James Taylor

Falling return expectations could limit the number of attempted public-to-private deals in 2007, according to a new report.

3i’s listed infrastructure fund, which will float in March, hopes to raise up to £1.3 billion to invest in infrastructure assets in Europe, the US and India.

Charlie McCreevy, the European Union’s internal market commissioner, has leapt to the defence of the private equity and hedge fund industries, while criticising their public relations efforts.

Blackstone may look to sell or float Travelport, a holiday company it bought for £2.3 billion just eight months ago.

Enterprise, a UK maintenance group, has confirmed that it is in discussions with 3i about a revised 605p-per-share bid, a 5 percent increase on the buyout group’s original offer.

3i-backed Quadriga Capital Russia has sold off a 52 percent stake in JSC Morion to the banking arm of Gazprom.

Carlyle’s attempts to increase its footprint in Asia have suffered a further setback, after an independent committee voted to cancel its exclusive bidding arrangement with Taiwanese firm Adavanced Semiconductor Engineering.

Private equity firms are amongst the favourites to buy the education arm of Reed Elsevier, after the publishing company said it was putting the division up for sale.

Apollo Management now has the financing in place to launch its £1 billion bid for UK estate agency chain Countrywide.

Blackstone may look to sell or float Travelport, a holiday company it bought for £2.3 billion just eight months ago.