Jaguar Land Rover weighing up bid for London cab company Addison Lee April 28, 2019 Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) is weighing up an offer for London-based taxi company Addison Lee in a bid to keep up with companies such as Uber, the Sunday Telegraph reported yesterday. Read more: Jaguar and Addison Lee trial their driverless cars in London Addison Lee was put up for sale by its owner, US private [...]
Private equity investment boosts UK business revenue by more than 50 per cent April 25, 2019 Private equity backed businesses saw revenue soar by more than half in the last five years, new data published today shows. Investment by private equity firms boosted revenue at UK firms by 53 per cent, from £30.7bn in 2013 to £47.1bn last year. Read more: US private equity activity slumps in first quarter In the [...]
Cafe bar operator raises £83m ahead of float as valuation comes in below City expectations April 24, 2019 Cafe bar operator Loungers has raised more than £80m today ahead of its listing next week. Read more: Restaurant sector defies confidence slump as UK leisure spending grows However, the group is set to valued at £185m when it floats, falling below City expectations of a £250m market capitalisation. The owner of 146 neighbourhood, café bars [...]
US owner of healthcare firm The Priory Group eyes £1bn sale amid scandal over quality of care April 21, 2019 The US healthcare firm behind The Priory Group is mulling a £1bn sale of the mental healthcare provider amid a scandal over the quality of care in its hospitals. Acadia Healthcare has appointed a financial adviser to explore a possible sale of the firm, the Mail on Sunday reported, citing City sources. Read more: Only [...]
Edinburgh Airport owner eyes £2bn sale as aviation infrastructure values soar April 21, 2019 Edinburgh Airport could be sold this year for as much as £2bn as its private equity owner looks to cash in on skyrocketing aviation infrastructure valuations. Global Infrastructure Partners (GIP), the airport’s largest shareholder, is eyeing the hefty price tag amid plans to sell its majority stake, the Sunday Telegraph reported, citing City sources. Read [...]
You can’t blame Brexit for the British car industry’s woes April 15, 2019 Quizzed by Nick Hewer on Honda’s decision to close its Swindon plant earlier this month on BBC radio, I suggested that blaming Brexit for the demise of the Japanese auto makers factory with the loss of 3,500 jobs was not the whole story. Certainly, Brexit plays havoc with the vehicle industry’s sophisticated just-in-time supply chain. [...]
US private equity activity slumps in first quarter April 11, 2019 Private equity activity in the US slumped in the first quarter of this year following a record breaking year in 2018. US deal and exit count dropped 27.9 per cent and 42.5 per cent respectively between January and March this year. Read more: Private equity investment bounces back at the beginning of 2019 Year-on-year deal [...]
Permira prepares to appoint bankers to oversee sale or US IPO of British footwear brand Dr Martens April 10, 2019 Private equity firm Permira is planning a sale or US flotation of iconic British footwear brand Dr Martens. Permira, which bought Dr Martens for £300m in 2014, is preparing to hire bankers to review potential options for the company, Sky News reported. Read more: Rathbones and Tilney owner Permira sniff around Speirs & Jeffery Bankers [...]
Digital wealth management firm Yieldstreet buys Athena Art Finance from Carlyle in $170m deal April 10, 2019 A wealth management firm backed by billionaire George Soros has bought art collector lender Athena from Carlyle, the US private equity giant, for $170m (£130m). The deal is digital wealth management platform Yieldstreet’s first corporate acquisition following its recent $62m Series B funding round, which received backing from Soros Fund Management. Read more: Private equity investment bounces back [...]
Topshop billionaire Sir Philip Green slammed over potential pensions row as US investor backs out April 10, 2019 Sir Philip Green’s troubles escalated this morning as an influential parliamentary chair hit out at the billionaire tycoon and news emerged of a top US backer pulling out of his retail empire. The Topshop owner has been accused of being up to “old tricks again” by Frank Field, chair of the Work and Pensions Select [...]