Firstly, Lion Capital acquired eyewear retailer Alain Afflelou - Unquote

france 

June 2012

Reason says: 

this acquisition 

is too costly. 

Instinct says: 

not as costly as 

missing out. 

Business decisions are rarely black and white. Dynamic 

organisations know they need to apply both reason and 

instinct to decision making. We are Grant Thornton and 

it’s what we do for our clients every day. Contact us to 

help unlock your potential for growth. 

©2012 Grant Thornton UK LLP. All rights reserved. Grant Thornton UK LLP is a member firm within Grant Thornton International Ltd. 

Grant Thornton International Ltd and the member firms are not a worldwide partnership. Services are delivered independently by member firms. Full disclaimer available at grant-thornton.co.uk

3 

unquote.com/france 

Kimberly Romaine 

Editor-in-chief 

Tel +44 20 7316 9565 

Email kimberly.romaine@incisivemedia.com 

John bakie 

Features editor 

Tel +44 20 7316 9563 

Email john.bakie@incisivemedia.com 

Twitter @unquotenews 

Gregoire gille 

News editor 

Tel +44 20 7316 9561 

Email gregoire.gille@incisivemedia.com 

Twitter @Franceunquote 

Sonnie ehrendal 

Reporter 

Tel +44 20 7316 9601 

Email sonnie.ehrendal@incisivemedia.com 

Amy King 

Reporter 

Tel +44 20 7316 9542 

Email amy.king@incisivemedia.com 

Carmen Reichman 

Reporter 

Tel +44 20 7316 9581 

Email carmen.reichman@incisivemedia.com 

cecilia bergamaschi 

Researcher 

Tel +44 20 7316 9557 

Email cecilia.bergamaschi@incisivemedia.com 

Anneken Tappe 

Researcher 

Tel +44 20 7316 9543 

Email anneken.tappe@incisivemedia.com 

FRANCE NEWS & DEALS 

4 A tale of two buyouts Alain 

Afflelou and Stokomani deals 

mark a return of LBOs to the 

French market 

5 EDF steps (back) into 

venture The energy company 

returns to VC with a cleantech 

investment fund 

6 Omnes flying the nest: life 

after a spinout Omnes’ 

chairman discusses how the firm 

broke away from its parent 

8 Deals Details of all the deals 

carried out in the UK region for 

the previous month 

ANALYSIS 

14 Trade winds blowing How 

vital is a local presence in 

emerging markets? 

18 Listed private equity recovery 

beginning After several tough 

years, listed funds are returning 

20 Secondaries boom unlikely to 

end soon European institutions 

show no signs of ending their 

disposal of private equity assets 

22 AIFMD: Concerns over lack 

of suitable depositaries 

Regulatory and financial issues 

could hamper one of the key 

requirements of the AIFMD 

23 EU assets remain attractive 

despite euro crisis American 

investors continue to show 

interest in European assets 

24 Company valuations going 

down Argos Soditic research 

reveals mid-cap valuations have 

peaked and are starting to decline 

PEOPLE 

26 Lawyers: your most valuable 

asset A growing regulatory 

burden has resulted in a demand 

for top legal professionals 

28 Opportunities in Central 

and Eastern Europe Alpha 

Associates’ Petra Salesny talks 

about the emergence of CEE as 

a developed market 

29 People moves A round-up of 

recent appointments 

FUNDS 

33 Official records Montefiore 

launches third fund; 123Venture 

announces €100m Mezz vehicle; 

Vista closes at $3.5bn 

DATA TABLES 

36 Pan-European deals index 

38 Funds raising 

unquote” Analysis is published 10 times a year by 

Incisive Financial Publishing Ltd 

32-34 Broadwick Street London W1A 2HG, UK 

Tel: +44 20 7316 9000 

ISSN 1465-9719 

Entire contents © 2012 Incisive Media Investments Ltd. 

All rights reserved. 

Production Editor 

Tim Kimber 

Sub-editor 

Richard Cosgrove 

Marketing 

Helen Longhurst 

Publishing Director 

Catherine Lewis 

Sponsorship Manager 

Steinar Liverud 

steinar.liverud@incisivemedia.com +44 (0)20 7004 7525 

Sales Director 

Ben Cronin 

ben.cronin@incisivemedia.com +44 (0)20 7484 9735 

Advertising Sales Executive Naomi Jones 

naomi.jones@incisivemedia.com +44 (0)20 7004 7471 

Subscriptions 

Tom Riley 

tom.riley@incisivemedia.com +44 (0)20 7484 9892 

Annual subscription £1,600 / €2,400 

Issue 5 – June 2012

4 

france 


A tale of two buyouts 

Sizeable French LBOs resembled the 

proverbial buses in May: you wait for one for 

an eternity, and then two appear at once. 

Firstly, Lion Capital acquired eyewear retailer 

Alain Afflelou from Bridgepoint, Apax France 

and Altamir Amboise in a deal believed to be 

valued at nearly €800m (see page 8). The target 

could have slipped from private equity’s grasp 

had it not been for last year’s tumultuous public 

markets: Alain Afflelou, whose stores are a 

familiar sight in France’s high street, was rearing 

for an IPO for the best part of 2011. 

UK-based Lion Capital scored France’s 

largest buyout in 2010 when it acquired Picard 

Surgelés for €1.5bn – it is ahead of the pack 

in 2012 as well since transactions are so far 

struggling to break the €500m mark. As the 

Alain Afflelou deal shows, foreign investors 

still have an edge when it comes to large-cap 

buyouts – this was also clear last year as the 

three largest French deals came courtesy of 

cross-border deal-doers. Debt on the Afflelou 

deal was again provided by global players, 

namely Citi, UniCredit and Alcentra. 

By comparison, Sagard Private Equity’s 

acquisition of discount wholesaler Stokomani 

from Advent International for around €200m 

(see page 8) feels home-grown: proof that local 

players hold their own when it comes to the 

more intimate lower mid-cap segment. Sagard 

initially approached Advent with a pre-emptive 

offer a year ago, but the vendor declined, 

organising an auction process which attracted 

mostly French mid-cap players. Leverage on 

the Stokomani transaction was also provided 

by France’s usual suspects: BNP Paribas, Société 

Générale, LCL and AXA Mezzanine. 

Tough road ahead 

These two transactions were followed by the 

€124m Sepur and €150-200m Armatis 

buyouts at the end of May. But local GPs are 

still lamenting the lack of visibility on macroeconomic 

trends and company performances, 

and accessing financing for all but the best 

deals remains problematic. 

Issue 5 – June 2012 

“From what we see in the market, 

opportunities are still there. Vendors are still 

willing to divest, especially those that have 

delayed processes for several months now,” 

Argos Soditic partner Karel Kroupa told 

your correspondent. “That said, everything 

is more complex: due diligence, financing, 

negotiations... One has to be really motivated 

to see a deal through to completion. Processes 

therefore tend to last longer for all but the very 

best assets.” 

Cinven could help ascertain whether May’s 

mid-cap uptick was just a flash in the pan: the 

Deaflow in France stays slow 

After April, which only saw 12 deals worth €100m, French dealflow remained subdued 

in May. Yet the overall value increased spectacularly, largely due to the SBOs of Alain Afflelou 

by Lion Capital (c€800m) and Stokomani by Sagard (c€200m, see page 8) pushing values up 

tenfold. Listed GP Eurazeo also contributed to the value hike by taking part in a €110m capital 

injection for portfolio company Europcar as part of a wider refinancing. 

Meanwhile FSI Régions remained active in the

5 

Overview 


EDF steps (back) into venture 

SNCF, France Télécom, PSA Peugeot 

Citroën, Total, Publicis – some of the largest 

French companies have set their sights on 

corporate venture capital over the past few 

months. France can now add EDF to the mix: 

the energy company has partnered with private 

equity house Idinvest Partners to launch the 

cleantech venture capital fund Electranova 

Capital. 

The fund held its first close on €40m 

at the end of April and will be managed 

independently by Idinvest Partners. EDF 

committed €30m to the project while Allianz, 

the first institutional LP to invest in the 

vehicle, contributed €10m. 

The search for investors will continue 

throughout 2012 and discussions with 

several potential LPs are already underway. 

Electranova will finance start-ups active in the 

energy sector, both in France and Europe, via 

minority shareholdings. 

EDF is not a novice when it comes to 

venture capital. The group founded EDF 

Capital-Investissement in 1997 in partnership 

with Tocqueville International, which 

managed the business. But EDF sold the unit 

to ARCIS in a secondaries transaction less 

than a decade later, choosing to re-focus on its 

core businesses. 

The Electranova initiative therefore sees 

it return to venture strictly as an LP, as 

opposed to the wholly-owned subsidiary 

approach adopted during the EDF Capital- 

Investissement years. 

That said, EDF still makes direct 

investments via EDEV, an investment holding 

backing a wide range of mature businesses in 

the energy sector. 

The move by EDF follows recent initiatives 

launched by other French corporates making 

a push into venture. France Télécom and 

Publicis committed €150m to the OpVenture 

family of funds managed by Iris Capital – of 

which they also acquired a 24.5% stake. 

Meanwhile SNCF, France Télécom, PSA 

Peugeot Citroën and Total launched the 

€30m Ecomobilité Ventures vehicle at the end 

of 2011, focusing on businesses developing 

sustainable mobility products, services and 

technologies as well as mobility-related clean 

technologies. ■ 

Entrepreneurs looking at private 

equity to finance bolt-ons – Oséo poll 

The overall value of French private qeuity-backed acquisition 

finance deals recorded by unquote” in the first months of this year has 

already exceeded 2011 year-end figures (see chart). Recent research 

also highlights that French businesses remain hungry for build-up 

opportunities. 

Slightly more than half (54%) of French 

entrepreneurs recently polled by state bank 

Oséo are thinking of expanding through 

acquisition – with a quarter aiming to do so 

in 2012. And, in what will undoubtedly be 

12 

good news for an otherwise quiet private equity 

market, two-thirds of respondents state they 

10 

would need to bring an external investor on 

8 

board to finance bolt-ons. 

Furthermore, the proportion of businesses 

6 

needing to turn to private equity for acquisition 

4 

finance increases to 88% when the amount of 

funding required exceeds €2m – highlighting the 

2 

fact that capital sources remain scarce for SMEs 

0 

in France. 

2007 

But although a majority of entrepreneurs 

recognise the need for private equity backing, the 

Volume 

survey shows that a significant proportion sees it as off-putting enough 

to warrant writing off acquisition plans. The 46% of respondents that 

do not intend to complete bolt-ons are mainly concerned with factors 

such as a dilution of their stake and the backer’s expectations when it 

comes to valuation and exit strategy. 

Private equity-backed acquisition finance deals in France 

Volume 

2008 

2009 

2010 

Value €m 

2011 

YTD 

2012 

350 

300 

250 

200 

150 

100 

50 

0 

Value (€m) 

Source: unquote” data 


6 

Analysis 


Omnes flying the nest: 

life after a spinout 

Omnes Capital (formerly Crédit Agricole Private Equity) is the 

latest French private equity house waving goodbye to its captive 

roots. Chairman and CEO Fabien Prévost talks to Greg Gille about 

the spin-off process, the firm’s remaining ties to its 

former parent and its strategy for the future 

Natixis, Allianz, Macif... French banks and insurance 

companies have been carving out their private equity 

arms at a steady pace over the past couple of years, egged 

on by regulatory constraints and a strategic focus on their core 

activities. With AXA’s private equity unit also nearing a sale, captive 

funds are quickly going the way of the dodo. 

Crédit Agricole Private Equity (CAPE) is among the latest to 

have somewhat reluctantly made a break for freedom: Coller Capital 

acquired the management company, along with half of the bank’s 

investment in the funds it manages, at the end of March. The GP is now 

wholly-owned by Coller and operates under the new moniker of Omnes 

Capital. 

Omnes’ management team is aiming to gain control of the firm in due 

course and is currently in talks with Coller on that point. 

Being part of a larger institutional group can have its downsides, 

and some former captives welcomed the new-found freedom from 

an overbearing parent that might have stifled their ambitions. But 

Omnes chairman and chief executive Fabien Prévost does not look 

back in anger on his years as part of the Crédit Agricole group: 

“We are truly excited by the spin-off, but I must say we didn’t 

actively seek to become independent. The goal 10 years ago was to 

build a powerful private equity unit within a large banking group, 

and in many respects we achieved this.” 

The fresh start will therefore see Omnes’ strategy remain largely 

intact – the firm will continue to operate as a generalist fund 

manager active in most of the private equity space, including 

small- and mid-cap LBOs, venture and mezzanine. “We don’t 

want to significantly alter our positioning,” Prévost continues. 

“French (and in some cases European) SMEs are at the heart of 

our DNA and this is not going to change. Besides, the regional 

subsidiaries of Crédit Agricole are still significantly committed to 

Fabien Prévost, Omnes Capital 


7 

Analysis 


our funds and this natural relationship will of course remain strong.” 

That is not to say that the only difference between Omnes and 

CAPE lies in the name. “The firm’s culture will of course undergo 

some changes as well,” says Prévost. “Becoming an independent 

structure is quite liberating in a way, and infuses everyone with a kind 

of entrepreneurial spirit that is hard to foster when you are part of a 

larger group.” Another practical consequence of the spin-off is that 

Omnes will have to move away from the bank’s governance model: “It 

used to be reassuring for our investors, notably with regards to risk 

control, but was perhaps not best suited for a GP,” notes Prévost. 

Building new relationships 

The firm will also have to pitch itself differently to LPs as it starts 

cultivating new relationships. “Being called ‘Crédit Agricole’ used to 

open a few doors, but 

also close others – I 

believe that moving 

away from the brand will 

open more new doors 

to investors than it will 

close,” notes Prévost. 

“The real impact is hard 

to measure, though. 

Many foreign LPs tend to 

react negatively to captive 

funds, for instance, 

while some French 

institutionals might have 

been attracted to the strength of the Crédit Agricole group.” 

Deeply reshuffling their LP base constitutes an extra challenge 

for former captives in an already tough fundraising market. Prévost 

acknowledges the steep climb ahead, but reckons that some parts 

of the business will require more effort than others: “We are very 

confident about fundraising prospects for our renewable energy 

vehicle. On the other hand, we know that the road will be tougher for 

our fourth mid-cap LBO vehicle – which we want to raise next year – 

so we are actively preparing for it.” 

On the dealflow side, Prévost doesn’t anticipate the new branding 

to have a major impact on how Omnes is perceived by potential 

portfolio companies. “This will vary a lot on a case-by-case basis,” he 

says. “In venture, for instance, entrepreneurs are focusing on the fresh 

capital and don’t tend to care where it comes from. It doesn’t play a 

significant role in majority LBOs either. For minority LBOs, it can be 

reassuring for family owners to have Crédit Agricole at their side, but 

Omnes should still benefit from the remaining ties to the group via 

our funds.” 

Roadmap for success 

Two months after officially launching Omnes, Prévost believes the 

transition process has gone smoothly so far – and shares tips with 

potential spin-off candidates: “The main risk in a spin-off is for the 

management team to be too impatient, which can be perceived by 

the future shareholder 

as being contrary to its 

own interest. To that 

end we made it clear 

from the start that we 

wouldn’t be looking to 

buy the management 

company straight away, 

which other managers 

in a similar situation did 

not do.” 

“We also stated that 

we would be discussing 

a future stake in the 

firm on the same terms with all the potential buyers, in a transparent 

manner, which is reassuring for everyone involved,” he adds. 

