Mergers & Acquisitions 2000 - Company News Summary

Scottish Milk is planning to merge with the Axis farmers co-operative to create a new group called British Milk, which will have 18% of the milk market.
22-Dec-2000

FMW Corporate Risks has undergone a management buy-out from FMW Group for undisclosed terms.
22-Dec-2000

SP Engineering has been bought out of receivership by Caterpillar in a £10m deal, saving 400 jobs in Leicestershire, Lancashire and Nottingham.
22-Dec-2000

Abbeycrest has acquired Brown & Newirth, the designer and manufacturer of wedding rings, for £4.7m.
22-Dec-2000

Lasmo, the oil exploration company, has accepted a £2.7bn takeover offer from Eni of Italy, which beats a rival bid from Amerada Hess of the US.
22-Dec-2000

Vodafone is to acquire the Eircell mobile phone subsidiary of Eircom of Ireland for £2.6bn.
22-Dec-2000

PowerGen has sold the Rye House power station in Hertfordshire to Scottish Power for £220m.
22-Dec-2000

United Utilities is to buy the non-regulated water supply and waste water operations of Hyder from Western Power Distribution for £75m, allowing WPD to focus on Hyder's power business.
22-Dec-2000

Rexam is to sell its Release coated films and papers business to Lohja of Finland for £85m, and the proceeds will be used to reduce debt.
22-Dec-2000

Morgan Stanley Dean Witter is to buy Quilter, the fund manager, for £172m, and is planning to expand the business by adding new locations across the UK.
22-Dec-2000

Fairview, the housebuilder, is set to approve a £307m management buy-out.
22-Dec-2000

Bradford Particle Design, the developer of new techniques to produce powdered pharmaceuticals, is to be acquired by Inhale Therapeutic Systems of the US for £137m.
22-Dec-2000

Amaze is to acquire Y2K Medien, the German internet consultancy, for £5m.
22-Dec-2000

Delancey Estates is to sell its Milner Estates property consultancy business to a new joint venture created with its management for £28m.
22-Dec-2000

Hepworth, the heating and building products group, is to be acquired by Vaillant of Germany for £692m, and Vaillant is expected to dispose of the building products division for about £150m.
22-Dec-2000

Marconi is to sell Woods Air Movement to Compass Capital Partners for £53m, and has also announced the acquisition of the Telit Networks mobile radio business in Italy for £11m.
22-Dec-2000

Trent Concrete has acquired Mouldform of Loughborough and Empire Moulds of Leicester, which will add 40 staff and £1m turnover to its pre-cast concrete products business.
21-Dec-2000

Enic is planning to acquire Sporting Index, the spread betting company, for £50m, and is also negotiating the purchase of a 27% stake in Tottenham Hotspur.
21-Dec-2000

First Group has bought Hertz Group, the Canadian school bus operator, for £11m.
21-Dec-2000

CJ Pearce, the Telford-based civil engineering company, has been acquired by Jupiter II of Wolverhampton for £4m.
21-Dec-2000

Diageo and Pernod Ricard have agreed to acquire the spirits business of Seagram for £5.54bn, and now plan to sell off the Oddbins off-licence chain and a number of smaller Seagram brands.
20-Dec-2000

Pennon has sold TJ Brent, the Bodmin-based construction business, to a management buy-out.
20-Dec-2000

RMC has sold its RMC Industrial Minerals lime business to Lhoist of Belgium, in order to focus on concrete, cement and aggregates.
20-Dec-2000

Caradon is to acquire the fire and intrusion detection business of Chloride Group for £11m.
19-Dec-2000

Peel Hunt, the stockbroking and corporate finance house, is to be acquired by KBC Bank of Belgium for £218m.
19-Dec-2000

Perkins Foods, the manufacturer of chilled and frozen convenience foods, is to undergo a £230m management buy-out with the backing of ABN Amro.
19-Dec-2000

VNU is to acquire ACNielsen, the US marketing and media information company, for £1.5bn.
19-Dec-2000

Co-op Travel has bought the Salford-based Travelogue chain of travel agents for undisclosed terms.
18-Dec-2000

Celsis is to acquire Biotec Laboratories, the developer of a new test for TB, in order to move into the market for rapid healthcare diagnostics.
18-Dec-2000

City Technology has bought Marconi Applied Technology, the Chelmsford-based gas sensors business, for £4.3m and is transferring the work to its Portsmouth site.
18-Dec-2000

Rentokil Initial has sold its Initial GWS mobile crane business to Ainscough for about £10m, which is expected to lead to the closure of the GWS head office in Stockton.
18-Dec-2000

Coats Viyella is to acquire the industrial sewing thread operation of Dollfus Mieg of France for undisclosed terms.
18-Dec-2000

Laporte, the speciality chemicals company, has accepted a £1.36bn takeover bid from Degussa-Huls of Germany, which is expected to lead to the loss of some of the 30 jobs at Laporte's head office.
18-Dec-2000

Robert Fleming Insurance Brokers has undergone a management buy-out from Chase Manhattan of the US for undisclosed terms.
18-Dec-2000

Virgin Active is to acquire the 85-strong chain of Health & Racquet Clubs of South Africa from the liquidators of LeisureNet for £28m.
18-Dec-2000

American Express is to acquire Sharepeople Group for £30m, and the online brokerage will be named American Express Sharepeople.
18-Dec-2000

William Baird is negotiating a £88m management buy-out with the support of venture capital group Alchemy Partners.
15-Dec-2000

Bodycote International is to acquire Lindberg, the US heat treatment company, for £70m.
15-Dec-2000

Tilbury Douglas is to acquire Building & Property, the facilities management company that was previously part of the government's Property Services Agency, for £75m.
15-Dec-2000

Isoft has acquired ACT Medisys, the healthcare information systems company with 170 staff in Birmingham, Belper and Newbury, for £25m.
15-Dec-2000

Arriva has bought the WBC bus operations in High Wycombe from Go-Ahead for £5m.
15-Dec-2000

Allied Domecq is to acquire two leading champagne houses - Perrier Jouet and GH Mumm - for £348m, and has also confirmed that it will not bid for Seagram's wine and spirits business.
14-Dec-2000

Kingspan is acquiring Tate Global, the US manufacturer of raised access flooring, for up to £83m.
14-Dec-2000

EPO.com, the online share distribution company, has been acquired by EO of Sweden for undisclosed terms.
14-Dec-2000

Rayner Food, the flavourings and condiments manufacturer, has undergone a £40m management buy-out.
14-Dec-2000

WPP has acquired Premiere Group Holdings, the sports marketing consultancy, for undisclosed terms.
14-Dec-2000

Oneview.net, the internet services company, is being sold by Systems Union to a management buy-out for a nominal sum.
14-Dec-2000

Northpoint, the Manchester-based manufacturer of anti-corrosion coatings, has undergone a £2.7m management buy-out.
13-Dec-2000

Tactica Solutions is merging with Astron to create a combined printing operation with 700 staff in Huntingdon, Aylesbury and Edinburgh, casting doubt on the future of 80 jobs at Tactica's Norwich headquarters.
13-Dec-2000

Aupec, the petroleum economics and benchmarking consultancy created at Aberdeen University, has undergone a management buy-out.
13-Dec-2000

Aerospace Systems & Technologies is being bought out of receivership by Celtic Aerospace Ventures, saving 200 jobs in Consett.
13-Dec-2000

Torex is to acquire Laufenberg, the German supplier of healthcare information systems, for £40m, funded by a £27m rights issue.
13-Dec-2000

Perry Group has sold its Perry Contract Hire vehicle rental business to First National Vehicle Contracts for £1.3m, and the proceeds will be used to expand its nationwide accident repair business.
12-Dec-2000

Finelist has sold its Motor World chain of 200 car parts stores to management, and Finelist's receivers hope to announce further disposals over the next few weeks.
12-Dec-2000

ABCO Engineering Hydraulics has bought the franchise and assets of Pirtek Lincolnshire, the on-site hose replacement specialist, for undisclosed terms.
12-Dec-2000

Lovells is to merge with Ekelmans Den Hollander of the Netherlands to create a combined law firm with 280 partners and 1,200 lawyers.
12-Dec-2000

Imperial Tobacco has bought the Mayfair cigarette vending business from TM Group for £38m.
12-Dec-2000

Shire Pharmaceuticals is to acquire BioChem Pharma of Canada for £2.7bn, in order to broaden its portfolio of speciality pharmaceutical products.
12-Dec-2000

Hymatic, the cryogenics and aerospace engineer, has undergone a £53m management buy-out.
12-Dec-2000

Kelda has sold ALcontrol Laboratories, the environment and food testing business, to private equity group Bridgepoint Capital for £70m.
12-Dec-2000

Carlton Communications has sold its Technicolor video and film processing business to Thomson Multimedia of France, in a £1.4bn deal that will also give Carlton a 5.5% stake in Thomson.
12-Dec-2000

McLeod Russel is to acquire Luwa, the manufacturer of filters for ultra-clean applications, from Zellweger of Switzerland for £18m.
12-Dec-2000

Halliday Catering Services is to merge with Wilson Storey to create a leading independent contract catering business called Wilson Storey Halliday Group.
11-Dec-2000

