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The online English platform ABA English has closed its first funding round for USD3.4 million with the venture firm Nauta Capital.
ABA English specialises in online English teaching using a learning methodology, exclusive media content and its own developed interactive technology.
The Barcelona based e-learning start-up was launched in 2013 with new unique content and a new go-to-market approach. In its first year it reached one million students in 170 countries, with a particularly strong presence in Italy, France, Spain, Brazil and Mexico. The funding from Nauta will be devoted to accelerate ABA's growth and international expansion.
Jordi
Bedell Trust has received regulatory approval and a variation of permission from the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) to provide depositary services to UK alternative investment funds (AIFs) as well as "depositary-lite" services to non-EEA AIFs from its London office.
Furthermore, Bedell has received regulatory approval from the Jersey Financial Services Commission (JFSC) to provide depositary services from its Jersey office to all JFSC regulatory categories of investment funds.
Bedell Trust is now able to provide full depositary services covering cash flow monitoring, safekeeping, and oversight responsibility to unregulated collective investment undertakings – specifically closed-ended AIFs of alternative investment fund
David Jorgenson has joined consulting firm mergers and acquisitions (M&A) specialist Equiteq as its global head of M&A, based in its New York office.
Jorgenson has advised business owners, shareholders and C-level executives on every aspect of growth and value realisation during his 20-year career as a technology consultant and investment banker.
He is an expert in every aspect of corporate financial advisory – from valuation, strategic financial advisory, public and private equity and debt financing, exit planning, M&A strategy and execution.
Jorgenson says: “Equiteq’s transactional M&A expertise offers unique value to consulting firms and the opportunity to
Bridges Ventures’ portfolio company Alina Homecare has acquired a homecare provider in the Midlands.
This is the second deal completed by Alina and follows the acquisition of a homecare provider in Hertfordshire in May this year.
Alina is continuing to invest in ‘greenfield’ branches and, in addition to the first branch that it opened on the South Coast in March, it is now opening a further two greenfield branches in the region.
Bridges announced its backing of Alina in May 2014 as the latest investment of the Bridges Sustainable Growth Fund III.
Alina aims to improve standards
Palamon Capital Partners is to acquire a majority interest The Simplify Group, which comprises conveyancing specialists Move with Us and DC Law and probate specialist the Chorus Law.
The terms of the transaction have not been disclosed.
Palamon’s investment in Simplify underlines its strategy to build the UK’s largest legal services provider, with multiple routes to market. The firm believes that changes in the UK legal market have created a significant opportunity to achieve this and embarked on its strategy in 2011 by investing in QualitySolicitors, the largest high street legal brand in the UK.
The fragmented UK high-street
Clairvest Group has held a final closing for Clairvest Equity Partners V and its parallel partnerships (CEP V).
Marketing of CEP V commenced in February 2014 with a fund target size of USD500 million.
CEP V closed at USD600 million, the fund's hard cap, and was materially oversubscribed.
Clairvest's commitment to the fund is USD180 million alongside USD420 million from third party investors.
"We are delighted to have a renewed commitment by many of our existing fund investors as well as to welcome several new investors to CEP V. We are pleased that the market was receptive
Thoma Bravo has completed its acquisition of Sparta Systems, a provider of enterprise quality management solutions, from current investors Summit Partners and Altaris Capital Partners.
Financial details have not been disclosed.
“Sparta is an established leader in the enterprise quality management solutions space, and we look forward to working with the company’s management team to identify and pursue future growth opportunities,” says Scott Crabill, a managing partner at Thoma Bravo. “We expect to help management further accelerate Sparta’s growth and expand the company’s geographical and sector reach.”
“We are excited to partner with Thoma Bravo, which has a
Mid-market private equity firm LDC has exchanged contracts to sell its stake in pharmaceutical manufacturer Penn Pharmaceuticals in a GBP127million transaction with Packaging Coordinators.
LDC took a significant stake in Penn in April 2007, investing GBP33million in the business. The exit will deliver nearly a 3x return on its original investment.
Established in 1979 and headquartered in Tredegar in South Wales, Penn provides a selection of contract development and manufacturing organisation (CDMO) services to its customer base that comprises some of the world’s leading pharmaceutical and biotech companies. Its reach spans Europe, Japan and the US, and it provides
The management of fishing tackle company Fox International has secured a significant investment in the company led by Next Wave Partners and supported by Pricoa Capital Group.
Along with the senior management team, Cliff Fox will retain a substantial stake in the business and will remain involved in the future success and direction of the business.
The investment will allow Fox International to continue its innovation programme, upgrade and improve customer service and expand into new geographical markets.
Fox says: “I’m really delighted to be partnering with Next Wave Partners and I look forward to the next stage
Imperial Capital Group of Toronto, together with its partner OPTrust Private Markets Group, has completed a CAD121 million investment in Dental Corporation of Canada.
Based in Toronto, Dental Corp is the largest group of dental practices in Canada with approximately 90 locations.
The company was founded in 2011 by Graham Rosenberg and Dr Andrew Meikle and enables dentists to retain their clinical and operating autonomy and focus on patient care rather than the administrative aspects of running a dental practice.
"We have had a strong interest in the North American dental business and see Dental Corp as both
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