http://www.argentum.no/rss News from Argentum. Axcel Mangement, through Prometheus Invest, has agreed to sell 13 million existing shares in PANDORA to institutional investors pursuant to the accelerated book-built offering. The gross proceeds of the transaction amount to DKK 2,600 million. Following completion of the transaction Prometheus will own 53,187,416 shares in PANDORA, corresponding to approximately 40.9 percent of PANDORA’s share capital and voting rights.    Prometheus intends to support PANDORA actively as its largest shareholder, and remains confident in PANDORA and the management team to continue the growth strategy as shown over the last year.  Prometheus will continue to participate in PANDORA’s share buy-back programme on a pro rata basis, based on Prometheus’s shareholding post completion of the Transaction and the purchase form the minority founding shareholder.    Read more http://www.argentum.no/Market-Database/News/?objId=67754 Thu, 23 May 2013 00:00:00 Industrifonden, Zobito and the company's existing owners has invested SEK 20 million in Qwaya, a technology company focused on building tools for social media marketing. The company has experienced strong growth and has cusomers in 90 different countries. The capital will be used to strengthen Qwaya's international expansion. Read more     http://www.argentum.no/Market-Database/News/?objId=67753 Wed, 22 May 2013 00:00:00 3i Group and funds managed by 3i, have agreed to sell Xellia Pharmaceuticals, a specialty pharmaceutical group focusing on the development, manufacturing and global commercialization of anti-infective therapies, to Novo. Xellia was established in April 2008, when 3i bought NYSE-listed Alpharma's active pharmaceutical ingredients business. During 3i's investment period, Xellia invested more than USD 100 million in R&D and capacity expansion across its global manufacturing network, including a new fill-finish plant in Copenhagen. The company has growing sales in more than 70 countries to over 700 customers across the healthcare industry and generated revenues of USD 220 million in 2012. The enterprise value of the transaction is approximately USD 700 million, and the proceeds to 3i and funds represent a 2.3x money multiple on their original investment of USD 208 million. Read more     http://www.argentum.no/Market-Database/News/?objId=67752 Tue, 21 May 2013 00:00:00 Ferd Capital has sold its shares in the portfolio company HELP Forsikring to ARAG SE.  HELP Forsikring was founded in Oslo in 2005. Its business is focused primarily on private legal protection insurance. The company has more than 100 employees, and generated gross premiums written of NOK 184 million in 2012. Through the transaction, ARAG increased its interest in HELP Forsikring from the present 44.8 percent to more than 90 percent.  The investment has provided Ferd Capital with a return on investment of approximately 1.7x. Read more   http://www.argentum.no/Market-Database/News/?objId=67751 Thu, 16 May 2013 00:00:00 HitecVision has entered into an agreement to sell the Platform Supply Vessel company Troms Offshore Supply to a wholly-owned subsidiary of Tidewater. Troms Offshore Supply is a niche Platform Supply Vessel (PSV) company which provides offshore services to oil companies through owning and operating high-end large PSVs built to the "Clean Design" class specifications. The company has four vessels in operation and two under construction, and are managing six vessels for other owners through its subsidiary, Troms Offshore Management. Tidewater is the world's largest offshore supply vessel owner and currently has an active fleet of approximately 264 vessels. The company is listed on the New York Stock Exchange and has a market capitalization of about USD 2.7 billion. Read more http://www.argentum.no/Market-Database/News/?objId=67749 Wed, 15 May 2013 00:00:00 Rightware, the leader in embedded user interface (UI) software and performance benchmarking tools, announced today that it has closed a EUR 4 million Series B round with Inventure, Nexit Ventures and new investor Finnish Industry Investment. The investment will be used to further expand global sales and continue the development of the Kanzi UI Solution, which continues to gain traction within the automotive sector and consumer electronics companies in Europe, USA and Asia. Read more   http://www.argentum.no/Market-Database/News/?objId=67750 Wed, 15 May 2013 00:00:00 Polaris Private Equity, a leading Danish/Swedish mid-market private equity investor, has successfully acquired HTC Sweden, the leading global developer and manufacturer of professional floor grinding systems and floor solutions. Polaris has acquired the company from Håkan and Gunn Thysell, who founded HTC in 1987 and have remained majority owners with a 60 % stake. 