Finally, Prévost once again insists on the fresh perspective 

required once a GP starts operating independently: “Once the 

transaction is done, one should not underestimate the in-depth 

changes required when you’re not part of a larger group. You need 

to start from a clean slate and redefine your priorities between your 

staff, your investors, your leads, etc. This needs to be done quickly 

so as not to carry over practices that might not be suited to the new 

environment.” n 

“Being called ‘Crédit Agricole’ used to open a few 

doors, but also close others – I believe that moving 

away from the brand will open more new doors to 

investors than it will close” 

Fabien Prévost, Omnes Capital 

About Omnes Capital 

Based in Paris and with 65 members of staff, Omnes Capital is a generalist 

private equity house. It currently has €1.9bn worth of assets under 

management. 

In the mid-cap LBO market, Omnes invests through FCPR structures 

in companies valued in the €25-150m range, with a €5-30m sweet spot. 

The firm is also active in the small-cap market via two €40m funds; these 

invest in businesses valued between €5-30m, with an average deal size 

of €1-5m. 

Omnes is also active in life sciences and tech venture capital, as well as 

mezzanine, via dedicated funds. In addition, the GP started focusing on 

renewable energy in the mid-2000s; it is currently looking to raise €200m 

for its second dedicated vehicle, Capenergie II. 


For more information on these deals, please 

click on the URL listed in each write-up. 

8 

DEALS 


LARGE-CAP 

Lion Capital buys Alain Afflelou in 

secondary buyout 

Lion Capital has entered 

exclusive talks to acquire French 

eyewear retailer Alain Afflelou 

from Bridgepoint, Apax France 

and Altamir Amboise in a deal 

believed to be valued at nearly 

€800m. Founder Alain Afflelou 

and management will also 

reinvest in the buyout. 

Financing was provided by Citi, UniCredit and Alcentra. Lion Capital 

was reportedly looking to secure a €300-400m package prior to the 

acquisition being announced. 

Apax Partners and its quoted vehicle Altamir Amboise originally 

backed a secondary buyout of Alain Afflelou in May 2000 – a deal 

valued at €137m. Bridgepoint bought the business from Apax in 2006 

for around €500m, with the previous owners reinvesting. 

Advisers 

Equity – Lazard (M&A); JP Morgan (M&A); Citi (M&A); SJ Berwin (Legal). 

Vendor (Bridgepoint) – Rothschild (M&A); Latham & Watkins (Legal). 

Management – Scotto (Legal); Banque Privee 1818 (M&A). 

Eurazeo’s Europcar turns to high-yield 

for refinancing 

French car rental company 

Europcar, a portfolio company 

of listed private equity group 

Eurazeo, has raised €324m 

on the high-yield market to 

refinance its debt. 

The yield was set at 11.5%. 

Europcar was initally looking to 

NAME 

Alain Afflelou 

DEAL 

SBO 

VALUE 

€800m est 

LOCATION 

Paris 

SECTOR 

Speciality retailers 

FOUNDED 1972 

TURNOVER €800m 

EBITDA 

€75m est 

VENDOR Bridgepoint, Apax France 

unquote.com/2171597 

NAME 

Europcar 

DEAL 

Refinancing 

VALUE €324m (high-yield), 

€110m (equity) 

LOCATION Saint Quentin en Yvelines 

SECTOR 

Travel & tourism 

FOUNDED 1949 

TURNOVER 

€1.97bn 


raise €335m, in order to refinance the €425m debt line maturing in 

2013. 

Europcar shareholders, including Eurazeo, injected an extra €110m 

into the company’s balance sheet, to be later converted 

to equity. 

In addition to the bond offering, Europcar negotiated to extend 

the maturity on its senior revolving credit facility. Following these 

transactions, the new corporate debt maturities were pushed to 2017 

and 2018. 

MID-CAP 

Sagard buys Stokomani from Advent 

Sagard Private Equity 

has acquired French discount 

wholesaler Stokomani from Advent 

International, a transaction valued 

at €200-210m. 

The investment was made via 

the Sagard II fund, which closed 

on €808m in 2006. The vehicle 

is now 75% invested. 

The company’s historical 

lenders, BNP Paribas, Société Générale and LCL, arranged a senior 

debt package worth up to €96m. AXA Private Equity arranged a 

€22m mezzanine tranche alongside Euromezzanine. 

Advent acquired a majority stake in Stokomani in 2007 – a deal 

thought to have valued the business at around €150m. Under Advent’s 

ownership, headcount increased from 460 to 1,250 while revenues 

more than doubled from €82m to €200m. 

Advisers 

Equity – Calyon, Stéphane Barret, Virginie Grouselle, Pietro Sibille (M&A); Weil 

Gothshal & Manges, David Aknin, Cassandre Porgès, Gauthier Elies, Edouard 

de Lamy (Legal, tax); STC, Christian Nouel, Stéphanie Desprez, Corinne Diez, 

Alexis Frasson-Gorret (Legal, tax); KPMG, Mathieu Wallich-Petit, Vincent 

Delmas, Fabien Thieblemont (Financial due diligence); KEA, Christophe Burtin, 

Olivier Tézenas du Montcel (Commercial due diligence); URS, Bertrand Latrobe 

(Environmental due diligence); Cavaro Conseil, Christian Mergier (Insurance due 

diligence). 

Vendor – Rothschild, Laurent Baril, Frank Cygler (M&A); KPMG, Axel Rebaudieres 

(Financial due diligence); Roland Berger, Delphine Mathez (Commercial due 

diligence); Mayer Brown, Xavier Jaspar, Olivier Aubouin (Legal). 

Company – Lazard, Isabelle Xoual, Yann Dever (M&A). 

Management – HPML, Vincent Libaud (Legal). 

Milestone reaps 6x money on Cadum 

Milestone Capital has 

reaped around 6x its money on 

the sale of French soap and baby 

products company Cadum to 

L’Oreal. 

Milestone manages more than 

€250m and invests primarily in 

the UK and France. The exit is 

NAME 

Stokomani 

DEAL 

SBO 

VALUE 

€200-210m 

DEBT RATIO 50-60% 

LOCATION 

Compiègne 

SECTOR 

Broadline retailers 

FOUNDED 1962 


STAFF 1,250 

VENDOR Advent International 


NAME 

Cadum International 

DEAL 

Trade sale 

LOCATION 

Paris 

SECTOR 

Personal products 

FOUNDED 1907 


VENDOR 

Milestone Capital 

RETURNS 

c6x 



9 

DEALS 


the firm’s second from its current portfolio, following the sale of Coffee 

Nation to Costa Coffee for a 3.7x multiple in March 2011. 

In September 2007, Milestone made an equity injection of €17.5m 

to fund the acquisition of Cadum. BNP Paribas Asset Management and 

CIC provided debt to support the deal, while Paris Orléans provided 

mezzanine financing. 

Advisers 

Equity – JP Morgan, Camillo Greco, Edouard Debost (Corporate finance); 

Travers Smith, David Patient (Legal); Constantin, Jean-Paul Séguret (Financial due 

diligence); OCC, Laurent Billes-Garabedian (Commercial due diligence). 

SMALL-CAP 

CM-CIC LBO Partners backs Nerim 

MBO 

CM-CIC LBO Partners has 

backed the MBO of French 

telecoms operator Nerim. 

The GP is understood to have 

taken a majority stake in the 

business. Founders Christophe 

Carel and Jacques Bouaziz 

sold their shares of Nerim in 

the MBO. In addition to management, the company’s staff also have 

the possibility of buying shares in the new structure. CM-CIC LBO 

Partners usually provides equity tickets in the €5-40m range. 

Paris-based Nerim employs around 50 staff and posted a €24m 

turnover in 2011 – it has been growing at an average of 20% per 

annum over the past 10 years. 

Consortium acquires Delta Recyclage 

A consortium of investors 

has acquired French industrial 

and domestic recycling company 

Delta Recyclage. 

Demeter Partners joined 

previous investors Soridec, 

CM-CIC Investissement and 

Amundi Private Equity. CIC 

Sud-Ouest reportedly provided a 

NAME 

Nerim 

DEAL 

MBO 

VALUE 

n/d (€25-50m est) 

LOCATION 

Paris 

SECTOR Fixed-line communications 

FOUNDED 1999 


STAFF 

c50 


NAME 

Delta Recyclage 

DEAL 

Buyout 

VALUE 

n/d (



10 

DEALS 


Argos Expansion is part of the Argos Soditic group but operates 

independently from the mid-cap GP. It invested via its €45m 

eponymous vehicle, with a mix of equity and convertible bonds. The 

fund usually invests €2-10m per transaction. 

CIC Nord-Ouest, Société Générale and BNP Paribas arranged a debt 

package to finance the acquisition. 

Omnes Capital exits MGI Digital 

to founders 

Omnes Capital (formerly 

Crédit Agricole Private Equity) 

has sold its stake in listed French 

digital publishing firm MGI 

Digital Graphic to its founding 

family. 

Omnes Capital provided MGI with expansion capital in 2001 to 

fund the international expansion of the firm and the launch of a new 

product range. Omnes is believed to have injected more than €25m in 

exchange for a 19% stake. 

Founded in 1982 and based in Ivry-sur-Seine, MGI Digital 

Graphic designs, manufactures and sells digital presses in France and 

abroad. 

Advisers 

Acquirer – Cabinet Michel Marseillan Avocats (Legal). 

Omnes and Demeter exit Methaneo in 

trade sale 



and Demeter Partners have 

sold their joint 60% stake in 

Methaneo, a French developer of 

bio-methanisation solutions, to 

trade player Séchilienne Sidec. 

Omnes (then Crédit Agricole 

NAME 

MGI Digital Graphic 

DEAL 

Exit 

LOCATION 

Ivry-sur-Seine 

SECTOR 

Publishing 

FOUNDED 1982 

VENDOR 

Omnes Capital 


NAME 

Methaneo 

DEAL 

Trade sale 

LOCATION 

Paris 

SECTOR 

Renewable energy 

equipment 

FOUNDED 2007 

VENDOR 

Omnes Capital, 

Demeter Partners 


Private Equity) and Demeter Partners invested €1.5m each in 

Methaneo in 2008. Omnes invested via its FCPR Capenergie fund, 

while Demeter made the first investment from its fund FCPR Demeter 

2. 

Following the sale, the two Methaneo founders will retain a 40% 

stake in the business – they were keen on partnering with an industrial 

player to further drive the company’s development. 

ACQUISITION FINANCE 

CM-CIC Capital Finance backs 

Joncoux bolt-on 

CM-CIC Capital Finance 

has injected €4m into French 

portfolio company Isotip- 

Joncoux to help finance its 

acquisition of Polish chimney 

manufacturer MK Chimney 

System from Riverside. 

CM-CIC Capital Finance 

NAME 

Isotip-Joncoux 

DEAL 

Acquisition finance 

VALUE €4m 

LOCATION 

Saint-Grégoire 

SECTOR Building materials & 

fixtures 


STAFF 400 


has been a minority shareholder in Isotip-Joncoux (via the holding 

PGDI) since 2001. In addition to the equity injection, the bolt-on 

was financed via a senior debt package provided by LCL, CICO and 

CVS. 

Riverside acquired MK Chimneys in January 2010 for €10m. 

The exit generated a 2.9x gross cash-on-cash return for the US-based 

investor. 

Advisers 

Equity – Gide Loyrette Nouel, Michal Kubicz (Legal); FIDAL, Laurent Drillet 

(Legal); SJ Berwin, David Diamand, Maxence Bloch, Mathieu Terrisse (Legal). 

Company – MBA Capital, Michel Le Blay (Corporate finance). 

Idinvest’s Altema acquires Bagnères 

Industries 

NAME 

Aeronautical systems 

DEAL 

Acquisition finance 

LOCATION Bagnères de Bigorre 

producer Altema France SAS, 

SECTOR 

Aerospace 

an Idinvest Partners portfolio FOUNDED 1989 

company, has wholly acquired 

Bagnères Industries, an assembly 

company for the aerospace 

industry. 

TURNOVER 

STAFF 


€1.2m 

c30 

The acquisition was financed by a €1m investment from Idinvest 

Partners in Altema. It will strengthen Altema’s service offering and is 

part of an acquisitive growth strategy. 

Based in Bagnères de Bigorre, Bagnères Industries provides assembly 

services to the aeronautical sector. In 2011, the firm reported revenues 

of more than €1.2m. The company employs around 30 members of 

staff. 

Advisers 

Acquirer – UGGC, Pascal Squercioni (Legal). 

Company – Critère Finance, Jacques-Henry Piot (Corporate finance). 

Bagnères Industries 


11 

DEALS 


EARLY-STAGE & EXPANSION 

Naxicap takes minority stake in 

Homair Vacances 

Naxicap has bought 

a minority stake in listed 

French mobile home holiday 

business Homair Vacances from 

Montefiore Investment. 

Naxicap bought a 40.8% stake 

in holding company Illiade, 

which owns 67% of Homair. 

Montefiore retains a majority stake in Illiade, which it previously 

wholly owned. The transaction was completed based on a price of €7 

per Homair share –the business currently trades at €5.73 per share – 

and is believed to be valued at around €30m. 

Overall, Montefiore has so far reaped 3x the money invested via 

Montefiore Investment I, and 8x the equity drawn from Montefiore 

Investment II. 

Advisers 

Equity – Lamartine (Legal); Grant Thornton (Financial due diligence). 

Vendor – Easton Corporate Finance (M&A); Frieh Bouhenic (Legal); 

Cabinet Cohen (Legal); Mayer Brown (Legal); Sekri Valentin Zerrouk (Legal); 

PricewaterhouseCoopers (Financial due diligence); BCG (Commercial due 

diligence). 

Omnes et al. inject €12m into EXOSUN 



has taken part in a €12m 

funding round for French 

renewable energy business 

EXOSUN. 

Other investors include public 

agency ADEME as well as Crédit 

Agricole subsidiaries Aquitaine 

Expansion and Gramd Sud- 

Ouest Capital. 

NAME 

Homair 

DEAL 

Replacement capital 

VALUE 

€30m est 

LOCATION 

Aix-en-Provence 

SECTOR 

Travel & tourism 


EBITDA €20m 

VENDOR Montefiore Investment 


NAME 

EXOSUN 

DEAL 

Expansion 

VALUE €12m 

LOCATION 

Martillac 

SECTOR 

Renewable energy 

equipment 

FOUNDED 2007 

TURNOVER 

€4.7m 

EBITDA 

€2.4m loss 

STAFF 47 


Omnes had already provided EXOSUN with a €4.5m funding 

round in 2009. The fresh capital will be used to drive the company’s 

growth following two years of tough trading. 

Founded in 2007, EXOSUN specialises in the design, development 

and production of turnkey photovoltaic and thermal solar power plants 

equipped with solar tracking systems. 

Serena and Partech back Lafourchette 

Serena Capital and Partech 

International have contributed to 

an €8m funding round for French 

online restaurant reservation 

service Lafourchette. 

The transaction gives the 

company an enterprise value of 

more than €50m, according 

to reports. Previous investor Otium Capital remains a majority 

shareholder. Otium’s investment in Lafourchette totals €4m across two 

transactions completed in December 2008 and April 2011. 

TA acquires 30% of Zadig & Voltaire 

TA Associates has taken a NAME 

Zadig & Voltaire 

30% stake in French clothing DEAL 

Expansion 

LOCATION 

Paris 

and accessories retailer Zadig 

SECTOR Clothing & Accessories 

& Voltaire. The deal reportedly FOUNDED 1995 

values Zadig & Voltaire in the 

region of €400m. TA aims to 

support the company’s growth in 

TURNOVER 


€200m 

existing and new international markets. 

