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Manna Development Group (Manna) has acquired 38 Panera Bread cafés in Colorado, expanding its operating footprint to over 130 Panera Bread outlets across seven states.
CapitalSpring, a leading private investment firm focused exclusively on the branded restaurant industry, structured and led the acquisition financing and recapitalisation, while Owl Rock Capital served as co‐lender and lead arranger.
Manna has grown continually from its inception in 2003 when Paul Saber and Patrick Rogers opened their first Panera café in San Diego. Through aggressive new store development and the successful integration of 6 additional acquisitions, Manna has grown to become one of
EQT funds, owners of Sivantos, and the Tøpholm and Westermann families, owners of Widex, have agreed terms to merge the two companies.
The ‘strategic merger of equals’ will create a major player in the global hearing aid market generating combined revenues of approximately EUR1.6 billion and employing more than 10,000 people worldwide. The transaction values the combined entity at an enterprise value of more than EUR7 billion.
The merger aims at accelerating growth, strengthening market penetration and enhancing efficiencies to enable additional investments into R&D and supply chain. This will allow the merged company to expand access to hearing
Hermes Investment Management (Hermes), the GBP33.0 billion manager, has launched the Hermes European Direct Lending Fund, which is managed by Patrick Marshall, Head of Private Debt & CLOs.
The European Fund follows the successful launch of the UK Direct Lending Fund in 2016.
The Fund offers access to the stable, low-correlated returns from high-quality, senior-secured loans to a diverse range of middle-market businesses in the UK and Europe, with a focus on Scandinavia, Germany, Benelux and Ireland.
Senior-secured transactions are originated through co-lending partnerships with Danske Bank, DZ Bank and KBC Bank, which sit alongside the existing UK
Idinvest Partners has held the final closing of its fourth direct lending Fund (Idinvest Private Debt IV), at EUR715 million, surpassing its initial target of EUR600 million. More than 60 per cent of the investors are from outside France.
Since its launch in 2016, the Idinvest Private Debt IV fund has invested 60 per cent of its total commitments across 17 companies, of which more than 40 per cent are based outside France.
Focusing on the European lower mid-market segment (enterprise value of between EUR35m and EUR250 million), Idinvest’s Private Debt team arranges primarily unitranche financings for tickets ranging
The European law firm Noerr has provided comprehensive advice on the sale of the eCommerce platform Daraz, a market leader in countries including Pakistan, Bangladesh, Myanmar, Sri Lanka and Nepal, to Alibaba.
The investors selling Daraz include Asia Pacific Internet Group (APACIG), a joint venture between the listed company Rocket Internet SE and the telecoms group Ooredoo (Qatar), which is likewise a listed company, the British sovereign wealth fund CDC, and the Tengelmann Group.
Prior to closing, the group was restructured across several jurisdictions under the lead of a Noerr team headed by the private equity partners Sascha Leske
Affiliates of Palladium Equity Partners have completed the sale of the parent of home care provider Jordan Health Services (Jordan), to Kelso & Company and Blue Wolf Capital Partners.
Jordan is being combined with Great Lakes Caring and National Home Health Care to create one of the largest US home-based care providers. The new company, which brings together three market leaders and creates a comprehensive care continuum of personal care, skilled home healthcare, and hospice care, will serve more than 63,000 patients and their families daily, employing over 31,000 caregivers across 15 states in 221 locations.
Following its acquisition
simplesurance, the provider of a smart insurance services platform, has raised USD24 million in its Series-C funding round, which will be used to push the continuing international roll-out of the platform.
The lead investor is global insurance group Allianz, who invested alongside Rheingau Founders, Rakuten Capital (the investment arm of Rakuten, Inc) and other investors. Drake Star Partners acted as the exclusive financial advisor to simplesurance throughout its fundraising efforts.
This is the largest funding round since simplesurance’s inception back in 2012 and will go towards the company’s expansion into new markets, with Japan as a possible first target.
The Disruption House (TDH), a financial technology benchmarking and data analytics business, has closed a significant funding round and created an executive advisory board.
The funding was raised from a small group of private investors and will enable the firm to complete production of their unique benchmarking and performance tracking platform.
The new executive advisory team consists of Piers Hedley, Chris Justice and Clare Walsh. Piers is a leading strategy advisor to UHNW Families and fast growing businesses as well as being a successful private investor. He brings over 30 years’ experience of helping many businesses to achieve
AnaCap Financial Partners (AnaCap), a European financial services private equity firm, is rebranding its Barclays France business as Milleis Banque (Milleis) with immediate effect.
This follows the successful completion of the acquisition of Barclays’ French retail, wealth and investment management operations (including subsequent regulatory approval) in September 2017.
The rebranding exercise is designed to reflect both the expansion and simplification of its product range, further bringing Milleis in line with the needs and expectations of its broadening customer base. The product development initiative was started in September 2017 and includes to date the introduction of new life insurance policies
Ian Macleod, has joined the board of business angel investment syndicate Archangels, succeeding Geoff Ball, who has retired after seven years.
Archangels’ members invest in, and mentor, promising start-up and early stage companies from Scotland’s vibrant technology and life sciences sectors.
Ian Macleod had a long career as a financial analyst, specialising in electronics and telecoms, initially with Capel Cure Myers and subsequently with decade long spells at NatWest Markets and Jefferies. During most of this period he was based in Paris and was recognised for several years as one of the leading European telecoms analysts.
Latterly, Ian
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