MediMedia sold by equity firms
The Carlyle Group and Apax Partners have sold the healthcare marketing firm MediMedia USA to Vestar Capital Partners. MediMedia USA was one of four businesses that the consortium led by Carlyle, Apax and Cinven acquired from Vivendi Universal Publishing in 2002. The consortium did not give the value of the deal but said that the total enterprise value from the four divestments was €1.1 billion (£747 million).
ITN in press tie-up
The Telegraph Group, the newspaper publisher, and ITN, the television news provider, are reported to be working on a “strategic partnership” that will lead to the creation of new products that both can use. They will co-operate to produce content for the Telegraph website as a step towards wider partnership.
BoS buys stake
Advertisement
Bank of Scotland, part of HBOS, has bought a 9.9 per cent stake in the boutique merchant bank Carlton Financial, which is part-owned by Andrew Taee, the banking entrepreneur, and George Magan, the financier. The deal will mean HBOS adds financial muscle to Carlton’s property and industrial acquisitions.
Asos magazine
Asos, the online clothes retailer, has unveiled a new monthly fashion magazine. Asos, which stands for As Seen On Screen and which provides 18- to 34-year-olds with clothes items similar to those worn by celebrities such as Kate Moss and Sienna Miller, said that the magazine would go on sale on Friday.
Lottery takes AIM
A lottery group that raises money for charities, the Conservative Party and other organisations says that it has no plans to raise capital of its own when it lists on the Alternative Investment Market on Wednesday. The Weather Lottery says it is aiming only to raise its profile and enlarge its client base.
Advertisement
Reit disquiet
Only one in six property companies plans to form a real estate investment trust (Reit) when Reits come in next year, a study by Eversheds, the law firm, says. It found that 74 per cent of directors and senior managers of property companies are unhappy that Reit law limits shareholders to a 10 per cent stake.
Swiss Re life fund
Swiss Re is reported to have approached Prudential with a £5 billion offer to buy part of the life insurer’s business. Swiss Re is thought to have contacted Mark Tucker, the Pru chief executive, about buying the company’s closed life fund, which contains thousands of existing policies but is not taking new business.