Tag Archives: Investments

Activa Capital boosts its investment team with the appointment of Timothée Heron as associate

Paris, 10 October 2017
–
Activa Capital, the Paris-based independent private equity firm, is pursuing its development strategy and announces the arrival of Timothée Héron, 26, as Associate.
Timothée will reinforce the investment team in analyzing new opportunities. Prior to joining Activa Capital, Timothée
worked for 2 years as an M&A analyst at DC Advisory, after previous work experience in large and mid-cap M&A at UBS and Credit Suisse. Timothée is a graduate of Dauphine University, Paris.
“We are very pleased to welcome Timothée to Activa Capital’s investment team, which now counts 12 professionals dedicated to investments. His transactional experience on the French SME market will strengthen our ability to identify strong investment opportunities and support management teams with their growth projects”, says Christophe Parier, Partner at Activa Capital.
About Activa Capital
Activa Capital is a leading French mid-market private equity firm. Activa Capital manages over €500m of private equity funds on behalf of a wide range of institutional investors. Activa Capital partners with ambitious mid-sized French companies, valued at €20m to €200m, seeking to accelerate their growth and their international footprint. Learn more about Activa Capital at
activacapital.com
.

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EQT Real Estate broadens its German portfolio

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  • EQT Real Estate invests in two office buildings comprising about 70,000 square meters in Frankfurt, Germany’s foremost hub for financial services
  • The plan includes an extensive repositioning of the buildings in the rapidly changing Niederrad and Neu-Isenburg submarkets
  • The investment represents EQT Real Estate’s fifth investment to date

EQT Real Estate I (“EQT Real Estate” or “the Fund”) has acquired two multi-let office assets in Frankfurt, Germany. The assets form part of the pan-German portfolio Project Mars, acquired by Eurocastle from DWS in 2007, and represents the fund’s fifth investment to date and second in Germany.

Frankfurt is well-known as an attractive base for the European banking and financial services sectors, with a rapidly evolving office market with strong demand from tenants but only a small number of new developments. The two buildings are both modern and strategically located in terms of transport links and political initiatives. The largest one, Atricom, comprises 45,600 square meters and is located in Niederrad, while the second building, Le Büro, comprises 23,700 square meters and is located in Neu-Isenburg.

The buildings are set to receive a comprehensive refresh and optimization by further modernizing, upgrading and improving the buildings, both technically and visually, in order to offer future and existing tenants a quality working environment.

Frank Forster, Director at EQT Partners and advisor to the Fund, said:

“We are looking forward to EQT Real Estate taking part of the ongoing development in Frankfurt-Niederrad. The area is rapidly changing and the plans for Atricom should make a positive contribution to this part of town.”

Contacts:
Frank Forster, Director at EQT Partners, Investment Advisor to EQT Real Estate I, +44 20 8432 5404
EQT Press Office, +46 8 506 553 34

About EQT
EQT is a leading alternative investments firm with approximately EUR 37 billion in raised capital across 24 funds. EQT funds have portfolio companies in Europe, Asia and the US with total sales of more than EUR 19 billion and approximately 110,000 employees. EQT works with portfolio companies to achieve sustainable growth, operational excellence and market leadership.

More info: www.eqtpartners.com

About EQT Real Estate I
EQT Real Estate I will seek to make direct and indirect controlling investments in real estate assets, portfolios and operating companies that offer significant potential for value creation through repositioning, redevelopment, refurbishment and active management. The investments will typically range between EUR 50 million and EUR 200 million. The fund is advised by an experienced team from EQT Partners, with extensive knowledge of property investment, development and intensive “hands-on” asset management, and with access to the full EQT network, including 10 European offices and more than 250 industrial advisors.

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Oakley Capital closes €800 million fund

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Oakley Capital closes €800 million fund

Oakley Capital (“Oakley”) is pleased to announce that it has closed its third fund, Oakley Capital Private Equity III (“Fund III”), raising €800 million. Continued strong support from existing investors and a €326 million commitment from Oakley Capital Investments Limited, the AIM-listed Fund established to provide investors with access to the Oakley Funds, has enabled Oakley to raise its largest fund to date.