Inter Link Foods is to acquire Hepworth & Whittles, the Dewsbury-based company that trades as Newton House Bakeries, for £4m.
08-Dec-2000

Royal Brierley Crystal, the glassmaker, is being bought out of receivership by a management team for undisclosed terms.
08-Dec-2000

Sports Resource Group has expanded its sports management business by acquiring three companies for £37m - Fast Track, Wind Group and ISM.
08-Dec-2000

Carclo has acquired Alan Group, the Horsham-based precision tooling and moulding company, for £6.9m.
07-Dec-2000

Mentmore Abbey is to acquire Datavault UK, the records management company, through its Iron Mountain Europe joint venture, and the deal will be funded by a £16m share placing.
07-Dec-2000

RMC is to sell its Great Mills chain of 98 DIY stores to Focus Do It All for £285m, in order to focus on cement, concrete and aggregates.
07-Dec-2000

Freeserve, the internet service provider 80% owned by Dixons, has been acquired by the Wanadoo division of France Telecom for £1.6bn.
07-Dec-2000

Aberdeen Asset Management is to acquire Themis Investment Management from Charterhouse for £3.7m.
06-Dec-2000

Wyko is to acquire Lilleshall, the distributor of fasteners, for about £20m.
06-Dec-2000

ICI has sold three commodity chemicals businesses - Klea, Chlor-Chemicals and Crosfield - to Ineos of Belgium for £325m, which completes its transformation into a speciality chemicals group.
06-Dec-2000

Bank of Scotland is to acquire ICC Bank from the Irish government for about £210m, while the TSB state-owned bank is being acquired by Irish Life & Permanent for £263m.
06-Dec-2000

Thomas Cook is being sold by Carlson of the US to C&N Touristic of Germany for £550m, which will give C&N access to the UK package holiday market.
06-Dec-2000

Artisan is to acquire EC Ripon, the housebuilder, from Ennstone for £10m.
06-Dec-2000

Brooks Service Group, the linen rental and services company, is to undergo a £26m management buy-out.
06-Dec-2000

Skillsgroup has sold its lossmaking Acuma hardware business to a management team for £4.5m.
05-Dec-2000

Eclectic Group, the Glasgow-based IT consultancy, has been sold by Reading-based Druid Systems to a management team for undisclosed terms.
05-Dec-2000

Coats Viyella has sold its contract clothing business to management for £12m, thereby preventing the lossmaking division from being closed with the loss of 3,000 jobs.
05-Dec-2000

Cobham is to acquire an electronic fuel systems business from BAe Systems for £64m, in order to expand its flight refuelling subsidiary.
05-Dec-2000

First Choice has acquired Sun Holidays, a chain of 36 travel agencies in Canada.
05-Dec-2000

Kewill Systems has sold its enterprise resource planning software unit to K3 for £0.1m, as part of a strategy to focus on internet-enabled shipment-tracking software.
04-Dec-2000

William Baird is selling its BMB menswear business to a management team for £19m.
04-Dec-2000

Associated British Ports has sold Red Runnel, its Southampton-based ferry business, to a subsidiary of investment bank JP Morgan for £71m.
04-Dec-2000

Glen Dimplex has agreed to acquire Stoves, the Preston-based cooker manufacturer, for £12m.
04-Dec-2000

Burford, the property company, is to be taken private in a £500m deal being agreed with a management team.
04-Dec-2000

Arriva has entered the Portuguese bus market through the acquisition of Ami-Transportes, Joao Carlos Soares & Pilhos and Viaco Costa Lino.
01-Dec-2000

Crown Sports is to acquire Dragons Health Clubs for £27m, and has also announced plans to raise £30m in a share placing.
01-Dec-2000

Dixon Motors has acquired Motorsport Dealers International, the operator of the Motorcycle City chain of retail outlets, for £8m.
01-Dec-2000

Hewden Stuart, the construction equipment hire group, is to be acquired by Finning International of Canada for £322m.
30-Nov-2000

Haley Somerset, the quantity surveyor, has merged with Ventris Associates of Australia.
30-Nov-2000

Ledwood Construction has been bought out of receivership by a management team, safeguarding more than 100 jobs, and the new company will be called Ledwood Mechanical Engineering.
29-Nov-2000

Nomura International is to acquire Hyder Business Services, the supplier of business process outsourcing services to local authorities, from Hyder for £100m.
29-Nov-2000

Christian Salvesen is to acquire Darfeuille Associes, the French industrial logistics company, for up to £36m, and is now seeking acquisitions in Italy and the Benelux region.
29-Nov-2000

Firststake has acquired Bowman International, the North American betting operation, for £12m.
28-Nov-2000

Tate & Lyle has sold Universal Milling Technology, its milling equipment division, to Andritz of Austria for £5m.
28-Nov-2000

Pillar Property has launched a £373m takeover offer for Wates City of London.
27-Nov-2000

Cable & Wireless has acquired ML Integration, the integrator of voice and data networks, for undisclosed terms.
27-Nov-2000

Aram Resources, the quarry operator, has been acquired by Colas, a subsidiary of the French Bouyges group, for £13m.
27-Nov-2000

Cordiant Communications is to acquire 80% of InterCom Management, the German marketing consultancy, for up to £23m.
27-Nov-2000

Ovum is expanding its technology consultancy business with the acquisition of Richard Holway for undisclosed terms.
27-Nov-2000

Newmond has completed the acquisition of Baxi Holdings to create a combined building products business with 7,500 employees.
27-Nov-2000

Ulster Television is to acquire County Media, the Irish radio broadcaster based in Cork, for £23m.
24-Nov-2000

Bernard Matthews, the poultry products group, has agreed terms for a £232m management buy-out.
24-Nov-2000

Gladstone is to acquire DLG, the Irish company that adapts web sites to different languages, for £4m.
24-Nov-2000

RRG Group, the Manchester-based Toyota and Lexus car dealership, has been acquired by Marubeni Corporation of Japan for more than £15m.
23-Nov-2000

Delta is planning to sell the holding company of its United Power electrical equipment business to Danaher of the US for £70m.
23-Nov-2000

IQE has acquired Wafer Technology of Milton Keynes for £41m, in order to secure its supply of wafers for the semiconductor industry.
23-Nov-2000

Square Mile, the financial public relations firm, is to be acquired by BSMG Worldwide of the US for undisclosed terms.
23-Nov-2000

Logica is acquiring Esis and Energy Pool Funds Administration from National Grid for £38m.
22-Nov-2000

Intec Telecom Systems is to acquire Computer Generation, the US billing software company, for £172m, funded by a £180m share offer.
22-Nov-2000

United News & Media is to sell Express Newspapers to Northern & Shell, in a £125m deal that includes the Daily Express, Sunday Express, Daily Star and a share in the Westferry joint venture.
22-Nov-2000

Scottish & Newcastle is to sell its Center Parcs holiday business to a joint venture of DB Capital Partners and Pierre & Vacances of France for £670m, but the three UK sites will be wholly owned by DB.
22-Nov-2000

Lex Service has sold the Lex Autosales network of used car sales centres to Mercedes-Benz for £18m, which will involve the transfer of seven sites and 176 staff.
21-Nov-2000

Fraser Williams Pharma Systems, the pharmaceutical software company, has undergone a £7m management buy-out, and plans to move into larger premises in Birmingham soon.
21-Nov-2000

Invensys has acquired Meterpoint Data Services, the provider of meter reading services, from Seeboard for £37m.
21-Nov-2000

Company-Net, the Edinburgh-based software house, has undergone a £4m management buy-out, and is now looking to expand its 30-strong workforce.
20-Nov-2000

Frederick Cooper has sold its Latham hinge and locks business in Wolverhampton to Basta of Ireland for £1.5m.
17-Nov-2000

McDonald Engineering has been bought out of receivership by Europe Steelcraft of Sheffield, saving about 100 jobs.
17-Nov-2000

Hydra Tools International's mining division has been bought out of receivership by a management team for undisclosed terms.
17-Nov-2000

Bowen Travel has bought the travel division of the Appleby's holiday firm, which operates 115 buses in Lincolnshire and Yorkshire.
17-Nov-2000

Spirent has acquired Hekimian Laboratories, the US network monitoring company, for £1.1bn.
17-Nov-2000

Patsystems has expanded its Japanese business with the £1.5m acquisition of ENS, a provider of software to commodity exchanges.
17-Nov-2000

Chubb is to acquire BBR Security, the South African provider of electronic security services, for £51m.
17-Nov-2000

Guardian Media Group has acquired TNT and Southern Cross, the free magazines for expatriates, for £40m, in order to expand its Trader Media joint venture with BC Partners.
17-Nov-2000

PNC Telecom is acquiring Mobilexpo, the mobile phone dealership, for up to £6.5m, and Pensiv Technologies for £0.5m.
17-Nov-2000

Newsham Hybrid Pigs has been bought out of receivership by two Yorkshire meat companies - JSR Farms and Wild Pork - saving about 50 jobs.
16-Nov-2000

Jardine Lloyd Thompson has acquired Abbey National Benefit Consultants for £22m, as part of a strategy to expand its pensions administration business.
16-Nov-2000

BBA has acquired Aircraft Service International Group, the US aviation services company based in Florida, for £106m.
16-Nov-2000