Paris-based Zadig & Voltaire, founded in 1995, sells clothing 

and accessories through 200 boutiques and corners, and generated a 

turnover of around €200m in 2011. 

Advisers 

Equity – Rothschild & Cie (Corporate finance); Latham & Watkins (Legal). 

Management – Compagnie Financière Edmond de Rothschild (Corporate finance); 

Praxes Avocats (Legal). 

Emertec and CDC Climat in €3m round 

for HPC-SA 

Emertec and CDC Climat 

have invested €3m in French 

energy measurement software 

developer HPC-SA. 

Emertec invested via the 

Emertec 4 vehicle, a 2008 vintage 

that closed on €60m. CDC 

Climat is a subsidiary of public 

NAME 

Lafourchette 

DEAL 

Expansion 

VALUE €8m 

LOCATION 

Paris 

SECTOR 

Internet 

FOUNDED 2007 

TURNOVER 

€10m est 


NAME 

HPC-SA 

DEAL 

Expansion 

VALUE €3m 

LOCATION 

Toulouse 

SECTOR 

Software 

FOUNDED 2009 

TURNOVER €610,600 

EBITDA €131,700 


agency Caisse des Dépôts focusing on cleantech investments. The 

round was evenly split between the two investors. 




12 

DEALS 


The Toulouse-based company posted a €131,700 EBITDA on 

revenues of €610,600 in 2011. 

Advisers 

Equity – Bichot et Associés, Mathieu Odet, Aurélie Thomas-Magnin (Legal); PKF, 

Guy Castinel (Financial due diligence); Cambashi, Tony Christian, Mike Evans 

(Commercial due diligence). 

Company – R Green, Nicolas Rochon, Adrien Boyer (Corporate finance); Cabinet 

Carrieu, Philippe Carrieu (Financial due diligence); Cabinet Rivière, Laëtitia Villain 

(Legal). 

Arkeon backs NOVACYT 

Arkeon Gestion has NAME 

NOVACYT 

participated in a €1.5m funding DEAL 

Expansion 

VALUE 

€1.5m 

round for Vélizy-based cytology 

LOCATION 

Vélizy 

company NOVACYT. 

SECTOR 

Medical supplies 

Arkeon contributed around FOUNDED 2006 

€600,000 to the round. The TURNOVER 

c€1m 

STAFF 

c10 

investment was made through 


the Arkeon pre-IPO 2011 retail 

vehicle, which closed on €10m in 

2011. Private investors provided co-investment. The capital increase will 

underpin the firm’s international expansion. 

FSI and Alliance Entreprendre invest in 

Fabulous Garden 

FSI Régions and Alliance 

Entreprendre have injected €1m 

into French outdoor furnishings 

company Fabulous Garden. 

The business will use the fresh 

capital to launch new products 

and further develop its existing 

NAME 

Fabulous Garden 

DEAL 

Expansion 

VALUE €1m 

LOCATION Boulogne-Billancourt 

SECTOR 

Furnishings 

FOUNDED 2007 

TURNOVER 

€3.5m 


solutions. It will also aim to grow internationally. 

Fabulous Garden is aiming to post a €20m turnover within the next 

five years, up from €3.5m today. 

Advisers 

Equity – PDGB, Roy Arakelian, Jessica Dillon (Legal); ADH Experts, Séverine 

Neyen (Financial due diligence); HPML, Thomas Hermetet, Anna Gassner (Legal). 

Company – DSA Corporate Finance, Jean-Luc Sfez, Lionel Moldes, Albane 

Memponte (Corporate finance); FI-RM, Olivier Montalant (Corporate finance); 

Blackbird & Associés, Didier Loiseau (Legal). 

Alven leads SoCloz funding round 

Alven Capital, Fa Dièse 

and a consortium of business 

angels have provided French preshopping 

platform SoCloz with a 

first round of financing. 

The deal is undertsood to 

amount to €1m in total, with 

NAME 

SoCloz 

DEAL 

Expansion 

VALUE 

€1m est 

LOCATION Asnières-sur-Seine 

SECTOR 

Internet 

FOUNDED 2010 


Alven providing €400,000 and the remainder evenly split between Fa 

Dièse and the business angels. 

Advisers 

Equity – CVML, Arthur Dethomas, François Brocard (Legal). 

Company – Clipperton Finance, Alexis Barba (Corporate finance); Charles- 

Philippe Letellier (Legal). 

FSI injects €700,000 into Bourdoncle 

FSI Régions has invested NAME 

Bourdoncle 

€700,000 in French diversified DEAL 

Expansion 

VALUE €700,000 

industrials group Bourdoncle. 

SECTOR Diversified industrials 

The capital was provided FOUNDED 1995 

via the OC+B fund, a €300m 

vehicle that invests in convertible 

bonds. It will enable Bourdoncle 

to invest in its production 

TURNOVER 

STAFF 


€4.5m 

35 

facilities and eventually recruit an extra 30 staff. 

FSI backs Forsitec with €300,000 

FSI Régions (formerly 

NAME 

Forsitec 

Avenir Entreprises) has invested DEAL 

Expansion 

VALUE €300,000 

€300,000 in French IT services 

LOCATION Boulogne-Billancourt 

provider Forsitec. The transaction SECTOR 

Computer services 

will underpin the organic 

and acquisitive growth of the 

company, which aims to achieve a 

€15m turnover by 2017. 

TURNOVER 

STAFF 


>€4m 

c50 

The investment was made through Avenir Entreprises Mezzanine, 

which closed in 2007 and focuses on small businesses with a turnover 

of more than €2m. The fund makes investments of up to €500,000. 

Advisers 

Equity – Cofigex, Jean Charles Norris, Frédéric Durand (Financial due diligence); 

PDGB, Madia Iliopoulou, Roy Arakelian (Legal). 


The Complete European Private Equity 

Information Resource 

Now twenty years old, unquote” is renowned for its fully-validated data and information on the 

European private equity markets. Our products deliver all the information that any firm with an 

interest in private equity needs. 

Verified data from 20+ years of PE deals 

unquote” data specialises only on the private equity industry 

and covers deals of all sizes and types. With data from over 

35,000 private equity investments stretching back to 1990, it is 

the longest-running and most comprehensive European database 

available. 

In-depth analysis of the latest industry news 

Our monthly print title unquote” analysis and its sister website 

unquote.com don’t just provide the latest news, but deliver 

comment, analysis, research statistics, charts and data that 

others simply cannot. We have access to the top market players, 

and gather their opinions in order to deliver exclusive content 

that you won’t find anywhere else. 

Your entire team can have full access to all 

unquote” content 

A corporate subscriptions package allows multiple users – or 

even entire companies – to have full access to all unquote” 

products. Your analysts will have access to the data they want 

on the latest deals, and senior level management will get insight 

and analysis on all the latest news. 

The most cost-effective PE information resource 

The more users you sign up, the lower the cost per user 

becomes. You also won’t need to worry about managing several 

different subscriptions to information products – all users come 

under a single contract, the length of which is entirely up to you. 

unquote.com/solutions 

To find out more, call +44 (0) 20 7484 9892 / +44 (0) 20 7004 7522 

or email solutions@unquote.com

14 

unquote.com/analysis 

Trade winds blowing 

Once attractive for their low costs, emerging markets are 

increasingly offering exit routes for European private equity houses. 

How important is a local presence? Kimberly Romaine reports 

Lyndon Lea, partner at Lion Capital, says that emerging markets investors 

are becoming more interested in European firms 

Go back 10 years, and talk of China and India 

centred around low-cost manufacturing. Now, 

unquote” has recorded six sales of European 

private equity-backed businesses to trade buyers in these 

emerging markets in the last 18 months, with Lion 

Capital’s sale of UK cereal business Weetabix to China’s 

Bright Food for £1.2bn the latest in Europe. That week, 

Indian drugmaker Piramal Healthcare bought US-based 

healthcare data provider Decision Resources Group from 

Providence Equity Partners for $635m. A month earlier, 

Duke Street sold Adelie Food to India Hospitality for 

$350m, and, in December 2010, Italy’s Investindustrial 

reaped a 3.6x multiple when it sold Italmatch Chemicals 

to a Chinese investor, a few months after opening a 

Shanghai office. 

At the end of last year, Shandong Heavy Industry Group 

bought luxury Italian yacht-maker Ferretti for €220m. The 

business had been backed by Arle (then Candover). 


15 


“There are numbers of companies sitting on large amounts 

of cash. They are being encouraged, as a matter of Chinese 

national policy, to have more international brands” 

Jonathan Reardon, Pinsent Masons 

There may be more to come, with Permira’s Bird’s Eye 

attracting interest from Thai firm Charoen Pokphand 

Foods in what could be a £2.5bn sale. Lion is also eyeing up 

another sale to an Asian trade buyer. 

“Big companies in China are hungry to do deals,” says 

Jonathan Reardon, Pinsent Masons’ head of corporate in Asia. 

Bright Food approached Lion for the iconic British 

brand – Lion’s first deal as an independent operator: “There 

were many approaches over the years, some of which were 

entertained and others which were turned away outright. 

So to let Weetabix go, we would have to realise a significant 

price or know that we could share in the continuing 

upside,” explains Lyndon Lea, partner at Lion Capital. 

Bright Food offered both: by taking a 60% stake in the 

deal, Lion will ultimately make at least 4.7x money, and 

maybe more when the remaining stake is eventually sold. 

Bright Food’s acquisition of Weetabix marked a 

high point in the acquirer’s two-year quest to snap 

up international brands: it had previously attempted, 

unsuccessfully, to buy yogurt business Yoplait, sugar 

company Sucrogen, consumer giant United Biscuits and 

nutritional company GNC in the US. Its luck in Australasia 

was better, with two brands in its portfolio from the region. 

“We will see more of this trend,” says Reardon. “There 

are numbers of companies – state-owned enterprises 

and privately owned – sitting on large amounts of cash. 

They are being encouraged, as a matter of Chinese 

national policy, to have more international brands. There 

are also strategic reasons, as domestic business alone 

becomes more challenging or the international target 

can add more to the Chinese domestic business through 

technology, for example.” 

In a recent survey conducted by Grant Thornton, 46% of 

privately held businesses in mainland China indicated an 

intention to grow through acquisition over the next three 

years. This is up markedly from 26% a year earlier. 

“Acquiring an established western brand lends 

authenticity to the purchaser, while the purchaser has access 

to new markets and possibly more efficient manufacturing 

techniques to help grow profit,” says Simon Turner, 

managing partner at Inflexion Private Equity. 

The fact that Chinese corporates are looking at 

private equity-backed businesses may also be an indirect 

consequence of changes to the UK Takeover Code, which 

last September made delisting a business listed in the UK 

more difficult – and privately held companies relatively 

more attractive targets. “Chinese companies are relatively 

new to the game of outbound expansion and acquisitions. 

They are learning through experience, so the more 

straightforward the deal and the more professional support 

they get, the more likely it is to complete,” says Reardon. 

Who you know or what you know? 

Relationships often play a big role in deals, especially in 

new markets – but whether the relationship requires a 

local presence polarises opinion. “It’s extremely helpful to 

have a presence on the ground to identify opportunities 

for potential buyers of assets or acquisition and expansion 

opportunities,” explains Reardon. 

Inflexion is the latest to have announced a presence in 

each of China, India and Brazil, joining the ranks of LDC, 

Cinven, Terra Firma, Baird and Bridgepoint in terms of 

an emerging markets presence. Providence established its 

Hong Kong and New Delhi offices in 2007 and its Beijing 

office earlier this year, while Summit opened an office 

in Mumbai in February. The GP stated its intention to 

increase its investment activity in India, but also that it will 

be used to provide support to US and European portfolio 

companies looking to expand in the region – namely 

Belkin, Ogone and Snap Fitness. 

But who needs the relationship? It depends on the goals, 

says Daniel Domberger, director at Livingstone Partners: “If 

a GP intends to be very operationally involved with a target 

and it is seeking or has business in China or India, then it 

can make sense for that GP to be on the ground. It will also 

depend on the volume of investments the house makes.” 


16 


This is one reason it might make sense for LDC and 

Baird to have local presences. “Baird, for example, works 

closely with portfolio companies on manufacturing in 

China. If this is an important part of the business, then an 

investment from Baird, all other terms being equal, may 

be more attractive to a target than an equivalent offer from 

another private equity house.” 

While some deem a local presence key to wooing trade 

buyers down the line, others feel the presence is likely 

to be more helpful to win a deal in the first place – by 

impressing incumbent management that you’re serious 

about the Asian growth story. “Simply opening an office in 

China will not help you get on the radar of potential trade 

buyers. The significant relationship is the one the potential 

buyer has with the management team, not the backer,” 

says Sean Whelan, ECI managing director, indicating 

announcements by some firms of regional openings may be 

mere marketing efforts. 

WCI Consulting was sold to Indian technology firm 

TAKE Solutions at the beginning of last year. ECI, its 

backer, has no presence outside the UK and has no plans 

to establish any. “WCI had a relationship with TAKE two 

years prior to the sale,” Whelan explains – adding that 

relationships are important, but between management 

and the buyer, not the GP and buyer. “As TAKE were 

ultimately buying senior management, it was crucial they 

had a rapport. This doesn’t come overnight by issuing an 

investment memorandum on the desk and asking for a bid 

within a month.” Similar to the Weetabix sale, ECI retain a 

stake in WCI and so may reap further upside. 

“The relationship side of things is very important. Trade 

buyers in India and China may be willing to take part 

in a process, but they prefer to build a relationship that 

pre-empts that process and to deal one-on-one if possible,” 

explains Domberger. Indeed, Livingstone was involved in 

the sale of WCI, while Lion worked with Bright for a full 

year before the deal completed. 

“Clearly, when a portfolio company operates locally, 

it helps attract attention; that could be on either the 

“Clearly, when 

a portfolio 

company 

operates 

locally that 

helps attract 

attention” 

Simon Turner, 

Inflexion 

Private Equity 

sales side or supply chain,” says Turner. “We also think 

that a local presence helps and the support teams we 

have in place will certainly help us. Particularly in 

the markets we focus on, local knowledge and local 

relationships unlock opportunities. Local corporate 

finance relationships are important too, but, as with all 

relationships, you need to keep them warm, so being in 

the same location is paramount.” 

Long-distance relationship 

“Bright Food is government-owned, so several levels 

of approval were needed. It also had no track record of 

acquisitions in Europe. Despite this, it ran smoothly,” 

Lea explains. And perhaps, some might say, despite Lion’s 

lack of any office there. The firm operates its consumerfocused 

business solely out of offices in North America and 

Europe – the two geographies it targets for investment. 

“Around half our exits are done without an auction,” 

says Lea. “We own strategic assets, so the exit is often 

fairly evident. You get better speed and certainty of 

execution this way. Of course, with financial buyers we 

would usually seek intermediation, but with strategic 

buyers it is more straightforward.” 

“We open doors through our sector focus. For example, 

historically we have found we can simply say to a business 

‘we have similarities’ – be they pricing issues, concerns 

with moving a manufacturing base or maybe we’re direct 

competitors. It means we speak the same language and it 

doesn’t matter if we have a local office or not. I have been 

humbled and shocked by the ability to pick up the phone to 

some large businesses – with 14 businesses in the consumer 

sector we can seem not dissimilar to a consumer company 

the scale of Heinz to certain players. As such, a local 

presence – unless you are a generalist – is not necessary.” 

And some say it is even a very expensive marketing effort. 