Key highlights:

  • Successful close above original hard cap of €750 million due to investor demand;
  • Strong investment from Oakley portfolio entrepreneurs and management teams who contributed 5% of the funds raised;
  • Oakley partners and staff contributed in excess of 5% of the total funds raised;
  • 75% re-up rate of Fund II institutional investors, demonstrating their belief in Oakley’s performance and potential; and
  • Fund III has already been very active with five investments across Oakley’s core sectors and is already 40% deployed.

Oakley Capital has a highly successful 15 year track record of investing across Western Europe, with a focus on identifying investments where the firm can work proactively with founders and management teams in order to create substantial shareholder value for its investors.

Fund III attracted strong interest from high quality investors, and closed above its original hard cap at €800 million, with 75% of the institutional investors in Fund III choosing to re-up, highlighting their confidence in Oakley’s investment strategy. This has been echoed in the investment made by Oakley’s partners and staff, as well as the strength of our new investors, further demonstrating Oakley’s brand strength and successes in the market. The investment from Oakley’s portfolio entrepreneurs and management teams reinforces the collaboration between the firm and its entrepreneurial network, which supports deal origination and the future pipeline.

Fund III has already been very active with five investments across Oakley’s core sectors: Schülerhilfe (Education), TechInsights (TMT), Plesk (TMT), Casa.it and atHome.lu (Digital Consumer) and AMOS (Education). These deals further Oakley’s track record of managing complex carve outs and primary deals with a focus on backing the best founders and management teams.

Oakley’s Fund II (a €525 million 2013 vintage fund) continues to be successful, with average year-on-year EBITDA and revenue growth both in excess of  30% for it’s portfolio companies. Following on from the success investment strategy in Fund II, Oakley is leveraging its experience in its core sectors of Digitial Consumer, TMT and Education in Fund III. The Oakley Funds have also had particular success in the German speaking markets, which remains a key focus in the current fund. Fund III seeks to invest in companies with enterprise values between €60 million and €300 million.

Through its three funds, Oakley has completed 25 acquisitions primarily across Western Europe with a combined enterprise value of over €4 billion. Since inception, realised investments have achieved gross returns of 44% IRR and 2.5x money multiple and returned c.€780 million to investors.

Peter Dubens, Managing partner and Co-founder of Oakley, commented:

“We are delighted to announce another successful fundraise, a result of the confidence our investors have in our abilities to continue to identify attractive investment opportunities across Western Europe.

Through our sector expertise, we are able to embrace complexity, buy-in at attractive multiples and generate superior returns.

We continue to draw support from management teams we have previously backed, demonstrating their belief in our entrepreneurial approach to engaging with our portfolio companies in order to grow and develop businesses, whilst delivering compelling returns to investors.

Fund III is off to an excellent start, having already made five acquisitions. With a healthy pipeline, and the continued support of a talented and growing senior leadership team, I am confident that we will continue to deliver strong investment returns for our investors.”

David Till, Senior Partner and Co-founder of Oakley, added:

“As we increase our funds under management, so we have been able to attract the very best people to our firm, a factor that is core to our success in generating strong returns. We all feel incredibly proud of the achievements of the firm and the value created for its investors.”

 

– Ends –

 

For further information please contact:

Oakley Capital Private Equity                                               +44 20 7766 6900

Peter Dubens, Managing Partner

FTI Consulting LLP                                                                     +44 20 3727 1000

Edward Bridges / Stephanie Ellis

About Oakley Capital Private Equity L.P. (“Fund I”), Oakley Capital Private Equity II (“Fund II”) and Oakley Capital Private Equity III (“Fund III”) together the “Oakley Funds”

Oakley Capital Private Equity L.P. and its successor funds, Oakley Capital Private Equity II and Oakley Capital Private Equity III, are unlisted mid-market private equity funds with the aim of providing investors with significant long term capital appreciation. The investment strategy of the funds is to focus on buy-out opportunities in industries with the potential for growth, consolidation and performance improvement.

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Request for a share buyback programme of up to 25% of the outstanding registered shares

Castle Private Equity Ltd today published an invitation for an extraordinary general meeting to seek shareholder approval regarding a fixed-price share buyback programme of up to 25% of outstanding registered shares. In addition, the Board of Directors proposes a reduction of the minimum shareholding for placing items on the agenda.