Peter Black, the footwear and cosmetics group, has agreed terms for a £223m management buy-out.
16-Nov-2000

Oriel Leisure has been acquired by Premier Hotels, the budget hotel company, for £42m.
16-Nov-2000

Laird has sold its LAC non-sealing automotive components business to Trelleborg of Sweden for £102m.
16-Nov-2000

Esporta has bought nine health clubs from Healthland International, the South Africa operator that is being wound up, in a £2.1m deal.
16-Nov-2000

Amey has sold its Donelon tunnelling business to Amalgamated Construction for undisclosed terms, in order to focus on facilities management.
16-Nov-2000

Classic Couverture, the Speke-based chocolate manufacturer with 50 employees, has been acquired by Billington for undisclosed terms.
15-Nov-2000

Just Group has acquired MediaKey, the publishing company, for £7.3m, and has also announced plans to raise £14m in a share placing in order to fund the expansion of its US business.
15-Nov-2000

Abacus Polar has acquired Silicon Concepts, the distributor of programmable logic devices, for £14m, as part of an ongoing strategy to expand its product range.
15-Nov-2000

IMI has sold its Australian plumbing and heating operations to GSA Group for £9m.
14-Nov-2000

Geest has acquired Isleport Foods, the Somerset-based cakes supplier, for under £5m.
13-Nov-2000

SP Systems, the supplier of composite materials to the marine, wind energy and automotive markets, has been sold by Zoltek of the US to a management buy-out for £50m.
13-Nov-2000

Moneyextra has sold its online consumer financial services business to Bristol & West for £26m, and has also announced plans to acquire Crisp Computing for £29m, focus on the supply of e-commerce solutions and change its name to Exchange FS.
13-Nov-2000

NSB Retail Systems is to acquire STS, the Canadian retail software company, for £272m, partly funded by a £109m rights issue.
13-Nov-2000

Hazlewood Foods has agreed to a £258m takeover offer from Greencore of Ireland, and Greencore expects to raise £120m from disposals and to achieve £7m of cost savings from combining the businesses.
13-Nov-2000

Brammer is to acquire a 51% stake in Handel Freudenberg, the German industrial components distributor, for £15m, and has an option to buy the remaining stake in 2003.
13-Nov-2000

Aon has acquired Needham Johnson, the Wimbledon-based broker that specialises in fine art and antiques, for undisclosed terms.
10-Nov-2000

Premier Fresh Foods, the poultry processing company that employs 2,000 workers in the North Lincolnshire region, has been acquired by 2 Sisters Foods of Smethwick for undisclosed terms.
10-Nov-2000

Sanderson Kayser, the Sheffield-based tool and die works, is being sold by Timken of the US to a management buy-in team, and the business will be renamed Sanderson Special Steels.
10-Nov-2000

Ellis & Everard, the chemicals distributor, is to accept a £310m takeover bid from Vopak of the Netherlands, although a rival bid could still be launched by another company.
10-Nov-2000

CRH has acquired Jura Group, the Swiss producer of cement and ready-mix concrete, for £255m.
10-Nov-2000

Chime Communications has expanded its advertising and public relations business with the acquisition of three agencies - Roose Holdings for £14m, Quentin Bell Organisation for £8.4m and Girardot Partners for £2.1m.
10-Nov-2000

Travelex has acquired Thomas Cook's financial services division for £440m, in order to expand its foreign exchange business with an additional 300 retail outlets.
09-Nov-2000

Sarantel, the developer of low-radiation mobile phone antennae, is to undergo a management buy-out, having raised £6m of venture capital funding.
09-Nov-2000

Epwin has acquired Swish Building Products, the Tamworth-based manufacturer of cellular foam products that employs over 200 people, from Newmond.
09-Nov-2000

Selwood has acquired Pyramid Plant Hire in order to gain nine additional branches in the Midlands.
09-Nov-2000

Sherwood International has acquired Promark Software, the supplier of software to the insurance industry, for £3.9m.
08-Nov-2000

Connaught, the facilities management group, has acquired Retail Building Services of Somerset for £2m.
08-Nov-2000

Ballast has acquired Homecare Contracts Scotland, the Edinburgh-based facilities management company with annual turnover of £3m.
08-Nov-2000

Leagas Delaney, the advertising agency, is being acquired by Envoy Communications of Canada for up to £59m.
07-Nov-2000

Dresdner Kleinwort Benson is to acquire Elderstreet Investments for undisclosed terms, and will help the venture capital operator expand into continental Europe by setting up a team in Germany.
07-Nov-2000

Lasmo, the oil exploration and production company, has received a £2.4bn takeover offer from Amerada Hess of the US, which is expected to lead to the loss of 150 jobs from the combined group's worldwide workforce.
07-Nov-2000

Oriental Restaurant Group has been acquired by Noble House Leisure for £14m, and is expected to continue with plans to open up to 80 oriental themed bars and restaurants.
07-Nov-2000

AFM Lighting has secured £6m of venture capital to fund the acquisition of Mr Lighting of London, in order to become a leading supplier of broadcast media facilities.
07-Nov-2000

Thrings & Long, the Bath-based law firm, has merged with Townsends of Swindon to create an enlarged legal resource for commercial and private clients in the South and South West.
06-Nov-2000

ABM, the Widnes-based manufacturing process automation company, has acquired Control Systems & Services for undisclosed terms.
06-Nov-2000

Matthew Clark has acquired Forth Wines, in order to expand its wine wholesaling business in Scotland.
06-Nov-2000

Incepta has acquired Hudson Technology, the US technology consultancy, for £17m.
06-Nov-2000

Welsh Water is to be acquired by a consortium of companies and local authorities operating under the name of Glas Cymru Cyfyngedig in a £2.4bn deal.
06-Nov-2000

Powell Duffryn, the ports and engineering group, is to be acquired by Nikko for £507m, and the Japanese broking house is expected to sell off the engineering operations in order to focus on ports and shipping.
06-Nov-2000

Clifford Chance has announced plans to merge with Grimaldi e Associati, the Italian law firm.
06-Nov-2000

Edwards Geldard of Cardiff has merged with Eking Manning of the East Midlands to create a combined law firm with 40 partners and 300 staff.
03-Nov-2000

Telewest has acquired Eurobell, the supplier of cable TV in the south of England, from Deutsche Telekom for up to £280m.
03-Nov-2000

Barclays Private Equity has acquired CRP, the Lancashire-based manufacturer of subsea cable equipment, in a £120m deal.
03-Nov-2000

Land Securities has acquired Trillium, the property outsourcing company, in a £330m deal, in order to improve its tenant-servicing capability.
03-Nov-2000

Granada Compass has acquired Beaver Foods, the Canadian contract caterer, for £67m.
03-Nov-2000

Capita has bought the remaining 74% of Eastgate, the supplier of outsourcing services to the insurance industry, for £14m.
03-Nov-2000

Smith & Nephew is buying an advanced woundcare business from Beiersdorf for £30m, and is also forming a joint venture with the German company for the supply of bandages and castings.
03-Nov-2000

C Spencer, the civil engineering contractor, has acquired Northern Electrical Systems of Sheffield for undisclosed terms.
03-Nov-2000

Amec has acquired Ogden Environmental & Energy Services for £11m, which will expand its geotechnical engineering operations in the US.
03-Nov-2000

OyezStraker is to acquire Stat-Plus, the distributor of office supplies, for £18m.
03-Nov-2000

Integrated Dental Holdings has acquired Whitecross Dental Care for undisclosed terms, to create a combined group with 134 dental practices.
03-Nov-2000

IMS has acquired London-based Nobel Communications for £5m and Gateshead-based Telecom for £0.5m, as part of a strategy to establish a national telecoms network.
02-Nov-2000

Hawes Creamery has acquired North Yorkshire cheese-maker Fountain Dairy Products, in order to increase capacity for the production of its Wensleydale cheese.
02-Nov-2000

Silentnight has acquired Ducal, the Andover-based wooden furniture manufacturer, for £15m.
02-Nov-2000

Cadbury Schweppes has acquired Wuxi-Leaf, the Chinese chewing gum company, for £1.6m, and will combine the distribution network with its chocolate business.
02-Nov-2000

CGNU is to take a £448m charge against the disposal of Marlborough Underwriting Agency to Berkshire Hathaway, in order to get out of its Lloyd's insurance business.
02-Nov-2000

Centrica is to acquire Avalanche Energy, the Canadian oil and gas explorer, for £115m, as part of a strategy to expand its customer base in North America.
02-Nov-2000

Allen has acquired the assets of New Mills Tools Hire Company, through its Speedy Hire Centres division, for £0.2m, in order to increase coverage in the north west.
01-Nov-2000

Nuffield Press of Abingdon has undergone a management buy-out, with HSBC Ventures providing finance of £0.9m.
01-Nov-2000

Close Brothers is acquiring 80% of Olim, the fund management company, for £10m, and has also announced plans to buy Braemar Finance.
01-Nov-2000

Unilever has sold its Elizabeth Arden perfume and skincare business to FFI Fragrances of the US for £155m.
01-Nov-2000

Croda International has sold its international adhesives operation to Sovereign Specialty Chemicals of the US for £30m.
01-Nov-2000

