Ochre House, the recruitment process outsourcing and talent management business backed by NBGI Private Equity (NBGIPE), has acquired the two strategic resourcing firms in the Middle East and North Africa, TAAHEED and Carmichael Fisher.  The acquisition will significantly expand Ochre House’s international capabilities in response to increasing client demand.  “We are already one of the fastest growing talent management businesses in Europe and Asia and have an established partnership with one of the US’s leading players, Pinstripe,” says Chris Herrmanssen, CEO.  “Acquiring the Dubai-based TAAHEED and its sister company, Carmichael Fisher, provides us with a key piece of the jigsaw

HIG Europe (HIG), the European arm of global private equity firm HIG Capital, and FNZ Holdings Ltd (FNZ), a provider of Software as a Service (SaaS) solutions to the financial services sector, have entered into an agreement with growth equity firm General Atlantic whereby General Atlantic will acquire a minority stake in FNZ alongside HIG and the management team. Terms of the transaction have not been disclosed. HIG backed an MBO of FNZ in early 2009 and the Company has since experienced rapid organic growth supporting its existing blue-chip clients such as Standard Life and Axa as well as new

Blackstone Energy Partners, Blackstone Capital Partners VI, and certain affiliates are to purchase newly issued CQP Senior Subordinated Paid-in-Kind Units (CQP PIK Units) issued by Cheniere Energy Partners (CQP) for USD2 billion. CQP would use the proceeds of the Financing to fund the equity portion of the costs of developing, constructing and placing into service its Sabine Pass liquefaction project being developed at the Sabine Pass LNG terminal (the "Liquefaction Project"), the purchase of the Creole Trail pipeline from Cheniere Energy, Inc. and other partnership business purposes. Cheniere Partners is advancing towards a positive final investment decision for the development

PeopleMatter, a provider of talent management solutions, has secured a USD14 million Series C funding round led by Morgenthaler Ventures. Existing investors Noro-Moseley Partners, C&B Capital, Intersouth Partners and Harbert Ventures also participated. “While other talent management companies like SuccessFactors, Taleo and Workday focus on the white-collar, career professional, PeopleMatter is the only company that caters to hourly workers in the service industry,” says Gary Little (pictured), Partner at Morgenthaler Ventures and new PeopleMatter board member. “This is a USD2.5-billion market that’s underserved and rapidly growing. There is a huge opportunity here. The PeopleMatter Platform isn’t just an HR software

Investment funds advised by Levant Capital Limited and Citi Venture Capital International (CVCI) have jointly acquired a controlling stake in Al-Raya For Foodstuff Company Limited (Al-Raya), a leading supermarket chain in Saudi Arabia. The transaction, valued at USD100 million, presents an opportunity for Levant Capital and CVCI to capitalise on the growth in consumer-driven demand and the increasingly attractive middle income segment of the Gulf region’s largest economy. The transaction closed on 21 February, 2012. Based in Jeddah, Al-Raya operates a fast-growing chain of 25 supermarkets across 14 cities of the western and southern regions of Saudi Arabia. The company

Resilience Capital Partners, a Cleveland-based private equity fund, has acquired the Heavy Duty Division of Vista Pro Automotive through its newly-formed entity, Thermal Solutions Manufacturing. Michael Barbee, the President of Thermal Solutions Manufacturing, says: "We are excited that Resilience Capital has acquired the Heavy Duty Division of Vista Pro Automotive. Leveraging Resilience Capital’s strong financial commitment and exceptional operational expertise, we will rapidly achieve our goal of becoming the undisputed leader of the heavy duty heat exchange industry through a combination of market share gains, new product introductions and strategic acquisitions." "We look forward to partnering with the management and employees

New York-based Blue Wolf Capital Partners’s Blue Wolf Capital Fund II is to acquire Standex International Corporation’s Air Distribution Products Group (SADP), a designer and manufacturer of galvanised steel duct products which distribute conditioned air throughout HVAC systems in residential and light commercial buildings. Blue Wolf will acquire substantially all of the assets and assume certain operating liabilities of SADP. Terms have not been disclosed. The Company’s executive management team, led by CEO Tom Smid, will remain with SADP and are investing in the company alongside Blue Wolf. Headquartered in Philadelphia, PA, SADP operates five facilities in the US and

Venture capital and small business finance firm Advantage Capital Partners has been awarded a USD80 million allocation in the highly competitive federal New Markets Tax Credit program. This latest allocation brings the firm’s total awards since the program began in 2002 to USD524 million. Through prior state and federal New Markets program allocations, Advantage Capital has invested more than USD650 million in private capital into 147 businesses, which, in the aggregate, employ more than 8,000 people and have attracted more than USD900 million in follow-on capital to support their growth. Announcing the New Markets Tax Credit (NMTC) program allocation awards

Catella has acted as adviser and arranger for Sefyr Värme AB, the parent company of the district heating company Värmevärden AB, in the issue of a senior secured note in excess of SEK 900 million, directed at selected Nordic institutional investors. The bond carries a 7% coupon and has a tenor of five years. 

“This is the first major transaction resulting from Catella’s endeavours within the financing area. We see clearly that companies nowadays have a major need for alternatives to traditional bank financing,” says Johan Ericsson, CEO Catella AB. 

“We are witnessing strong interest in the corporate bond market