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Exit delivers exceptional returns to investors in UK’s largest venture capital trust (VCT)
Octopus Ventures has exited from SwiftKey, the company behind the app for faster, easier typing on mobile phones and tablets that is now being used on more than 300 million devices worldwide, delivering what it is describing as ‘exceptional returns’ to investors in its Octopus Titan Venture Capital Trust (Titan VCT).
The news follows the acquisition of SwiftKey by Microsoft with the deal highlighting the important role VCTs play in developing the next generation of disruptive technologies and UK business. VCTs provide investors with the opportunity
Private equity company HIG Capital’s portfolio company Ship Supply International has acquired Alliance Supply Management.
Headquartered in Houston, Texas, Alliance is a port logistics business that provides time sensitive, last-mile delivery of required deck & engine maintenance products and critical perishable goods to commercial vessels throughout the US Gulf Coast. Since its founding in 1906, Alliance has achieved an industry-leading reputation and a long tradition of success while operating under the ownership of the Margolin family. Bruce Margolin, the President of Alliance, will join the Ship Supply team as Chief Commercial Officer.
“The Gulf Coast is an attractive market
BGF (Business Growth Fund) has backed Darlington-based Total Recycling Services (TRS) with a GBP6.7m growth capital investment.
TRS provides complete recycling and waste management services for industrial and commercial customers, including hazardous waste recovery, commercial recycling and industrial services. Operating from its two sites in Teesside, all services are carried out in-house enabling TRS to provide a high-level of flexibility, responsiveness and control around customers’ recycling and waste management requirements.
The six-year old business, which generated turnover of more than GBP14 million in 2014, is led by Managing Director, Alex Foreman. During this time, TRS has built a strong
UK venture capital investor Albion Ventures has led a GBP1.65m funding round in the mobile fan engagement and sports marketing company InCrowd Sports. Albion Ventures is investing alongside Sky and a number of angel investors.
The management team is led by Aidan Cooney who previously set up the world’s leading sports data company, Opta, also backed by Albion Ventures. He is joined by two former IMG executives and a technology group borne out of the University of Sussex Innovation Centre.
InCrowd develops mobile apps for professional sports clubs underpinned by the unique technology solution developed by the team at
BlackRock has completed an initial close for its latest renewable power fund, Renewable Income Europe, with EUR275 million in commitments secured from a range of institutional investors from Europe and Asia.
Renewable power generation has been a leading source of investment flow within infrastructure over the last five years. BlackRock expects this trend to continue, increasing the need for capital to finance a rapidly evolving power generation sector.
Rory O’Connor, Head of European Investment for BlackRock Renewables and manager of the fund, says: “Renewable energy has become a mainstream asset class within infrastructure. Demand for renewables in developed countries
2015 was a good year for VCTs in performance terms with the average VCT up 9 per cent to 31 December 2015, whilst the fundraising for the tax year 2014/15 was GBP429 million, the fourth highest ever.
The VCT sector is also meeting investor demands for income, with the VCT sector average yield being 8.6 per cent at 31 December 2015.
However, with rule changes having recently come in to effect, how will these impact VCTs and what is the outlook for the sector in 2016?
Interestingly, VCT fund raising for the current tax year is just slightly
Inverness Graham, a private investment firm based in suburban Philadelphia, has completed the sale of Danville Materials, a manufacturer of consumable restorative products and small equipment for the dental market, to ZEST Anchors, Inc.
This marks the fourth exit for Inverness Graham in the last year and the seventh exit in the last 24 months.
Inverness Graham acquired Danville in December 2013 in a proprietary transaction after a proactive search in the dental industry for consumable product manufacturers. Industry veteran Garrett Sato partnered with Inverness and joined as Chairman and CEO, alongside Danville co-founder, Craig Bruns, who remained as President.
Arma Partners (Arma), an independent communications, media and technology (CMT) focused M&A advisory firm, has strengthened its global advisory capabilities with the appointment of Ron Pillar as a partner spearheading the firm’s New York operations.
Pillar has over 20 years of investment banking experience in the CMT sector and during his career has advised on deals worth over USD50 billion, with a particular specialisation in Software and Communications Technology.
Prior to starting his role at Arma, Pillar headed up Pillar Capital Advisors, an independent, technology-focused M&A advisory firm he founded in January 2014. During his two years leading Pillar
Sumo Digital has announced Nottingham as the location for its second UK and third global studio. Sumo, backed by private equity firm NorthEdge Capital, is a creator and developer of video game products and services, working on the world’s largest brands and franchises for leading publishers and platform holders across Europe, US and Japan.
Opening at the end of March 2016, Sumo’s second UK studio aims to employ 50 people in central Nottingham, joining a team of 280 people at the firm’s existing offices in Sheffield, UK and Pune, India.
CEO of Sumo Digital, Carl Cavers, says: “Opening the new
Lewis & Clark Ventures, a venture capital firm founded by Tom Hillman, has raised USD104 million for a new fund that has already begun making investments in high growth companies across the Midwest.
“We are entrepreneurs and have grown successful businesses,” Hillman says. “Our model is to pass on our experience by building mentoring relationships with people and help to guide and accelerate their growth.”
The new fund will focus primarily on Series A and B round venture capital investments in the size of USD3 to USD7 million to high growth companies. “We are interested in companies with customers
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