Nova nears take-private after optical exit

Nova has partnered with HarbourVest Partners to launch a £35 million offer for Parseq, according to a regulatory news announcement. Parseq’s chief executive, Rami Cassis, is also part of the bidding group.

Parseq’s board rejected the bidders’ initial 7.5p per share offer last week. The bidding group then began negotiations with shareholders over an improved offer, reporting to the market on Friday last week that “significant progress towards agreeing the terms of a recommended offer” had been made. A final offer is due by market close today, the company said.

The take-private bid comes as Nova celebrated a 3.5x exit from its investment in EIS Optics, an optical component manufacturer it acquired alongside FF&P Private Equity in 2009 for about $8.5 million. The pair sold EIS to Materion Corporation, according to a statement. Although no enterprise value for the deal was disclosed, Materion is understood to have paid about $25m for the company. FF&P has also booked a 3.5x return following the sale, according to a source close to the process.