Deals
A majority (83 per cent) of private equity GPs do not expect to make a portfolio exit within the next 12 months in the Covid-19 environment, a new report by Investec reveals.
The number of private equity (PE) backed deals for AIM companies has trebled in the last 12 months and the Covid-19 driven stock market fall could see this trend continue if AIM’s valuation gap with the main market grows, says accountancy and business advisory firm, BDO LLP.12 companies from AIM were acquired and taken private by PE funds in 2019/20, up from just four deals in 2018/19 (year end March 31).
BDO says that if the Covid-19 crisis impacts on share prices, AIM companies could see a repeat of previous cycles, when low AIM company valuations saw PE funds
Appentra, a spin-off of La Coruña University, has raised EUR1.8 million in a new investment round led by Armilar Venture Partners and K Fund, also joined by Caixa Capital Risc, Xesgalicia and Unirisco, the investors that had already trusted the company since its very early stages. The new investors will bring a strong expertise as international VCs specialised in B2B software companies, and will help to fully realise Appentra’s vision.
Since its foundation, Appentra has become a reliable partner and software supplier among its customers in the United States, Saudi Arabia and Europe. Closing this round of investment successfully contributes to
TransFICC, a specialist provider of low-latency connectivity and workflow services for Fixed Income and Derivatives Markets, has closed its Series A investment round for GBP5.75 million.
Led by AlbionVC, it included new strategic investments from ING Ventures and HSBC.
The new investors join existing shareholders, Citi, Illuminate Financial, Main Incubator (the R&D unit of Commerzbank Group) and The FinLab.
The investment will be used to extend product and market coverage for existing and new clients. TransFICC’s current clients include five global investment banks and one global market data vendor.
TransFICC resolves the issue of market fragmentation by providing banks and
Funds managed by Apollo will provide a USD300 million secured note to Cimpress, a commercial-printing company that owns Vistaprint and has been negatively affected by the coronavirus crisis.
Asterion Industrial Partners, an independent investment management firm focused on European infrastructure in the mid-market, has acquired 100 per cent of Telefónica’s microwave radiolink portfolio in Spain through a carve-out process. The transaction was signed and closed on 31 March.The assets consist of a unique portfolio of antennae and radio electronic equipment for c10,800 microwave links (~13,000 circuits), connecting Telefónica’s mobile towers and other enterprise clients’ sites to their terrestrial fibre networks, mainly in low-density areas. Telefónica’s radiolink network is one of the largest in Spain and has best-in-class interconnection with Spain’s deepest fibre network. The portfolio provides a differentiated
Inverness Graham, a private investment firm targeting software, service and tech-enabled manufacturing companies, has sold Kalkomey Enterprises (Kalkomey). Headquartered in Dallas, Texas, Kalkomey is a provider of online recreational safety education, certifications and cloud-based agency management solutions to government agencies and outdoor enthusiasts. Inverness Graham acquired Kalkomey in December 2015 and supported management in a strategic platform build effort acquiring three related businesses during the four-year hold. The Kalkomey platform was the result of a proactive search by Inverness Graham in the e-learning market.
“We are thrilled with what the team at Kalkomey has been able to accomplish during our hold,”
Social impact investor Nesta Impact Investments (NII), part of Nesta, and London-based investment manager, Downing, have led a GBP2 million growth funding round in Empiribox, a science education provider which supplies resources for primary school teachers to teach practical science lessons. Empiribox subscribers are sent science equipment, lesson and assessment resources and professional development plans for teachers. As teachers are forced to adapt quickly to teaching remotely during the COVID-19 outbreak, the investment will help Empiribox to launch its new online platform to engage students with exciting and practical science lessons from afar.
The new digital ‘Empiribox@Home’ service will provide interactive
Prowrap, a specialist rewinder and one of the UK’s leading manufacturers of cling film, aluminium foil and baking papers, has secured a significant investment from Longacre Group with the support of the corporate finance team at FRP.The deal will see Longacre Group back both brands within the Prowrap portfolio – Procare and Wrapex – and importantly maintains the long-term future of the business in Bristol.
Longacre Group, a private investment firm that backs small and medium sized companies across the UK and Europe, has backed Prowrap’s existing management team led by CEO Nick Scoon. They will now work closely
Polyplus-transfection (Polyplus), a developer of cost-effective technology used in gene and cell therapy, has closed on a major investment from Warburg Pincus, a global private equity firm focused on growth investing. Warburg Pincus’ investment alongside the existing majority shareholder, European private equity healthcare specialist ArchiMed, will advance the development and sale of Polyplus’ breakthrough solutions for the delivery of nucleic acids (transfection) for research and the biologics-based production of therapeutic drugs and vaccines.
“Backed by their significant experience in healthcare and extensive network of resources, we are confident that Warburg Pincus, alongside ArchiMed, will further accelerate our market leadership by
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12 November, 2026 – 8:00 am
12 November, 2026 – 5:00 pm
