LLP to advise on strategic options in relation to its portfolio company, Zawya Limited in response to several unsolicited expressions of interest in Zawya that have recently been received. Founded in 2001 and based in Dubai, UAE, Saffar is a leading early-stage private

The Blackstone Group and ACM Projektentwicklung GmbH thave agreed a strategic partnership whereby investment funds advised by Blackstone will acquire, indirectly through a holding company, a 44% minority stake in Leica Camera AG (Leica), to support the company’s international growth plans. Headquartered in Solms, Germany, with 1,150 employees, Leica has

Global alternative asset manager The Carlyle Group has reached an agreement to acquire an 85% share of Telecable de Asturias SAU (Telecable), a Spanish-based TV, telephony, broadband and advanced business solutions provider for the Asturias region in Spain. Liberbank will retain a minority stake after the transaction, which is expected

Statoil ASA and Brigham Exploration Company have entered into a merger agreement for Statoil to acquire all of the outstanding shares of Brigham for USD 36.5 per share through an all-cash tender offer. The Brigham Board of Directors has unanimously recommended to its shareholders that they accept the offer. Ben

Lyceum Capital has funded the merger of two of the UK’s biggest independent drainage companies – a transformative deal which creates a GBP50 million turnover, market-leader in the provision of specialist services to the household, industrial, commercial, transport and water sectors.   In January 2010 Lyceum Capital acquired a majority