Latest News
Silicon Line, a specialist in developing and providing innovative ultra-low-power optical link technology for consumer electronics as well as commercial and industrial markets, has raised EUR8.2 million (USD9.5 million) in a Series B financing round led by Capital-E.
Additional investors in the Series B round include LRM, Munich Venture Partners and Unixtar. The financing will be used to ramp-up production of the company’s optical modules – tiny circuit boards inside cable connectors; upgrades to the company’s module factory located in Hasselt, Belgium; the hiring of additional design engineers; and opening of local customer support offices in Asia.
Capital-E, LRM and
The size of the alternative investment industry will grow by USD2.5 trillion in the next three years, according to new research from international asset manager Fidante Partners.
The research is the first study not only to aggregate the diverse asset classes that fall under the ‘alternatives’ umbrella, charting their course over the past two decades, but also to project asset growth over the coming three years.
The research’s base case scenario assumes about half of this growth in private equity investments, with growth in infrastructure assets also accelerating. Hedge funds have remained the most popular alternative investment by AUM
Ara Partners Group, an alternative asset manager focused on the industrial, chemicals & materials and energy sectors, has expanded its senior investment team to include three experienced executives: Cory Steffek as Managing Director, Grant Haddix as Operating Partner and James Wang as Principal.
They join Managing Partners Charles Cherington and Troy Thacker to comprise Ara Partners’ senior leadership.
“We are pleased to bring together this group of talented investors representing a diverse array of sector experience and technical skill,” says Charles Cherington. “Cory, Grant and James will play crucial roles in overseeing our four current direct investments, and pursuing
Augmentum Fintech, a European fintech venture capital firm, has made an investment of GBP2.5 million in UK-based residential rent-to-own specialist Unmortgage, as part of a GBP10 million fundraising.
Augmentum is participating in this fund raising alongside existing investor Exponential Ventures, and other investors.
Unmortgage will offer a unique part-own part-rent model of home ownership, requiring as little as 5 per cent deposit with customers paying a market rent on the portion of the home that Unmortgage owns, with the ability to increase the equity in the property as their financial circumstances allow.
The new funds are being raised
SVPER, a social, instant video-only app for forming new real-life relationships in real time, has secured strategic investments from LBank, a Superior and Specialized Digital Exchange, and DAEX Blockchain Group (DAEX), a distributed digital asset clearing ecosystem built using a blockchain-based multi-asset clearing and settlement protocol.
SVPER remains in advanced negotiations with many other private sale investors and has received pledges/term sheets for the Company’s token sale.
SVPER is developing a new digital identity standard that is call “Digital DNA”. The SVPER community will validate each other’s identities by leaving reviews based on the accuracy of personal information to
Mid-market private equity investor LDC has invested more than GBP25m in Love Energy Savings, a leading energy price comparison specialist, in a secondary buyout of the business to further accelerate organic growth.
The deal also marks a partial exit for NVM Private Equity, which first backed the business in September 2015.
Founded in 2007 and headquartered in Bolton, Love Energy specialises in the comparison of business energy prices. It connects small and medium-sized businesses with the UK energy supplier that offers the most appropriate gas and electricity tariff, before helping its customers to switch provider.
Under the leadership
Tailor-made wintersports operator Ski Solutions has supported the management buyout of Highlands-based adventure operator, Wilderness Scotland, after securing GBP3.1 million of follow-on investment funding from Mobeus.
Wilderness Scotland is a tour operator based in Aviemore in the Scottish Highlands, which offers a range of walking, cycling and kayaking tours in Scotland, the North of England and Ireland.
The enlarged group has been renamed Active Travel Group and will comprise Wilderness Scotland and its sister brand Wilderness Ireland, alongside Ski Solutions and outbound cycle and walking operators BSpoke and Cycling for Softies.
The Active Travel Group expects to have
IF&P Foods, a portfolio company of middle market private equity firm Rotunda Capital Partners has acquired Cibus Fresh on July 31 2018.
Terms of the transactions have not been disclosed.
Cibus Fresh is an Indiana-based food service company specialising in high-quality made-to-order packaged convenience foods. The acquisition will accelerate the growth of IF&P by expanding its convenient grab-and-go offerings to include chef-curated sandwiches, wraps, flatbreads, salads, snack packs and parfaits cups. It will also provide an 11,000 sq ft state-of-the-art FDA and USDA inspected kitchen facility certified with the Federal Grant of Inspection to ensure optimum food safety and
Ara Partners Group (Ara Partners), an alternative asset manager focused on the industrial, chemicals & materials and energy sectors, has expanded its senior investment team to include three experienced executives: Cory Steffek as Managing Director, Grant Haddix as Operating Partner and James Wang as Principal.
They join Managing Partners Charles Cherington and Troy Thacker to comprise Ara Partners’ senior leadership.
“We are pleased to bring together this group of talented investors representing a diverse array of sector experience and technical skill,” says Cherington. “Cory, Grant and James will play crucial roles in overseeing our four current direct investments, and
FnB Private Equity has held the final close of FnB Europe Fund, its first European fund specialised in the food and beverage industry. FnB Europe Fund has raised EUR134.5 million, surpassing the EUR120 million initially targeted.
A first closing at EUR101 million was announced in April 2018.
The fund is backed by institutional investors including fund of funds, insurance companies, regional banks and pension schemes, and the remaining by entrepreneurs, family offices and the FnB team. The fund received almost 40 per cent of its subscriptions from European investors based outside France.
The fund invests in controlling positions
Special Reports
Featured
Events
12 November, 2026 – 8:00 am
12 November, 2026 – 5:00 pm
