Morning all, Craig McGlashan here with the Europe Wire from the London newsroom. As businesses and societies become ever more conscious of health and safety, there’s an opportunity for private equity to invest in the companies that service that sector. This morning we take a deep dive into Argos Wityu’s exit from Italy’s Fulgard. We also reveal the IRR on the deal. Next, we switch to another sector that is growing at a rapid pace: data management. Astorg has signed a deal to acquire a majority stake in Switzerland’s Redslim. Finishing up, we have a good old-fashioned bricks-and-mortar business: grocery stores. Enterprise Investors is set to cash in on its investment in Croatian chain Studenac Group. While the grocery sector might not be at the forefront of tech like data management, it is growing at a rapid clip in Studenac's home country. Safety first Private equity firms have been investing in safety technology companies of late – witness our coverage yesterday of Dubin Clark selling United Safety & Survivability Corporation, a safety and survivability product provider based in Exton, Pennsylvania, to Cogenuity Partners. We’re taking a deeper look into the sector this morning via another recent deal. The transformation of Argos Wityu-backed Fulgard into a leading player in the Italian safety services industry garnered interest from global and local private equity firms, helping drive the IRR on the investment, Andrea Pavesi, partner, told PE Hub’s Irien Joseph. Find out the IRR and how Argos grew the business in the premium version of the Wire. Big data Switching to a sector that is only likely to get bigger over the coming years as companies seek more and more data to inform their decisions. Astorg has agreed to acquire a majority stake in Redslim, a data management services provider headquartered in Zug, Switzerland, from its founders. Find out more about the company's growth in the premium version of the Wire. The investment will be the sixth by Astorg’s Mid Cap strategy. Stay tuned next week for the latest instalment in our Dealmakers to Watch series, which features the strategy’s co-founders Lionel de Posson and Edouard Pillot. Going shopping Enterprise Investors has decided to cash in on Studenac Group, a central and eastern European food retailer, after making a series of add-ons with the company. Find out how much Enterprise plans to raise via a listing of the company as well as Studenac's growth over the last few years in the premium version of the Wire. Right, that’s all from me today. Obey Martin Manayiti will bring you the US Wire today as Michael Schoeck is on holiday, while Irien Joseph will be in the Europe chair tomorrow. Cheers, Craig Read the full Wire commentary on PE Hub ... |