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Demand for children’s nursery services in the UK picked up well in 2013/14, as an improved economy and an expansion of government subsidised places saw many more children attend nurseries during the year.
That’s according to the latest data from healthcare market intelligence provider LaingBuisson.
Findings published in Children’s Nurseries UK Market Report (13th edition) shows that the children’s nurseries market in the UK was worth GBP4.9bn in 2013/14, increasing by four per cent in real terms from 2012/13. This boost is attributed to a good rise in total children attending nurseries (up 6.5 per cent), though held back
Better Capital’s BECAP12 Fund has acquired all of the debt facilities of iNTERTAIN Limited and its subsidiary companies.
iNTERTAIN was formed in October 2009 to acquire the prime trading assets previously owned and operated by Regent Inns Plc.
It now owns and operates a national chain of bars trading principally under the Walkabout brand.
Its audited revenues and operating loss for the year to 2 February 2013 were GBP59 million and GBP3 million respectively.
The 2012 Fund has committed GBP20 million to fund the debt acquisition and future financing requirements.
Private equity investment firm Hellman & Friedman has held the final closing of Hellman & Friedman Capital Partners VIII (HFCP VIII), a USD10.9 billion fund.
Since forming its first partnership in 1987, Hellman & Friedman has raised over USD35 billion of committed capital.
"We are pleased to announce the successful closing of our eighth fund," says Philip Hammarskjold, chief executive officer of Hellman & Friedman. "We are extremely gratified by the enthusiastic support of our limited partners, many of whom have invested with us throughout our 30 year history. We are excited about the opportunities we see for companies at
Oxford Investment Opportunity Network (OION), a business angel network owned and managed by Oxford Innovation, has launched its initial Seed Enterprise Investment Scheme (SEIS) Fund.
The OION 2015 SEIS FUND is promoted and managed by Innvotec Ltd, an FCA regulated Alternative Investment Fund Manager, specialising in investment in start-up and early-stage businesses.
OION is Innvotec’s strategic partner in the fund with specific responsibility for identifying high potential investment opportunities and assisting the entrepreneurs and their businesses post investment.
The fund is the first in a proposed series of annual SEIS funds dedicated to investing in start-up and young
There has been an increase in the proportion of women business angels in the UK, a survey has found.
Some 12 per cent of respondents to the survey, which was conducted by Professor Colin Mason and Tiago Botelho, a doctoral student, from the University of Glasgow’s Adam Smith Business School, were women, a significantly higher figure than reported in previous studies undertaken over the past 20 years.
This increase parallels trends in the US. However, women business angels are more significant in the US, accounting for around 20 per cent of the total.
These survey findings are reported
Private equity placement agent BerchWood Partners has made two new hires and three promotions.
Russell A Breuer has joined the firm as a vice president. He brings 12 years of experience in institutional fundraising, private placements, and strategy consulting.
Brian E Infante is joining as an analyst and has two years of experience in financial analysis and reporting. Both will be based at the firm’s New York office.
“We welcome the addition of Russell and Brian to our team,” says Dave Berchenbriter, managing partner of BerchWood Partners. “Their expertise and experience will help us further enhance our platform
Concerns about the economic situation are generating uncertainty in corporate M&A departments and among leading investment bankers and M&A advisors, according to a survey by CMS Hasche Sigle.
The survey indicates that the funding environment for M&A deals has seldom been better: for the second time in a row, company managers awarded a new top mark for access to acquisition financing; investment bankers and M&A advisors see the financing environment as very supportive not just for strategic buyers, but also for private equity investors.
In the latter case, their assessment surpasses the existing record. As a result, hardly any
Private equity house LDC’s portfolio company, Fever-Tree, a supplier of premium carbonated mixers for spirits, has commenced dealings on AIM following the successful pricing of the company’s IPO.
Fever-Tree’s GBP154.4 million listing on London’s AIM market has resulted in 60.4 per cent of the company being publicly traded and will raise gross proceeds of approximately GBP93.3 million.
LDC, which took a stake in Fever-Tree in March 2013, will retain a 10.4 per cent holding following the IPO, with Directors and senior management of Fever-Tree retaining approximately 25.2 per cent of the issued share capital.
Since its launch in
Private equity investor Auda International has appointed Lucian Wu as a managing director, based in the firm’s Hong Kong office.
“Lucian Wu is an exceptionally experienced private equity investor,” says Ernest Boles, Auda’s chief executive officer. “We are fortunate to have been able to bring him onto our team to help us grow Auda’s private equity investment practice in Asia.”
“I am delighted to join Auda, which has demonstrated outstanding investment acumen across a quarter century,” says Wu. “I am impressed by Auda’s commitment to grow its private market investment activities in Asia and excited to join the firm’s
Asia Pacific has always been a key market for global alternative fund managers but as the latest research published by Preqin shows, institutional investors in the region are becoming an increasingly important source of capital allocation; both to hedge funds and private equity.
Hedge Fund Investor Trends
This is good news for local domestic managers and global players with an eye on diversifying their investor base and tapping in to new sources of capital. Based on 494 institutional investor profiles the Preqin October Spotlight report found that Australia (32 per cent) and Japan (24 per cent) are key markets with
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