“Astute investors like to see ‘local presence’ if the GP’s 

target companies are small- and medium-sized businesses in 

that location,” says John Hess, chief executive of gatekeeper 

Altius Associates. 


17 


“I have been humbled and shocked by the ability to pick up 

the phone to some large businesses. As such, a local presence – 

unless you are a generalist – is not truly necessary” 

Lyndon Lea, Lion Capital 

He would know – Altius’s clients consist of 17 investors, 

roughly half of which are US-based. 

“Investors will look at the competencies of what the 

GP is trying to do in its core markets,” Hess continues. 

“Sure, if the focus is on growth companies in Brazil, then 

a GP needs a local presence. But if the local presence is 

only to help the GP’s investee companies source a lowcost 

manufacturing market, then there has to be a proven 

value added. Sometimes I wonder if these arguments are 

more for marketing purposes than for substantive added 

value, but then I am an old sceptic.” 

There are whispers of the reliability of offers from trade 

buyers in emerging markets, though they are dissipating, 

perhaps as they hone their buying skills. “We’d had a 

number of flirts with Indian trade buyers but it’s never 

come to anything. Previously they had a reputation for 

looking but not ever executing. So the market was largely 

sceptical of their ability to deliver a result. But TAKE was 

very honourable in their conduct,” Whelan says. 

And Western advisers may help iron out any remaining 

wrinkles. “There is a sophisticated growing corporate 

finance network in Shanghai, Beijing and Hong Kong. 

There is a lot more play now between local offices there 

and UK/US/European offices to identify opportunities,” 

says Reardon. 

Indeed the auction by 3i of loading equipment maker 

Hyva Group ultimately went to a Hong Kong consortium, 

but attracted at least one Chinese trade bidder. CSFB in 

London was the mandated corporate financier and involved 

its Asian offices. 

“There could have been communication breakdowns, but 

Bright had a very skilled adviser. Both sides had frustrations, 

largely down to the different cultures. It’s been educational, 

and tremendous patience saw us through,” Lea says. 

With 40% of Lion’s skin still in the game, the deal is 

something of a joint venture. Says Lea: “If we took ourselves 

to India or China on our own accord, it would have been 

a very difficult start. It would have taken decades to gain 

traction. Any new brand entering a foreign market will 

be cashflow negative for some time. The relationships just 

aren’t there. But Bright has a ready-made distribution chain 

of lots of supermarkets in China. A more straight-forward 

joint venture would have been more complicated at the time 

of sale, with change of control issues, transfer pricing etc. 

As it stands, we have a formula in place for when it is time 

to sell, and a floor on the price.” 

Lion has done well for its investors by selling the UK’s 

most iconic breakfast brand to China – but is one of a small 

few to have done so as a GP in Europe without a presence 

there. Eurozone issues are forcing down the value of the 

euro, making further European acquisitions more attractive 

for foreign buyers. “It’s extremely helpful to have a presence 

on the ground to identify opportunities for potential buyers 

of assets or acquisition opportunities. We will see more 

European private equity firms setting up offices in China,” 

Reardon says. n 

Notable European private equity exits to emerging-market buyers 

Target Date PE Vendor Value Acquirer 

Weetabix May 2012 Lion Capital £1.2bn Bright Food, China 

Adelie Food April 2012 Duke Street Capital $350m India Hospitality, India 

Ferretti January 2012 Arle (banks) €220m Shandong Heavy Industry, China 

WCI Consulting January 2011 ECI n/d TAKE Solutions, India 

Italmatch Chemicals December 2010 Investindustrial €100m Mandarin Capital, China 

Source: unquote data” 


18 


Subjected to unstable public markets since the 2008 crisis, 

many quoted vehicles have seen their value fall. John Bakie 

investigates if this may change soon 

Listed private equity 

recovery underway 

Stuart Howard, 

COO, HarbourVest 

Five-year %NAV 

performance * 

Firm 

Performance 

3i -72.30% 

Candover -50.22% 

SVG Capital -51.40% 

F&C PE 23.41% 

Electra 18.16% 

HgCapital Trust 58.86% 

The recent past has been tough for private 

equity’s listed funds. Subjected to the full force of 

public markets during the fallout of the financial 

crisis, many vehicles have seen progressively dwindling 

share prices and deepening discounts. 

Stuart Howard, chief operating officer (COO) of 

European listed products at HarbourVest, and a 3i veteran, 

believes this may end soon, saying the tide is turning for 

listed private equity. While funds suffered in the wake of 

Lehman Brothers’ collapse, the recovery is now beginning. 

“HVPE (HarbourVest Global Private Equity) listed in 

2007, and while net asset value (NAV) has climbed some 

35%, shares slipped from a starting price of $10 down to 

around $5. Now they are starting to recover and are trading 

nearer to $7,” he explains. 

Howard believes the key to reducing the discount gap 

and improving investor interest in listed private equity is 

better communication by the industry. “Private equity has 

been very private and not open enough, but we need to 

explain this distinct asset class to investors,” he says. 

* Selected funds, May 2007 to YTD 

Source: Morningstar 

Since joining HarbourVest in January, 

Howard has held some 80 meetings with 

investors, brokers, journalists and trade 

bodies to further the message about what 

listed private equity is and how it can 

benefit a portfolio. 

Listed Private Equity’s (LPEQ) Ross 

Butler agrees with Howard’s strategy of 

educating investors: “We’re dedicated 

to raising awareness of private equity in 

listed markets, and we have made a lot 

of progress in this area since LPEQ was 

founded in 2006.” 

Confusion about what listed private equity is, and how 

it differs from other alternative assets, can be a key barrier 

to investment. “I have spent a lot of time explaining to 

investors that private equity is not overvalued, and it’s not 

all about fees on top of fees,” says Howard. Many investors 

naturally tend to compare private equity to hedge funds, 

but Howard says they often fail to realise that fee structures 

are largely the same and the private equity model makes 

returns in a very different way to a hedge fund. “Debunking 

myths is a key part of what we are doing,” he adds. 

Investors may also be put off by the poor performance 

of a number of funds following the financial crisis. As the 

Five-year %NAV performance table (see below-left) shows, 

some of the biggest post-crisis names in listed private equity 

have seen NAV collapse since 2007. These high-profile cases 

will have spooked many investors and have led to discounts 

widening to 60% or more at the bottom of the market. 

However, with discounts starting to close, many public 

market investors may be getting over their fear of the asset 

class. Jock Green-Armytage, part of JZ Capital Partners’ 

(JZCP) European team, says: “The large discount is largely 

the result of an overreaction to some poorly performing, 

iconic funds. Investors are starting to realise that many of 

the funds that did badly were over-committed and underresourced 

when the crisis hit, which is not the case for 

many other funds.” 

Talk alone is not enough to convince investors; listed 

funds also need to demonstrate that they can return money 

to investors. Deep discounts to NAV seen after the collapse 

of Lehman Brothers could be beneficial to investors. 

“The discount to NAV has widened dramatically. Having 

historically sat at a percentage discount in the mid-teens, 

today funds are trading at an average discount of more than 


19 


“I have spent a lot of time explaining to investors 

that private equity is not overvalued, and it’s not all 

about fees on top of fees” 

Stuart Howard, HarbourVest 

30%, and listed private equity has not seen a recovery in 

line with the rest of the stock market,” says Butler. While 

this may have caused concern among investors, it also offers 

them the chance to obtain shares at a deep discount and 

benefit from significant uplift over the long-term. 

However, for some public-market investors, the prospect 

of distant capital gains may be less tempting that obtaining 

significant yield. “There’s a pretty big focus on yield in the 

investment world at the moment,” Butler says. 

Show me the dividend 

Some listed funds are already exploring options to pay 

dividends on a more regular basis. F&C Private Equity 

recently announced it would seek to do so, equivalent to 

4% of NAV. The news was met with a sudden rise in the 

fund’s share price and reduction in its discount, though it is 

unclear whether this change was due to good performance 

figures or the revised dividend offer. 

In May, JZCP followed in F&C’s footsteps, announcing 

it would pay a dividend calculated at 3% of NAV per 

annum, representing a yield at discount of approximately 

5% (based on 16 May share prices). This too was met with 

an increase in share price and closing of the discount gap. 

Green-Armytage says: “[The dividend] does have an 

effect on investor sentiment. At our current share price, 

this is equivalent to a 5% yield, which is difficult to get at 

the moment.” 

David Macfarlane, chairman of JZCP, adds: “For 

investors, being paid an income while you wait until you 

can realise your capital increase is an attractive prospect.” 

However, despite investor appetite for yield at the 

moment, listed private equity is, and will remain, an asset 

class that is primarily focused on capital growth over 

income, and those investing should expect a long-term 

commitment. 

“There are a number of funds now looking at dividend 

payments as a method of discount control,” says Butler, 

“but those investing in listed private equity should be 

focused on the potential for capital gain.” 

Green-Armytage agrees that capital growth is still the 

primary driver in private equity investment: “The dividend 

is a good way of smoothing out the discount but will not 

close the gap on its own.” 

Figures from LPX (see below) show how listed private 

equity funds have, over the long-term, significantly 

outperformed other benchmarks, and with many funds 

currently selling at a discount of around 30%, there are 

significant opportunities for uplift over and above the 

achievement of NAV. With a number of funds now seeing 

exits in their underlying portfolios, listed funds will be 

hopeful investors will start to come on board again as 

they see funds demonstrate the real value being created in 

their portfolios. n 

Total return performance to period ending 

20 April 2012 

1 year 3 year 5 year 10 year 

LPX Europe NAV 3.52% 35.08% -7.3% 41.29% 

LPX Europe -12.51% 91.22% -46.84% 8.01% 

MSCI World 7.17% 60.25% -4.41% 10.82% 

MSCI Europe -4.1% 50.81% -20.71% 16.68% 

FTSE All Share 7.31% 76.89% -11.69% 24.51% 

S&P500 Composite 16.18% 72.56% 6.59% 0.74% 

Source: LPX 


20 


Three-quarters of European investors intend to sell their private 

equity assets within the next two years, according to research by 

Coller Capital. Olivier Marty explores the drivers behind the trend 

Secondaries boom 

unlikely to end soon 

The rise of global 

secondaries transactions, 

estimated to reach an 

aggregate value of between €25-30bn 

this year, up from €20bn in 2010 and 

€25bn in 2011, seems set to continue. 

Familiar drivers – portfolio 

management as well as regulatory 

pressures affecting banks and 

insurance companies – will mean 

Europe will host the bulk of secondary 

assets to be sold within the next 

two years. Roughly half of investors 

expect to sell US private equity assets 

and 35% intend to sell Asian ones 

within the next two years, but this 

proportion stands at a staggering 76% 

for European assets, according to 

recent research presented by Francois 

Aguerre of Coller Capital at this year’s 

annual AFIC gathering in Paris. 

“The prominent UK and French 

markets continue to be fuelled by 

banks and insurance companies, 

whereas public pension funds 

represent the largest category of 

sellers in the US,” says Nicolas Lanel, 

managing director and head of UBS’s 

European secondary market advisory. 

Marleen Groen, chief executive and 

founder at Greenpark Capital agrees: 

“Many pension funds are also waiting 

for further clarity on the implications 

of the Occupational Pension Funds 

Directive upon their private equity 

holdings,” and fear renewed recessions 

in some European countries. 

But might the regulatory 

constraints affecting European 

banks and insurance companies 

be overstated? “While Basel III is 

certainly an important factor, banks 

are taking a fundamental look at 

their business strategy in the current 

economic environment and thinking 

hard about more efficient ways to 

deploy capital,” argues Bernhard 

Engelien, managing director of 

secondaries advisory business 

Cogent Partners. EVCA head of 

external relations James Burnham 

corroborates: “We expect there 

to be no change to the regulatory 

treatment of private equity [in CRD 

IV] as per the original 2006 capital 

requirements directive aligned with 

Basel II [enabling] banks to achieve 

a capital charge as low as 15.2% on 

private equity.” 

Also, the effects of Solvency II may 

not be as stark as feared: even though 

small companies implementing the 

standard model are likely to be more 

affected than the larger ones, most 

seem to have got to grips with the 

unusual package and realise holding 

“Banks are 

taking a 

fundamental 

look at their 

business 

strategy” 

Bernhard 

Engelien, 

Cogent Partners 

illiquid and rather low-risk private 

equity assets is not so bad. Roger 

Johanson, head of venture capital and 

infrastructure investments at Skandia 

Life, shares this view: “Whether or 

not Solvency II will have an adverse 

impact on private equity allocation 

also depends on the broader financial 

and macroeconomic environment, 

rather than on the package itself. LPs 

that have a wide experience of private 

equity investments are barely affected.” 

A market unlikely to slow soon 

Many trends are still providing 

impetus to the market, particularly 

regulatory pressure on financial 

institutions. While the bulk of the 

clean-up has already taken place in the 

US, there remains considerable work 

to be done in Europe, including in the 

UK. In mainland Europe, many of the 

large French programmes have already 

been restructured or sold, while 

Germany still offers the potential for 

some large transactions. 

The expected wall of refinancing 

will also affect the industry, reducing 

the opportunities for exits and 

therefore distributions. Signs of GPs 

restructuring are likely to surface 

more frequently as well, according to 

both Lanel and Groen, as was recently 


21 


illustrated by the spin-off of Omnes Capital (see page 52). 

“But the need for an attractive strategy and the stamina 

required will limit the number of successful spin-offs,” 

warns Groen. 

How are these settings going to impact the type, quality 

and price of assets? “Investors are retrenching from the 

riskier scopes of European private equity, still favouring the 

dominance of the large buyout funds from the bubble years 

(estimated to reach a total of $440bn) where the quality 

of assets and predictability of exits are best,” says Coller 

Capital’s Aguerre. 

The balance between direct secondaries and traditional 

secondaries may shift. “Banks have understandably started 

their disposal programmes with funds’ portfolios but as the 

inventory of plain-vanilla assets decreases, the proportion of 

secondary directs will inevitably increase,” argues Lanel. 

Groen agrees but states that “directs must have 

substantially higher expected returns to be worthwhile to 

invest in, whereas often the quality of the directs portfolios 

and the managers are less attractive or unproven”. 

Against this background, and considering the large 

amount of capital raised by secondaries funds, pricing should 

continue to prove resilient: UBS estimates that around 

$35bn of dedicated dry powder was available to buyers at 

the beginning of this year. For the most part, this capital 

was in the hands of a few large participants, with 20 of the 

top buyers holding an estimated 85% of that total, and 18 of 

them each having more than $1bn at their disposal. 

Whether this would favour secondaries pure players 

like Coller or Greenpark, or hybrid players like AlpInvest, 

Partners Group or HarbourVest, who are all actively 

raising, remains to be seen. “GPs generally have a 

clear preference for buyers that have both primary and 

secondary capital,” says Cogent’s Engelien, but this of 

course only works if new primary investments are actually 

made available. Given the secondaries volume available, 

the number deals of actually executed is relatively low. 

Says Lanel: “Ultimately, managers have come to accept 

that there need not be a stigma associated with one of 

their LPs having to sell!” n 

Lack of distributions continues to fuel secondaries as capital calls increase 

Greg Gille reports 

GPs are still calling on more capital than they are returning to LPs, 

according to recent research by Triago. The advisory firm expects calls 

to climb to 11% of committed capital in 2012 from 10% last year, with 

distributions dropping to 7% from 9%. 

Granted, last year showed a healthy increase in divestment activity 

across Europe, as GPs faced the pressure of returning cash before raising 

a new vehicle – exit volumes increased by almost 20% from 2010 to 2011, 

according to unquote” data. But record amounts of dry powder following 

the 2008-2009 drought meant managers were also ramping up their 

investment activity, particularly in the first half of 2011. 

