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Octopus Investments is enabling people to invest in VCTs for the first time through their ISA.
The move comes as Octopus announces the launch of the latest fundraise for its Titan Venture Capital Trust (Titan), the largest VCT in the UK, with a record-breaking target of GBP120 million with the potential for a further GBP80 million, subject to demand. The news comes on the back of growing demand for its flagship VCT.
This is the largest ever fundraise for a VCT and once fully subscribed, would take the total fund size to over GBP600 AUM, providing significant capital for
Schroders has launched ts first UK-dedicated infrastructure debt fund, with a focus on UK pension funds and insurance companies.
The Schroder UK Infrastructure Debt fund will target junior loans in the transport, energy, environmental, social infrastructure and telecoms sectors in the UK, focusing on higher yielding opportunities in the market. Infrastructure debt is an increasingly attractive asset class for institutional investors due to its defensive nature. Junior loans in infrastructure also offer attractive relative value compared to high yield bonds and leveraged loans.
The UK is already one of the largest and most diversified infrastructure markets in Europe, boasting
Investcorp, a provider and manager of alternative investment products, has appointed Deepak Parekh, Chairman of HDFC Limited, to its International Advisory Board.
Parekh has played a significant role in the development of the financial sector in India, playing a leading role in the diversification of the business into banking, asset management, insurance, real estate and education. Parekh has been a leading advisor to the government of India and was an active member of the committees that shape policy in critical insurance, banking and infrastructure reforms.
Parekh began his career with Ernst & Young in New York and subsequently served
Impact investment in India topped USD1 billion for the first time in 2015 and, between 2010 and 2016, totalled more than USD5.2 billion as the market attracted more than 50 active impact funds, according to new research by McKinsey.
The new data also reveals that the average deal size has more than doubled (from USD7.6 million in 2010 to USD17.6 million in 2016) while the number of deals has remained stable (at between 60 and 80 a year over the period). Financial inclusion and clean energy projects remain the most attractive sectors for investment, respectively accounting for 43 per cent
Palatine Private Equity has held the Final Close of Palatine Private Equity Impact Investing Fund LP (Impact Fund) at its hard-cap of GBP100 million, exceeding its GBP75 million target. Evercore Private Funds Group acted as the exclusive global placement agent for the fundraise.
The Impact Fund is the inaugural vehicle raised by Palatine targeting a positive social and/or environmental impact alongside industry-standard returns. It represents a continuation of Palatine’s commitment to responsible investing, and builds upon the numerous awards the firm has won for its Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) credentials.
Beth Houghton, Partner, (pictured) is leading the Fund.
Atlas for Men, the men’s outdoor clothing brand that became independent from Groupe De Agostini a year ago, following a spin-off organized by Activa Capital and the Management team, has refinanced its existing debt alongside an extended pool of banks, allowing the full reimbursement of the mezzanine debt and partial reimbursement of the shareholder funds.
Founded in 1999 within the Groupe De Agostini, Atlas for Men is a specialized men’s outdoor brand for clothing and accessories, sold online and by catalogue. The brand is present in 10 European countries and generates close to EUR160 million in sales from six million
Foresight Group (Foresight) has invested GBP3 million from the Foresight Regional Investment Fund into the specialist engineering company ONFAB Limited, a designer and manufacturer of flexible containment solutions, primarily for use in pharmaceutical manufacturing processes.
ONFAB was founded in 2004 by Oliver Nulty, a former Astra Zeneca engineer, who spotted the market opportunity created by increasing health and safety regulations which made containment a higher priority, specifically in pharmaceutical manufacturing processes. Today, the total global containment market is valued at around GBP320m, with an estimated growth rate of 10-20 per cent per annum.
With Foresight’s investment, ONFAB will continue
Gridiron Capital has promoted Kevin Jackson to Senior Managing Director and a member of the firm’s investment committee.
Jackson joined Gridiron Capital in 2010 as a Vice President and was promoted to Managing Director in 2012. He is a Director on the Boards of several of Gridiron Capital’s portfolio companies including Dent Wizard, Rough Country and Tokyo Joe’s. Gridiron Capital recently closed its third fund in October 2016.
Tom Burger, Co-founder and Managing Partner, says:“Kevin has been a valuable team member at Gridiron Capital and is being recognized for his leadership and accomplishments at the firm. He has earned the respect
Intralinks has launched a new version of its Virtual Data Room (VDR) which the company says will help straemline the M&A process.
The new Intralinks VDR is its fastest platform to date. It is 50% faster across the board and now means a data room can be set up in hours, not days. Its integration with artificial intelligence technology (AI) expedites the due diligence process and reduces deal completion times through the automation of deal room set-up, contract analysis and organisation.
Additional key features include: a new User Interface (UI), giving users an enhanced look and feel to the
McDermott Will & Emery has appointed Michael McStay as a partner in the Firm’s Chicago office. McStay joins the Corporate & Transactional Practice Group with a focus on middle market private equity.
McStay will join forces with recent lateral and former Ropes & Gray colleague, Gregory Metz. Together they will counsel clients on complex transactional matters and advise private equity clients on mergers and acquisitions, leveraged buyouts, debt and equity restructurings and divestitures.
“Over the past year we’ve had dynamic growth in our Corporate & Transactional practice both in the US and worldwide,” says Brooks Gruemmer, head of McDermott’s
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