Allocations
UK online contact lens retailer GetLenses.co.uk has acquired Dutch online retailers Vision Direct and Lensbase, which sell contact lenses and prescription glasses to consumers in the Netherlands, Spain and the UK.
The acquisition was financed by a new funding round led by existing shareholder Octopus Investments and included Fidelity Worldwide Investments, Hargreave Hale and Artemis Investment Management.
The combined entity is expected to generate revenues of over EUR30m in 2014.
GetLenses is the largest online contact lens retailer in the UK, offering competitive prices and next-day delivery on an extensive range of prescription contact lenses. In addition to
Kantox, an FX firm offering SMEs and mid-caps a foreign currency exchange solution via a peer-to-peer (P2P) trading platform, has secured EUR6.5m of new series A funding.
The increase in capital will be used to further develop its technology and consolidate its presence across Europe, providing more clients with a cost-effective alternative to trading FX with banks and brokers.
Partech Ventures and Idinvest Partners led the funding round alongside existing investor Cabiedes & Partners.
“We are extremely excited to have secured this latest round of funding, and can’t wait to continue building out our sales teams in Germany,
Albion Community Power (ACP) has invested GBP1.5m in partnership with Welsh developer Infinite Renewables to fund the development of a 500kw single wind turbine in Blaencilgoed, in South Wales.
The wind turbine, which is the first investment made by ACP, will supply electricity to a local quarry. It is expected to produce its first power in September and is predicted to generate over 1,700,000 kWh of electricity per year.
ACP aims to be a major producer of community scale renewable energy by raising up to GBP100m in due course to power some 35,000 homes, targeting sites where power can
Private equity and alternative asset manager Maven Capital Partners has led the GBP7.25m management buyout of SPS (EU) Limited from 4imprint Group.
Blackpool-based SPS is a supplier in the promotional merchandise market, with over 20 years’ operating history.
With current turnover of GBP17m the business has experienced growth over recent years, stemming largely from the company’s focus on new product development, product sourcing, investment in branding technology and a commitment to operational and service excellence.
SPS is the UK’s largest provider of promotional merchandise, supplying to over 2,000 independent distributors in both the UK and Europe.
The
White & Case has advised Falcon Group, a consortium of investors 75 per cent controlled by funds managed by Mid Europa Partners, on the sale of its EUR828m stake in T-Mobile Czech Republic to Deutsche Telekom.
The deal is expected to close by the end of February.
Budapest-based White & Case partner Rob Irving, co-head of the firm’s EMEA private equity practice, says: “We are very pleased to advise Mid Europa and Falcon Group generally on this successful exit. This is the culmination of more than three years of work for Falcon Group, including the EUR574m sale of Ceske
Ventus VCT plc and Ventus 2 VCT plc have issued a joint offer for subscription for D shares to raise up to GBP20m.
Proceeds raised will be split equally between the two venture capital trusts and invested in an existing pipeline of wind and hydro projects by investment manager Temporis Capital.
The captive projects make it possible to fully deploy the capital raised within 12 months.
Investors in the D shares will have a targeted minimum annual dividend of 5p per share from year two onwards; accounting for tax reliefs embedded in the VCT structure, this would amount
US retail and consumer (R&C) total transaction value for 2013 surpassed USD100bn for the first time since 2008, according to PwC's US retail and consumer deals insights 2013 Year in Review and 2014 Outlook report.
Deals in the food and beverage sector and private equity (PE) investment in the apparel, footwear and accessories sector continued to drive activity in the R&C industry.
The report finds that transaction value for announced deals with values greater than USD50m was USD107bn, up 32 per cent from USD81bn in 2012 – and this five-year high was due largely to the USD28bn Berkshire Hathaway/3G
HIG Capital has closed HIG Middle Market LBO Fund II at its USD1.75bn cap.
The fund will continue HIG Capital’s investment strategy of focusing on private equity, buyout and equity-related investments in middle-market companies primarily in the US.
Sami Mnaymneh and Tony Tamer, co-founders and managing partners of HIG Capital, say: “We value the strong relationships we maintain with our existing investors, which enabled us to raise the fund quickly and resulted in the fund being significantly over-subscribed.”
Brian Schwartz and Rick Rosen, executive managing directors of HIG Capital, add: “With the new fund, we will continue to
RatedPeople.com, the UK online marketplace connecting homeowners with recommended local tradesmen, has closed a GBP6.5m pre-IPO investment round, advised by N+1 Singer.
Since its inception in 2005, UK homeowners have posted 2.4 million jobs on RatedPeople.com, spanning 30 home improvement categories from building and roofing, to plumbing, electrical, and gardening work.
The company had revenues growing to GBP12m in 2013.
The pre-IPO round comprises of GBP5.5m of new equity investment co-led by RatedPeople.com’s existing investor Frog Capital (Frog), along with GBP1m of venture debt from Silicon Valley-based Western Technology Investment (WTI).
Since 2011, when Frog first invested,
ARX Equity Partners and Darby Private Equity, together with food industry executive Gerard Lenihan, have completed the buyout of Gramex 2000 Kft.
Financial details of the transaction have not been disclosed.
Gramex is a Hungarian manufacturer and bottler of non-alcoholic beverages, providing products under its own brands, as well as in partnership with local and international retailers and A-brand producers.
ARX, Darby and Lenihan intend to grow Gramex in the coming years organically, via regional expansion.
Among other previous executive roles, Lenihan was also the CEO in a private equity-backed management buyout in Hungary in 1996.
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12 November, 2026 – 8:00 am
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