Triago managing partner Mathieu Dréan feels this factor partly drove 

secondaries activity last year and is likely to remain a feature in 2012 as 

LPs are looking to reallocate their funds to upcoming vintages or new 

strategies. “Distributions are still subdued, which partly explains the 

popularity of secondaries as they speed up the process and create much 

needed cash-back opportunities,” says Dréan. “They therefore address 

a crucial point that still taints LP/GP relations: duration. This is especially 

sensitive as the downturn has clearly led to longer holding periods, while 

at the same time a large number of GPs are asking their investors to re-up.” 

This trend is not expected to abate in the coming months as the 

exit market remains tough for GPs to navigate. “One should not expect 

divestment activity to significantly take off in 2012. There are still 

weaknesses in all exit channels. Many portfolio companies are not ready 

for a sale yet – their valuations are still too low to enable GPs to reap 

positive returns,” warned Bain & Company associate Daphné Vattier while 

commenting on the firm’s latest private equity outlook in a statement. 

The secondaries option is even more tempting for LPs when sustained 

buy-side appetite means that discounts to NAV have barely been 

affected by last year’s market turmoil and still sit firmly in the single digit 

range. Discounts widened slightly between September and December, 

reaching 8% on average, according to Triago. “We have witnessed an 

uptick in prices since then and current discounts are a couple of points 

below those seen in the second half of 2011,” notes Dréan. 

Sales motivated by regulatory constraints generated slightly more 

than half of overall dealflow last year, according to recent research by 

Coller Capital. Though it should be noted, not all firms selling their assets 

for regulatory reasons are distressed. 

Dréan believes distressed sellers are likely to contribute less to the 

secondaries market in months to come as the most acute cases have 

already been – or will soon be – addressed: “Distressed sellers are a 

relatively minor source of dealflow. Other types of sellers are increasingly 

active in the market as the issue of portfolio maturity takes centre stage.” 


22 


Rules on the use of depositaries prescribed by the AIFM 

Directive could be hit by a lack of suitable institutions, with many 

saying moves to offer such a service face a number of regulatory 

and financial challenges. Anneken Tappe reports 

AIFMD: Concerns over 

lack of suitable depositaries 

The implementation 

deadline for the AIFM 

Directive is rapidly 

approaching and, with it, the need for 

private equity houses to use depositaries 

to protect investors. But firms hoping 

to offer this kind of service are being 

faced with numerous obstacles that 

could make implementation difficult. 

One firm considering offering such 

a service is UK private equity fund 

administrator Ipes. However, Ipes 

is concerned that existing rules will 

make it difficult, if not impossible, to 

secure the required insurance. 

“For depositaries, the line to 

being held strictly liable is drawn 

too harshly. It is a ‘guilty before 

proven innocent’ regime, which is 

spooking depositaries and insurers. 

Without such insurance, it might 

be impossible for any firm but the 

multinational banks to provide 

this service, some of whom have 

experienced financial instability in 

recent years,” says Justin Partington, 

commercial director at Ipes. 

Aside from firms like Ipes, major 

European banks have been touted 

as potential suppliers of depositary 

services, particularly French banks 

as existing financial legislation in the 

country is close to that of the AIFMD. 

The French banking sector, however, 

has been hit hard by the eurozone 

crisis, mostly due to its extremely 

high exposure to sovereign debt in 

the eurozone’s periphery. Some have 

questioned the wisdom of having 

institutions that already have stressed 

balance sheets taking on the role 

of safekeeping investor funds on a 

massive scale. This has the potential to 

further concentrate systemic risk in a 

few major institutions. 

The news has once again led to 

questions over the suitability of 

introducing mandatory depositary 

rules on the private equity industry. 

“In private equity, there is no 

standard custodian role,” said Ben 

Robins of Mourant Ozannes at the 

recent Legal Week Private Equity 

Forum; many in the industry see the 

new requirement as unnecessary. 

The AIFMD’s concept of 

custodians is taken from securities 

trading. In the EU, the Central 

Securities Depositories (CSDs) 

are regulated to streamline and 

harmonise the process of securities 

trading across the continent. 

“For 

depositaries, 

the line to 

being held 

strictly liable 

is drawn too 

harshly. It 

is a ‘guilty 

before proven 

innocent’ 

regime” 

Justin 

Partington, 

Ipes 

Depositories offer book entry 

services – an electronic register – 

which dematerialises the trading 

process, making it more efficient. 

Another very important part of CSDs 

is clearance and settlement. The idea 

of an obligatory use of depositories in 

private equity was introduced around 

2007 to add a layer of investor and 

ultimately consumer protection. 

However, private equity 

transactions differ substantially from 

securities trading and critics say a 

depository structure modelled for the 

latter is unlikely to fit the business 

model of the former. EVCA argued 

that depositories risk an interference 

with the investment decision, which 

would translate into a concern for 

both the investor and fund manager. 

Private equity depositaries would 

also have the obligation of oversight 

of a fund’s activities, says James 

Greig, partner in the financial 

services and regulatory practice at 

PricewaterhouseCoopers. 

Effectively, depositaries would be 

asked to pre-clear transactions; this 

could not only slow down the buy 

and sell process, but also impose a 

disruptive force on funds’ strategies. n 


23 


EU assets remain attractive 

despite euro crisis 

Despite worries about Greece, Spain and Italy, US investors have 

demonstrated a continued appetite for European assets. 

Anneken Tappe reports 

The European market is a harsh place at the 

moment. With worries about the Greek economy 

being transformed into concerns about the specific 

costs of a Greek exit from the monetary union, the euro 

has seen a significant loss in value. While this has reduced 

the price of European assets, it also makes for an incredibly 

volatile investment environment. 

Despite this, US investors appear to have refocused their 

attention on the crisis-ridden continent. While economic 

conditions have worsened, causing headline valuations to 

decline, corporate profit margins have continuously risen 

over the past 30 years, according to research by Goldman 

Sachs Asset Management. This could be an indicator that 

even though volatility has skyrocketed, the general quality 

of the European assets on the market did not deteriorate. 

“European assets are generally a tough sell right now. But 

those investors who have been in the markets over the long 

term can and will still invest. So there is an appetite, but it 

is for the contrarians who can take a 5-10 year view,” says 

Graeme Gunn of SL Capital in an interview with unquote”. 

Many large North American LPs, such as CalPERS, are 

experienced private equity investors and follow a longterm 

strategy. For these investors, taking a position that is 

currently considered contrarian should be attractive and 

probably still less risky than diverting to emerging markets. 

US firm Vista Equity Partners just closed its fourth fund 

on $3.5bn and recently invested more than half of it in 

the £1.27bn buyout of UK capital markets and banking 

services company Misys, which was taken private in March. 

Christopher Flowers, chief executive of US private 

equity firm JC Flowers, recently made headlines with his 

relocation to the UK. His firm owns ex-KBC insurance 

unit Fidea in Belgium and has a particular focus on 

distressed financial institutions. Considering the recent 

surge of spinouts from financial institutions, this sector is 

likely to see increased activity in the near future. 

“European assets are a tough sell 

right now. But those investors who 

have been in the markets over the 

long term can and will still invest” 

Graeme Gunn, SL Capital 

Buyers’ market 

While the eurozone crisis has had a severe impact on 

Western European economies, it has also driven prices 

down, which creates opportunities for investors. Europe’s 

private equity market is likely to survive on the coattails of 

low valuations and a lack of liquidity. 

Moreover, American LPs have long-standing ties to the 

European markets – ties which are now more important 

than ever. New regulations, such as Solvency II and Basel 

III, are restricting commitments of insurers and banks. 

With local players also exposed to the eurozone crisis, 

foreign capital is becoming vital for European firms. n 


24 


Company valuations going down 

Poor visibility has finally taken its toll on entry multiples for lower mid-cap 

LBO transactions. But valuations are still holding up despite the collapse in 

buyout activity over the past six months. Greg Gille reports 

Argos: Mid-cap valuations register modest drop 

The median EBITDA multiple 

paid in European lower mid-cap 

private equity buyouts – here 

defined as businesses in the €15-150m 

range – fell to 7.4x for the six months to 

March 2012, according to the latest Argos 

Mid-Market Index. This is down slightly 

from the 7.7x median registered in H2 2011 

and still above the 7.3x witnessed in the 

first half of last year. 

Lower mid-cap LBO activity remained 

particularly subdued in Q1 this year. 

According to unquote” data, such transactions fell by a 

quarter in volume and a third in value compared to the 

last three months of last year, which already witnessed a 

sudden drop compared to the rest of 2011. 

Vote of confidence 

Argos Soditic partner Karel Kroupa notes that financing 

remains an issue hampering dealflow, but highlights 

another major factor: confidence. “Visibility on company 

performance remains poor in most cases,” he says. “Even 

for healthy and growing businesses, it remains tough to 

predict what activity will be like in six months’ time. 

Investors therefore tend to remain cautious and 

highly selective.” 

That the median entry multiple only fell by 5.3% 

shows that the few assets that did change hands were 

deemed robust and promising enough to command 

substantial price tags. “Quite a few LBO players still 

have capital to put to work. Few deals get done, but 

those that do go through are for the very best assets,” 

notes Kroupa. “This ‘flight-to-quality’ phenomenon 

“Quite a few LBO players still have capital 

to put to work. Few deals get done, but those 

that do go through are for the very best assets” 

Karel Kroupa, Argos Soditic 

– even though it is becoming less prominent – partly 

explains why multiples haven’t dropped more while 

activity has clearly taken a step back.” 

For the fourth semester in a row, private equity players 

have also paid higher multiples than trade buyers: the 

median multiple in corporate M&A transactions fell to 

7.2x EBITDA, compared to 7.6x in H2 2011. This is the 

first time for more than two years that multiples paid by 

trade players have decreased in the index. 

But again, valuations have held up surprisingly well 

given that corporate M&A activity was just as 

lacklustre as private equity-backed buyout dealflow in 

the first quarter. 

“Strategic buyers still enjoy decent reserves of cash 

and historically low levels of debt. We have witnessed 

them coming back to the market in recent weeks and 

displaying a strong appetite for acquisitions,” explains 

Kroupa. “That said, it has not resulted in substantial 

dealflow yet, since corporate M&A also registered 

a sharp drop in Q1 this year.” n 


25 


Company valuations going down 

Private companies rethink pricing 

The recession has had little effect on company valuations, 

but now companies are becoming more realistic about their 

value, writes John Bakie 

Despite recession and 

turmoil in the financial 

markets, company valuations 

have remained stubbornly high. While 

high valuations can be a boon to sales 

processes for private equity houses, they 

can also hamper dealflow. However, 

those on the ground say the trend is 

now turning in the acquirer’s favour. 

“We felt a change in the investment 

climate in September last year. The 

euro crisis cut off a rally of recovery 

abruptly and shareholders started to 

become realistic about the value of 

their businesses,” says David Barbour, 

co-head of FF&P Private Equity. 

The sentiment chimes with Argos 

Soditic’s findings (see left), which 

indicate valuations fell across Europe’s 

mid-market in the first quarter of 2012 

from an average of 7.7x to 7.4x. 

But the picture is inconsistent, 

with many businesses continuing 

to attract relatively high valuations 

despite the many economic problems 

currently facing Europe. Barbour, 

who is primarily focused on smaller 

UK buyouts and growth capital, says 

non-owner managed businesses tend 

to be more likely to cut their valuation: 

“In a lot of businesses, shareholders are 

taking a portfolio view and are now 

coming into the market looking to 

gain liquidity. Often we see businesses 

with a number of shareholders with 

many looking to exit, and the rest 

can be rolled over into the buyout 

structure,” he explains. By contrast, 

owner-managed and family owned 

businesses have tended to be far more 

sticky on their pricing, holding out for 

a better price. For those who do not 

need liquidity and place a premium on 

the value of the businesses they have 

built up, it is unlikely they will drop 

valuations unless they have to. 

Some business owners will no doubt 

be eyeing up corporates who have 

hoarded cash during the downturn 

and are now looking at acquisition 

opportunities to help them grow, 

putting pressure on private equity 

buyers in the deal room. “Corporates 

are competing a lot more on deals 

today, and have lots of cash on their 

books. Private equity buyers have to 

work a lot harder to find the types 

of opportunity they need,” says 

Jeremy Rayment, director at Menzies 

Corporate Finance. 

Cash-rich corporates can certainly 

afford to pay for highly valued 

businesses. However, they tend to be 

looking for those businesses that are 

very much pre-packaged, and can be 

added on to their existing businesses 

“Shareholders 

are taking a 

portfolio view 

and are now 

coming into 

the market 

looking to gain 

liquidity” 

David Barbour, 

FF&P Private 

Equity 

with minimal disruption. This is 

where private equity bidders should 

see an opening to buy businesses that 

are a little rough around the edges 

to refine and sell on to corporate 

bidders. Obtaining exclusivity and 

avoiding auction processes will also 

be important for firms looking to 

capitalise on lower valuations. 

“Relationships and value-add are 

key elements in the UK lower midmarket. 

Private equity firms need 

to emphasise their style to vendors, 

as well as experience they may have 

through their existing portfolio,” adds 

Rayment. Putting in the effort to build 

a relationship and put forward a solid 

business plan before a first meeting with 

a management team could pay dividends 

for private equity buyers, giving them an 

edge over corporate bidders. 

With the euro crisis unlikely to be 

resolved soon, confidence will continue 

to be hit. But the impact on valuations 

will not be so clear cut and hard 

work and due diligence will be key to 

acquiring the right business at the right 

price. As one market player recently 

told unquote”: “In 2007 every business 

had a high valuation. In 2012, lots of 

businesses also have a high valuation, 

but they have to be very high-quality 

businesses to sell.” n 


26 

unquote.com/people 

Increased competition for specialised private equity legal 

professionals has resulted in a highly competitive recruitment 

market over the past year. Amy King investigates 

Lawyers: your most 

valuable asset? 

The current employment market for private 

equity legal professionals is remarkably dynamic. 

“Over the last year on the fund formation side, 

there has been significant market disruption,” says recent 

Proskauer Rose hire Kate Simpson, who joined the firm 

last year, alongside SJ Berwin’s Nigel van Zyl and Oliver 

Rochman, to form a fund structuring team. Whole teams 

have been poached and partners have hopped from firm to 

firm, some more than once. 

Proskauer’s three hires echoed that of Weil Gotshal & 

Manges, who pinched a four-strong fund formation team 

from Clifford Chance a month earlier. More conspicuous 

though was Dewey & LeBoeuf’s short-term appointment 

of Mark Davis and Russell Van Praagh (see box, following 

page). Hired from Taylor Wessing to launch the firm’s 

private equity practice, the pair jumped ship to rival practice 

McDermott Will & Emery after just a year. They joined the 

mass exodus of more than 100 partners from the firm, before 

it sank under the weight of bank and bond debts. 

Unfortunately for Dewey & LeBoeuf, in the absence of 

physical assets the true value of a private practice lies in its 

partners, the constituent parts of a firm’s brand. While this 

can be argued of legal practitioners in general, the nature of 

private equity legal work in particular enhances the value of 

the individual lawyer. 

Long-term relationships 

“Fund formation work is long-haul. You become very 

ingrained with the client, their fund documents, internal 

corporate documents and carried interest arrangements,” 

explains Simpson. “And once developed, that relationship is 

vested in a limited number of people.” Partners are the real 

assets, and partners can move. 