Kingfisher has bought an 85% stake in Streets Online, the internet-based music retailer, for £16m.
01-Nov-2000

Television Corporation is to acquire Offshore Sport Promotion, the owner of TV and commercial rights to the world offshore powerboat championships, for up to £15m.
01-Nov-2000

Smiths Industries is to sell Lambda Advanced Analog, its US electric power controls business, to International Rectifier Corp for £12m.
01-Nov-2000

Mayne Nickless is selling its UK express transport businesses, including Parceline and Interlink Express, to GeoPost Intermediate of France for £188m.
01-Nov-2000

Kleeneze is to acquire Dealerfield of Nottingham for £27m and Colour Library Direct of Oxfordshire for £4m, in order to gain access to hundreds of display marketing sales staff that sell books, CDs and gifts directly to offices.
31-Oct-2000

Sportsworld Media is to sell its outdoor advertising operations in Australia to Eye Corp for £29m.
31-Oct-2000

Biovation, the Aberdeen-based biotechnology company, has been acquired by Merck of Germany for about £20m.
30-Oct-2000

Yelo, the Carrickfergus-based manufacturer of electronics testing equipment, has been acquired by Mindready Solutions of Canada for undisclosed terms.
30-Oct-2000

Associated British Foods is to sell its Burton's Biscuits subsidiary to Hicks Muse Tate & Furst of the US for £130m, in order to focus on products where it has a leading market position.
30-Oct-2000

Reed Elsevier is linking up with Thomson Corporation of Canada to acquire Harcourt General, the US publisher of text books, for £3.1bn, and the assets will be shared out between the two companies.
30-Oct-2000

Trinity Mirror is to acquire Southnews for £285m, in order to strengthen its position in the regional newspaper market in the south of England.
30-Oct-2000

Hatt Kitchens, the Kidderminster-based kitchen factory that has just gone into receivership, has agreed a management buy-out that will save more than 60 jobs.
27-Oct-2000

Westinsure Anada has bought Brunsdon, Swindon, and Frilsons Insurance Brokers for undisclosed terms, as part of a strategy to create a chain of brokerages covering the West Country.
27-Oct-2000

Tenon Group has acquired the non-audit operations of Williams Allan for £9m, which will enable it to supply services to a number of US companies operating in the Thames Valley.
27-Oct-2000

Wembley is to acquire Corporate Innovations Company, the event management company, for up to £4.5m.
27-Oct-2000

Anglia Oils, the edible oils company, has acquired Rowallan Creameries of Kilmarnock for undisclosed terms, which is expected to lead to the centralisation of additional work in Hull.
26-Oct-2000

Oliver Group, the shoe retailer with 260 outlets, has accepted a £6.1m takeover offer from Benson Shoe.
26-Oct-2000

Hawtal Whiting, the automotive design consultancy, has gone into receivership, but the engineering and US operations are being bought by Wagon for £8m.
26-Oct-2000

White Young Green is acquiring the business and certain assets of Cassells, the Leicester-based environmental management consultancy, for £0.8m.
26-Oct-2000

Deloitte & Touche is to acquire the actuarial and insurance practices of Bacon & Woodrow, while B&W's remaining employee benefits and accounts business will be merged with Hewitt Associates.
25-Oct-2000

Infolines has merged with IPM Communications to create a new UK payphone network, and is now looking to benefit from the NHS target to install bedside television and telephones in every major hospital by 2004.
24-Oct-2000

Carlton Communications is to acquire HTV, the Welsh ITV franchise, from Granada Media, in exchange for £181m and Carlton's 20% stake in the Meridian licence.
24-Oct-2000

Nettec has acquired ByTheWay, the French marketing communications company, for £7.5m.
24-Oct-2000

Laird is to sell its Draftex car body sealings business to GenCorp of the US for £142m, and expects to complete the sale of its other automotive operations over the next few months.
24-Oct-2000

Ascot is to sell four engineering businesses - WDS, Flotform, Mitchell Cotts Transmissions and Peter Stubbs - to two management buy-out teams for a total of £46m, in order to focus on chemicals.
24-Oct-2000

Cadbury Schweppes is to buy out the minority shareholders in its South African subsidiary for £143m and sell its brewing division to South African Breweries for £45m.
23-Oct-2000

Aberdeen Asset Management has announced a conditional deal to acquire Equitilink of Australia for £56m.
23-Oct-2000

Getmapping.com has acquired Wildgoose Publications, the processor of aerial photographs, for £0.7m.
23-Oct-2000

NewMedia Spark has acquired Internet Indirect for £73m, in order to expand its internet incubator fund.
23-Oct-2000

Darenth, the vending machine manufacturer, has undergone a management buy-out and is now planning to expand production at its Sheffield factory.
20-Oct-2000

GKN is to buy a military aircraft fuselage and wing parts factory in St Louis, Missouri, from Boeing for £44m, and has also announced plans to create a new Aerospace Services subsidiary and cut the number of plants from 11 to seven.
20-Oct-2000

Amvescap is to acquire Perpetual, the independent investment manager, for £1.05bn.
19-Oct-2000

Psion has acquired Tournachon of France for £4.3m, in order to expand its European network for the distribution of electronic organisers.
19-Oct-2000

Miller Group has bought the land and work-in-progress of Crest Homes Northern for £30m, in order to expand its housebuilding activities in the north of England.
18-Oct-2000

Frank Usher is to sell its women's evening wear business to management for £6.9m, in order to transform itself into a cash shell called Avingtrans.
16-Oct-2000

BGR is selling its three Signature restaurants to a new company called Bank Restaurant Group for £11m, in order to focus on the expansion of its Fish outlets.
16-Oct-2000

Silentnight is to acquire Cornwell Parker, the fabrics and furniture group, for £23m.
16-Oct-2000

Abacus Polar is to acquire Trident Microsystems, the manufacturer of electronic displays, for £18m.
16-Oct-2000

Molins is planning to acquire Filtrona Instruments & Automation from Bunzl for £12m, in order to expand its packaging equipment business.
16-Oct-2000

Wireless Group is to acquire the remaining 75% of Wave FM, the Southampton-based radio station, for £21m.
16-Oct-2000

Saxon Homes has bought the residential arm of Quintain Estates & Development for £5m, which will enable it to expand its housebuilding activities in Cornwall, Dorset and Oxfordshire.
16-Oct-2000

Miller Group has acquired Birch, the Derby-based construction company, for about £60m, as part of a strategy to achieve national coverage in its housebuilding business.
12-Oct-2000

Morgan Crucible is selling Emblem Group, the manufacturer of computing devices for the defence sector, to a management buy-out for undisclosed terms.
12-Oct-2000

Pell Frischmann has bought the water treatment process technology business of BG Technology for undisclosed terms.
12-Oct-2000

Osprey Project Management has acquired Project Management International from BAe Systems for undisclosed terms, which will give it 40 new staff and offices in London, Edinburgh and Warsaw.
12-Oct-2000

University of Glamorgan's UGCS health and safety operation has been acquired in a management buy-out, securing 30 jobs, and will trade as Corporate Health & Safety Solutions.
11-Oct-2000

Capital Incentives, the Chester-based staff motivation company, has undergone a £9m management buy-out, and plans to create 75 jobs over the next three years.
11-Oct-2000

Aberdeen Asset Management is to acquire Murray Johnstone of Glasgow for about £150m, as part of a strategy to become a leading retail fund manager.
11-Oct-2000

P&O is to acquire the refrigerated logistics business of Swift Armour in Argentina for £14m.
11-Oct-2000

Oxford Instruments has bought Austin Scientific, the US manufacturer of cryopumps and cryogenic coolers, for £4m.
10-Oct-2000

Interframe has sold its window retailing division, which includes Mod-Dec Windows and ALC-Interplas, to a subsidiary of Exeter-based Euroguard Windows for undisclosed terms.
10-Oct-2000

Online Classics is acquiring Iambic Productions, the independent TV producer, for £5m, and is raising £7.4m in a share placing.
10-Oct-2000

Associated British Ports has acquired Berkeley Group, the Southampton-based stevedoring and vehicle processing company, for £18m.
10-Oct-2000

Ebookers.com has acquired its parent company Flightbookers for £10m, in order to improve the customer service in its online travel business.
10-Oct-2000

Marconi is acquiring the transmission arm of Splice do Brasil, the Brazilian telecoms equipment company, for £44m.
10-Oct-2000

Ashtead has acquired Response Rentals, the US environmental equipment hire company, for £4m.
10-Oct-2000

Harvey Nash is to acquire Impact Executives, the recruitment firm, for up to £10m.
10-Oct-2000

Chloride is to sell CEN Electronics, its battery charger division, to management for £3.1m, in order to focus on its core power protection business.
10-Oct-2000

Tilbury Douglas is selling its Rapid Hire tool-hire business to Speedy Hire Centres, the Allen subsidiary, for £3.9m.
10-Oct-2000

SmithKline Beecham is to acquire Block Drug, the US toothpaste company, for £850m, in order to expand its dental care division.
09-Oct-2000

Caradon is planning to sell its plumbing business to HSBC Private Equity for about £440m, and will change its name to Novar to reflect its focus on intelligent building systems, aluminium extrusions and printing.
09-Oct-2000