3i Group and former management, who held 40 %, have also sold their interest in the company to Polaris. HTC has been growing rapidly in recent years, driven by expansion into new geographic markets and the launch of new products. The company has 165 employees and in 2012 HTC generated revenues of SEK 370 million with an EBITDA of SEK 58.5 million. Polaris will focus on supporting HTC in an ambitious growth strategy, based on organic and acquisitive expansion. Read more   http://www.argentum.no/Market-Database/News/?objId=67747 Tue, 14 May 2013 00:00:00 EQT has acquired a 91 percent stake in fiber based data communication provider IP-Only Telecommunication from the three largest shareholders. Through the acquisition, EQT takes the first step in its aim for growth and consolidation of the Swedish fiber network market.  IP-Only is a leading provider of high capacity fiber based data communication and datacenter services in Sweden. The acquisition will create a strong platform for further expansion in the Swedish fiber network market through organic growth fueled by further investments in the IP-Only network and selective add-on acquisitions.  The Company owns and operates a high-capacity fiber network linking the Nordic capitals Stockholm, Oslo, Copenhagen and Helsinki as well as Sweden’s second and third largest cities Gothenburg and Malmoe. In addition, IP-Only owns Metro Area Networks (MAN) in Sweden, including the largest MAN in Uppsala, and several data centers supporting co-location and cloud based product offerings to corporate clients.   Data traffic is increasing rapidly due to the proliferation of high quality on-demand video streaming, cloud services and video conferencing.  IP-Only is privately owned and was founded in 1999. In 2002, it acquired the Scandinavian fiber network of bankrupted KPNQwest. In total, approximately SEK 3 billion has been invested in IP-Only’s network infrastructure over the years.   Read more http://www.argentum.no/Market-Database/News/?objId=67742 Mon, 13 May 2013 00:00:00 C10 Pharma has completed a new financing round and raised NOK 6.6 million. The company's two largest investors, Novo Seeds and Sarsia Seed participated in the round. The capital will be used to complete the company's discovery phase and for documentation of an antibiotic product candidate in the macrolide class. Read more   http://www.argentum.no/Market-Database/News/?objId=67745 Mon, 13 May 2013 00:00:00 BRITAX, one of the world's premier manufacturers and suppliers of children's car safety seats and pushchairs, today announced that it has entered into an agreement with BRIO Holding ,  to acquire the international BRIO pushchair and car safety business. The product range to be acquired includes the successful premium pushchair platforms BRIO GO, BRIO HAPPY and BRIO SMILE as well as all further pushchair and car safety products that are marketed under the brands BRIO®, Simo and Carena. BRITAX has developed a strong presence in the global pushchair market by launching its B-Series of pushchairs (B-AGILE, B-DUAL, B-SMART and B-MOBILE) in recent years, acquiring premium outdoor wheeled goods under the BOB® brand in 2011, and recently launching the BRITAX affinity pushchair. Read more http://www.argentum.no/Market-Database/News/?objId=67741 Wed, 08 May 2013 00:00:00 Segulah has announced that Christian Sievert will step down as Managing Partner after 10 years as Managing Partner. Gabriel Urwitz will take over as Managing Partner and Lennart Ribohn will become Chairman of Segulah Advisor AB. Over the last 10 years that Christian Sievert has been Managing Partner, Segulah has developed from a small informal private equity firm into a full-fledged, mature mid-market private equity partnership. Read more     http://www.argentum.no/Market-Database/News/?objId=67736 Tue, 07 May 2013 00:00:00 Axiomatics, the leading independent provider of eXtensible Authorization solutions within the Identity and Access Management sphere, has announced that it has raised USD 6.5 million in a new round of investment. The funding was led by newly established Swedish venture fund Monterro, a Stockholm based investment company specializing in building and growing Nordic software technology companies. Existing investors, Coach & Capital and Almi Invest, have also participated in this round of investment. The company, which is headquartered in Stockholm, Sweden, with offices in the US, has been competing with industry giants such as Oracle and IBM since start-up in 2006. Today, Axiomatics solutions are utilized by everything from Fortune 50 companies to national health authorities and universities. Read more http://www.argentum.no/Market-Database/News/?objId=67739 Tue, 07 May 2013 00:00:00 Midinvest Management has invested in Soikea Solutions, a company specializing in the delivery of multi-channel e-commerce solutions, product data management and system integration. Soikea offers an exclusive multichannel online commerce platform solution as a service. The company is based in Jyväskylä and are recruiting 10-20 e-commerce and systems integration proffesionals. Read more   http://www.argentum.no/Market-Database/News/?objId=67734 Mon, 06 May 2013 00:00:00 Målselv Utvikling, a company that owns Målselv Fjellandsby AS and Blånisselandet i Målselv AS, has declared bankruptcy. The company was established in 2005 with the aim to establish a tourist industri in Målselv and attract international tourists to Northern Norway. The owners of the company include Investinor AS, Sparebank 1 Nord-Norge, Siva Eiendom Holding AS and Målselv Gruppen AS. Investinor owned 