Deals
Clearwater International UK experienced an exceptionally strong finish to 2017 having completed nine deals during the Christmas period with an aggregated deal value of GBP450 million.
The most active sectors were Industrials, and Consumer. The Industrials team successfully delivered over GBP60 million of finance for construction services and aggregates provider GRS Group, to support continued growth and its acquisition of S.Walsh Holdings Limited, which offers services to construction and civil engineering contractors. Other key Industrials transactions included advising on the sale of market leading tile specialist Domus, to Europe’s largest floor coverings distributor Headlam plc; also on the sale of
Energizer Holdings is to acquire Spectrum Brands’ (SPB) Global Battery and Portable Lighting Business (Spectrum Batteries) for USD2.0 billion in cash.
Anchored by the Varta and Rayovac brands, the portfolio has a longstanding history, global footprint and diversified range of products including alkaline, carbon zinc, hearing aid and nickel metal hydride rechargeable batteries as well as battery chargers and portable lighting products.
The combination will expand Energizer’s presence in a number of international markets, broaden Energizer’s product portfolio and manufacturing capabilities, and increase capacity for research and development. This will enable consumers to benefit from accelerated innovation and a
Customer generation business MVF has acquired US technology news brand Tech.co.
Founded in the US in 2006, Tech.co has transformed from a community-building ‘Tech Cocktail’ event to an influential media brand with millions of readers around the world. MVF presently operates a suite of global publishing sites, using expert articles and informative reviews to connect active customers with businesses all over the world. The purchase follows MVF’s acquisition of UK business site startups.co.uk in February 2017, and is part of the company’s ambitious growth plans as it aims to expand its global reach by acquiring high authority digital brands.
Seurat Technologies has closed a USD13.5 million Series A round of funding led by True Ventures. Additional investors include GM Ventures, Porsche SE, next47 on behalf of Siemens Power and Gas, and Maniv Mobility.
The funds will be used to accelerate the commercialisation of Seurat’s breakthrough metal additive manufacturing technology. Seurat previously raised USD3.41 million in a seed financing led by True Ventures in June 2016.
Seurat will bring to market an industrial metal printer with unparalleled speed and resolution. “We’ve been able to hit some significant milestones over the past few months,” says Erik Toomre, CEO of Seurat
VSORA, an entrepreneurial startup set to deliver digital signal processing (DSP) intellectual property (IP) for 5G wireless networks, has closed a Series A financing from leading venture capital firms Omnes Capital and Partech Ventures and angel investors.
The USD1.7 million investment will be used to expand VSORA’s R&D and build sales channels in the United States and Asia.
VSORA was founded in 2015 by DSP engineers from the former DiBcom, now part of Parrot. Its DSP design process will target wireless mobile applications and boost DSP computing power, optimize power consumption and system performance, and reduce the silicon footprint.
BGF has made a significant minority investment in London Middlesex-based Revital, a multi-channel retailer of supplements, beauty and wellness products.
Founded in 1991 by Raj Vora, the family business is now under the stewardship of his son, Chief Executive Rahil Vora. Revital sells branded and own-brand products across a range of categories including; vitamins and supplements, food & drink, beauty and lifestyle.
Revital is now an established, premium brand in the health and wellness sector, with 18 sites across the South East of England. The company’s customer service focus includes employing nutritional experts in every store.
The business
Houlihan Lokey is to acquire Quayle Munro Limited (Quayle Munro), an independent advisory firm that provides corporate finance advisory services to companies underpinned by data & analytics, content, software, and services.
The agreement was signed on January 15 and is expected to close following regulatory approvals.
Quayle Munro was founded in 1983 and is based in London with a team of 40 financial professionals. Its client list spans the globe and includes private and publicly listed companies, financial sponsors, and entrepreneurs. In addition to the Data & Analytics Group, which covers a broad range of sectors, Quayle Munro also
RM Secured Direct Lending (RMDL), a specialist in tailored debt solutions, has provided EUR7 million in secured loans to the leading Private Equity firm, HIG Capital, to support its acquisition of all shares in TierOne Beteiligungs, holding a majority of the shares in Beinbauer Group.
The investment, which is RMDL’s largest in Europe so far, was made alongside funds managed by Beechbrook Capital.
HIG Capital is a leading global private equity and alternative assets investment firm with more than EUR20 billion of equity capital under management. Beinbauer Group is a leading provider of complex machined metal parts for the
Internet of things IIoT) investor Breed Reply saw one third of its 18-strong portfolio of investee companies complete series A funding rounds in 2017, totalling in excess of USD50 million with funds coming from notable investors including Accel, Aviva Ventures, Finance Wales, Intu and MunichRE.
More companies in the growing portfolio are expected to be ready for Series A investment in 2018.
The successful companies span a broad range of IoT sectors: Callsign (Cyber Security); Cocoon (Smart Home); enModus (Smart Building); Senseye (Industrial); WePredict (Big Data); and Zeetta Networks (Platforms).
Helping start-ups prepare for future funding is a crucial
Browne Jacobson’s corporate finance team has advised on two key venture capital deals for InsurTech companies – Digital Fineprint and Dinghy – under the firm’s legal support programme for start-ups and scaling businesses – ‘Grow’.
The team advised Digital Fineprint on its USD2.7m investment round led by Pentech. The investment will allow Digital Fineprint to expand its London team and invest in the further development of its social media-powered insurance distribution software. Digital Fineprint, which was set up in 2016 and was established by a group of Oxford University students, offers insurance companies a platform enabling them to use social
Events
12 November, 2026 – 8:00 am
12 November, 2026 – 5:00 pm
