Allocations
BGF has successfully exited its investment in Semafone, a provider of data security and compliance solutions for call and contact centres, after it was acquired by Livingbridge.
BGF invested GBP4 million in Semafone in October 2014, alongside Octopus Ventures (GBP1 million) and a consortium of existing shareholders. Funding was used to support the delivery of Semafone’s key contracts, boost senior management resources, extend the product portfolio and expand into overseas markets. The investment from BGF and Octopus Ventures also enabled Semafone to gain access to non-dilutive bank debt to fund further growth.
Semafone is a market leading data security
UK-based Ethos Invest has launched a vehicle set to become the world’s largest shariah compliant tech-focused private equity fund, with a fundraise target of GBP1 billion.
Swander Pace Capital (SPC), a private equity firm specialising in consumer product companies, has formed Triple Crown Holdings (Triple Crown” to establish a partnership with T-Bev, a manufacturer and distributor of tea extracts, instant tea, natural and organic caffeine and other botanical extracts, catering to the functional beverage and dietary supplement markets.
Triple Crown is a holding company which is actively seeking additional acquisitions in the clean-label food ingredients category.
“We are delighted to partner with Anson Gu and the T-Bev team. T-Bev serves on-trend, natural and organic, clean-label ingredients to strong growth end-markets. We believe demand for clean-label ingredients
Distill Ventures (DV) is committed to increasing diversity within the drinks industry through a range of global initiatives, including the launch of a new Pre-Accelerator Programme dedicated to early stage founders from underrepresented groups. DV will aim to invest USD5 million in drinks entrepreneurs over the next 12 months through this initiative.
Through the Pre-Accelerator, DV has created a more accessible runway to unlock seed funding, a key barrier reported by entrepreneurs from underrepresented groups. Access to capital is a crucial requirement for early-stage companies. However, racial and gender wealth disparities can mean founders from underrepresented groups have less access
Pi Labs, Europe’s most active PropTech investor, has backed WAKU Robotics, Europe’s largest mobile robot marketplace and robot fleet hardware analytics platform.
WAKU Robotics is a Berlin-based company that uses AI-powered software to optimise the performance of robots operating in the logistics and manufacturing sector.
It has now secured funding from the UK, Germany and Silicon Valley, reflecting advancements in technology which mean that by 2030 nearly 20 million warehouse jobs are predicted to be undertaken by robots.
WAKU’s business model aligns with this technological revolution in robotics by helping its customers to determine the robot specification that is best
Private equity firms invested in a record 566 companies in Central and Eastern Europe in 2020, as the industry supported dynamic SMEs and start-ups that will fuel the recovery from the impact of Covid-19 and underpin long-term economic and social development across the region.
Invest Europe, the association representing Europe’s private equity, venture capital and infrastructure sectors, as well as their investors, today released its 2020 Central and Eastern Europe Private Equity Statistics. The report shows that the number of companies receiving private equity investment increased by 15 per cent on the previous year’s record and beat the five-year average
Rothschild & Co has completed the final closing of Five Arrows Growth Capital (FAGC), its fourth European corporate private equity vehicle.
This is the 18th fund raised above its expected target by Rothschild & Co since 2009 when the Merchant Banking business was established. Total assets under management now exceed EUR16 billion across four strategies: corporate private equity; senior and junior credit; primary and secondary fund investing; and co-investments.
The Fund held its final close at EUR450 million, ‘above its target’, with a globally diversified group of investors comprised of institutions, corporations, international family offices and entrepreneurs from Europe, North
WeMaintain, a proptech company based in Paris and London, has raised EUR30 million in Series B funding.
The raise follows WeMaintain’s acquisition of fire alarm solutions company Shokly, and allows WeMaintain to accelerate its international expansion and extend its state-of-the-art proprietary technology across the built environment. Supported by Eurazeo since its Series A round in 2019, WeMaintain raises its Series B with Red River West, BPIFrance Digital Ventures, and Swiss Immo Lab. Eurazeo is renewing its support to the company.
WeMaintain’s latest million-dollar cash-backing moves the company closer to realising the company’s ambition to manage the critical elements of
Marstone, a digital wealth technology firm, has held the second close of a USD5 million Series A financing round bringing the company’s total funding to over USD20 million.
The first close, led by Apex Fintech Solutions LLC, the “fintech for fintechs” powering innovation and the future of digital wealth management, was completed in May 2020, with Amerant Bancorp Inc. (NASDAQ: AMTB and AMTBB) (Amerant) leading the latest with a USD2.5 million investment. Other Series A participants include Peter Kraus, John Thain, Kristen Dickey, Tom Freeman, Michael Rafferty, Richard Wastcoat, and other early investors. Founded in 2013 by Margaret Hartigan and
The Kempen Private Markets Fund has acquired a direct interest in UK healthcare consultancy Channel 3 Consulting (Channel 3). Channel 3 designs, implements and optimises digital transformation programmes for the health and care sector.
Established in 2009, Channel 3 helps its clients harness the power of technology to deliver better patient outcomes, improve services and operate more efficiently. Over the past decade, Channel 3 has worked with over 90 organisations across the National Health Service (NHS), private healthcare, local government, the Ministry of Defence and the wider public sector. It is currently appointed to several key NHS frameworks.
Kempen
Events
12 November, 2026 – 8:00 am
12 November, 2026 – 5:00 pm