OnMedica has acquired UKpractice.net, the online education business for doctors and nurses, for undisclosed terms.
09-Oct-2000

Tomkins has sold its UK and US lawnmower operations to Summersong Investment of China for £151m, and the businesses sold include Hayter in Hertfordshire.
09-Oct-2000

Savers Health & Beauty has been acquired by Hutchison Whampoa for undisclosed terms, but will continue with its opening programme of between 20 and 30 new outlets every year.
09-Oct-2000

Rigid Paper, the Selby-based manufacturer of recycled paper and corrugated cases, has been bought by VPK Packaging Group of Belgium in a multi-million pound deal.
06-Oct-2000

Servelec, the control and automation systems company, has been acquired by CSE Group of Singapore for £16m.
06-Oct-2000

Allied Leisure has recommended that shareholders accept a £50m takeover offer from Georgica.
06-Oct-2000

Alliance UniChem is acquiring Interpharm for £122m in order to gain access to the Dutch pharmaceutical wholesaling market, and is now seeking acquisitions in Germany, Poland and Scandinavia.
06-Oct-2000

Logica has acquired PDV Unternehmensberatung, the German computer services company, for up to £370m, and is also in negotiations to buy MITS of Australia.
06-Oct-2000

Interfleet Technology, the Derby-based international rail technology consultancy with 170 staff, has undergone a management buy-out.
05-Oct-2000

Element 14, the Cambridge-based chip designer, has been acquired by Broadcom of the US for £407m.
05-Oct-2000

Carlton Communications is planning to acquire Andre Deutsch, the publisher of sports and TV books, from VCI for less than £5m.
05-Oct-2000

Baltimore Technologies is to acquire Nevex Software Technologies, the Canadian e-business security company, for £27m.
05-Oct-2000

Man Group is buying the client brokerage accounts of First American Discount Corporation of Chicago for about £3m.
05-Oct-2000

Innovation Group is to acquire Geniq Systems, the developer of e-business solutions, for up to £10m.
05-Oct-2000

Guardian iT is to acquire Kingswell, the Northampton-based data storage company, for £10m, and has also confirmed plans to open a £50m web-hosting centre near Heathrow.
05-Oct-2000

Technicolor is to acquire Groupe Covitec, the Canadian supplier of technical services to the film and TV industries, for £27m.
04-Oct-2000

Cox Insurance is to sell Groves John & Westrup, the Liverpool-based cargo and pleasure craft insurer, to Munich Re for undisclosed terms.
04-Oct-2000

Aggregate Industries is acquiring eight quarries, nine coated stone plants, five ready-mix concrete plants and a mortar plant from Anglo American for £29m.
04-Oct-2000

Gameplay.com is acquiring Pixel Broadband Studios from Take-Two Interactive Software of the US for £34m, in order to gain access to technology that allows game players to use different platforms.
04-Oct-2000

Royal London is to acquire Scottish Life, the pensions provider, for £1.1bn, which will lead to the relocation of Scottish Life's investment management arm to London.
03-Oct-2000

Jarvis has sold its Laybond building products business to a management team for £20m, in order to focus on facilities management.
03-Oct-2000

TI Group is planning to acquire Impervia, the French aerospace sealings company, for £10m.
03-Oct-2000

Chloride is to acquire SAED, the French supplier of power protection equipment, for £12m.
03-Oct-2000

Linden, the housebuilder, is to undergo a £73m management buy-out, in a return to private ownership after five years as a quoted company.
02-Oct-2000

Utilitec, the supplier of equipment to the water industry, is to undergo a £13m management buy-out.
29-Sep-2000

Oakhill Group is selling its packaging business to Brodr Sunde of Norway for £10m, in order to focus on its print division.
29-Sep-2000

Time Products has raised £9m from the sale of its Judith Leiber handbag manufacturing business.
29-Sep-2000

Diageo is to sell a Brazilian spirits subsidiary to Campari of Italy for undisclosed terms.
29-Sep-2000

Wolseley has acquired Atkinson Builders Merchants, and will merge the 11 north-east outlets with its Builder Center division.
28-Sep-2000

Rank has sold its UK holiday business to Bourne Leisure Group for £700m, including Haven and Butlin's holiday camps, Warner country hotels and Oasis leisure parks.
28-Sep-2000

Intercare is to acquire Macarthy for £83m, as part of a strategy to become a leading manufacturer and distributor of generic drugs.
28-Sep-2000

Smiths Industries is to acquire Fairchild Defense, the US aerospace components company, from Orbital Sciences for £69m.
28-Sep-2000

Redstone Telecom has acquired Dialnet, the internet service provider, for £15m.
28-Sep-2000

Telemetrix is acquiring ICT Electronics, the Spanish manufacturer of testing equipment, for £19m.
28-Sep-2000

Penn Pharmaceuticals, the Tredegar-based pharmaceutical services company, has undergone a £12m management buy-out, and plans to double the size of its outsourcing business over the next three years.
27-Sep-2000

Band-X has acquired TeleGeography, the US supplier of telecoms statistics, for undisclosed terms, in order to further the development of its international exchange trading telecoms capacity over the internet.
27-Sep-2000

CFS Group, the software leasing company, is to acquire Decision Systems of the US in a £90m deal, and the enlarged company will be named IDS.
27-Sep-2000

Wyevale Garden Centres has agreed to acquire Country Gardens for £108m, creating a chain of 119 garden centres.
26-Sep-2000

Laporte is selling a number of non-core businesses to Kohlberg Kravis Roberts for £810m, including pigments, additives, water technology, timber and electronics.
26-Sep-2000

Thames Water is to be acquired by RWE for £4.3bn, as part of a strategy by the German company to create a pan-European multi-utility group.
26-Sep-2000

BAe Systems has completed the acquisition of Lockheed Martin Control Systems for £349m, and expects to complete the acquisition of Lockheed Martin Aerospace Electronics Systems by the end of the year.
26-Sep-2000

CGNU is to sell its US property and casualty insurance business to White Mountains of Bermuda for £2.17bn.
26-Sep-2000

Mettis Group has acquired High Duty Alloys of Redditch for £42m, in order to strengthen its position in the market for aerospace forgings.
26-Sep-2000

Skelgate Holdings, the Yorkshire-based transport company that specialises in the delivery of electrical goods, has been acquired by the Lane Group for undisclosed terms.
26-Sep-2000

Bezier has sold its Boston-based labels division to Paragon Labels, in order to focus on point-of-sale and corporate printing.
26-Sep-2000

Ambishus Pub Company is to be acquired by Barracuda Group, in a £16m deal backed by PPM Ventures.
25-Sep-2000

Aberdeen Asset Management has acquired Barclays Property Investment from Barclays for £20m.
25-Sep-2000

KPMG is selling Orbis, the Channel Islands-based trust and company administration business, to Dresdner Bank for undisclosed terms.
25-Sep-2000

Lewis C Grant, the Kirkcaldy-based manufacturer of sheet metal enclosure systems, has been acquired by Segerstrom & Svensson of Sweden for £20m, which is expected to lead to the expansion of its 340-strong workforce.
22-Sep-2000

Glen Dimplex has acquired Faber of the Netherlands, as part of a strategy to become a leading player in the global market for gas fires and domestic room heaters.
22-Sep-2000

Towergate has acquired the general insurance arm of Medical Insurance Agency, which includes a call centre in Stevenage providing motor, home and surgery insurance.
22-Sep-2000

Cedar Group is acquiring Enterprise Solutions Group, the US IT services consultancy, from Renaissance Worldwide for £51m.
22-Sep-2000

Marconi has acquired Mariposa Technology, the US manufacturer of network management devices, for £190m.
22-Sep-2000

Tate & Lyle has sold its Rumenco animal feeds business to a management buy-in team for undisclosed terms.
21-Sep-2000

Microbio Group, the developer of natural pest controls with 50 staff, has been bought by Becker Underwood of the US for undisclosed terms.
21-Sep-2000

Balfour Beatty has bought the rail electrification business of Adtranz for £94m, which will strengthen its presence in markets such as Germany and Sweden.
21-Sep-2000

Mentmore Abbey is to acquire Une Piece en Plus, the French self-storage operator, for £9.3m.
21-Sep-2000

Rapson Group of Inverness has acquired Transeuropean Holidays of Tain, as part of a strategy to create a combined transport and travel services group.
20-Sep-2000

Strainstall Engineering Services, the provider of load measurement and stress analysis services, has undergone a £1.5m management buy-out from parent company TT Group.
20-Sep-2000

Westover Technology Group, the manufacturer of electronic sensors, has been bought out of receivership by Surrey-based Arcolectric Holdings.
20-Sep-2000

UBC Media is planning to acquire Classic Gold, the radio company, from GWR for £2.1m.
20-Sep-2000

Moxon Traffic Management, the Huddersfield-based supplier of road marking and traffic management services, has been acquired by Stenoak for undisclosed terms.
20-Sep-2000

Whitacres, the specialist coach builder, has been acquired by Chesterfield-based Frank Guy for undisclosed terms, and there are plans to double production at the Stoke-on-Trent site within five years.
19-Sep-2000

