By Andrei Skvarsky. British investment company Inflexion Private Equity has announced that its portfolio company Radius Payment Solutions, a fuel card manager, made five acquisitions in November. Inflexion owns a minority stake in Radius, which is based in Britain and has offices in various parts of Europe. Radius’s five acquisitions are two vehicle tracking companies,… Continue Reading
Tag Archives: Europe
Francesco Pascalizi joins Fabrizio Carretti as Permira co-head for Italy
By Andrei Skvarsky. Investment company Permira has announced it has elevated a member of its Italian team, Francesco Pascalizi, to the position of co-head for Italy to join Fabrizio Carretti in co-running the London-headquartered global firm’s Italian operation. Pascalizi, who will be based in Milan, joined Permira in 2007 and is a member of its… Continue Reading
PDM loan helps Equistone buy out service provider for cancer patients
By Andrei Skvarsky. A loan from debt investor Permira Debt Managers (PDM) has helped private equity firm Equistone Partners Europe to acquire Omnicare, a German provider of oncological services and cancer drugs. PDM-advised funds acted as senior secured lender in the buyout project, the London-headquartered debt investment company said in a statement. Most of Equistone’s… Continue Reading
PDM loan helps Bridgepoint buy Qualitest software testing firm
By Andrei Skvarsky. Specialist debt investor Permira Debt Managers has enlarged the 150-company list of recipients of its financial support by lending to private equity group Bridgepoint to help it to buy out software testing company Qualitest. PDM’s Permira Credit Solutions Fund acted as senior secured lender in providing Bridgepoint with a loan that enabled… Continue Reading
Thomson Reuters acquires FC Business Intelligence
Thomson Reuters has announced it has acquired FC Business Intelligence (FCBI), a global business-to-business events specialist, which will now be rebranded Reuters Events and operated as part of the Reuters News division of the world’s largest multimedia news provider. FCBI, which is based in London, organises conferences and exhibitions for diverse sectors including insurance, energy,… Continue Reading
REMINDER: International Collateral Management Forum to open in Vienna on Sept 26
This is a reminder about the International Collateral Management Forum in Vienna on September 26-27, a conference where European Commission officials, bankers and others are going to discuss challenges brought about by new regulations and other issues. The forum will bring together institutions including the European Commission, the European Association of CCP Clearing Houses (EACH – an organisation… Continue Reading
PDM loan helps Gilde buy promo gifts firm from Perusa
By Andrei Skvarsky. Funds run by debt investor Permira Debt Managers (PDM) have provided buyout company Gilde with a loan for buying Dutch promotional gifts supplier Xindao from private equity firm Perusa. The PDM-managed funds have acted as the senior secured lender in helping make the acquisition possible, the London-based debt investor said in a… Continue Reading
UPDATE – Vienna forum to address collateral management challenges resulting from new rules
Bankers, European Union officials and other financial services figures are going to meet at a conference in Vienna this September to look into challenges in collateral management that new regulations are giving rise to. The International Collateral Management Forum on September 26-27 will have an extensive agenda that includes automation in collateral management and EU… Continue Reading
Cyprus FX broker IMS Markets signs long-term deal with child support charity
By Andrei Skvarsky. IMS Markets, a Cypriot foreign exchange and contract-for-differences (CFD) broker, has made a long-term pledge to donate to a charity that supports children with mental health problems. Continue Reading
EU rules, bitcoin, blockchain to be discussed at European payments forum
Bankers and financial services officials are getting together in Barcelona this week for BizzPay 7.0 – European Corporate and Retail Payments Forum, to be held on June 13-14. Continue Reading
Sberbank-Luxembourg govt deal to help Russian hi-tech firms access EU markets
By Andrei Skvarsky. The Luxembourg government is going to help Russian high-tech firms to get established in European Union markets under an agreement of June 7 with Sberbank, Russia’s biggest lender. Continue Reading
Sberbank crypto trade plans on ice due to Russian govt’s ‘negative’ position
By Andrei Skvarsky. Sberbank has suspended plans to launch transactions in cryptocurrencies because of the Russian government’s “negative” position on digital money, a top manager at Russia’s biggest lender said last week. Continue Reading
UPDATE – Connected Claims Europe Summit to discuss digitisation of claims services
Numerous insurers, among them AIG, Generali and Zurich, are getting together in Amsterdam in September for a pan-European conference to discuss the digitisation of the claims function in insurance. Continue Reading
Insurance Nexus: Machine learning, AI to have main impact on claims services in next 5 years
