The Belgian government has released a new compromise - Unquote

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European round-up
Buyout deals to note in the DACH region are STAR Capital’s secondary buyout of Pepcom from GHT and VSS, Finatem’s
acquisition of Techno-Physik Group, and Equity Capital Management’s buyout of bakery chain Kamps. In addition to these,
more recent deals include AFINUM’s acquisition of Berlin-based computer accessories distributor and retailer Caseking, and EQT
Expansion Capital’s backing of Roeser Group’s MBO.
The region has seen very few early-stage investments over the last few weeks, with expansion deals grabbing more of the
headlines. High-Tech Gründerfonds (HTGF) participated in a €3.5m funding round in humangrid and also led a $2m
investment in C2Call. Elsewhere, SHS has recently supported medical technology company phenox with the investment of an
undisclosed amount.
Exits in the DACH region have suffered a difficult time in recent weeks with none having been reported at unquote”. Activity in
the exit market was starting to pick up before the summer, but whether there will be an increase in exit deals as autumn approaches
remains to be seen.
■ Southern Europe unquote”
After a slow start to the year, Southern Europe has continued to pick up its pace. This comes despite news that a number
of regional Spanish banks failed a Europe-wide stress test. The failure of a number of Cajas had been widely predicted, but
one of those, Banca Civica, took pre-emptive action to reassure markets, announcing JC Flowers was to purchase €450m of
convertible bonds.
AC Desarrollo completed two deals in August, investing in fast food franchise Grupo NRSur and acquiring a majority stake in
English language training specialist Vaughn Systems. Meanwhile, Atlas Capital completed the second investment from its maiden
fund, providing €6m of expansion capital for Uveauve.
By far the largest deal in the region was the €565m acquisition of TeamSystem. HgCapital bought the company, which develops
and markets financial management software, in a secondary buyout from Bain Capital. HgCapital beat Cinven in an auction
process for the firm, which has seen EBITDA grow at an annual rate of 12.2% between 2001 and 2009.
■ UK & Ireland unquote”
Activity in the UK continued through the summer months, with the market seeing some of Europe’s largest deals since the
financial crisis. Figures bode well for a major recovery in the continent’s biggest private equity market at the end of this year, with
rumours of further bids and buyouts expected to be agreed through the autumn.
The £2bn take-private of RBS WorldPay, completed in early August by Advent International and Bain Capital, was the country’s
largest private equity-backed deal since the collapse of Lehman Brothers in late 2008. However, it was soon surpassed by the
£2.89bn buyout of Tomkins. The manufacturing and engineering company was taken private by Canada’s Onex and the Canada
Pension Plan Investment Board.
Buyouts were a major feature of the summer period, possibly signalling a revival in an area that has suffered due to leverage
difficulties stemming from the credit crunch. The venture sector almost shut down, with just a single deal from Finance Wales.
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