Managers
Energy-focused private equity firm First Reserve’s Fund XIII has entered into a strategic cooperation with Hainan Zhenghe Industrial Group.
The parties plan to pursue oil and gas investment opportunities in China and Central Asia.
In addition, Zhenghe will act as a potential source of capital in support of First Reserve's participation in North American oil and gas upstream projects and will invest as a limited partner in First Reserve Fund XIII.
Zhenghe is a publicly listed company in China and focused on oil and gas exploration and production operations.
Financial terms of the agreement were not disclosed.
HighWire Press, a technology service provider to scholarly publishers and an auxiliary unit of Stanford University Libraries, has received a significant equity investment from private equity firm Accel-KKR.
The new partnership enables HighWire to further its investment in strategic initiatives and digital innovations in internet-based publishing.
The investment from Accel-KKR will enable HighWire Press to operate as a standalone enterprise. Accel-KKR will own a majority interest of the company and Stanford University will maintain a significant minority stake. Michael A. Keller, university librarian at Stanford, will serve as the Stanford representative on the HighWire Press board of directors.
Metric Capital Partners (MCP), the European private capital group, has invested in HTI High Tech Industries.


HTI Group, listed on the mid-market segment of the Vienna Stock Exchange and headquartered in St Marien, Upper Austria, is an international technological manufacturing group specialised in lightweight components in the fields of aluminium pressure die casting and plastic injection moulding.
HTI Group is active at four locations in Austria and Slovakia and has close project partnerships and established business relations with customers across Europe.


MCP’s investment supports the recapitalisation of HTI Group, which was achieved in close cooperation with its existing financing partners
Touch technology specialist Qeexo has closed its Series A funding round with USD2.3 million, led by Sierra Ventures.
Qeexo will use the funding to accelerate market adoption of FingerSense, the company's mobile software which distinguishes between touchscreen input from a fingertip, knuckle, nail or stylus.
"OEMs are always looking for software innovation that will radically improve the way devices are used, while adding power and simplicity simultaneously," says Sang Won Lee, Qeexo co-founder and CEO. "The current state of touch technology is not the pinnacle of the touchscreen experience. Multi-touch has been around since 2007 and we're elevating the
The private equity market is recovering after a difficult four years, with a report from White & Case revealing a total of 702 private equity exits in 2013, the highest number since the peak of the market in 2007.
Exit values reached EUR65.3 billion; almost triple the value of 2009’s EUR27.3 billion. Buyout activity has bounced back too, with 912 buyouts worth EUR73.5 billion in 2013.
As economies in Europe have stabilised, and concerns around the Euro crisis subsided, US sponsor attitudes have changed. 2013 saw a total of 141 European buyouts with a US sponsor worth EUR18 billion,
Invesco Real Estate (IRE), the global real estate investment manager, has made its first investment in the UK private rented sector (PRS) in partnership with be:here, Willmott Dixon’s PRS company.
Under the deal, IRE will acquire 118 PRS units for GBP32.5m in Hayes, West London, on behalf of a UK local authority pension fund.
The transaction marks IRE’s third European multi-family project since starting its residential acquisition programme in Q3 2013. It follows closely on the heels of IRE’s two projects in Germany for GBP106m (circa EUR130m) and the appointment of John German, IRE’s director of residential investments, to
Eco-Stim Energy Solutions, an environmentally-focused oilfield service and technology company, has closed on a USD22 million convertible debt facility with an investment fund managed by Albright Capital Management (ACM).
Under the terms of the agreement, ACM is providing Eco-Stim with a USD22 million convertible debt facility, which will be available to the company for two years.
In addition, Eco-Stim has granted a 30 day option to ACM to purchase USD8 million of the company's common stock in a private placement for USD6 per share. ACM will initially appoint one member to the EcoStim board of directors and if the
The board of Tungsten has received approval from the UK's Prudential Regulation Authority for the formal change of control in relation to the acquisition of FIBI Bank (UK) plc.
The fully UK authorised bank will be re-named Tungsten Bank and commence offering supply chain finance.
Tungsten has also begun providing invoice discounting services to selected US customers.
Edmund Truell, chairman of the bank, says: "We look forward to an exciting future, as Tungsten Corporation builds up a disruptive force in supply chain finance on a global basis. The combination of enormous flows of invoices; simple and transparent finance
Baird Global Investment Banking has advised on the sale of Ecova by Avista Capital to Cofely USA, an indirect subsidiary of the French multinational utility company GDF SUEZ.
Ecova is a total energy and sustainability management company that helps commercial, industrial and utility clients manage and navigate the complexities of energy and resource management to reduce cost and consumption.
The deal is valued at USD335 million in cash, less the payment of debt and other customary closing adjustments.
The Riverside Company has exited Retail Zoo, an Australian owner of four quick service restaurant concepts – Boost Juice, Salsa’s, Cibo Espresso and Hatch.
Riverside invested in Retail Zoo in 2010 and helped the company grow its earnings by more than 150 per cent over the next four years. Retail Zoo is based in Chadstone, Victoria.
The exit marks Riverside’s 100th since its 1988 founding.
Retail Zoo has 294 stores across all brands in Australia, with an additional 100 Boost stores in nine international markets. Salsa’s is a growing chain of 51 fresh Mexican restaurants. Cibo Espresso is
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