The main objective of the buyback for cancellation purposes will be to distribute liquidity to shareholders. Castle Private Equity Ltd. will contact major shareholders on their willingness to tender shares to the transaction in the next weeks.

 

If approved by extraordinary general meeting, the share buyback is anticipated to occur subject to conditions in November 2017. Details regarding the transaction will be published following the extraordinary general meeting.

 

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Cancellation of own shares and reduction of par value

Cancellation of own shares and reduction of par value

Castle Private Equity AG announces that the cancellation of 2,904,511 own shares which was approved at the 15 May 2017 general meeting of shareholders was registered by the commercial register on 25 September 2017.

With regards to the listing of the company’s shares at the SIX Swiss Exchange, the cancellation becomes effective as of 26 September 2017 (date of exchange adjustment). From then on, the issued share capital of the company will amount to 26,323,950 registered shares with a par value of CHF 0.05 each.

As a result of the cancellation, the company’s holding of own shares will reduce to below 10 per cent.

Further notifications of changes in significant shareholdings due to the cancellation of 2,904,511 own shares can be expected.

For further information, please contact:

Benedikt Meyer, General Manager, telephone: +41 55 415 9710

or e-mail: lgt.cpe@lgt.com

Swiss Security Number 4885474

A joint stock corporation incorporated on February 19, 1997 under Swiss laws

Registered Office: Schuetzenstrasse 6, 8808 Pfaeffikon/SZ, Switzerland

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Partners Group publishes market outlook for H2 2017: ‘In search of platform-building opportunities’

Partners Group logo

aar-Zug, Switzerland, 30 August 2017

Partners Group publishes market outlook for H2 2017: ‘In search of platform-building opportunities’

Partners Group today publishes its H2 2017 Private Markets Navigator report, which shares the firm’s mid-term outlook and investment preferences for all private markets asset classes.

Introducing the report, Steffen Meister, Partner, Delegate of the Board of Directors, and Chairman of the Relative Value Committee at Partners Group, says: “We continue to believe in a base case macroeconomic projection of sustained low but steady growth. However, after nearly a decade of rising markets, and with a shift away from extremely loose monetary policy, there is the risk of a deviation from our base case. Identifying anchor assets with platform-building potential in above-average growth segments and testing their resilience to adverse economic scenarios is key to outperformance in this environment.”

A short summary of the views presented in the H2 2017 Private Markets Navigator:

Private equity: the prospect of different potential macroeconomic outcomes paired with high valuations makes for a challenging investment environment. To continue to generate sustainable returns, we focus on ‘platform investments’ through which we can develop resilient market leaders at a reasonable price. Next to platform investments, we maintain two additional major investment strategies: we aim to find ‘category winners’, which are leaders in terms of market share or growth potential in sub-sectors benefiting from trend-based tailwinds, and seek out ‘niche leaders’ with strong defensive capabilities. A recent example of our ability to capture a category winner is our acquisition of Cerba HealthCare, a leading European operator of clinical pathology laboratories.

Private real estate: an uncertain market environment has prompted us to take a more measured investment approach. We seek properties and locations benefiting from social, demographic and technological trends and remain focused on identifying assets with value creation potential. To crystallize value, we buy assets in rebounding markets below replacement cost, we ‘buy, fix, and sell’ older properties in great locations that are in need of active asset management and we selectively develop core. The European office market, for instance, offers opportunities to buy properties below replacement cost and upgrade their design to cater to the changing ways in which people live and work. One such opportunity is represented by our acquisition of CB16 Tower in La Défense, Paris.

Private debt: while many market participants have been willing to pursue more aggressive structures with even lower pricing, we favor more conservatively structured investment opportunities which we source and negotiate outside of traditional syndicated loan markets. We continue to focus on supporting successful sponsors and management teams in their buy-and-build strategies, on offering creative structures that support companies’ specific cash flow profiles and working capital needs, and on targeting niche industries where we have the depth of experience and confidence in underlying growth fundamentals. For example, based on our long track record of investment in the restaurant industry, we recently invested in Checkers, a quick service restaurant chain in the US.

