UK-based, Russian-backed TMT Investments has made an investment of USD350,000 in Graphicly, a self-service digital distribution resource site for indie publishers and publishing companies. Former investors in the company include TechStars, Mercury Fund, Dundee Venture Capital and others. The investment has been made despite a loss exceeding USD1.6 mln in 2012. Graphicly (www.graphicly.com) Graphicly is [...]

VTB Capital has acquired a minority stake – pegged at 25 per-cent plus one share – in Tricolor TV, Russia’s biggest satellite television operator. The investment amount is deduced to be in the range of between USD125 and USD175 mln, valuing the operator as as much as USD700 mln. The valuation is considerably lower than [...]

UK-based TMT Investments has acquired a 20 per cent stake (1 mln shares) in Adinch for an amount of USD1 mln. The target startup company deals in the space of mobile ad management and operates out of Delaware in the United States. Both companies were founded by Russian entrepreneurs: TMT by founders of RBC, and [...]

Intel and Greycroft Partners have jointly invested USD10 mln in Fortumo, an Estonian mobile payment solutions provider seeking growth investment. The target company was formerly owned in majority by parent company MobiSolutions, which will continue to remain a shareholder. As part of its major operations ramp-up, Fortumo has entered into independent  agreements with China Mobile [...]

Leading CEE and Turkey-focused investment company Mid Europa Partners has recently completed the sale of its telecom company Orange Austria to Hutchinson 3G Austria. Regulatory approvals were obtained in December 2012 after the announcement of the sale earlier that year. The transaction will bring in a strong third player in the Austrian telecom market that [...]

SBB and Telemach will join hands under the auspices of Mid Europa Partners to provide pay TV services to a market of over 20 million households in the former Yugoslav nations. Both companies have majority stakes that are either under management of Mid Europa or controlled by them. The merger of the two companies will [...]

Tempo Cagri Hizmetleri, a call center in Turkey, has received an investment from the duo of Globalturk Capital and Japanese investor Mitsui, valuing the company at under EUR 25 mln. The latter was introduced to the minority investment opportunity by Globalturk, which already invested through a minority option in Tempo in 2011. Baris Oney, founder [...]

Polish mobile games developer Tequila Mobile has raised nearly USD 500,000 (PLN 2 mln) in funding from SATUS Ventures and a SATUS-backed Polish seed fund called Accelerator AI NOT. The investment coincided with Tequila’s announcement about the launch of Tequila Games, a new studio dedicated to developing games. The core business, a gaming developers’ platform that [...]

As part of a business rationalization effort towards its telecom holdings across the globe, Amsterdam-based Russian telecommunications giant Vimpelcom has decided to sell many of its businesses in the Asian and African markets. The move is intended to enable a more focused approach to its mainstay markets such as Italy and Russia, which comprise about [...]

Bulgarian telecommunications carrier Vivacom has recently received a capital injection worth EUR 130 mln by a consortium of investors led by VTB Capital. Investors include Bromak EOOD, a domestic funding intermediary. The investment was instrumental in reducing Vivacom’s debt from EUR 1.7 bln to EUR 588 mln, and was achieved through a combination of debt [...]

Only a year after attracting a EUR 3 mln investment from the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), CallPoint New Europe Bulgaria is seeing the bank pull off a successful exit. The original investment not only helped fast expansion of the company’s facilities and business, but also aided in attracting an investment from Canada’s [...]

The Skype co-founders’ investment vehicle – Ambient Sound Investments (ASI) – and co-investing Estonian funds – Caplia Invest and the Estonian Development Fund – have executed a full exit from Modesat Communications. The three investment entities effected a 100 per cent sale of stake, some of which will be taken over by Xilinx, known for [...]

Falcon, which is controlled or under advisement by Mid Europa Partners, has recapitalized its investment stake in T-Mobile Czech Republic (TMCZ). The 39.23-percent stake has been syndicated with an additional CZK 875 mln (approx EUR 35 mln) to Volksbank. The total commitments that come under this facility are now valued at CZK 10 bln (approx [...]

Trivon, a Swiss provider of broadband services operating in Russia under the Virgin Connect banner, has garnered a commitment from the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) for a USD 30.5 million investment. The company will used the funds to support organic growth of its own networks as well as acquire smaller operators across Russia, [...]

The CapMan Russia-advised Norum II Fund has closed a sale on 100 percent stake in Tascom, a telecom service provider, to Mobile TeleSystems, Russia and the CIS’s top provider. The stake was bought by Mobile TeleSystems’ subsidiary, Moscow City Telephone Network. The sale marks CapMan Russia’s exit from Tascom eight years after the original investment [...]

German mobile ad start-up Madvertise has completed the acquisition of Turkish competitor Mobilike. In line with their objective of being a market leader in Europe, the acquisition puts the consolidated page impressions count at just under 2 billion, of which about 15 percent comes from Mobilike. Madvertise has used some of the recent $10 mln [...]

Europe’s top multimedia content payment system, Piano Media, has secured a EUR 2 mln round of Series B investment from 3TS Capital Partners, one of the big players in the CEE region investment game. The funding will be used by Piano to support resources for expansion, recruitment and marketing. Piano Media (www.pianomedia.eu) Piano Media is currently [...]

In what could turn out to be a nanotechnology-driven investment spree, RUSNANO this week led and closed a USD 79 mln round of investing in Quantenna Communications. The round was participated in by another new investor, Bright Capital. Other participants are all older investors: Sequoia Capital, DAG Ventures and Sigma Partners are among six other [...]

Post the Easter weekend, Polish telecom company Netia could be looking at share sales worth more than EUR 600 mln. Three PE majors have shown interest in purchasing the company’s shares, and are thought to be Bridgepoint, Innova Capital and Advent International. The news of the possible fund inflow pushed Netia to an 11-year high, to [...]

Leading Russian internet-centric VC firm Fast Lane Ventures has decided to sell its Shopping Live stake to Home Shopping Europe, a German company. Shopping Live was one of Fast Lane’s earliest and most successful portfolio companies to date, and marks Fast Lane’s second successful exit bid. Home Shopping Europe (www.hse24.de) Home Shopping Europe (HSE24)is a [...]