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BGF (Business Growth Fund) has made a GBP4.5 million investment in Simworx, a designer and supplier of advanced media-based theme park attractions.
West-Midlands based Simworx is using part of the investment to acquire RoboCoaster, the game-changing innovator behind some of the world’s most successful theme park rides. The funding will also be used to double the size of its production plant in Kingswinford and increase its demonstration facilities. The business will also add to its existing 30 employees by recruiting a further 20 new members of staff in the next 12 months including designers, engineers and administrative staff.
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Established
Oak Ridge Natural Resources, an independent oil and natural gas company headquartered in Tulsa, Oklahoma, has received a USD300 million equity commitment from the Kayne Private Energy Income Fund, and members of the management team.
Oak Ridge is a private exploration and production company formed to pursue the acquisition and development of large, long-life producing oil and gas assets in North America, with a specific focus on the Ark-La-Tex and Mid-Continent regions. Chris Jacobsen will lead Oak Ridge as President and CEO and is joined by Brian Wheeler as Chief Technical Officer and Robert Grisaffe as Chief Financial Officer. Prior
Funds advised by Advent International (Advent) and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) have acquired Hypo Group Alpe Adria AG, with its Southeast Europe banking network (SEE) from Heta Asset Resolution, the wind down asset of the former Hypo Alpe Adria owned by the Republic of Austria.
The acquisition was formally closed today following all conditions agreed in the Sales and Purchase Agreement (SPA) signed on 22 December, 2014 being met.
The Group’s Management Board will be led by newly appointed Group Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Ulrich Kissing. Johannes Proksch will act as CFO, Stefan Selden as
In an extract from the Preqin Quarterly Update: Real Estate, Q2 2015, we investigate private real estate funds currently seeking investor commitments, featuring the latest data.
The number and aggregate target capital of closed-end private real estate funds in market has remained relatively consistent during Q2, with 417 vehicles looking to raise USD149bn as of July 2015 (Fig 1). The majority of funds in market are focused primarily on North America (56 per cent), with the region also representing 58 per cent of the total targeted capital (Fig 2). The number of funds focused on regions outside North America,
Private equity fundraising is analyzed in this extract from the Preqin Quarterly Update: Private Equity, Q2 2015, featuring the latest data and breakdowns by fund strategy and geographic focus.
Following the typical drop-off in the number of funds closed from Q4 to Q1, Preqin’s Q2 2015 data shows a levelling off of vehicles reaching final close, with 243 funds closed during the quarter (Fig 1). However, there has been a continued dip in capital raised, with USD113bn secured by funds closed in Q2 2015, down from 241 funds securing USD129bn in Q1 2015.
In line with the trend observed
Corporate, private client and funds business, Hawksford, has enhanced its management capabilities with four director promotions.
Private client specialist Steve Carr joined Hawksford, formerly Rathbones, in 2000. As director he will be responsible for developing new products and services, growing the business in new jurisdictions and expanding the private client team. A member of the Institute of Chartered Secretaries and Administrators and Chartered Management Institute, Carr has experience working with clients across a diverse range of industries including retail, manufacturing, entrepreneurial and the sporting and entertainment sectors.
Daniel Hainsworth has been appointed director and will play a significant role in
UK fund management company Octopus Investments has appointed serial retailer John Browett (pictured) as Non-Executive Director.
The appointment comes as Octopus continues to expand rapidly, driven by its commitment to customer service and transforming markets that are failing to serve their customers effectively.
Browett brings with him a wealth of experience in the retail sector having worked with a number of household brands, which most recently led to his appointment as CEO of homewares store Dunelm. He was previously CEO at Monsoon Accessorize and before that Dixons Retail, with a stint in between at Apple as Head of Retail.
Paraic Cosgrave (pictured) has joined BNP Paribas Securities Services as head of sales and relationship management for the firm’s alternative fund administration business.
Cosgrave brings twenty-five years of experience in international capital markets. Most recently, he was Head of EMEA alternatives business development at SSC GlobeOp. Previously, he held leadership and sales positions at International Financial Systems and Integral Development Corporation, both providers of sophisticated software to financial intermediaries and asset managers.
José Placido, global head of client development and strategy at BNP Paribas Securities Services, says: “I am delighted to welcome Paraic to the team. His deep client
Main Street Hub has closed a USD25 million Series C equity financing round from Vista Equity Partners.
The investment will support the company’s rapid growth, which includes plans to introduce several new product offerings and hire 300 employees in its Austin and New York offices by the end of the year. Main Street was 73rd on the Inc. 500 list of America’s fastest growing companies in 2014.
“Marketing a local business has become significantly more complicated since the days of the Yellow Pages, and today’s consumers expect a two-way conversation across a variety of online channels,” says Andrew Allison,
Maxim Group, a full service investment banking, securities and wealth management firm has expanded its Equity Research platform with the appointment of Stephen Anderson as a Senior Vice President and Senior Restaurant & Consumer Analyst.
Anderson has more than 15 years of Equity Research experience in the Consumer Space, and more than 10 years of restaurant industry-specific coverage. He is a frequent guest on CNBC, Bloomberg, Fox Business, BNN (Canada), and other media outlets. He is often quoted in the financial and trade press, and has been featured as a guest speaker at industry conferences. Anderson was recognised as one of
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