32.7 percent of the company, and invested a total of NOK 23.1 million in Målselv Utvikling. Read more   http://www.argentum.no/Market-Database/News/?objId=67735 Fri, 03 May 2013 00:00:00 Maj Invest Equity has signed an agreement with the current owners of PF Group to acquire a majority stake in the company. The PF Group is one of the leading suppliers of gratings, steps, scaffolding equipment, perforated plates and handrails in Northern Europe. The company has a turnover of more than DKK 300 million and has approximately 275 employees. The PcP Group has been owned by the Fahrsen Pedersen family for three generations, with Industri Udvikling among the owners in recent years. The family withdrew from the managemnet of the company in 2007, when John Nielsen took over as CEO. Read more http://www.argentum.no/Market-Database/News/?objId=67748 Fri, 03 May 2013 00:00:00 HitecVision has over the past five years consolidated ITM’s position in the Norwegian market and is now handing over a company poised for further growth. ITM was acquired in 2007, through the HVPE IV’s 50 percent owned entity Aarbakke Group (renamed Breimyra Invest). Since the investment was made, ITM has operated as an independent company within Breimyra, consolidating its market leader position in the in the provision of tubular services to the oil and gas industry on the Norwegian Continental Shelf. Read more http://www.argentum.no/Market-Database/News/?objId=67732 Thu, 02 May 2013 00:00:00 Descartes Systems Group, the global leader in uniting logistics-intensive businesses in commerce, has acquired KSD Software Norway, a leading Scandinavia-based provider of electronic customs filing solutions for the European Union. The all cash purchase price for the acquisition was NOK 190 million.  The EU customs compliance market is characterized by a complex framework of member states; each with different regulations, languages, and systems. Transportation carriers, logistics intermediaries and shippers have looked to technology partners, like Descartes and KSD, to help them manage this complexity. KSD brings more than 1,300 customers to Descartes' Global Logistic Network, with the majority of these companies based in Scandinavia. KSD provides its customers with customs declaration, security filing, transportation management and freight forwarding technology solutions. By combining KSD's leading EU customs solutions and Descartes' global community of logistics participants and shipment management solutions, customers now have a single trusted partner to help them manage their shipments across the globe. KSD is headquartered in Oslo, Norway, with offices in Sweden, Denmark and The Netherlands.  Read more http://www.argentum.no/Market-Database/News/?objId=67743 Thu, 02 May 2013 00:00:00 Bandak Group and Breimyra Invest have acquired 100 percent of the shares in I O S Tubular Management (ITM). ITM has approximately 75 employees and had revenues of NOK 140 million in 2012. The company is located at the offshore bases in Tananger, Ågotnes og Florø in Norway. With its long experience and competence it has become the leading provider of Tubular Service to clients on the Norwegian Continental Shelf. ITM's offering includes licenced premium threading of tubular goods, as well as manufacturing and deliveries of related accessories. In addition, ITM has activities related to procurement and trading of tubular goods and related equipment. After the acquisition of ITM, Bandak Group will have approximately 475 employees and anticipates to have a turnover exceeding NOK 800 million in 2013. Herkules Private Equity Fund III is the majority owner of Bandak, with an ownership stake exceeding 80 percent. Read more http://www.argentum.no/Market-Database/News/?objId=67730 Tue, 30 Apr 2013 00:00:00 The Norwegian government has commited NOK 500 million to the state-backed venture capital company Investinor. The capital is earmarked for investments in the Norwegian forest industry. Investinor's investment mandate and other political guidelines are not changed. Investinor currently has NOK 3.7 billion under management. The capital base was increased by NOK 1.5 billion in 2011.  Read more http://www.argentum.no/Market-Database/News/?objId=67744 Tue, 30 Apr 2013 00:00:00 Priveq Investment Fund IV is the new majority owner of Kung Markatta, one of the leading independent distributors and marketers of organic, natural and specialty food in Sweden. Kung Markatta was founded in 1983 and has grown and developed rapidly since it was acquired in 2004 by Peter Enberg and his partners. In addition to the Kung Markatta brand, the company is also the distributor and marketer in Sweden of a portfolio of brands including Alpro, Rice Dream, Yogi Tea, Green & Black's and many others. The company had net sales of approximately SEK 100 million in 2012 and has more than 30 employees. Kung Markatta's current owners will continue to be significant partners in the company following the investment by Priveq Investment. The broadening of ownership will further strengthen Kung Markatta, supporting the company in its growth strategy. Read more     http://www.argentum.no/Market-Database/News/?objId=67733 Mon, 29 Apr 2013 00:00:00