Last night (12th Nov 2009), Manchester hosted the Insider Dealmakers Awards 2009, which I could not attend due to clashing with Northern StartUp 2.0 – Managing Growth event I hosted. Below is a list of the winners taken from Insidernews without any amendment.
Daisy scoops Deal of the Year
The reverse takeover and AIM flotation of Nelson-based Daisy Communications was last night named Deal of the Year at the Insider Dealmakers Awards 2009 held at Manchester Central. The Lancashire company also took home the AIM Deal of the Year award for the £204m reverse takeover of Freedom4 Group in July. Corporate development director Steve Smith said the deal has enabled it to continue to eat into BT’s share of the telecoms market. “This award has been given for the float; but that has enabled us to go on and do four more deals, which have really enabled us to establish a platform and move ahead of the competition,” he said. “There is room for someone to become a competitor of BT and I think that’s us.” Also shortlisted for the Deal of the Year award was the management buyout of Air Energi; the sale of Garic to Bibby; Inflexion’s exit of Viking Moorings; and the management buyout of Formation Group. The award was sponsored by The Co-operative Bank.
Dealmaker of the Year
Winner Jonathan Boyers, KPMG
Shortlisted Jonathan Boyers, KPMG; Nick Davenport, Turner Parkinson; Paul Stringer, Cowgill Holloway; Andy Westbrook, Deloitte
The highly-coveted Dealmaker of the Year award is given to the corporate finance professional that has made the biggest impression on the community over the past year. Boyers has acted on number of deals, including the disposal of Pilkington France SAS and Pilkington (Schweiz) AG by Japanese giant Nippon Sheet Glass. He also advised the vendor on the sale of Lancashire-based security business Legion Group to AIM-quoted rival SectorGuard for £1.
Sponsored by Watson Moore
Turnaround Deal of the Year
Winner Styles & Wood – refinancing
Shortlisted Styles & Wood – refinancing; Focus DIY – company voluntary arrangement; Canterbury – acquired by JD Sports
Styles and Wood announced the bold plans in May, which involved raising £34.91m through share placings and debt for equity swaps. Chief executive Ivan McKeever said the move would provide the company with the funds to secure its position.
Sponsored by KBC Business Capital
New Technology Deal of the Year
Winner DXS – sale to Qiagen
Shortlisted Ascribe – public to private deal; Nanoco – reverse takeover; DXS – sale to Qiagen
Insider is always excited about technology deals and new technologies that can change how we live and work. This deal saw Manchester pharmaceuticals business DxS sold to European buyer Qiagen. The investment syndicate led by NVM Private Equity achieved a record return from the sale.
Sponsored by Citypress
Fund of the Year
Winner YFM Group – North West Business Investment Scheme
Shortlisted YFM Group – North West Business Investment Scheme; Enterprise Ventures – for Rising Stars Technology Fund; Alliance Fund Managers – Merseyside Special Investment Fund
The winning fund was launched in April 2003 to meet a need identified by the North West Regional Development Agency for a flexible fund to invest in high-growth businesses across the North West. It has had an exceptionally good year, achieving good returns for businesses like DxS.
Sponsored by North West Regional Development Agency
AIM Deal of the Year
Winner Daisy Communications
Shortlisted Formation Group – acquisition of divisions by Gresham; Nanoco – reverse takeover to achieve listing; Daisy Communications – flotation; Ascribe Software – public to private
Insider expected a quiet year for AIM deals, but there have been companies leaving the market as well as floating. Daisy’s audacious move to consolidate the telecoms reseller market marks an incredible run by the Nelson-based company.
Sponsored by WH Ireland
Small Deal of the Year
Winner Terraconsult
Shortlisted Individual Restaurant Company – fundraising; The Hut – acquisition of the assets of Zavvi; Terraconsult – management buyout
This deal, brokered by Nick Hulme Corporate Finance, had some complex issues to resolve despite being at the smaller end of the market. It saw a young quartet of shareholders to take over this Warrington-based environmental consultancy.
Sponsored by Handlesbanken
Private Equity Team of the Year
Winner LDC
Shortlisted LDC, Endless, ECI Partners, Gresham Private Equity, Inflexion Private Equity, Zeus Private Equity
Despite the tough market, LDC has continued buying, selling and backing businesses. In the North West, it has worked on the £20m management buyout (MBO) of Ansa Holdings and Independent Inspection Holdings from parent company Mavinwood, and backed the £5.9m MBO of Manchester-based retailer Modelzone.
Sponsored by Cobbetts
Banking Team of the Year
Winner Yorkshire Bank
Shortlisted The Co-operative Bank, Yorkshire Bank, Lloyds TSB, The Royal Bank of Scotland
It’s been easy to knock the banks, but this award recognises the solid teams of bankers and deal doers that exist in the region. Yorkshire Bank has backed such buyouts as ANSA Holdings, provided funding for marine services provider James Fisher and Sons, and arranged the debt for the buyout of health software group Ascribe.
Sponsored by MC2
Corporate Finance Advisory Team of the Year
Winner Cowgill Holloway
Shortlisted Clearwater Corporate Finance, KPMG, Deloitte, Rickitt Mitchell, Cowgill Holloway
Cowgill Holloway was one of the big winners at Insider’s Lancashire Dealamakers Awards and has continued that success at the North West ceremony. The firm really caught the eye with its work on the sale of Bury construction services business Garic to Liverpool-based Bibby Line Group.
Sponsored by Venture Finance
Corporate Law Firm of the Year
Winner Turner Parkinson
Shortlisted Addleshaw Goddard, DLA Piper, Cobbetts, Turner Parkinson, Eversheds
Nick Davenport’s team at Turner Parkinson have quietly built a reputation as fleet of foot players in the legal market and have also done well to launch a new online service called TP Deals, a weekly email update detailing new opportunities, which is sent to more than 4,000 business owners and professionals.
Sponsored by Merrill DataSite
Asset-Based Lender of the Year
Winner KBC Business Capital
Shortlisted Barclays, Lloyds TSB Commercial Finance, KBC Business Capital, Venture Finance
At a time when banks are demanding the toughest of guarantees, KBC regional director Mark Shackleton and his team have been active in the market this year. The firm provided an £8.8m asset finance line to North Wales firelighter and barbeque ignition product manufacturer Tiger Tim Products, and a £3.5m facility to Manchester-based distributor of kitchens and white goods Appliance 365.
Sponsored by Manchester Central
Transaction Services Team of the Year
Winner Deloitte
Shortlisted PKF, Deloitte, PricewaterhouseCoopers, KPMG
Richard Bell’s 14-strong transaction services team at Deloitte has completed 11 transactions in the past 12 months, with a total deal value of £2.1bn. Completed transactions include the £10m acquisition of NGSS by NCC Group, and the £1.6bn acquisition of Somerfield by the Co-operative Group.
Sponsored by Centric Commercial Finance