Private infrastructure: as infrastructure asset valuations continue on their steady upward trajectory, especially in the core space, our investment focus remains firmly on assets that offer value creation potential, with platform-building being our preferred strategy. We consider platform investments in all sectors of the infrastructure market and currently see the most attractive opportunities within the communications and energy infrastructure spaces. Proactively building core assets instead of buying them continues to be our preferred strategy for renewable power generation assets, particularly in Europe and the Asia-Pacific region. One example is our investment in Sapphire Wind Farm, a 270MW onshore wind project in Australia.

To request a copy of the report, please contact Milevka Grceva: milevka.grceva@partnersgroup.com

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Partners Group appoints Shunsuke Tanahashi as Head of Japan Office

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Partners Group appoints Shunsuke Tanahashi as Head of Japan office

Partners Group, the global private markets investment manager, has appointed Shunsuke Tanahashi as Head of its Japanese business. Shunsuke Tanahashi joined Partners Group in April 2017 as a Senior Vice President in its Tokyo office.

Shunsuke Tanahashi brings more than 20 years of industry experience to his role as Japan Head. Prior to joining Partners Group, he was CEO at Ark Totan Alternative, and also worked for Ant Capital, Goldman Sachs Asset Management Tokyo, Mitsubishi UFJ Trust Bank, and the Research Institute for Pensions and Policies on Aging (RIPPA). He holds an MBA from the University of Michigan and a bachelor’s degree from Tokyo University.

Shunsuke Tanahashi comments: “I am very excited to take on this new challenge, which comes at a momentous time in the Japanese market. Institutional investors in Japan are increasingly turning to private markets asset classes such as private equity and private infrastructure as an attractive source of returns in a low-growth environment. It is my belief that many of them will choose to work with a global investment manager capable of providing a comprehensive private markets solution and with industry-leading ESG credentials.”

Kevin Lu, Chairman of Asia, states: “With his substantial experience and an in-depth understanding of private markets, we believe Shunsuke Tanahashi is ideally positioned to lead our efforts in Japan. I look forward to working together with him in the future to build out our relationships with institutional investors and distribution partners in this important market.”

 

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Jessica Häggström new Head of Human Resources and member of Investor AB’s Extended Management Group

Investor
2017-08-17 09:58

In September, Jessica Häggström will succeed David Lindquist as Head of Human Resources at Investor. Jessica Häggström has since 1998 worked at Ericsson in various roles within Human Resources, such as Talent Management, Compensation and Benefits. In her new role she will be a member of Investor’s Extended Management Group which, in addition to the members of the Management Group of Investor, includes the two Co-heads of Patricia Industries and now also the Head of Human Resources.

Accordingly, Investor’s Extended Management Group consists of the following members with respective responsibilities:

Johan Forssell – President and CEO
Helena Saxon – CFO
Daniel Nodhäll – Listed Core Investments
Petra Hedengran – General Counsel, Corporate governance, investments in EQT funds
Stefan Stern – Communication, Public Affairs and Sustainability
Christian Cederholm – Patricia Industries Nordics
Noah Walley – Patricia Industries North America
Jessica Häggström – Human Resources

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CapMan plans to set up new Growth Equity fund and appoints Partner to the team

Capman

CapMan plans to set up new Growth Equity fund and appoints Partner to the team

CapMan plans to set up new Growth Equity fund focusing on minority investments in unlisted companies. In addition, CapMan strengthens its Growth Equity team by appointing Antti Kummu as Partner.

The background research of the new planned Growth Equity fund demonstrates that the investor appetite for active minority investments is high. Furthermore, CapMan Growth Equity’s track record is strong due to successful value-add work in the portfolio companies in addition to significant exits. The targeted fund size of the new growth investments fund is approximately MEUR 80 and fund raising is planned to be executed during 2017.

“There is significant demand for structured growth equity instruments and CapMan is pleased to be able to offer investors this alternative investment opportunity,” comments Juha Mikkola, CapMan Growth Equity, Managing Partner.