What’s more, the relationship between a GP and a legal 

professional is often far more enduring than its relationship 

with any particular legal firm. “There is a lot more loyalty 

now towards individual lawyers than towards brands,” says 

Claire Wilkinson, general counsel at MVision and founder 

of the Private Equity Lawyers Forum. “When it comes to 

individual loyalty, private equity is at the far end of the 

spectrum because the teams that are needed to raise a fund in 

a law firm provide a fairly niche service,” she adds. “A fund is 

a very long instrument, so if you instruct a lawyer in private 

practice, you will tend to stay with that lawyer for the entire 

life of the fund and return to them for secondaries.” Given 

this recent downturn in M&A activity, the longevity of the 

relationship is reason enough for recently bolstered private 

equity teams within private practices. 

The last year’s hiring spree is not the first of its kind. 

With the introduction of the Financial Services and 

Markets Act (FSMA) in 2000, many private equity houses 

saw their incumbent CFOs overburdened and took on 

new hires. “It was due to increased regulation and the 

globalisation of deals then, so you needed someone in-house 

to act as procurement officer,” explains Wilkinson. 

A decade later, amid a financial downturn that has seen 

recruitment slump and headcounts shrink, private equity 

has bucked the trend in financial services and continued to 

hire legal professionals. 

The reason for this wave is upcoming regulation. As 

the implementation of the AIFM Directive is imminent, 

lawyers are having to future-proof documents for upcoming 

changes and prepare clients for compliance. Add to that the 

regulations that will soon ricochet into the industry from 

other financial services – such as Dodd Frank, Solvency II 

and FAtcA – and legal professionals become invaluable. 


27 


“There is a lot more loyalty now towards individual 

lawyers than towards brands... if you instruct a 

lawyer in private practice, you will tend to stay with 

that lawyer for the entire life of the fund” 

Claire Wilkinson, MVision 

“The broad trend here is that compliance is a much 

bigger issue for the industry and governance issues in 

general are becoming more important,” highlights Nick 

Hedley, founding partner of executive search firm Hedley 

May. “Therefore, more private equity funds are having to 

bolster their legal and compliance teams.” 

Since failure to comply will incur fines at best and 

revocation of authorisations at worst, the a mid-level 

compliance professional appears to represent an increasingly 

wise investment for a private equity house. “As a result, we 

have seen an increasing number of lawyers with 7-10 years’ 

experience being hired by private equity firms to deal with 

compliance and regulatory issues,” says Wilkinson. 

A second reason for the contemporary competition for 

legal professionals could lie in the widening eyes of US 

investors, whose focus is falling to European markets. 

“US firms have started to move more strategically into 

the European markets, firstly because they want to be 

in Europe but also because they see it as a gateway into 

Asia,” says Simpson. “As a result, fund formation houses 

are looking for international counsel that can manage US 

Casualty of the Great Recession 

In late May, Dewey & LeBoeuf filed for bankruptcy in the US, concluding its demise. 

The move nudged the UK operations into administration, despite operating 

through a separately incorporated entity. In documents submitted with the 

Chapter 11 filing, the firm highlighted the “Great Recession” alongside lucrative pay 

it guaranteed to high-profile hires as major factors in its downfall. 

BDO will act as administrator for the firm’s London and Paris offices. In the 

US, restructuring firm Zolfo Cooper will work with Togut Segal & Segal as 

bankruptcy counsel. 

and European elements.” Indeed, a number of the recent 

moves have involved lawyers from Europe-focused practices 

moving to firms with a wider, international focus. 

Industry changes have incurred a shift in industry ethics 

too. “Lawyers as a whole have become more influential 

because nowadays the industry has got more complex 

from a regulatory, investor and reputational standpoint,” 

summarises Hedley. “Thinking back to the historical 

model, this used to be a fairly unregulated, cloak-anddagger 

sector. And, I suppose, the ethical dimension of 

investment has also increased. A lot of those issues fall 

broadly into the remit and concerns of a lawyer,” he adds. 

Moving in-house 

Perhaps then, regulatory changes and the shifts they incur 

make private equity a particularly suitable environment in 

which the legal professional may excel. The migration of 

certain in-house lawyers into more corporate roles would 

support this argument. Tim Pryce is the most notable 

example, joining Terra Firma as general counsel before 

becoming chief executive in 2009. Buchan Scott of Duke 

Street began in a legal role, before taking over investor 

relations and fundraising, while Andrew Sandars of LDC 

began as head of legal and risk management and is now 

operations director. Similarly, Guy Semmens joined Argos 

Soditic in a legal capacity and now heads up the firm’s Swiss 

operations. Examples abound. 

Regulatory, ethical and focal changes within private 

equity appear to grant legal professionals with an 

increasingly important role. As such they have become a 

much coveted asset. With the imminent introduction of 

strict and complex regulation, no doubt those who invested 

in recent hires will hope for high returns. n 


28 


Opportunities in Central 

and Eastern Europe 

Alpha Associates’ Petra Salesny talks to John Bakie about the 

nuances in Central and Eastern Europe’s dealflow and the effect 

of established European economies struggling with debt 

John Bakie: What sort of criteria are you looking for 

when selecting investments? 

Petra Salesny: We pursue a threefold investment 

strategy with our Central & Eastern Europe (cee) 

funds-of-funds: we make primary commitments, buy 

mature fund interests in secondary transactions, and 

make direct co-investments. 

In our primary portfolio we are looking to invest 

in a diversified range of funds operating in the upper 

and lower mid-market, as well as the small end of the 

market in CEE. The overriding theme for private equity 

investing in these countries is businesses that serve the 

needs of the growing middle class. We primarily look 

at funds investing in buyouts and later-stage expansion 

financing. We feel venture in CEE is currently not 

worth allocating to as there are very few successful 

funds in this area. 

Secondaries are an important part of our strategy 

and we are uniquely positioned to access secondary 

opportunities in CEE and the Commonwealth of 

Independent States (CIS). Typically, we source and 

negotiate transactions privately. We’ve seen many 

distressed sellers after the crisis. 

JB: Are there a lot of struggling investors? 

PS: Immediately after the financial crisis, many 

investors sought to, or needed to, liquidate what they 

could in order to reduce their commitments. 

Today, sellers are not as distressed as they were and 

more of the activity is driven by regulatory changes. 

Banks and insurance companies looking to comply 

with Basel III and Solvency II are major sellers now. 

JB: Some Western European fund managers have 

come under fire over the 2 & 20 pricing model. 

Is this also an issue for LPs investing in CEE? 

PS: For us, it’s about generating absolute net returns 

that are attractive; fees are taken into account when 

assessing this. 

In CEE we don’t really have the huge funds, 

like in Western Europe, the US or also some other 

emerging markets, which create concern over the hefty 

management fees. CEE private equity is a middlemarket 

player and its managers are not going to make 

themselves rich off management fees. 

JB: Which geographies and sectors across CEE 

are the most interesting for you at the moment? 

PS: CEE is not a homogenous region and this 

is something that the financial crisis has further 

highlighted. 

Russia aside, Poland and the Czech Republic are 

the strongest economies in the CEE region and have 

recovered well from the crisis; in fact Poland was the 

only country throughout Europe which grew through 

the crisis. Countries like Romania take a bit longer 

to recover and Hungary has numerous home-made 

problems. The countries we feel are most interesting to 

invest in right now are Poland, Russia, Czech Republic 

and Slovakia. Turkey is also interesting but there is 

a risk it could be overheating. 

In terms of sectors, the strongest dealflow 

comes from IT, consumer products and services, 

telecommunications, financial services, industrials and 

healthcare. These are also our main exposures. n 

“CEE private 

equity is a middlemarket 

player and 

its managers are 

not going to make 

themselves rich off 

management fees” 

Petra Salesny, 

Alpha Associates 


29 


McDermott picks up Dewey & Leboeuf duo 

Law firm McDermott Will & Emery has appointed Mark Davis and Russell Van Praagh as 

partners in the firm’s London offices. 

Davis will head the firm’s private equity practice in London. The pair joined the firm after a 

year at Dewey & Leboeuf. They have worked together since 2007. 

Davis focuses on cross-border deals, LBOs, exits and M&A transactions. He is lead counsel 

to several private equity funds and their portfolios, and has experience of a range of sectors 

including energy, chemicals and consumer goods. Davis also has advisory experience in the 

Middle East and Africa. 

Van Praagh has private equity and investment advisory experience for both investors and 

management. He has advised on M&A, joint ventures and general corporate and commercial 

issues. He has experience of sectors including automotive, retail and energy in the US and 

Europe. 

David Goldman, partner and head of McDermott’s corporate advisory practice group, said of 

the recent appointments: “As McDermott continues to expand its global corporate capabilities, 

private equity continues to be a key area of focus for the firm. With these additions to our wellestablished 

private equity practice, we have further strengthened our position in Europe.” 

DFJ Esprit appoints 

venture partner 

DFJ Esprit 

has hired Peter 

Keen as a new 

venture partner, 

specialising 

in medical 

technology 

and life science 

investments. 

Keen cofounded 

Chiroscience 

Group and 

subsequently 

Peter Keen, venture 

partner, DFJ Esprit 

helped establish the venture capital firm 

Merlin Biosciences. On leaving Merlin, 

he became chief financial officer of 

pharmaceutical company Arakis. 

Keen is currently a non-executive 

director of Horizon Discovery and Q-Chip, 

chairman at Oval Medical Technologies, 

senior independent director at Abcam and a 

non-executive director of Ark Therapeutics 

Group and the Biotech Growth Trust. 

Maven names new 

investment director 

Maven 

Capital 

Partners has 

hired Ben Bolt 

as investment 

director. 

Bolt will 

work in Maven’s 

Midlands 

and Southern 

England team, 

and will be 

based out of the 

Birmingham 

Ben Bolt, investment 

director, Maven 

and London offices. There, he will focus 

on sourcing and executing new investment 

opportunities in UK companies requiring 

£2-10m of equity. 

Bolt joins from Catapult Venture 

Managers, where he spent the past three 

years as investment director. Prior to 

this he held a similar role at Kaupthing. 

Bolt also worked at Deloitte earlier in 

his career. 

Altius adds to 

infrastructure team 

Altius Associates has appointed 

Reyno Norval to the firm’s real assets ad 

global infrastructure teams in London. 

In his new role, Norval will source new 

potential funds, carry out due diligence, 

monitor investments, prepare reports for 

clients and manage and assist research 

projects. 

Norval joins the firm from Green Gas 

Americas, where he was a project developer, 

responsible for originating and developing 

investments in landfill gas and energy 

within the US and Latin America. There 

he specialised in equity investments, 

acquisitions and project financing. 

Prior to his position at Green Gas, 

Norval was a commercial analyst at EDF 

Energy in London, where he identified 

financial risk associated with investments, 

carried out due diligence and made 

investment recommendations. 

Altius is a private equity advisory and 

fund-of-funds firm that invests via buyout, 

venture capital, mezzanine, secondaries 

and distressed funds. The company invests 

globally and has offices in London, Virginia 

in the US and Singapore. 

Ingenious Media 

expands corporate 

finance team 

Ingenious Media has recruited new 

corporate financiers David Brooks and 

Toby Ramsden, both of whom will join as 

managing directors. 

Brooks has been appointed co-head of 

corporate finance, alongside Nick Harvey, 

the current head of Ingenious Corporate 

Finance. Both Brooks and Ramsden join 

from IBIS Capital. 


30 


EADS chief exec Louis 

Gallois to join FSI board 

Louis Gallois, the chief executive of 

European aerospace and defence corporation 

EADS, is due to join the board of French 

sovereign wealth fund Fonds Stratégique 

d’Investissement (FSI), according to French 

daily newspaper Les Echos. 

Gallois will take over the role from Denis 

Ranque, who joined the FSI board a year 

ago. He left EADS at the end of May and 

Airbus’s Tom Enders replaced him as chief 

executive. 

Launched in 2008, FSI is a €20bn 

vehicle 49% funded by the state. Its mission 

Louis Gallois, 

board member, FSI 

is to back rapidly-growing, competitive French companies in need of 

financing – investing directly or as an LP in traditional PE vehicles. 

Cipolletta replaces longtime 

AIFI president 

The Italian private equity and 

venture capital association, AIFI, has 

appointed Professor Innocenzo Cipolletta 

as president. 

The new appointment replaces Giampio 

Bracchi after three terms as president. 

Cipolletta held the presidency of Italian 

business newspaper Il Sole 24 Ore from 

2004-2007 and was chief executive of 

Italian employers federation Confindustria 

from 1990-2000. He is currently president 

Innocenzo Cipolletta, 

of the University of Trento. 

president, AIFI 

Cipolletta has written various academic 

papers and newspaper articles, and 

published a book on the global financial crisis. 

Lloyds announces six senior promotions 

Lloyds’ acquisition finance team 

has promoted six professionals to senior 

positions across Europe. 

Mark Craig was promoted to managing 

director, while Joëlle Antmann and Riëlla 

Hollander were appointed senior directors 

in its Paris and Amsterdam offices, 

respectively. 

Craig, Antmann and Hollander joined the 

firm in 2006, 2003 and 2004, respectively. 

In addition, Ivo Kroschel, based in the 

Frankfurt office, and Emeric Hudault and 

Matthew Ward, both located in London, 

have been promoted to director positions. 

Associate director Rob Klijn has joined 

the Amsterdam office. 

Duane Morris expands private equity 

practice in Europe with hire 

Law firm Duane Morris has hired Pierfrancesco Carbone as a 

partner in its London office. The appointment marks the expansion 

of Duane Morris’s private equity group into Europe. 

Carbone will focus on cross-border corporate transactions, 

particularly in the area of private equity. He will advise his 

private equity clients on a range of transactions including venture 

investments, buy-and-build deals, mid- and large-cap leveraged 

buyouts and public-to-privates. 

Carbone joins from Kirkland & Ellis. He started working at the 

firm as an associate in 2007 before becoming partner in 2008. 

Pierfrancesco Carbone, 

partner, Duane Morris 

Riverside names 

firm’s first president 

Global private equity firm Riverside 

has appointed Jamie Kiggen as president, a 

newly-created role. He joins from Blackstone, 

where he worked as senior managing 

director and headed Blackstone’s and played 

a technology investment role in the firm’s 

private equity group. 

Prior to that, Kiggen held roles at 

AllianceBernstein, DLJ, McKinsey and 

Wellington. He started his career as an 

entrepreneur in the software industry. 

Kiggen will be based in Riverside’s New 

York office. His responsibilities include 

chairing the Riverside Cabinet (composed 

of the co-chief executives, fund managers 

and the COO), working closely with senior 

investment executives, leading new product 

development, supporting the work of the 

investor relations team, assisting with human 

capital management, representing Riverside 

at select events and providing investment 

expertise on select transactions. 


31 


YFM appoints non-exec chairman 

Andrew Marchant has 

been appointed non-executive 

chairman of YFM Equity 

Partners. 

Marchant began his career 

at Prudential before founding 

Schroder Ventures, now known 

as Permira. He then moved to 

Cinven as a director and coowner. 

Ten years ago, Marchant 

was appointed chairman of 

Unigestion’s private equity 

division, a role he held until 

2008. He remains chairman of 

Unigestion UK. 

He is also a partner at business consultancy 

Animos and wealth management firm Saltus. 

Andrew Marchant, 

non-executive chairman 

YFM Equity Partners 

David Rolfe joins NVM 

Private Equity as partner 

David Rolfe has been appointed as investment partner for the 

south of England at NVM Private Equity. He will be responsible 

for generating investment opportunities and managing the firm’s 

portfolio across the region. 