A survey by event organiser Insurance Nexus suggests that more than half of claims executives in insurance companies worldwide believe that machine learning and artificial intelligence will have the greatest impact on claims services in the next five years. Continue Reading
Tolar HashNET test-launches UN-backed scalable, fast blockchain
By Andrei Skvarsky. Tolar HashNET, a technology firm based in ex-Yugoslav states, has developed and last month test-launched a blockchain platform that the United Nations has listed among projects supporting the Sustainable Development Goals set to the international community by the organisation. Continue Reading
Lebanon’s Bank Audi says Nexmo’s WhatsApp solution enables it to improve customer service
By Andrei Skvarsky. Lebanon-based Bank Audi has adopted a device developed by US technology company Nexmo to maintain direct contact with customers through WhatsApp, an increasingly popular means of communication worldwide. Continue Reading
Sova brokerage chooses Iress as provider of order management, post-trade processing software
By Andrei Skvarsky. London-headquartered investment broker Sova Capital Limited has chosen Australian technology designer Iress to provide software for order management and post-trade processing in its prime services division. Continue Reading
Legacy issues main hurdle to global hi-tech insurance innovation – survey
By Andrei Skvarsky. Unresolved issues originating in outdated business organisation systems are the main hurdle faced by insurance companies worldwide in trying to put their business on a high-tech basis, a survey suggests. Continue Reading
Natixis arranges €82m syndicated loan for building Mediterranean’s first offshore wind farm
By Andrei Skvarsky. A banking syndicate led by French bank Natixis has lent an Italian company about €82m ($92m) for building what would be the first-ever offshore wind farm in the Mediterranean Sea. Continue Reading
Lombard Odier forecasts 2 per cent growth for euro zone in 2019
By Andrei Skvarsky. Swiss private bank Lombard Odier has released a generally optimistic 2019 forecast for the euro zone, predicting 2 per cent economic growth for it and arguing that its economy is in a position to offset potential political and trade headwinds. Continue Reading
Impact investing is often more profitable than traditional investing – survey
By Andrei Skvarsky. Impact investing, besides social and environmental benefits, its raison d’etre, quite often involves business advantages over conventional investing, a survey suggests. Continue Reading
Insurance Nexus poll: Most insurers see customer profiling as no. 1 task
By Andrei Skvarsky. As insurance companies worldwide seek to provide clients with bespoke rather than standard products, nearly three quarters of insurers see customer profiling as the key to success, according to a survey by the Insurance Nexus events company. Continue Reading
Payger, Net Element clinch deal said to offer shoppers new crypto payment facilities
By Andrei Skvarsky. Electronic payments companies Payger and Net Element, the former based in Munich and the latter in Miami, announced a partnership deal last week that, according to the two firms, offers retail shoppers wider opportunities to pay in cryptocurrencies. Continue Reading
RenCap reports senior staff moves in Cairo, London, Moscow
By Andrei Skvarsky. Moscow-based investment bank Renaissance Capital has reported senior appointments in its Cairo, London and Moscow teams. Continue Reading
Insurance Nexus webinar to address challenges faced by innovative insurance solutions
The Insurance Nexus research and event company is going to host a webinar on February 1 that will address challenges faced by insurers in trying to have innovative solutions accepted by their current and potential customers. Continue Reading
Connected Insurance Europe to discuss startups, micro-segmentation
Dozens of companies are getting together in Amsterdam on May 15-16 for the fourth annual Connected Insurance Europe conference, a forum with an extensive agenda focusing on innovative product development and market penetration. Continue Reading
Hayley Buckle appointed chief recruiter of Cyprus’s GRS headhunter
By Andrei Skvarsky. GRS Global Recruitment Solutions, a staffing agency for Cyprus and Malta, has given the position of director of recruitment to Hayley Buckle, promoting her from senior business manager. Continue Reading
Natixis becomes owner of Titres Cadeaux multi-brand gift voucher operator via deal with La Banque Postale
By Andrei Skvarsky. French investment bank Natixis has become the sole owner of Titres Cadeaux, which is also known as Titres Cado and is France’s fourth-biggest gift voucher operator, after buying a 50 per cent stake in it from La Banque Postale, a subsidiary of French postal service company La Poste. Continue Reading
France’s Natixis bank replaces two directors
By Andrei Skvarsky. Natixis, a French corporate and investment bank, has replaced two of its directors, both new appointees being CEOs of regional divisions of Caisse d’Epargne, a bank holding a large stake in Natixis. Continue Reading