The new Growth Equity Partner Antti Kummu has more than 10 years of experience from the private equity industry. He joins CapMan from Touhula Varhaiskasvatus Oy, where he acted as CFO. Prior to that, he worked for Coronaria Hoitoketju Oy as Director. He was also a member of Finnish Industry Investments’ Management Group and responsible for direct investments in to later stage companies and direct industrial investments.

“The new planned Growth Equity fund and the team appointment of Antti Kummu reflects our growth strategy in which crucial components are launching new business areas and products. We are very pleased to welcome Antti at CapMan and to strengthen our Growth Equity team. Antti’s strong background will support our Growth Equity team’s expertise and we are now in a good position to achieve great results also in this new private equity category”, says Joakim Frimodig, CapMan’s Interim CEO.

The objective of the Growth Equity investment activities is to find unlisted target companies with strong growth potential, to make significant minority investments worth of more than one million in them and, as an active investor, to develop their value so as to achieve returns in excess of the market average. CapMan’s Growth Equity portfolio consists of six unlisted Nordic companies at the moment.

For further information, please contact:
Juha Mikkola, Managing Partner, Growth Equity, CapMan Oyj, tel. +358 50 590 0522
Joakim Frimodig, Interim CEO, CapMan Oyj, tel. +358 50 529 0665

CapMan
www.capman.com
twitter.com/CapManPE

CapMan is a leading Nordic investment and specialised asset management company. As one of the Nordic private equity pioneers we have actively developed hundreds of companies and real estate and thereby created substantial value in these businesses and assets over the last 25 years. CapMan has today 110 private equity professionals and manages €2.3 billion in assets. We mainly manage the assets of our customers, the investors, but also make direct investments from our own balance sheet in areas without an active fund. Our objective is to provide attractive returns and innovative solutions to investors and value adding services to professional investment partnerships, growth-oriented companies and tenants. Our current investment strategies cover Buyout, Growth Equity, Real Estate, Russia, Credit, Infrastructure and Tactical Opportunities. We also have a growing service business that currently includes fundraising advisory, procurement activities and fund management.

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Henrik Poulsen appointed Deputy Chairman of Kinnevik

Kinnevik

Henrik Poulsen appointed Deputy Chairman of Kinnevik

Kinnevik AB (publ) (“Kinnevik”) today announced that the Board of Directors has agreed to appoint Henrik Poulsen as Deputy Chairman alongside Dame Amelia Fawcett. Henrik Poulsen was elected Director of the Board at the Annual General Meeting 2017 and he is a member of Kinnevik’s Audit Committee.

Henrik Poulsen is the Chief Executive Officer of Dong Energy, the global leader in offshore wind power. Prior to joining Dong Energy in 2012, Henrik was the Chief Executive Officer of Danish telecommunications company TDC between 2008 and 2012.

Tom Boardman, Chairman of the Board commented:

“I am delighted that Henrik will assume the role as Deputy Chairman of Kinnevik. Since his election in May, Henrik has been a very active Director bringing significant sector experience and operational insights to the Board discussions, and I look forward to working even closer with him in his role as Deputy Chairman.”

The Nomination Committee representing more than 50% of the votes of the Company supports the Board’s appointment of Henrik Poulsen as Deputy Chairman.

This information is information that Kinnevik AB (publ) is obliged to make public pursuant to the EU Market Abuse Regulation. The information was submitted for publication, through the agency of the contact person set out below, at 20:30 CET on 6 August 2017.

For further information, visit www.kinnevik.com or contact:

Torun Litzén, Director Investor Relations
Phone +46 (0)8 562 000 83
Mobile +46 (0)70 762 00 83

Kinnevik is an industry focused investment company with an entrepreneurial spirit. Our purpose is to build the digital consumer businesses that provide more and better choice. We do this by working in partnership with talented founders and management teams to create, invest in and lead fast growing businesses in developed and emerging markets. We believe in delivering both shareholder and social value by building well governed companies that contribute positively to society. Kinnevik was founded in 1936 by the Stenbeck, Klingspor and von Horn families. Kinnevik’s shares are listed on Nasdaq Stockholm’s list for large cap companies under the ticker codes KINV A and KINV B.

 

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