Family/family office deals, family business IPO…and Spain’s oldest family business moves HQ

Family deals

Richard Branson has participated in a Series E funding round for a UK Fintech group called TransferWise. The round raised a wapping $280 million. Branson has already backed the group in earlier rounds.

Wadhawan Global Capital, an Indian asset management group owned by the Wadhawan family, has backed a UK startup called CommuterClub. Wadhawan invested £2.3 million with one other investor in the Series B round.

Goldbell Group, a Singaporean family business controlled by the Chua family and involved in the leasing and distribution of industrial vehicles, has helped seed a traffic management startup called Waycare. Goldbell was part of a team of six investors backing the group with $2.3 million.

Jan Scholt, the CEO of a Dutch family business called Scholt Energy Control, has invested €500,000 in a Dutch electric car startup called Amber. The deal comes almost a year after Scholt Energy Control sold a majority stake to a private equity group called Waterland Private Equity Investments.

Private equity and family businesses investing

Falcon Transport Company, a Youngstown, Ohio, truck transport group, has been acquired by Los Angeles-based private equity firm, CounterPoint Capital Partners. Founded in 1903, Falcon has been family owned and operated for four generations. Terms of the deal weren’t disclosed.

Family-owned India pharmaceutical company Mankind Pharma, is exploring selling a minority stake, according to reports in the Indian press. The Juneja family controls an 89% stake in Mankind, which has a valuation around $3 billion, according to the reports.

Family business IPO

Mahindra Logistics, a subsidiary of one of India’s biggest family businesses, the Mahindra Group, launched its initial public offering this week. Reports say the share listing was oversubscribed by two times. Mahindra Logistics was set up in 2007 and is among the 151 subsidiaries of Mahindra Group, which is owned and run by the Mahindra family. The group will retain a majority stake in the logistics business.

Codorníu moves HQ

Codorníu, which is one of the two oldest family businesses in Spain, has moved its headquarters to La Rioja from Catalonia. The famous sparkling winemaker says the move was due to the recent political instability in Catalonia. “The board of directors of Unideco SA, the holding company of the Codorníu Raventós group, has decided to move its headquarters from Sant Sadurní d’Anoia (Barcelona) to Haro (La Rioja),” say the reports.