Axiom Asia Private Capital Management Services has completed the final closing on its second fund, Axiom Asia Private Capital Fund II. The fund’s total investor commitments of USD950m represent the maximum amount the fund could raise under agreement with its investors and exceeded the initial target of USD750m. The fund was oversubscribed, with firm indications of interest exceeding USD1.1bn. San Francisco-based Probitas Partners acted as principal placement agent for the fund. Axiom II is the successor fund to Axiom Asia Private Capital Fund I, Axiom Asia’s first fund, which had USD440m of investor commitments and commenced investing in 2006. The

The economic downturn of 2009 severely impacted the US fundraising industry, with the amount of time taken to raise a fund increasing to an average of 18 months, twice as long as in 2005, according to a report by C.P. Eaton. More general partners remained on the road seeking a severely limited supply of capital. The outlook for 2010 is brighter: according to a recent Preqin survey, a majority of LPs plan to make their next allocation to private equity this year, saying that their current private equity investments have met or exceeded their expectations. Also, now that the associated

Microvisk Technologies, a developer of patented technology for monitoring blood coagulation for patients taking the drug Warfarin, has raised GBP2m from three new investors and current private and institutional investors. Based in Wales, and originally a spin-out company of the Science and Technology Facilities Council, Microvisk became an independent company in 2004 with initial backing from Rainbow Seed Fund. It is now developing the world’s first medical diagnostic strip based on a solid state micro electro mechanical system, called a SmartStrip, and hand held reader. The GBP2m raised will take the research and development forward through 2010 for a launch

Hutton Collins Partners has refinanced its portfolio company Windsor Limited, a Lloyds insurance broker.  The new senior debt facilities, provided by Clydesdale Bank, have enabled Windsor to repay the substantial majority of the capital used to finance the management’s take-private of the company in 2007.  Hutton Collins, which provided GBP15m of preferred equity capital to support the management buyout, will remain a shareholder. Management will retain its 78 per cent shareholding. Douglas Oppenheim, partner at Hutton Collins, says: “This successful refinancing in a difficult lending market demonstrates the strengths of Windsor’s business model. A large part of the earnings growth

Private equity house GI Partners has backed the launch of Elystan Capital Advisers, a Munich-based investment firm targeting mortgage backed assets and the mortgage banking sector in Germany, Austria and Switzerland. GI Partners will provide investment capital from its recently closed third fund, GI Partners Fund III, which closed at USD1.9bn in October 2009. Following recent developments in the financial markets, Elystan founders Keith Fischer, Dr. Robert Grassinger and Ulrich Kastner believe there is significant pressure on the banking industry to strengthen balance sheets and minimise exposure to certain non-core and non-performing assets. It is expected that this pressure will

The Receivables Exchange, an online marketplace for real-time trading of accounts receivable, has closed USD17m in series C financing led by Bain Capital Ventures, with additional commitments from existing investors Redpoint Ventures and Prism Ventureworks. The Receivables Exchange pioneered the online receivables financing marketplace in 2008 with the launch of its proprietary receivables trading platform. The receivables finance industry represents a USD18trn marketplace. Most companies have more than 60 per cent of their working capital tied up in accounts receivable, limiting their ability to fund the growth of their businesses and contribute to the growth of the US economy. On

A group of investors comprising eVenture Capital Partners, Holtzbrinck Ventures and Rocket Internet have invested EUR4m in mycitydeal.co.uk. The site offers internet users the ability to combine their group buying power to obtain offers on local activities, restaurants and nights out at low prices. The business is being introduced to the UK, starting with London and then rolling out across the country, following the success of the company’s similar ventures in the US and Germany.   The majority of the funding will be used for supporting the London-based sales teams and on financing a nationwide marketing offensive, with an emphasis

Kohlberg Kravis Roberts and Jonathan Grayer, former chairman and chief executive of Kaplan, have launched Weld North. Weld North will identify acquisition opportunities and invest in and operate a variety of businesses in the consumer services, education, media, personal services and marketing sectors, among others. Grayer (pictured) served as chief executive of Kaplan, a provider of educational services, from 1994 to 2008 during which time he oversaw the firm’s expansion from a USD80mi US-focused test preparation company into a for-profit education corporation with over USD2.3bn in revenues. “The core lessons from the Kaplan experience were first and foremost that by