Barry Whyte

KANA Software, a California-based software company, has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Lagan Technologies, a Northern Ireland-based software firm that focuses on government-to-citizen technology. KANA is backed by Accel-KKR, a technology-focused private equity investment firm. The terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

Advantage Partners, a Japanese private equity firm, is seeking an investor for Tokyo Star Bank to help it repay funds it borrowed to buy the bank, according to Reuters. The buy-out firm borrowed 169.6 yet ($2.04 billion) in senior and mezzanine loans to buy the bank, with the senior loans, worth 124.6 billion yen ($1.49 billion), arranged by Merrill Lynch and due in 2013. Advantage has hired Nomura Holdings Inc to find an investor.

Edward King has been named managing director of Barclays Capital’s Mergers & Acquisitions, IBD Asia Pacific, the bank announced. King was previously at Morgan Stanley’s Asia Pacific M&A division, where he worked on the $3.2 billion acquisition of Arrow Energy by PetroChina and Royal Dutch Shell and on the sale of Chartered Semiconductor to ATIC for $3.1 billion.

Private equity firm Warburg Pincus has invested $150 million in National Penn Bancshares, Inc, through the purchase of newly issued common stock at $6.05 per share, the bank announced. Warburg Pincus will initially invest $63.3 million, the rest following after regulatory approval, which should be granted in the fourth quarter of 2010.

The Taiwanese broadcast regulator has delayed its decision on private equity firm Carlyle Group’s proposed sale, for $1.17 billion, of its Taiwan cable TV unit, Kbro. The regulator cited concerns over competition issues, according to Reuters. The Tsai family, owners of Taiwan Mobile, had agreed to buy the station, but already own some cable TV operations.

The Onduline Group, which is owned by a company backed by French private equity firms Astorg Partners and Abenex, has bought Tallant, a lightweight roofing company based in Texas. Onduline also manufactures lightweight roofing, and was founded in Paris in 1950. The details of the deal were not revealed.

Dallas-based PE firm Brazos Private Equity Partners and Bill Scheller, an industrial distribution executive, have acquired Duncan Industrial Solutions, an industrial distributor headquartered in Oklahoma City, OK. Brazos manages approximately $1.4 billion of equity capital. The financial terms of the deal were not revealed.

Irving Place Capital agreed to acquire Thermadyne Holdings, a manufacturer of metal cutting and welding products based in St Louis, MO, for a total transaction value of $422 million. Shareholders will receive $15 per share in cash. Irving Place Capital was formed in 1997 and has invested in more than 50 companies since then. It has $4.0 billion of equity capital, including its current $2.7 billion institutional fund.

Growth private equity firm TA Associates has invested in dental specialist Amann Girrbach AG, buying out the stake of Alpine Equity. The current owners of Amann Girrbach will also sell a portion of their stake. The terms of the deal have not been disclosed.

Pfingsten Partners, a Chicago-based private equity firm, has bought FKI Security Group, a manufacturer or fire security products based in New Albany, Indiana, through its $525 million Fund IV. Pfingsten Partners was founded in 1989 and has over $1.2 billion of capital under management.