Monthly Archives: January 2013

Private equity firms KKR and Apax Partners are teaming up to bid for French media group Vivendi's Brazilian telecoms subsidiary GVT, according to a Bloomberg report. The KKR-Apax group is said to be willing to pay as much as 5 billion euros ($6.8 billion) for GVT, below Vivendi's asking price of 8 billion, the report said. BTG Pactual Group , Latin America's largest investment bank, is "still considering" whether to join the bid, Reuters wrote.

It used to be that you had to have an actual company for capture investors’ attention. Last March, entrepreneur and investor Paul Graham upended that basic standard, inviting candidates with no plan whatsoever into his Y Combinator program. Now, Upstart, a 10-month-old, 10-person company based in Palo Alto, is making even Graham’s unconventional thinking seem quaint.

Looking for a position as a private equity associate with a focus on the mid-market? Global private investment firm H.I.G Capital is seeking a Miami-based private equity associate to assist in all aspects of the investment process.

Paine & Partners, a global private equity investment firm focused on investing in food and agribusiness has completed the acquisition of majority ownership of Eurodrip, a global manufacturer and supplier of drip irrigation solutions. As part of the investment, which was previously announced in October 2012, P&P Water Holdings purchased all of the shares of Eurodrip held by Aquanova International Holdings, a company controlled by Global Capital Investors II, a private equity fund advised exclusively by Global Finance, as well as Bellaria Holding Ltd, which together represent approximately 67.5 percent of the company’s outstanding shares.

The sale of German insulation firm Armacell by its Bahrain-based private equity owner Investcorp has attracted six bidders as interest grows in companies making energy-efficient products, writes Reuters. Private equity investors Charterhouse, Pamplona, Equistone, HgCapital, Goldman Sachs Private Equity as well as a US-based producer of building materials have placed tentative bids, writes Reuters.

Investor HgCapital has sold British pharmaceutical company Mercury Pharma to private equity firm Cinven for $732 million, writes Reuters. HgCapital bought the 25-year-old pharmaceutical firm, which sells niche prescription off-patent products in the UK, Ireland and the Netherlands, in 2009.

H.I.G. Capital has sold car parts maker Anvis to Japan-based Tokai Rubber for 132 million euros ($177.91 million), writes Reuters. Financial terms of the deal were undiscosed.

Johnson and Johnson is looking to sell most of its US feminine hygiene business, as it seeks to exit low-growth areas, but wants to keep its K-Y brand, writes Reuters. The diversified healthcare giant wants to unload its Stayfree and Carefree pads and o.b. tampons, according to Reuters.

Endo Health Solutions has held talks in recent weeks with drugmakers potentially interested in buying the maker of pain relief medication, writes Reuters. The exploratory talks included parties such as Warner Chilcott and Valeant Pharmaceuticals International.

This morning find out what private equity's comeback plan is, if it indeed needs one, how much Boston biotech has raised in offerings and what the lowdown is on 3i's restructuring plans.