Stenmar of Aberdeen has acquired Sonavision, the developer of underwater sonar products, for undisclosed terms, and the two companies will move to larger premises in Bridge of Don.
19-Sep-2000

Cadbury Schweppes has acquired Snapple Beverage Group, the US soft drinks company, for £1.05bn, and is now seeking further acquisitions in the US, Europe and Australia.
19-Sep-2000

Smiths Industries is to acquire TI Group for £1.77bn, which will expand its aerospace division and give it a new sealing solutions division.
19-Sep-2000

Invensys is to sell its pneumatics business to Parker Hannifin of the US for £27m.
19-Sep-2000

Incepta is to acquire Su Yeang Design, Orange Design and Ebrand Communications of Singapore for up to £13m.
19-Sep-2000

HL Engineering has bought Engineering Diamonds and MA Engineering of Coventry, to create a combined group employing 50 staff in the supply of components to the automotive and defence industries.
18-Sep-2000

Upton & Southern, the Middlesbrough-based department store group, is being sold to a consortium under the name of Hilco UK for a nominal sum.
18-Sep-2000

Kingsbridge is to acquire John Murray, the Glasgow-based financial adviser, for £3.5m.
18-Sep-2000

James Gilbert, the manufacturer of rugby balls, has been sold to a management buy-in team for £11m.
18-Sep-2000

Communisis has sold its Jaycare pharmaceutical packaging business to a company backed by 3i for £29m, while its envelopes business is being sold to Bong Ljungdahl of Sweden for £7.5m.
18-Sep-2000

Halma has acquired Wessex Electronics, the manufacturer of equipment to reduce leakage in the water industry, for £2m.
15-Sep-2000

Integriti Solutions has acquired InterCorr International, the US corrosion testing and research company, for undisclosed terms.
15-Sep-2000

Cavell Management Services has acquired Peter Blem Adjusters, the London market claims adjusting specialist, for undisclosed terms.
15-Sep-2000

National Power's Innogy division is to buy Independent Energy's electricity and gas business out of receivership for £10m, while Independent's network of 12 small power stations and three inland gas fields will be sold off separately.
15-Sep-2000

Baltimore Technologies has acquired Content Technologies, the developer of e-mail security software, in a £692m deal.
15-Sep-2000

Sirdar has acquired Ryalux, the carpet manufacturer, for £25m, and has also announced the sale of its lossmaking Eversure Textiles division.
15-Sep-2000

Hi-Tec Sports, the footwear manufacturer, is to undergo a £16m management buy-out.
15-Sep-2000

Baynflax, the food machinery company, has undergone a management buy-out for undisclosed terms, and plans to develop into a £30m business through acquisitions and strategic alliances.
14-Sep-2000

Tempus has acquired Fusion 5, the US marketing consultancy, for about £4m, and an 80% stake in Interactive Creative Marketing of Japan for £2.3m.
14-Sep-2000

Ash & Lacy, the metals engineer, has accepted a £69m takeover bid from Hill & Smith, but a higher offer is expected from Metnor.
14-Sep-2000

IFG Group is planning to acquire Berkeley Jacobs Financial Services, the pensions adviser, for up to £12m.
14-Sep-2000

Amey is raising £42m in a share placing in order to fund the acquisition of a 50% stake in BCN Data Systems, the developer of technology to monitor security systems and cash machines, for £14m.
13-Sep-2000

Eurodis Electron is to buy the electronic components distribution business of Ericsson Microelectronics for £29m, in order to expand its presence in the Nordic region.
13-Sep-2000

Hanson has bought 14 UK operations from Tarmac for £33m, including limestone, sand and gravel quarries, a concrete plant and an asphalt plant.
13-Sep-2000

Bonhams is to merge with Brooks to create a combined auction house called Bonhams & Brooks, and the London-based business will employ 200 staff.
13-Sep-2000

David Henley Systems, the developer of products for car fleets, has been sold to CFS Group in a £7m deal.
12-Sep-2000

Elan has acquired Dura Pharmaceuticals of the US for £1.25bn, in order to strengthen its sales force and product portfolio in North America.
12-Sep-2000

Austin Reed, the clothing retailer, has sold its Chester Barrie manufacturing business to Thompson Holdings for £3.7m.
12-Sep-2000

NewMedia Spark, the internet incubator, is to acquire New Media Investors, the corporate finance company, for £10m.
12-Sep-2000

Multi Metals, the Belshill-based aluminium stockholder, has undergone a £5m management buy-out.
11-Sep-2000

Spirent is planning to acquire Zarak Systems, the US manufacturer of communications test equipment, for £284m.
11-Sep-2000

Dawsongroup, the distribution company, is to quit the stock market, having received a £60m takeover offer from the founding family.
11-Sep-2000

Nomura is to buy the First Quench off-licence chain from Whitbread and Punch for £225m, and plans to invest in training and technology at the 2,500 branches.
11-Sep-2000

Tenon Group has acquired the non-audit operations of London-based Morison Stoneham for £10m, as part of a strategy to create a network of accounting services firms.
11-Sep-2000

Powderject Pharmaceuticals has agreed to acquire the UK vaccines business of Celltech for £55m.
08-Sep-2000

Bradford & Bingley has sold its company relocation division to Cendant for undisclosed terms, and Cendant will use the Windsor-based business as a base to expand its European operations.
08-Sep-2000

AEA Technology has acquired NSTO, the technology division of Dutch national railways Nederlandse Spoorwegen, for £0.9m.
07-Sep-2000

Speyside Distillers, the Scottish whisky company with 90 staff, has been sold by Swiss company Scowis to a group of private investors for undisclosed terms.
07-Sep-2000

Gordon & Innes, the Moray-based potato company, is being bought out of receivership by Doncaster-based Higgins Group, saving 40 jobs.
06-Sep-2000

British Polythene Industries has sold its flexibles business to a management buy-out team called Inhoco 2107 for £6.6m, and the deal includes Britannia Packaging in Stoke-on-Trent.
06-Sep-2000

Viridian has acquired Footman James & Company, the Birmingham-based vehicle insurance broker, for undisclosed terms, and the business will be combined with its Open & Direct financial services division.
06-Sep-2000

Walker Greenbank is selling its John Perry and Cole & Son wallpaper operations to a new company called Karen Beauchamp for about £3m.
06-Sep-2000

Television Corporation is to exercise an option to buy the remaining 50% of Mentorn, the independent TV production company, for up to £22m.
06-Sep-2000

Bostrom, the manufacturer of vehicle seats, has agreed to a £38m takeover offer from a new company called Commercial Vehicle Systems.
06-Sep-2000

SFI, the pub operator, is to acquire Break for the Border from Capital Bars of Dublin for £4.7m.
06-Sep-2000

Johnsen & Jorgensen, the Dartford-based agency for imported glass and plastic packaging, has undergone a management buy-out for undisclosed terms.
05-Sep-2000

Christows, the stockbroker, has been acquired by eVestment, the investment group, for £39m.
05-Sep-2000

HR Owen has acquired Jack Barclay, the London-based Rolls-Royce and Bentley dealership, from Dutton Forshaw for undisclosed terms.
05-Sep-2000

National Grid is to acquire Niagara Mohawk, the New York state electricity company, for £2bn, which will double the size of its US business.
05-Sep-2000

Abbey National is to acquire Scottish Provident, the life assurer, for £1.8bn, but Scottish Provident's 38% stake in Aberdeen Asset Management will be sold off before the deal is completed.
04-Sep-2000

Brunswick has acquired SRU, the corporate research consultancy, for undisclosed terms.
04-Sep-2000

Standard Chartered has sold its Chartered Trust leasing and motor finance subsidiary to Lloyds TSB for £627m, and has also announced the acquisition of Chase Manhattan's credit card business in Hong Kong for £825m.
04-Sep-2000

First Choice is acquiring Crown Holidays, the operator of inland waterway holidays, for £21m.
04-Sep-2000

Bilston & Battersea Enamels, the ceramics company, is to undergo a £3.5m management buy-out.
04-Sep-2000

StepStone is acquiring Job-Today, the German recruitment company, for £21m.
04-Sep-2000

Cinven is selling General Hospitals, the private hospitals group, to private equity firm BC Partners for £1.2bn.
04-Sep-2000

British Telecom has sold its aeronautical and maritime communications division to Stratos Global of Canada for £157m, as part of a strategy to reduce debt by selling non-core operations.
04-Sep-2000

Great Universal Stores has acquired Jungle.com, the online retailer, for £37m, which will enable it to sell a wide range of office products through a number of channels.
01-Sep-2000

Wickes has accepted a £289m takeover offer from Focus Do It All, creating a combined group with a 10.7% market share in DIY retailing.
01-Sep-2000

ED&F Man is to acquire Glenwood Group, the US fund management company, for £76m.
01-Sep-2000

Marylebone Warwick Balfour is acquiring the properties of Malmaison Hotels from Wyndham International for £65m.
01-Sep-2000

AI Group has acquired the mechanical components operation of Stafford-based Alstom T&D Protection & Control for about £2m, which will involve the transfer of 150 staff.
31-Aug-2000

