1 min read · 13 December 2012
Dutch private equity firm Egeria Capital Management has raised 600 million euros ($780 million) for a new fund focused on buy-out opportunities among mid-sized companies, Reuters reported Wednesday. Amsterdam-based Egeria, which has about 1 billion euros under management, typically seeks controlling stakes in mid-market Dutch companies or firms with a strong Dutch link and an enterprise value of 50-250 million euros.
1 min read · 12 December 2012
Former New York State comptroller Alan Hevesi, the top official convicted in a corruption scandal at the state pension fund, was released from prison on Wednesday, Reuters reported. Hevesi, 72, had been incarcerated since April 2011 for his role in the "pay to play" scheme involving the pension fund. Hevesi admitted accepting nearly $1 million in benefits from a Los Angeles-based money manager who got $250 million in pension fund money to invest.
2 min read · 12 December 2012
San Diego Union-Tribune owner Doug Manchester and Orange County Register owner Aaron Kushner are interested in acquiring Tribune's stable of newspapers, Reuters reported. The Tribune Co., owner of the Los Angeles Times and the Chicago Tribune, will be seeking buyers for its newspapers once it emerges from bankruptcy, expected by Dec. 31, these sources said. Oaktree Capital Management, JPMorgan Chase & Co and Angelo, Gordon & Co, the controlling Tribune owners, made the decision to sell off its print business to focus instead on Tribune's television stations in cities like Chicago, New York, and Seattle, sources said.
4 min read · 12 December 2012
U.S. buyout firm Providence Equity Partners is among suitors advancing to the second round of bidding for Leighton Holdings' Australian fibre-optic network NextGen, sources said, in a deal some analysts see fetching between A$625 million and A$870 million ($657 million-$910 million). Leighton, controlled by Spain's ACS, is selling the inter-city fibre-optic business NextGen and two smaller data businesses Metronode and Infoplex to pay down debt.
2 min read · 12 December 2012
strong>Warburg Pincus has mandated Goldman Sachs Group to explore a sale of eye care company Bausch & Lomb Inc, hoping to fetch more than $10 billion, writes Reuters. The company was taken private by Warburg Pincus in 2007 for about $4.5 billion, including $830 million of debt.
2 min read · 12 December 2012
Warner Bros Entertainment Inc and MGM Studios Inc have joined forces to invest an undisclosed amount in the privately-held, social and mobile gaming company, Kabam Inc, the games maker said on Tuesday.
2 min read · 11 December 2012
India's Credit Analysis and Research has received bids for more than 40 times the number of shares on offer in a stock market debut set to raise up to $99 million, Reuters reported Tuesday. The positive response to the initial public offering of the credit rating services provider augurs well for a clutch of bigger share sales scheduled for this week as firms, which were forced to shelve plans earlier this year due to volatile markets, rush to raise funds. The government's sale of a $1.1 billion stake in miner NMDC Ltd is set for Wednesday, while telecoms tower operator Bharti Infratel is selling shares to raise up to $830 million in the country's biggest IPO in two years.
2 min read · 11 December 2012
Nordic technology investor Northzone, an early Spotify investor and its biggest shareholder after the founders, would like to see the online music streaming service gain a stock market listing in the next few years, Reuters reported Tuesday. Spotify has 20 million active users worldwide - up 33 percent in less than six months - and counts 5 million users among subscribers who pay to listen to its music without commercial breaks. Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, Accel Partners, DST, Wellington and Horizons Ventures have also invested in the company in prior financing rounds.
3 min read · 11 December 2012
British TV decoder maker Pace Plc said on Monday that it had made an early-stage proposal to Google Inc. to acquire its set-top TV box maker Motorola Home, Reuters reported. The offer is one of several bids for the unit, including from private equity firms, that Google received on Friday, according to a person familiar with the situation. Google acquired the set-top box maker as part of its $12.5 billion acquisition in May of Motorola Mobility, which was largely motivated by a desire to snap up its large portfolio of communications patents.
3 min read · 11 December 2012
