The European M&A industry saw 2,348 transactions valued at USD251.3bn in the first three quarters of 2009, a decrease of 70 per cent by value and 47 per cent by volume from the same period in 2008, according to mergermarket. According to the report, European M&A activity makes up 24

Albion Ventures, a UK venture capital investor, has launched a D share offer for the Albion Development VCT. The VCT’s aim is to provide investors with a regular and predictable source of income, combined with the prospect of long term capital growth. Albion Ventures intends to achieve this by enabling

Low Carbon Accelerator has committed to make a further equity investment of GBP1,000,000 in ResponsiveLoad, trading as RLtec.   The commitment is part of an overall GBP5,790,000 funding round attracting two new investors with smart grid expertise, Naxos Capital Partners and the Carbon Trust Investment. The funds will be drawn

Funds holding a final close in quarter three 2009 raised aggregate capital of USD38bn, just 45 per cent of the USD84bn raised in quarter two 2009, according to a report by Preqin. In comparison with the recent record breaking quarters seen in 2007, the drop is even more steep with

Golden Meditech’s hospital subsidiary, Golden Meditech Hospital Group, has entered into an agreement to issue senior five per cent redeemable convertible notes due in 2014 with an aggregate principal amount of USD28m (HKD217m). The monies raised will be used to accelerate business developments in China. Under the agreement, Golden Meditech

Hellman & Friedman, a private equity investment firm based in San Francisco, has completed the closing of Hellman & Friedman Capital Partners VII, a USD8.8bn fund and the largest in the firm’s history. With the closing of HFCP VII, Hellman & Friedman has raised over USD25bn of committed capital since

American Capital, parent company of European Capital Financial Services, has closed its Frankfurt affiliate. The closure of the Frankfurt office is in response to the global downturn in the private equity markets over the past two years. The assets originated by the Frankfurt office of European Capital will continue to

Blue Belt Technologies, a Pittsburgh-based medical device company which develops surgical instruments for use in orthopaedic and neurosurgery procedures, has closed on a USD2.4m private equity series A round of financing. The round was led by private investors and included the Pittsburgh Life Sciences Greenhouse and Innovation Works (Pittsburgh) and

Golub Capital has provided a USD23.5m one-loan debt financing to support Cortec Group’s acquisition of Katena Products. Katena, based in Denville, New Jersey, is a producer and supplier of precision-manufactured micro instruments for ophthalmic surgeries of the anterior segment of the eye (i.e., cataracts, corneal transplants, Lasik, glaucoma). Katena’s products

Navigation Capital Partners, an Atlanta-based middle market private equity firm, has completed the realignment and financial recapitalisation of its portfolio company Five Star Food Service, a vending, coffee service and food service provider. Aurora Management Partners assisted Five Star management and NCP with the strategic realignment while NCP initiated and