Vinci Partners, a Brazilian Investment Management firm headquartered in Rio de Janeiro, has selected SunGard’s Investran to help automate partnership accounting and performance reporting across its private equity investment portfolios. SunGard’s Investrant supports the entire investment lifecycle, from fundraising through reporting and portfolio monitoring. It automates front-, middle- and back-office processes for private equity and alternative investment firms. Investran will help Vinci streamline its back office operations by monitoring cash flows and tracking its portfolio performance, investor reports and investor capital account balances. It will also facilitate firm-wide reporting and be used for performance and exposure reporting for accurate and

Investment Management Group (IMG) has completed its acquisition of an approximately 70% per cent stake in a retail park to be built in Tver, Russia, on behalf of its Russia Development Fund. The retail park, developed by Normal Asset Management (NAM), will be the largest modern shopping centre of its class to be built in Tver, a city located 134 km northwest of Moscow. The project will consist of two “big box” anchors: a hypermarket operated by Globus, a German retailer, and a DIY store operated by French group Leroy Merlin, which will be connected by a retail gallery. The

Forbion Capital Partners has announced the first and final closing of its second FCF 1 Co-Investment Fund at approximately USD50m. The fund aims to invest additional capital, alongside its existing funds, in several late stage FCF 1 portfolio companies that are close to an exit. Forbion’s first FCF 1 Co-Investment Fund of €54m closed in September 2010, and has made six investments to date, two of which have already been sold, repaying the entire fund up to two times. These exits include Biovex, sold to Amgen in January 2011 for up to USD1bn and Pathway Medical, sold in September 2011

Niagara LaSalle Corporation (Niagara LaSalle) has been acquired by strategic buyer Optima Specialty Steel, Inc. Niagara LaSalle is a portfolio company of private equity firm Kohlberg & Company. Harris Williams & Co. acted as the exclusive advisor to Niagara LaSalle. The transaction closed on 5 December, 2011 and was led by Mike Hogan (pictured), Ned Valentine, John Arendale, Dave Kennedy and Doug Kinard from the firm’s Richmond office along with Jeremy Eberlein from the firm’s Cleveland office.   Niagara LaSalle is North America’s largest independent manufacturer of high quality engineered cold finished steel bars, serving a broad range of customers in

JWI Capital, a Cleveland, Ohio based investment firm, has completed a controlling equity investment in Weaver Express Blower Services, an installer and manufacturer of compost-based filter socks and other compost-based products for erosion and sediment control applications. Weaver’s compost-based filter sock products and services primarily focus on eliminating or minimising sediment run-off from construction sites. Weaver also provides other environmental services such as stream bank restoration, and steep slope stabilisation by utilising "green" bio-engineered technology. Weaver Express was founded in 2000 by Kevin and Keith Weaver, who have retained an ownership position in the business and will continue to work for

The Aureos Africa Health Fund has invested USD2.75 million in a Kenyan healthcare devices company, Revital Healthcare EPZ Limited (Revital). Revital is based in Mombasa and specialises in the manufacture of single use auto disable hypodermic syringes (AD Syringes). AD Syringes are a key weapon in reducing the transmission of HIV and other blood-borne diseases as they disable after a single use, guaranteeing that they cannot be reused. Their use is mandated by UNICEF and the World Health Organisation.   In addition to the production of AD Syringes, Revital produces a range of other disposable medical products.   The Africa

Atlante Ventures Mezzogiorno, the Intesa Sanpaolo Group’s venture capital fund, is betting on Italian technological innovation and investing EUR4.6 million in three young companies based in Southern Italy: Pantea, Samares and SpinVector.   The three businesses, selected according to their extensive growth potential and goals of becoming leading companies in the coming years, share some fundamental characteristics: they are high-tech firms and plan to invest in Southern Italy, the part of the country for which the fund was created.   If Admantx, the investment of EUR2 million signed last summer, is also considered, the total investment commitments assumed by Atlante

SES Holdings Ltd (Saxon) has merged its rig business with the business of the Schlumberger Rig Management Group. Under the terms of the transaction, 14 Schlumberger land drilling rigs and crews in Oman, Pakistan, and Venezuela will become part of Saxon’s expanded international operations. Saxon will also provide technical drilling contracting support to existing Schlumberger joint ventures and operations in Saudi Arabia, Algeria, Iraq, and Venezuela (Lake Maracaibo). The transaction represents Saxon’s first entry into the Middle East and North Africa region; thereby growing and diversifying the business in key international markets. The transaction not only provides Saxon with increased

RCP Advisors, an independent sponsor of private equity funds-of-funds, secondary funds, and co-investment funds focused on North American lower middle market buyouts, has announced the closing of its first co-investment fund, the USD110 million RCPDirect, LP.   “RCP’s strategy has always been to partner with the best managers in the lower middle market. These relationships will provide RCPDirect with compelling investment opportunities and diligence resources,” says Dave McCoy, Principal of RCP Advisors and RCPDirect’s Portfolio Manager. “We are pleased by the confidence our LPs have placed in us and are excited about the opportunity to expand the co-investment strategy within

The takeover bid for Parseq (AIM: PSQ) by CEO Rami Cassis, backed by Nova Capital Management and Dover Street VII LLP (the close-ended private investment fund controlled by HarbourVest Partners, LLC), has been declared unconditional.  The offer, at 9p per Parseq share, was made via CNH Bidco, a newly-incorporated company formed and controlled by Rami Cassis, Nova and Dover Street. Acceptances from 246,672,233 Parseq Shares, representing approximately 54.13 per cent. of the issued share capital of Parseq, had been received by 1 December 2011.   Parseq provides mobile and online banking software and technology-led outsourcing services to a blue-chip client