Firms and Funds

Entrepreneurs in the UK are not concerned about protecting intellectual property (IP) and do not see it as a barrier to success according to a survey carried out by VentureNavigator, the online service for small businesses, start-ups and entrepreneurs. Respondents also revealed that their primary motivation behind starting a business was not financial reward, which […]

Isango!, an online travel agency which has become a market leader in under two years, has closed its first institutional round on US$8m. The round was led by London’s SPARK Ventures which committed half of the total round amount, with Beringea, manager of the ProVen suite of VCTs, added US$2.5m and the remaining US$1.5m came […]

Small, private companies in the UK could find the year ahead a challenging one according to Modwenna Rees-Mogg, managing director of Venture Index. Following a year which saw investment in British enterprise reach a record high of £85m, the current economic turmoil hitting the buyouts market is threatening to spread to early-stage investment. Rees-Mogg said: […]

Barclays Private Equity has more than doubled its investment in Kurt Geiger, the luxury shoe retailer, by selling it to mid-market player Graphite Capital for £95m. Kurt Geiger, which is also headquartered in the UK capital, sells its own and third party premium and luxury footwear brands such as Prada, Gucci and Jimmy Choo.

Hedge funds and large institutional investors are competing with VCs for large deals according to data from Go4Venture, a London-based corporate finance advisory firm for European technology entrepreneurs and their investors.

The UK Department for Innovation, University and Skills (DIUS) has released a Science and Innovation White Paper which calls on the government to increase spending to create demand for new innovative products and services.

Target: Nichols Brothers Boat Builders Price: $15 million Sponsor: Treadstone Partners LLC Seeing roll-up potential in the boat-building industry, turnaround firm Treadstone Partners purchased Nichols Brothers Boat Builders out of bankruptcy last month. The deal, valued at $15 million, also means the firm’s first fund is two-thirds invested, tripping the wire for another round of […]

Firm: Guardian Capital Partners Fund: Guardian Capital Partners Fund LP Target: $80 million Amount Raised: $37 million Guardian Capital Partners, a newly formed group looking to make control plays in the lower middle market, held a first close on $37 million for its debut fund earlier this month, a source familiar with the firm told […]

Target: Virgo Holdings Price: $100 million Sponsor: Arlington Capital Partners Seller: Seaport Capital Financial Adviser: Seller: DeSilva & Phillips Legal Adviser: Sponsor: Hogan & Hartson LLP; Seller: Morgan, Lewis & Bockius Arlington Capital Partners has beefed up its trade publishing portfolio with its recent acquisition of Virgo Holdings, a Phoenix-based publisher and trade show organizer, […]

The California Public Employees’ Retirement System continues to look for fresh talent. The $240 billion pension recently committed $150 million to Leading Edge Investment Advisors, a three-year-old San Francisco-based funds-of-funds firm that specializes in backing emerging managers, and $150 milllion to Quotient Investors in New York, a months-old quantitative equity management firm. Both firms tilt […]