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• Lion poised to take frozen-food maker Picard Surgeles 26 Jul 2010. Source: AltAssets. London’s Lion Capital is close to taking control of French frozen food business Picard Surgeles in a deal that could return €1.5bn to current owner BC Partners.

• Cerenis raises €40m for development of "good cholesterol" therapeutics 26 Jul 2010. Source: AltAssets. Cerenis Therapeutics, a French biopharmaceutical company that develops "good cholesterol" to treat cardiovascular ailments, has raised €40m in Series C financing and appointed the former CEO of pharmaceuticals giant GlaxoSmithKline to its board.

• PAI Partners considers spooning out Yoplait stake 21 Jul 2010. Source: AltAssets. French private equity firm PAI Partners is considering selling its 50 per cent stake in yoghurt maker Yoplait, according to reports.

• AXA’s Kallista Energy bolts on wind assets 15 Jul 2010. Source: AltAssets. AXA Private Equity-owned French wind farm operator Kallista Energy has acquired Brittany-based Neoelectra Group’s wind assets for an undisclosed amount.

• Edmond de Rothschild leads €16m round in diabetes drug developer 09 Jul 2010. Source: AltAssets. Paris private equity firm Edmond de Rothschild Investment Partners has led a €16m Series A funding round in Poxel, a French biopharmaceutical company.

• AXA signs deal to take over Natixis private equity unit 06 Jul 2010. Source: AltAssets. The private equity arm of French insurance firm AXA has signed an agreement to take control of French bank Natixis’ in-house private equity activities for €534m.

• US union Teamsters warns Picard Surgeles over potential CD&R buy-out 05 Jul 2010. Source: AltAssets. Jim Hoffa, the labour union Teamsters general president, has issued an urgent warning to workers at French frozen-food manufacturer Picard Surgeles, which is being sized up by buy-out house Clayton, Dubilier & Rice.

• Gilde closes fourth fund on €800m 30 Jun 2010. Source: AltAssets. European private equity firm Gilde Buy Out Partners has closed its latest fund targeting French, Benelux and German-speaking regions on €800m.

• BNP Paribas switches PE FoF chief 16 Jun 2010. Source: AltAssets. Investment bank BNP Paribas’s private equity division has undergone a  reshuffle, with former CIO Jean-Marc Rivet-Fusil moved up the ranks to head the fund of funds team and Stéphanie Egoian filling his shoes.

• PAI makes first investment since fund cut 10 Jun 2010. Source: AltAssets. French private equity group PAI Partners looks to be bouncing back from cutting its most recent buy-out fund in half at the end of last year by agreeing to buy Cerba European Lab, a clinical pathology business.

• BNP Paribas strengthens private equity team 09 Jun 2010. Source: AltAssets. BNP Paribas Private Equity, a division of banking group BNP Paribas, has hired Alexandra Dupont, formerly with European mid-market rival Cognetas, and made her an investment director.

• Cytheris gets €12m to develop immune system therapies 07 Jun 2010. Source: AltAssets. Cytheris, a Parisian clinical stage biopharma company focused on the research and development of new therapies that enhance the immune systems of patients with chronic illnesses, has raised €12m in venture funding.

• Carlyle returns to European dealmaking 07 Jun 2010. Source: AltAssets. New York private equity firm Carlyle has made a return to European dealmaking with a bid for a majority stake in Giannoni France, a Brittany-based manufacturer of heat exchangers for boilers.

• BC Partners considers €1.5bn French frozen-food retailer exit 21 May 2010. Source: AltAssets. BC Partners is looking at putting Picard Surgeles, a French frozen-food retailer it acquired six years ago, up for sale for around €1.5bn, according to Bloomberg.

• AXA Private Equity acquires GO Voyages 18 May 2010. Source: AltAssets. France’s AXA Private Equity has agreed to acquire GO Voyages, an online air tickets retailer, for a reported €400m.

• Apax adds McKinsey veteran as it eyes expansion 12 May 2010. Source: AltAssets. Apax Partners has brought on the former worldwide managing director of McKinsey & Company and current non-executive director of beset oil giant BP, Ian Davis, as a senior adviser.

• Fondations Capital acquires Tarmac's French and Belgian building materials operations 05 May 2010. Source: AltAssets. French private equity firm Fondations Capital has acquired the French and Belgian building materials business of Tarmac, a subsidiary of global mining giant Anglo American.

• INSIDE Contactless secures €11m, acquires SMS company 04 May 2010. Source: AltAssets. INSIDE Contactless, a French producer of contactless secure transaction chips solutions, has received an additional injection of €11.2m series D financing.

• Cinven faces opposition from shareholder over buy-out bid 30 Apr 2010. Source: AltAssets. Cinven is facing opposition from a shareholder in Sperian Protection after the London-based private equity house submitted a bid for the French personal protective equipment maker, according to reports.

• Natixis Private Equity names CEO ahead of sale to AXA 28 Apr 2010. Source: AltAssets. Natixis has chosen Nicolas Homassel to head its private equity arm, as the French bank readies the sale of the division to AXA Private Equity.

• Investors plant €8m in medtech firm Implanet 26 Apr 2010. Source: AltAssets. French medtech and healthcare IT company Implanet has raised an additional €8m in venture capital, with new investor CM-CIC Private Equity bringing €4m to the table.

• Eurazeo launches €500m fund targeting French SMEs, makes €50m solar investment 26 Apr 2010. Source: AltAssets. French private equity firm Eurazeo has launched a €500m fund to make growth capital investments in small- and medium-sized businesses in the country over the next five years. The Eurazeo Croissance fund has already taken a stake in Fonroche, a French solar photovoltaic company.

• AXA Private Equity in massive secondaries push 22 Apr 2010. Source: AltAssets. The private equity arm of French insurance firm AXA has acquired $1.9bn worth of limited partnership interests from Bank of America, representing one of the biggest secondaries deals on record.