He joins NVM from his role as corporate finance director at 

PricewaterhouseCoopers. He worked at the firm for 12 years and 

was responsible for leading deal activity in the south-east. 

In a statement, Rolfe said: “NVM has a strong investment 

team that is well-respected in the market and I am really looking 

forward to working alongside them.” 

Marchant has experience of 

investing in the transport, IT, 

leisure and healthcare sectors. He 

has also been involved in raising 

several funds with targets ranging 

from £300-900m from European 

institutional investors. 

Commenting on Marchant’s 

new role, YFM managing 

director David Hall said: 

“He brings a deep industry 

knowledge and network that will 

be invaluable to our business 

as we continue to expand our 

funds under management, particularly with 

institutional investors throughout the UK 

and Europe.” 

David Rolfe, 

investment partner, NVM 

Private Equity 

Gresham takes on investment manager 

Mid-market GP Gresham Private Equity has appointed Adam Rudd as investment 

manager in its Manchester office. 

Rudd joins Gresham Manchester from his position at accountancy firm KPMG, where he 

was corporate finance manager with a specific focus on the e-commerce sector. In addition, he 

advised on a number of private equity and public-to-private transactions. 

Rudd has previously worked as strategy manager at online retailer DRL Limited, and in the 

corporate finance division of Brewin Dolphin Investment Banking. 

Joining the deal team at Gresham, Rudd will work on sourcing new opportunities and 

assisting portfolio companies with acquisition strategies. 

Dow Schofield 

Watts hires four 

James Marshall, Victoria Gribben, 

Dow Schofield Watts 

Corporate finance firm Dow 

Schofield Watts has appointed two new hires 

to the Yorkshire and north-east office and 

added another duo to the Daresbury team. 

Victoria Gribben joins the Yorkshire office 

with six years’ experience of corporate finance 

in the region. Gribben has an MSc in finance 

from Leicester University and is a chartered 

accountant. 

She joins the team alongside fellow new 

hire James Marshall, who leaves his role 

in the transaction advisory service team at 

Ernst & Young in Leeds. In his previous 

role, Marshall worked on projects including 

refinancings and strategic reviews of listed 

and private equity-backed companies. He is 

a chartered accountant and a mathematics 

graduate from Newcastle University. 

Keith Benson and Gavin Jones have been 

appointed to the Daresbury team. Benson 

spent the last four years at KPMG in the 

north-west business unit of the corporate 

audit and assurance practice. He is an 

LSE graduate and chartered accountant. 

Prior to joining KPMG he worked as a 

technology development manager and analyst 

programmer, predominantly for RBS. 

Gavin Jones leaves the audit department of 

Ernst & Young to join the Daresbury team. 

He is a chartered accountant and a graduate 

of Warwick University. 


32 


Simon Borrows new 3i CEO 

3i Group has appointed Simon Borrows 

as chief executive, taking over from 

Michael Queen. 

Borrows, previously chief 

investment officer, has been a 

member of the firm’s board since 

joining in October 2011. 

Prior to joining 3i, he was 

chairman of Greenhill & Co 

International, having previously 

been co-chief executive. 

Before founding the European 

operations of Greenhill & Co in 

1998, Borrows was the managing 

director of Baring Brothers 

International Limited. 

Queen announced his decision 

to step down at the end of March. He joined 

3i in 1987, became executive director in 1997 

and chief executive in 2009. Commenting 

LinkedIn co-founder joins 

German tech VC Earlybird 

LinkedIn co-founder Konstantin 

Guericke has joined German technology 

venture capital firm Earlybird as a partner. 

The entrepreneur joins the firm as it 

plans its expansion into the US market. 

Guericke said, “I have 

been interested for some 

time in supporting German 

entrepreneurial ventures that 

are not copycats, but have the 

potential to be a success on a 

worldwide scale.” 

Guericke is said to be well 

networked in the US and 

Europe and played a part in the 

growth of professional network 

LinkedIn. He also served 

as chief executive of social 

Simon Borrows, 

chief executive, 3i 

Konstantin Guericke, 

partner, Earlybird 

on his decision, he said in a statement: “It has 

been a privilege to lead such an outstanding 

organisation as 3i. I am pleased that after a 

difficult period, 3i is now well 

placed to achieve its full potential. 

Having restored 3i’s financial 

strength, the time is right for me 

to seek a new challenge and for 3i 

to appoint a new leader to build 

on this position.” 

Separately, David Fewtrell has 

joined 3i Debt Management as a 

portfolio manager. 

Fewtrell was most recently 

managing director and head 

of EMEA loan sales, global 

markets at HSBC. There he 

was responsible for managing the bank’s 

institutional loan sales business, covering 

both primary and secondary markets. 

communications start-up jaxtr and sits on 

the board of several other start-ups. 

Christian Nagel, partner at Earlybird, 

said, “Guericke has a mix of German-US 

entrepreneurial DNA that our platform 

will benefit from.” 

Guericke holds a BSc and 

MSc from Stanford University 

where he mentors student 

entrepreneurs. 

Earlybird was established in 

1997 and currently manages 

$700m in assets. Its portfolio 

contains companies in the 

consumer internet and 

enterprise services space, 

including B2X Care Solutions 

and Carpooling.com. 

COO of AXA PE 

leaves for ADIA 

AXA Private Equity chief operating 

officer Christophe Florin has left the firm for 

sovereign wealth fund Abu Dhabi Investment 

Authority (ADIA). 

Florin joined AXA Private Equity in 1998. 

He was an executive member of the board 

prior to leaving and also served as managing 

director for Asia during his time at the firm. 

Florin began his career at Crédit National. 

He then moved to Gan, specialising in private 

equity investments. 

SEP adds ex-MSP 

to advisory board 

Former Scottish Labour Party leader 

Wendy Alexander has joined the advisory 

board of Scottish Equity Partners (SEP). 

Alexander quit the Scottish parliament 

in May last year. She then worked for SEP 

on a consultancy basis, with a specific focus 

on the energy sector. She worked at strategy 

consultancy Booz & Co before starting her 

career in politics. 

Prior to this latest appointment, Alexander 

also took up a senior role at London Business 

School; she will be responsible for MBA and 

degree programmes as well as the school’s 

career services. 

DC hires new director 

Terry Huffine has joined DC Advisory 

Partners as an executive director in the firm’s 

European consumer, leisure and retail team. 

Huffine will focus specifically on the food 

and beverage subsector, an area in which he 

has specialised for the last seven years. 

Huffine joins DC Advisory Partners after 

eight years with ABN AMRO, where he was 

a director in the consumer team. 


33 

unquote.com/funds 

Vista Equity Partners closes fourth 

fund over target on $3.5bn 

American GP Vista Equity Partners has 

held a $3.5bn final close for VEP Fund IV. 

The fund was oversubscribed, with the 

initial target being $2.5bn. 

Vista has already made four investments 

from VEP Fund IV, including the £1.27bn 

take-private of British treasury capital markets 

and banking solutions business Misys. 

VEP Fund IV 

Target 

$2.5bn 

Closed on $3.5bn, May 2012 

Fund manager Vista Equity Partners 

The fund will invest in large-cap buyouts 

in Europe and the US. 

ISIS closes fifth fund on £360m 

ISIS V 

ISIS Equity Partners has closed its fifth 

vehicle ISIS V on £360m. 

ISIS closed its previous fund – its first as 

an independent firm – on £238.5m in 2007. 

The GP invested £3.7m in day nursery 

operator Happy Days in April. ISIS also 

reaped a 15x money multiple and 69% 

IRR when it sold UK-based online retailer 

Wiggle to Bridgepoint for £180m in 

December last year. 

ISIS V will follow its predecessor’s 

investment strategy, targeting growth equity 

and buyout transactions of UK businesses 

valued in the £20-75m range. ISIS usually 

Closed on £360m, April 2012 

Focus UK growth capital and buyouts 

Fund manager ISIS Equity Partners 

invests £2-30m of equity per transaction. 

ISIS’s 32-strong team is headed by 

managing partner Wol Kolade. 

Headway launches new $373m fund 

Headway Investment Partners III 

Headway Capital Partners has filed SEC 

documents for a new secondaries fund with a 

$373m hard cap. 

Headway Investment Partners III follows 

three previous funds, one of which was a 

special purpose vehicle. 

The Coller Capital spinout is still investing 

from Headway Investment Partners II, which 

held a final close on €150m in 2008. 

The minimum investment from outside 

investors is set at around $6.7m. 

Headway Investment Partners III will focus 

on direct secondaries, following a strategy 

similar to its predecessors. 

Kevin Brennan, director at Headway, will 

manage the fund. 

Target $373m 

Announced April 2012 

Focus 

Direct secondaries 

Fund manager Headway Capital 

Partners 

Montefiore Investment targets 

€180m for third fund 

French mid-cap player Montefiore 

Investment has launched its third fund, 

Montefiore Investment III, and is looking to 

raise €180m. Montefiore is currently aiming 

to reach a first close before the summer. 

The firm closed its previous 

vehicle, Montefiore Investment II, on 

€120m in early 2009. It is now 70% 

invested. Montefiore will start investing 

from the new fund when the second vehicle 

is fully invested. 

Existing Montefiore LPs have already 

confirmed interest for 50% of the new 

vehicle. In addition, Montefiore has added 

Montefiore Investment III 

Target €180m 

Announced May 2012 

Focus 

France, lower mid-cap 

Fund manager Montefiore Investment 

to its LP base a European bank and a USbased 

fund-of-funds. 

Montefiore will keep to its buy-and-build 

strategy of French lower mid-cap businesses. 


34 


Idinvest launches mezzanine fund 

Mid-market European private equity 

firm Idinvest Partners has launched the 

Idinvest Private Value Europe fund. 

The vehicle will focus on mezzanine 

investments in mid-market European 

companies, but will also target the 

secondaries market. 

The fund will primarily target 

institutional and private investors, but retail 

investors are also able to invest in the vehicle 

as a result of an agreement granted by the 

French securities regulator. 

Non-sophisticated investors will be 

sourced from the network at Oddo & Cie 

investment bank. 

The fund has a target of €150m and will 

focus on mezzanine investments in midmarket 

companies, aiming to see returns 

EDF sponsors new cleantech VC fund 

Idinvest Private Value Europe 



Focus 

Mezzanine 

Fund manager Idinvest Partners 

of 10%. The fund will also invest in the 

secondaries market. 

Electranova Capital 

French energy company EDF has 

partnered with private equity house Idinvest 

Partners to launch cleantech venture capital 

fund Electranova Capital. 

The fund has already raised €40m 

and will be managed independently by 

Idinvest Partners. 

EDF committed €30m to the project 

while Allianz, the first institutional LP to 

invest in the vehicle, contributed €10m. 

The search for investors will continue 

throughout 2012 and discussions with 

several potential LPs are already underway. 

Electranova will finance start-ups active 

in the energy sector, both in France and 

Europe, via minority shareholdings. 



Closed on €40m first close, May 2012 

Focus 

Cleantech venture 

Fund manager Idinvest Partners 

123Venture launches €100m 

French mezzanine fund 

123Venture has launched a new 

mezzanine fund, Trocadero Capital & 

Transmission II, with a €100m target. 

The FCPR will be operated by 

123Venture’s new arm Trocadero Capital, 

which was launched to focus on institutional 

investors while 123Venture mainly manages 

retail vehicles. 

123Venture will commit €7m to the fund, 

while the remainder will be provided by 

institutional clients. 

Trocadero Capital & Transmission II will 

Cross Road holds first close on €30m 

Trocadero Capital & Transmission II 



Focus 

Mezzanine, France 

Fund manager Trocadero Capital 

provide mezzanine funding to French SMEs. 

Philippe Bruneau will manage the fund for 

123Venture. 

CRB Bio II 

Cross Road Biotech has announced the 

first closing of its second fund, CRB Bio II, 

on €30m. 

The fund has a target of €60m, which it 

aims to reach in the coming months. The 

vehicle was launched in October 2010. 

Capital commitments originate from 

private and public investors. 

The fund will invest in 10-12 SMEs in 

the biomedical sector, targeting the therapy, 

medical and alimentary products industries 

over a period of eight years. 

Target €60m 

Announced October 2010 

Closed on €30m, April 2012 (first close) 

Focus 

Biomedicine 

Fund manager Cross Road Biotech 


35 


Caixa Capital Risc launches 

third fund with €23m target 

Caixa Capital Risc has raised its third 

fund, according to reports in Spain’s press. 

The fund will invest in startups involved in 

environmental sustainability and cleantech, 

and has a target of €23m. 

The new vehicle follows on from previous 

funds focused on biotech and internet startups. 

Public investors CDTI, Spain’s Centre for 

the Development of Industrial Technology 

and state-owned finance institution Institut 

Catala de Finances (ICF) will co-invest in the 

fund and hold a 49% stake. 

Carlos Trenchs is director of Caixa 

Capital Risc. 

Cleantech 

Fund €23m 


Focus Environmental sustainabilty, 

cleantech 

Fund manager Caixa Capital Risc 

SICI reaches half €50m target 

at first closing of regional fund 

Italian private equity house SICI has 

held a first closing of the Rilancio e Sviluppo 

fund on €26m. 

The fund focuses on Tuscan SMEs and has 

a €50m target. The vehicle has a lifespan of 

10-12 years. 

Current investors in the fund include MPS, 

Tuscan financial institution Fidi Toscana, and 

Gruppo Intesa – all three investors committed 

€5m each. Local banks and financial 

institutions have also contributed to the fund. 

The fund will target Tuscan SMEs. The 

investment strategy will focus on consolidation 

of local companies to create larger firms able to 

compete on an international scale. Companies 

involved in fashion, leather goods, food 

processing and advanced mechanics will be of 

particular interest. 

Rilancio e Sviluppo 

Fund €50m 

Announced February 2012 

Closed on 

€26m (first close) 

Focus 

Tuscan SMEs 

Fund manager 

SICI 

Connect Ventures holds €16m 

Connect Ventures 

first close on maiden vehicle Fund £35m 

Newcomer Connect Ventures 

has held a €16m (£13m) first close for its 

maiden early-stage fund. Connect started 

marketing its eponymous fund at the 

beginning of 2011 and is aiming to reach a 

final close on £35m by the end of Q2 2013. 

The vehicle will have a seven-year 

lifetime (including a four-year investment 

period), with two potential one-year 

extensions. Terms and conditions were 

described as “standard”. 

Connect Ventures will provide seed and 

series-A financing in the €250,000-1.25m 

range to Western European start-ups. 

It specialises in web and mobile sector 

investments, focusing on the consumer web, 

digital media, e-commerce, entertainment 

and gaming sectors. 

