Shareholders of the French technology consultancy Altran voted in two new board nominees—Philippe Salle and Monique Cohen—setting the stage for the ouster of Chief Executive Yves de Chaisemartin, Reuters reported. Top shareholder Altrafin Participations, which is controlled by private equity firm Apax Partners, wants to replace Chaisemartin with Salle. The new board appointments gives Apax six out of ten seats on the company's board, enough to force a vote to replace Chaisemartin, Reuters wrote.
2 min read · 10 June 2011
Polish media mogul Zygmunt Solorz-Zak has put in a final bid for mobile operator Polkomtel, Reuters reported, though the size of the bid was kept under wraps. Polkomtel, which was put up for sale by Vodafone and a handful of Polish state-linked companies, could reportedly fetch as much as $6.6 billion. Private equity firms Apax and Bain Capital are also among those in the running for Polkomtel.
1 min read · 10 June 2011
Nokia says its in talks with “multiple parties” about its stake in Nokia Siemens Networks, Reuters reported Friday. Previous reports have said that Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co. and TPG decided not to bid on Nokia Siemens Network after they failed to agree on a price for the majority stake. Nokia didn’t name any other potential suitors for the telecom equipment business.
2 min read · 10 June 2011
Avaya Holdings Corp., a telecom equipment maker backed by Silver Lake Partners and TPG Capital, has filed to raise up to $1 billion in an initial public offering, Reuters reports. Basking Ridge, New Jersey-based Avaya was taken private by the two private equity firms in 2007 for just over $8 billion.
2 min read · 10 June 2011
Buyout firm Charterhouse will buy French call-centre business Webhelp from Astorg Partners, Reuters reported, adding that Charterhouse had secured a 165 million euro ($238 million) loan to help fund the deal. The loan was arranged by Bank of Ireland and Citigroup, Reuters reported. Astorg bought a controlling stake in Webhelp in June 2007 from Barclays Private Equity, which remained a minority shareholder in the business.
1 min read · 10 June 2011
Buyout shop Nordic Capital is planning to exit its investment in payment processing business Point International, Reuters reported. The firm hired JP Morgan to manage a sale. The company could fetch as much as 300 million euro ($434 million), Reuters estimated.
1 min read · 10 June 2011
Live Nation Entertainment is in talks with Liberty Media, the company’s largest shareholder, to take the company private, Reuters reported Friday, citing a story in the New York Post. Private equity firm Thomas H Lee Partners could reportedly provide funding for the deal. Live Nation, a concert promoter and ticketing company, has a market value of roughly $1.87 billion.
1 min read · 10 June 2011
Lower-middle market buyout shop Huntington Capital—investing out of its Huntington Capital Fund II fund—has backed Vertical Management Systems Inc. and its subsidiary Retirement Revolution. Terms of the deal were not released. Pasadena, Calif.-based Vertical Management designs, constructs and hosts accounting and process and control software tools for the enterprise. Huntington is based in San Diego.
3 min read · 10 June 2011
Fisher Lynch Capital, a private equity funds-of-funds and co-investment manager, has added Kristie Goodman as Director of Investor Relations, and Dana O’Brien as Director of Administration and Legal Affairs. Both are newly created positions. Goodman joins from Parish Capital Advisors where she served as vice president of marketing and investor relations. O’Brien joins from MPM Capital in Boston, where she served as director of operations and legal affairs.
2 min read · 10 June 2011
Danish group ISS will sell its German damage control unit Vatro to Swedish private equity investment firm Polygon, Reuters reported Thursday. Terms were not given. ISS is owned by Swedish buyout shop EQT and Goldman Sachs Capital Partners. Vatro's services include flood and fire control mainly for corporate clients, Reuters wrote.
2 min read · 09 June 2011