Kerry has made a takeover approach for Bush Boake Allen, the US food ingredients company, and has also announced the acquisition of Harald-Industria e Comercio de Alimentos of Brazil and a US chocolate coating company owned by York Dragee.
31-Aug-2000

Rentokil Initial is acquiring Tru-Green Interior Plantcare, the US tropical plants business, for £30m.
31-Aug-2000

EBC Group has acquired FR Bartlett, the Yeovil-based building contractor, from Hunting Gate for a nominal sum.
31-Aug-2000

Jarvis Newman, the building fit-out specialist, has undergone a management buy-out for undisclosed terms.
31-Aug-2000

Telecom Potential, the Bristol-based customer service group, has been acquired by iSKY of the US, to create a combined group with 1,400 staff operating from six locations.
30-Aug-2000

Checkpoint, the e-commerce software company, is being acquired by Bottomline Technologies of the US for £53m.
30-Aug-2000

Anglo American is to sell Tarmac America to Titan Cement of Greece for £430m.
30-Aug-2000

British Mohair, the textile and engineering company, has agreed a £21m takeover offer from Camellia Investments.
30-Aug-2000

Tandem Group is to acquire Pot Black, the snooker table company, and Two Wheel trading, the distributor of bicycle accessories, for a total £1.6m.
30-Aug-2000

Kvaerner is selling its building and civil engineering operations to Skanska of Sweden for £356m, and the deal will include about 5,000 employees in its UK construction business.
30-Aug-2000

IMI has acquired Flow Design, the US manufacturer of flow control products, for £14m.
29-Aug-2000

Goldshield is to acquire Achievers Unlimited, the US marketer of slimming and nutritional products, for up to £6.3m, and is now seeking acquisitions in the UK pharmaceutical market.
29-Aug-2000

Linguaphone has acquired two interactive learning companies - CD Live and Interactive Language Teaching - and received a £2.8m investment from ProVen Private Equity and Quester.
29-Aug-2000

Sherman Cooper, the shirt manufacturer, has undergone a £120m management buy-out with the backing of venture capitalist 3i.
28-Aug-2000

Mason Coatings has sold its transport coatings and graphics activities to Akzo Nobel for £9.4m, which is expected to lead to job losses at its Derby factory.
28-Aug-2000

Interlube Systems of Plymouth has undergone a management buy-out from Invensys, and plans to create up to 30 skilled engineering jobs.
28-Aug-2000

Madison Filter has acquired Southwestern Wire Cloth of the US for £25m, to create a global industrial screening and separation business.
28-Aug-2000

Ann Street Group has expanded its chain of Lionheart restaurants to 30 with the £10m acquisition of six Bluebeckers and five Edwinns outlets.
28-Aug-2000

Billiton has announced a £1.4bn agreed takeover offer for Rio Algom, the Canadian mining group, in order to increase its share of the world copper market.
28-Aug-2000

Qualceram of Ireland is to acquire Shires, the sanitary ware company, for £34m, and the business will be renamed Qualceram Shires.
28-Aug-2000

Gilders has acquired the Chevin Audi business in Derby for £3m, as part of a strategy to expand its Volkswagen and Audi franchises across the Midlands.
25-Aug-2000

Anglian Water is to acquire Morrison Construction for £262m, in order to help it bid for the outsourcing of asset management contracts.
25-Aug-2000

Zetters is to acquire IFX for £20m as part of a strategy to launch a pan-European financial spread betting business, and has also announced plans to raise £10m in a rights issue for the development of other gambling services.
25-Aug-2000

Emap is selling 25 German and Swiss business magazines to Bertelsmann for £14m, and the proceeds will support new investment and reduce debt.
25-Aug-2000

Luxfer is to sell the bulk of its remaining aluminium operations to Alcoa of the US for £182m, and the proceeds will be spent on acquisitions to increase its focus on gas cylinders, zirconia products and magnesium alloys.
25-Aug-2000

Filtronic is to acquire Sigtek, the US developer of high-speed digital signal processing, for an initial £13m.
24-Aug-2000

Greencore is acquiring Robert's Group, the manufacturer of frozen savoury and dessert products at factories in Leeds and Huddersfield, for £29m.
24-Aug-2000

Fairway Reprographics of Southampton has acquired Cedar Colour for undisclosed terms, in order to expand its graphics and print capabilities.
23-Aug-2000

Galliford is planning to merge with Try Group to create a combined construction group called Galliford Try, which should make it easier for them to participate in private finance initiative projects.
23-Aug-2000

Durlacher is to acquire Associated Computing, the operator of an online wedding guide, for £0.8m.
22-Aug-2000

Powell Duffryn has acquired Norba, the Finnish manufacturer of parts for refuse vehicles, for £7m.
22-Aug-2000

Saville Audio Visual has acquired Studio 45 of Coventry out of receivership, in order to expand its audio-visual equipment sales and hire business in the Midlands.
21-Aug-2000

Scottish & Newcastle has acquired a 49% stake in Central De Cervejas, the Portuguese brewer, for £93m, and will use it as a platform to launch new brands in Portugal.
21-Aug-2000

JWE Telecom is acquiring Direct Voice & Data for up to £5.1m and Crosshouse, the telecoms equipment supplier, for £8m.
18-Aug-2000

Boots is to transfer its 17 Dutch stores to Royal Ahold, in a change in strategy that will see it focus on retailing in Asia and the distribution of own-brand products through other retailers in continental Europe.
18-Aug-2000

Hyder, the Welsh utility, is expected to be acquired by Western Power Distribution of the US for £565m, as the Takeover Panel has dismissed an attempt by Nomura to stop the deal.
17-Aug-2000

Anglo Communications, the Suffolk-based cabling network installer with about 100 staff, has been acquired by Black Box (UK) for undisclosed terms.
16-Aug-2000

Scottish Provident is selling its Scoplife insurance business in Greece to Aspis Pronia for undisclosed terms.
16-Aug-2000

Prime Time Recruitment of Leeds has acquired ORS Recruitment Services for £5m, in order to gain 10 new branches in the North West.
16-Aug-2000

Pressac is to acquire Smith & Sons (Scotland), the plastic mouldings company, for up to £24m.
16-Aug-2000

Lastminute.com has acquired Degriftour, the French travel business, for £59m, as part of a strategy to expand across Europe.
15-Aug-2000

Allen has sold its remaining housebuilding operations to Morris for £24m, in order to focus on tool hire.
15-Aug-2000

Kingston Communications is selling its 25% stake in KSCL, the communications software business, to Telesens of Germany for £26m.
15-Aug-2000

Arthur Andersen, the receiver to TransTec, is planning to sell the remaining automotive engineering businesses to a joint venture of Triplex and JWK for undisclosed terms.
15-Aug-2000

Bemrose has sold its Letts diary business to a management buy-out with the support of Dunedin Capital Partners for £12m, in order to complete its withdrawal from specialist print services.
14-Aug-2000

John Menzies has sold its book, video and music wholesaling business to management for £2.5m, as part of a strategy to focus on logistics.
14-Aug-2000

Innovation Group is acquiring Technology in Marketing, the insurance software company, for up to £16m and Invent Software for £2.5m.
14-Aug-2000

Barclays has reached agreement for the £5.3bn acquisition of the Woolwich mortgage bank, which will result in about 100 branch closures and the loss of 1,000 jobs.
14-Aug-2000

Retail Decisions is planning to acquire International Card Enterprises for £11m, in order to expand its card payment services business.
11-Aug-2000

Camber International, the Leicester-based textile machinery manufacturer, has been bought out of administration by Falmac of Singapore, safeguarding 39 jobs.
11-Aug-2000

BATM Advanced Communications has acquired a video streaming business from Ezenia of the US for £4m, in order to expand its range of routing products.
10-Aug-2000

Oxford Molecular has sold its software division to Pharmacopeia of the US for £18m, and the remaining business will now be liquidated.
10-Aug-2000

Guardian Media Group has sold its remaining TV businesses to Endemol, its joint venture partner, for £26m, and the proceeds will be invested in radio, regional newspapers and the internet.
10-Aug-2000

Data Marine Systems, the Aberdeen-based supplier of satellite technology to offshore oil and gas platforms, is being acquired by Schlumberger for undisclosed terms.
10-Aug-2000

Dencora, the commercial and industrial property company, is being acquired by Sandy Lane, a subsidiary of Cargill of the US, for £75m.
09-Aug-2000

Mill House Inns, the chain of 53 pubs, is to be acquired by Jodsal, a vehicle formed for the purpose, for £58m.
09-Aug-2000

IMI has acquired Robimatic, the supplier of plumbing products, for up to £19m.
09-Aug-2000

British Energy is selling the Swalec retail electricity and supply business to Scottish & Southern for £210m, and the proceeds will be invested in North America.
08-Aug-2000

Regent Inns has finalised the acquisition of the eight Jongleurs comedy clubs for up to £8.5m, and will expand the brand to about 15 clubs over the next two years.
08-Aug-2000

JSB Software Technologies has acquired CSM Security Management, the Austrian supplier of internet filtering software, for £11m.
08-Aug-2000

Firth Holdings, the cash shell, is planning a reverse takeover of Kinetech, the e-business subsidiary that is being demerged from broker Prebon Yamane.
08-Aug-2000