Announced Early 2011 

Closed on €16m first close, May 2012 

Focus European tech, early-stage 

Fund manager Connect Ventures 


36 

pan-European deals index 

SECTOR COMPANY TYPE EQUITY LEAD COUNTRY VALUE PAGE 

Consumer Weetabix Trade sale Lion Capital UK £1.2bn 30 

Alain Afflelou SBO Lion Capital France €800m est 54 

United Coffee Trade sale CapVest Switzerland €470m est 46 

Europcar Refinancing Eurazeo France €324m 54 

Alpitour Buyout Wise SGR, J Hirsch & Co Italy €225m 68 

Gala Casinos Partial exit Apollo et al. UK £205m 30 

Stokomani SBO Sagard Private Equity France €200-210m 54 

Sport-Master Buyout Nordic Capital Denmark €150-200m 63 

Raleigh Cycle Trade sale Perseus Capital UK $100m 31 

Leisure Pass Group MBO Primary Capital UK £35m 32 

Homair Vacances Replacement capital Naxicap France €30m est 57 

Rex Restaurants Expansion Graphite Capital UK £21m 36 

Austria Pet Food MBO Pangea Investors UK €25m 47 

Purity Soft Drinks MBI Langholm Capital UK £10-20m 33 

Bathstore Buyout Endless UK £15m est 34 

Inoveight Holdings Expansion ISIS Equity Partners UK c£12m est 36 

Tucano Urbano Buyout Consilium SGR Italy €12m est 68 

notonthehighstreet.com Expansion FGPE et al. UK £10m 36 

MedicAnimal.com Expansion Balderton Capital UK £10m 37 

Wear Inns Expansion BGF, NVM Private Equity UK £10m 37 

Bathrooms.com Expansion Augmentum Capital UK £7.5m 37 

Arcancil Paris MBO FSI Régions France

37 

pan-European deals index 

SECTOR COMPANY TYPE EQUITY LEAD COUNTRY VALUE PAGE 

EXOSUN Expansion Omnes Capital France €12m 57 

Tamar Energy Expansion Ludgate Investments UK £7m 37 

Angelantoni Test Technologies Expansion Fondo Italiano Italy €8m 69 

Micropelt Expansion Ludgate et al. Germany £5.3m 48 

M Squared Lasers Expansion BGF UK £3.85m 38 

Isotip-Joncoux Acquisition finance CM-CIC Capital Finance France €4m 56 

Ignis Biomass Expansion Ludgate Investments UK £3.1m 38 

Smart Hydro Power Expansion eCapital Germany €2.7m 48 

Bagnères Industries Acquisition finance Idinvest Partners France €1m 56 

Bourdoncle Expansion FSI Régions France €700,000 58 

MK Chimney Systems Trade sale Riverside Poland 2.9x 43 

WFEL Trade sale Dunedin Capital Partners UK 2.4x 34 

Meyn Trade sale Altor Equity Partners Netherlands n/d 41 

Phoenix Supply Partial exit Terra Firma UK n/d 32 

Tolerans Exit Litorina Sweden n/d 64 

Methaneo Trade sale Omnes Capital, Demeter Partners France n/d 56 

Olaer Trade sale Gresham Private Equity UK n/d 32 

fos4X Early-stage HTGF et al. Germany n/d 49 

Media Ocean Outdoor SBO LDC UK £35m 33 

MGI Digital Graphic Exit Omnes Capital France n/d 56 

Cinesite Buyout Endless UK n/d 35 

eCircle Trade sale TA Associates Germany n/d 47 

VNU Media Partial exit 3i, HIG Capital Netherlands n/d 41 

Services M&C Energy Group Trade sale Lyceum Capital UK £90m est 31 

Cambridge Education Group Refinancing Palamon Capital Partners UK £23m 33 

Sortera Skandinavien MBO Norvestor Equity Sweden

38 


A 

BE 

CH 

Austria 

Belgium 

Switzerland 

D 

DEN 

EI 

Germany 

Denmark 

Ireland 

ES 

F 

FIN 

Spain 

France 

Finland 

I 

LX 

NL 

Italy 

Luxembourg 

Netherlands 

NOR 

P 

PL 

Norway 

Portugal 

Poland 

RO 

SWE 

TR 

Romania 

Sweden 

Turkey 

UK 

US 

FA 

United Kingdom 

United States 

Fund announced 

FC 

1st 

2nd 

Final close 

First close 

Second close 

Group Fund name Base Target (m) Close Amount (m) Date Stage Region Contact Tel No 

123Venture Trocadero Capital & Transmission II F €100 FA n/d May-12 Mezzanine F Philippe Bruneau +33 1 49 26 98 00 

Active Venture Partners Active Venture II ES n/d 1st €25 Jan-11 Early-stage, expansion – technology ES, D, Scandinavia Christopher Pommerening +34 93 487 6666 

Alpha Alpha Private Equity Fund 6 (APEF 6) F €750 1st €500 Jul-11 Buyout, mid-market F, I, BE, NL, CH, D, A Patricia Desquesnes +33 1 56 60 20 20 

Altamar Private Equity Altamar V Private Equity Program ES €250-300 1st €120 Sep-11 Fund-of-funds Europe, US, Asia Claudio Aguirre +34 91 310 72 30 

Altitude Partners Altitude Partners UK £15 1st £7 Apr-11 Buyout UK Simon White, Jonathan Simm +44 23 8030 2006 

Alto Partners Alto Capital III I €120-130 1st €80 Oct-11 Buyout, expansion, Italian SMEs I Raffaele De Courten +39 02 7209504 

Aster Capital Aster II F €120-150 FA n/d Feb-11 Early-stage – technology Europe, US, Asia Jean-Marc Bally +33 1 45 61 34 58 

Atlantic Bridge Atlantic Bridge UK €130 1st €85 Nov-10 Buyout, expansion – technology Europe n/d +353 1 603 4450 

Augmentum Capital Augmentum I UK €50 FA n/d Aug-10 Expansion, small- and mid-cap – technology UK, HK Richard Matthews +44 20 7514 1983 

Avindia Capital Avindia Energy I ES €4 FA n/d Mar-12 Early-stage ES Emilio Giner +34 902 060 004 

Banexi Ventures Partners BV5 F €50-80 1st €50 Oct-11 Early-stage, expansion – technology F, CH Jacqueline Renard +33 1 73 02 89 66 

Bridges Ventures Bridges Ventures Fund III UK n/d 1st n/d Dec-11 Early-stage, expansion UK Philip Newborough +44 20 7262 5566 

Cabiedes & Partners Cabiedes & Partners Fund ES n/d 1st €25 Mar-11 Early-stage – technology ES José Cabiedes +34 670 278 750 

Capman CapMan Mezzanine V SWE €150 1st €60 Sep-10 Mezzanine, mid-market Nordic Niklas Östborn +46 8 545 854 70 

Capricorn Venture Partners Capricorn Health-tech Fund BE n/d 1st €42 Dec-10 Early-stage, expansion – healthcare Europe n/d +32 16 28 41 00 

CDC Entreprises FCPR FSN PME F €400 FA n/d Jun-11 Expansion F Daniel Balmes +33 1 58 50 73 07 

Centre for the Development of Industrial Innvierte ES €500 FA €250 Oct-10 Early-stage – technology ES n/d +34 91 581 55 00 

Technology (CDTI) 

CGS Management CGS III CH CHF 180 1st CHF 55 Feb-12 Buyout, small- and mid-size – industrial DACH Ashley Le Feuvre +44 1534 500400 

CIC Mezzanine Gestion CIC Mezzanine 3 F €120 1st €63 Apr-12 Mezzanine F François Petit +33 1 42 66 74 33 

Connect Ventures Connect Ventures UK £35 1st €16 Apr-12 Early-stage – technology Europe Pietro Bezza and Bill Earner n/d 

Creandum Creandum III SWE €150 1st €93 May-12 Early- and later-stage – technology Nordic n/d +46 8-524 63 630 

Creathor Venture Creathor Venture Fund III D €80 1st €51 Sep-11 Early-stage D, F, A, CH Gert Köhler +49 6172 13 97 20 

Credit Agricole Private Equity Capenergie II Renewable Energy Fund F €200 n/d €120 Dec-11 Expansion – renewable energy, infrastructure Europe n/d +33 1 43 23 21 21 

Credo Ventures Credo Stage 1 CZ €20 1st €11 Nov-10 Early-stage Europe n/d +420 222 317 377 

Cross Road Biotech CRB Bio II ES €60 1st €30 Apr-12 Early-stage – biotech ES n/d +34 91 446 78 97 

Danske Private Equity Partners Danske PEP V D €600 1st €534 Feb-12 Fund-of-funds Western Europe, John Danielsen +45 3344 6329 

North America 

Diana Capital Diana Capital II ES €175 FA €100 Jan-11 Buyout, expansion ES Javier Fernández Las Heras +34 914 262 329 

Earlybird Venture Capital Earlybird 2012 Fund D $200 1st $100 Apr-12 Early-stage – internet, technology DACH Hendrik Brandis +49 40 432941 0 

Earth Capital ECP Renewable Energy Fund One UK €750 1st n/d Jan-10 Expansion – renewable energy, infrastructure EMEA Ben Cotton +44 20 7811 4500 

E-Capital E-Capital III BE €80 2nd €95 Feb-12 Buyout Benelux Jérôme Lamfalussy +32 2 642 20 00 

EDF and Idinvest Partners Electranova Capital F €100 1st €40 May-12 Early-stage – cleantech Europe n/d +33 1 58 18 56 56 

EMBL Ventures EMBL Technology Fund II (ETF II) D >€50m 1st €40 Dec-11 Early-stage DACH Stefan Herr +49 6221 389 330 

Equistone Partners Europe Equistone Partners Europe Fund IV UK €1,500 4th €1,000 (est.) Apr-12 Buyout Europe Rob Myers +44 207 512 9900 

Eurolight Ventures Eurolight Ventures Fund ES €80-90 FA n/d Feb-11 Early-stage – photonic SMEs Europe Victor Sunyer n/d 

European Bank for Reconstruction and European Bank for Reconstruction and Development UK €100 1st n/d Dec-11 Early-stage, expansion – technology Europe, mainly east and n/d +44 20 7338 6000 

Development (EBRD) 

(EBRD) Programme 

south Mediterranean 

F&C F&C Climate Opportunity Partners UK n/d 1st €30 Oct-11 Fund-of-funds – climate change Europe Hamish Mair +44 20 7628 8000 

FF&P Private Equity FF&P Investor 3 LP UK n/d 1st £47 Jun-11 Buyout, expansion UK Henry Sallitt, David Barbour +44 20 7036 5722 

Foresight Group Foresight Environmental Fund UK £200 FA £70 Mar-11 Early-stage – recycling and renewable energy London Matt Taylor +44 1732 471 804 


39 


A 

BE 

CH 

Austria 

Belgium 

Switzerland 

D 

DEN 

EI 

Germany 

Denmark 

Ireland 

ES 

F 

FIN 

Spain 

France 

Finland 

I 

LX 

NL 

Italy 

Luxembourg 

Netherlands 

NOR 

P 

PL 

Norway 

Portugal 

Poland 

RO 

SWE 

TR 

Romania 

Sweden 

Turkey 

UK 

US 

FA 

United Kingdom 

United States 

Fund announced 

FC 

1st 

2nd 

Final close 

First close 

Second close 

Group Fund name Base Target (m) Close Amount (m) Date Stage Region Contact Tel No 

Gamesa Gamesa Fund ES €50 FA n/d May-11 Early-stage, expansion – renewable tech Global David Mesonero +34 944 03 73 52 

Grupo Inveready Inveready First Capital I ES €5 FA €3 Oct-10 Early-stage – technology ES Ignacio Fonts +34 93 447 30 63 

Headway Capital Partners Headway Investment Partners III UK $373 FA n/d May-12 Secondaries Europe, US Kevin Brennan +44 20 7518 8888 

I2BF and VTB Nanotech fund UK/ RU $100 FA $50 Oct-10 Early-stage – technology Russian, Kazakhstan Ilya Golubovich +44 20 3405 1974 

IDeA Capital Funds IDeA Energy Efficiency and Sustainable Development I €100 FA n/d Nov-10 Buyout, expansion – cleantech sector I, DACH, Israel n/d +39 02 2906 631 

Idinvest Partners Idinvest Private Value Europe F €150 FA n/d Apr-12 Mezzanine Europe François Lacoste +33 1 58 18 56 56 

Inter-Risco Fundo Inter-Risco II P €150 1st €75 Nov-10 Buyout, expansion P Miguel de Oliveira Tavares +351 220 126 700 

Intesa Sanpaolo Atlante Private Equity I €250 1st €150 Jan-11 Buyout – Italian SMEs I Walter Comelli +39 0516566023 

Investindustrial Investindustrial Fund V I €1,250 n/d

events 2012 

CEE Private 

Equity Congress 

London, 

April 2013 

ceepecongress.com 

Nordic Private 


Stockholm, 

31 May 2012 

nordicpecongress.com 

Investor Forum 

London, 

4 October 2012 

unquoteforum.com 

DACH Private 


Munich, 


dachpecongress.com 

British Private Equity 

Awards 

London, 


britishprivateequityawards.com 

Italia Private 


Milan, 

14 November 2012 

italiapecongress.com 

unquote” Congresses offer insight into the whole private equity life cycle from fundraising through portfolio 

management to successful exit. 

Editorially independent, our events draw upon 20 years of expertise researching and reporting on the European 

private equity market. Using proprietary research and our unparalleled rolodex, each unquote” Congress 

provides up-to-date intelligence combined with analysis and opinions from the industry’s rainmakers. 

For sponsorship opportunities: 

Steinar Liverud 

+44 (0)207 316 9607 

steinar.liverud@incisivemedia.com 

Marketing and registration enquiries: 

Victoria Cozens 

+44 (0)207 484 9947 

victoria.cozens@incisivemedia.com 

www.unquote.com/events

Subscription Packages and Reports 

The following subscription packages and reports are available from unquote”. 

Regional subscription packages 

Choose one or more of the following regions: 

And choose your subscription package: 

Standard Standard Data Standard Data Corporate 

Enterprise 

Plus 

Deals, Funds and Exits – Updated Daily ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ 

Quarterly Excel Download of Deals and 

✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ 

Exits 

Monthly Regional Round Up (pdf) ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ 

10 issues of unquote” analysis (in print) ✔ ✔ ✔ 

Specialist Intelligence Reports ✔ ✔ ✔ 

Email News Bulletins ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ 

Archives ✔ ✔ 

Number of Regions 1 1 1 1 Unlimited 

Number of Sites 1 1 1 1 Unlimited 

Number of Users 1 only 1 only 1 only Up to 10 Unlimited 

Annual Reports 1 1 1 

From £1,450 From £2,039 From £2,369 £2,750 POA 

Annual Reports & unquote” analysis 

most 

popular 

Our monthly magazine unquote” analysis and annual report European Buyout Review and are also available to buy separately. 

unquote” data 

unquote.com 

unquote” data is an online database 

specialising in the private equity 

industry covering deals of all sizes 

and types – ensuring you get the 

most meaningful and relevant data 

available. 

£POA 

European Buyout Review 

europeanbuyoutreview.com 

This annual reference guide 

contains buyout statistics and 

analysis of the market in each major 

European country. Includes lists of 

equity and mezzanine providers and 

major deals completed. 

£1,195 

Bespoke Data Requests 

Most popular are volume/value 

trend charts for specific countries, 

regions or industry sectors going 

back a number of years. 

Let us know your requirements 

and we’ll do our best to help. 

£POA 

unquote.com 

For more information or to order any of the products listed, 

please contact Nicola Tillin on +44 (0)20 7316 9000

All the unrivalled content 

from unquote.com specially 

formatted for mobile use 

Redesigned 

Layout 

The deals, exits 

and funds data at 

a glance 

‘Quick Search’ 

Functionality 

Find the deal/exit 

you’re looking for 

on the move 

Easy to 

navigate 

Find data by 

region, market 

sector or deal 

type 

New Design 

A stylish new look 

that works on any 

mobile 

Unrivalled 

content 

Breaking news, 

comment and 

analysis 

Go to unquote.com on your mobile and be 

automatically directed to the new mobile version

Firstly, Lion Capital acquired eyewear retailer Alain Afflelou - Unquote

You also want an ePaper? Increase the reach of your titles

Delete template?

Save as template?