Allocations
Private equity investment in the UK has risen to its highest level in five years, as investors gained a renewed sense of confidence and vendors brought their assets to market – according to new analysis from KPMG.
KPMG’s latest study of UK transactions involving mid-market private equity investors showed a boost of activity in H1 2021, as 377 deals were completed with a combined value of GBP20.7 billion – levels which haven’t been seen since H1 2017. This is a significant increase when compared to the same period in 2020, which saw 260 deals with a combined value of GBP14.9
Private equity firm Genstar Capital has reinvested, out of its most recent fund, in Association Member Benefits Advisors (AMBA), a national affinity-based membership and marketing insurance agency, in partnership with AMBA’s management team.
Under Genstar’s ownership AMBA has transformed into an essential partner to its association clients, offering membership development, marketing services, website and database management and IT services, among other benefits, drastically increasing the value proposition to the association.
AMBA distributes insurance and other supplementary products primarily through a proprietary network of retired teacher, educator, and state employee associations across 40-plus states. AMBA is proud of the incredible
CenterOak Partners (CenterOak), a Dallas-based private equity firm, is to sell its portfolio company Cascade Windows (Cascade), to Cornerstone Building Brands, for a cash purchase price of USD245 million.
Bolt, the first European super-app, has closed a EUR600 million funding round, increasing the company’s valuation to more than EUR4 billion. Bolt will use the funds to boost its new 15-minute grocery delivery service, Bolt Market, and to accelerate the expansion of its existing mobility and delivery products.
The funds were raised from new investors including Sequoia, Tekne and Ghisallo, as well as Bolt’s existing investors G Squared, D1 Capital and Naya.
Markus Villig, CEO at Bolt, says: “Bolt’s mission is to make urban travel affordable and sustainable. We are building a future where people are not forced to buy
T-Knife Therapeutics, a portfolio company of European investment management firm Andrea Partners, has completed a USD110 million Series B financing.
The financing was led by Fidelity Management & Research Company, with participation from other new investors including LSP, Qatar Investment Authority (QIA), Casdin Capital, Sixty Degree Capital, and CaaS Capital, along with existing investors RA Capital Management, Versant Ventures and founding investor Andera Partners. T-knife plans to use proceeds from the financing to expand its scientific team, increase manufacturing capacity and advance its pipeline of T-cell receptor (TCR) engineered T cell therapies (TCR-T).
“Over the past year we have made
Vala Capital has invested in three fast-growth start-ups with sustainable strategies after successfully completing its first funding round for its new Sustainable Growth EIS. The company plans to raise GBP15 million for the sustainable EIS over the next two years and, having raised its target of GBP1.2 million for the first round, is due to embark on a second round of fundraising in September.
The new portfolio includes one of Vala’s existing investments, Good Club, an online, low-waste, low-emission, sustainable grocer, which provides sustainably sourced, ambient food (such as pastas and non-dairy milks) as well as household goods. The eco-friendly
Just one quarter of venture capital funding went to early stage “true venture” businesses in 2020, according to an analysis undertaken by Price Bailey, a Top 30 firm of accountants.
Price Bailey says that while at a macro level the venture capital (VC) market is buoyant with GBP11.2 billion invested into UK scale-up businesses in 2020, and GBP5.1 billion already invested in Q1 2021, these numbers do not provide an accurate picture of the volumes and values of “true venture” deals. Price Bailey defined “true venture” deals as businesses with less than GBP1.5 million share capital, raising GBP2 million or
An affiliate of global alternative investment firm HIG Capital (HIG) has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Quick Restaurants (Quick) from Burger King France.
Foresight Group Holdings Limited (Foresight), an infrastructure and private equity manager, announces a further interim close for Foresight Energy Infrastructure Partners (FEIP), a sustainability-led energy infrastructure fund investing predominantly in Europe, having secured total commitments of cEUR787 million.
Including co-investments to date of EUR170 million, this represents a total capital pool of cEUR957 million for Foresight’s energy transition strategy.
The close sees a total of cEUR71 million of new commitments from investors since the interim close announced in June 2021. The maximum fund size permitted has been increased following consent from investors and the final close will now
EmergeVest, a Hong Kong-based growth-oriented private equity investment group, has invested in Lucy, a neobank focused on women entrepreneurs, through seed funding. In addition, Dr Jessica Bruser of EmergeVest has joined Lucy’s board of directors.
Lucy will use the proceeds of this funding round to invest in its tech platform, expand its Singapore-based team and prepare for an imminent launch of its inaugural product, before expanding regionally through strategic partnerships.
Diversity and inclusion are a fundamental part of the culture and long-term strategy at EmergeVest. This investment, which allows Lucy to further support female entrepreneurs, is aligned with EmergeVest’s
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12 November, 2026 – 8:00 am
12 November, 2026 – 5:00 pm