Laird has acquired Instrument Specialities Company, the US manufacturer of electromagnetic interference shields, for £172m, and is now looking to sell off its automotive businesses.
08-Aug-2000

Andersen Consulting is to split from the accounting firm Arthur Andersen following a court ruling in Paris, but will have to give up the rights to the AC name.
08-Aug-2000

Sita has acquired City Waste, the Birmingham-based commercial waste-disposal company, for undisclosed terms.
08-Aug-2000

Waterford Wedgwood is planning to acquire Hutschenreuther, the German porcelain and giftware brand, and will transfer production to its existing Rosenthal factories.
08-Aug-2000

PPH Commercial has acquired DDM Commercial to create a combined commercial property group with 45 surveyors and offices throughout the Humber and parts of Yorkshire.
08-Aug-2000

Bombardier of Canada has acquired Adtranz from DaimlerChrysler for £478m, creating one of the world's largest rail equipment groups.
07-Aug-2000

GKN has acquired Nissan Motor's driveline factory in Japan for £56m, giving it a 15% share of the Japanese market.
07-Aug-2000

Cedar Group is acquiring Cipher Systems of Canada for £8m, in order to expand its customer relationship management software business.
07-Aug-2000

McKechnie, the aerospace and engineering company, is to undergo a £434m management buy-out with the support of the Cinven venture capital group.
07-Aug-2000

ECI Ventures is to acquire Benjy's, the chain of 34 London-based sandwich bars, for undisclosed terms.
07-Aug-2000

Burnham International, the distributor of company annual reports, is being acquired by Barclays Private Equity in a £6m deal, and the business will be merged with Tecmail to create one of the country's largest independent mailing groups.
07-Aug-2000

Holidaybreak is to acquire Regal Diving & Tours, the Ely-based adventure holidays company, for £3.2m.
07-Aug-2000

TXU Europe is to acquire Norweb's electricity supply business from United Utilities for £310m, and will subcontract customer services to United's Vertex division.
04-Aug-2000

GlobalNetFinancial.com has acquired Dalton Kent Securities, the US financial brokerage, for £13m.
04-Aug-2000

Viridian has acquired Microcentre, the IT services company with 60 staff in Edinburgh and Glasgow, in order to expand its Sx3 division.
04-Aug-2000

First Technology is to acquire Capteur Sensors and Analysers, the manufacturer of gas sensors, for £9.4m.
03-Aug-2000

Dunlop Oil & Marine, the Grimsby-based manufacturer of hoses and pipelines, has been acquired by Phoenix AG of Germany for undisclosed terms.
03-Aug-2000

Liberty Occupational Health has been acquired by Aon Corporation for undisclosed terms, and will be renamed Aon Occupational Health.
03-Aug-2000

Great Universal Stores is selling its Highway Vehicle Management business in the US to Abbey National for £170m, and has also announced plans to close its General Guarantee Finance division with the loss of 600 jobs.
02-Aug-2000

Redstone Telecom is acquiring Fastnet for £40m, which will enable it to offer DSL high-speed internet services.
02-Aug-2000

Keller Group, the ground engineering company, is acquiring two US companies - Foundation Services and TCDI - for £6.6m.
02-Aug-2000

TrustMarque is acquiring Internet Software Corporation of York for undisclosed terms, which is expected to lead to 30 new jobs in York over the next year.
02-Aug-2000

Nettec has acquired two French technology consultancies - Eolsys Conseil and Node Venture Group - for £6.1m.
01-Aug-2000

Limelight, the kitchens and bathrooms supplier, is planning a £57m management buy-out.
01-Aug-2000

Pearson is to acquire National Computer Systems, the US educational services group, in a £1.7bn deal being funded by a rights issue.
01-Aug-2000

Oxford Asymmetry is to be acquired by Evotec of Germany for £285m, in order to create one of the world's leading suppliers of drug discovery services.
01-Aug-2000

Blue Circle has sold its 50% stake in Aalborg Portland, the Danish cement company, to its local partner for £120m.
01-Aug-2000

PowerGen has sold the former East Midlands Electricity Security Services Division to a management team for undisclosed terms, and the new Leicester-based business will be called Secure One.
01-Aug-2000

Charterhouse Securities is to be acquired by ING for £127m, enabling the Dutch company to expand its UK corporate broking business.
31-Jul-2000

Timothy Benn Publishing is to merge with City Financial Communications to create a combined financial publications group called City Financial Media.
31-Jul-2000

Taylor Woodrow has sold Greenham Trading, the supplier of cleaning supplies, to Bunzl for £76m, and the proceeds will be invested in its property development business.
31-Jul-2000

Golden Wonder, the crisps company, is expected to be acquired by private equity firm Bridgepoint Capital for £110m, and the business is expected to be expanded through acquisition.
31-Jul-2000

Bank of Ireland is to acquire Chase de Vere, the Bath-based independent financial adviser, for £110m, and will combine the business with its Bristol & West division.
31-Jul-2000

Marconi has acquired Albany Partnership, the developer of mobile telecoms networks, for £71m, which will give it access to more potential sites for mobile phone sites.
31-Jul-2000

Arthur Bown and PM Martin have merged their Leicester-based insurance broking businesses to form the Martin Bown Group.
31-Jul-2000

Carphone Warehouse has bought 27 French stores from Multiples for £8.7m, and they will be rebranded as The Phone House.
28-Jul-2000

Granada Media is to acquire the broadcast, programme production and international distribution business of United News & Media, in a £1.75bn deal that includes the Meridian, Anglia and HTV franchises.
28-Jul-2000

Incepta is to acquire DVL Smith Group, the strategic research company, for up to £7.5m.
28-Jul-2000

Daily Mail & General Trust has acquired Forum Verlagsgruppe, the German education and recruitment publisher, for £18m.
28-Jul-2000

Incepta has acquired Cunningham Communications, the US agency that focuses on technology, for £49m.
27-Jul-2000

Glynwed has acquired Mono, the Swansea-based bakery equipment manufacturer, in a deal thought to be worth more than £11m.
27-Jul-2000

Tibbett & Britten has acquired Logis International, which includes two logistics businesses operating in the Czech Republic and Slovakia, as part of a strategy to expand across central and eastern Europe.
26-Jul-2000

CGNU is to sell General Accident Versicherung, its German general insurance business, to Gerling-Konzern Lebensversicherung for undisclosed terms.
26-Jul-2000

John Menzies is acquiring Ogden Ground Services of the US for £79m, in order to expand its global aviation services business.
26-Jul-2000

United News & Media is to sell Miller Freeman Europe, the operator of more than 100 trade shows, to Reed Elsevier for £360m.
26-Jul-2000

Wolstenholme Rink, the supplier of chemicals to the printing industry, has accepted a £49m takeover offer from Rutland Trust, and the business will be split into two separate entities - pigments and printing materials.
26-Jul-2000

Kier has bought the trading name of the James Longley construction group from the receivers for a nominal sum, in order to strengthen its presence in Sussex.
26-Jul-2000

Daily Mail & General Trust has acquired Trade Exhibitions, which includes ten of Australia's leading consumer and trade shows, for undisclosed terms.
26-Jul-2000

H Roberts & Son, the Leicester-based supplier of precision measuring equipment, has undergone a management buy-out for undisclosed terms.
25-Jul-2000

Linklaters is to merge with Oppenhoff & Radler of Germany, consolidating its position as one of Europe's leading law firms specialising in mergers and acquisitions work.
24-Jul-2000

ITG is acquiring Targeted Transaction Management Services, the Sussex-based supplier of mobile telephone vouchers, for £12m.
24-Jul-2000

CMG has acquired Computer Answers, the billing software company, for £60m.
24-Jul-2000

Tanner Foods has acquired the long-life milk business of Lancashire Dairies, and production will be moved to its site in Essex.
24-Jul-2000

Standard Engineering, the Leicester-based shoe machinery specialist, has acquired rival Whitfield Wylie for undisclosed terms.
24-Jul-2000

Eurocopy has acquired Apex Business Products, the Warrington-based photocopier and fax supplier, for £0.6m.
24-Jul-2000

Wilshaw is to sell its steel powders business to Hoganas for £8m, and the proceeds are expected to be used for acquisitions.
21-Jul-2000

Tomkins has agreed to sell its Ranks Hovis McDougall food business to private equity firm Doughty Hanson for about £1.1bn, in order to focus on its engineering business.
21-Jul-2000

Industrial Control Services, the manufacturer of safety and control systems, is to be acquired by venture capitalist Alchemy for a nominal fee, in order to avoid insolvency.
21-Jul-2000

CLS Holdings is to acquire Citadel, the property company that operates mainly in France, for £36m.
21-Jul-2000

J&J Dyson has acquired Acme Marls, the kiln equipment company, for £1.9m, and plans to consolidate its business onto the Acme Marls site in Tunstall by the end of next year with an unspecified number of redundancies.
21-Jul-2000

RPC is to acquire WIKO, the German manufacturer of packaging for the cosmetics industry, for £25m.
20-Jul-2000

Intercare has sold its healthcare mobility business to management for £15m, and the proceeds will be used to acquire pharmaceutical distributors.
20-Jul-2000

Umeco has acquired Richmond Aircraft Products of the US from MA Hanna for £24m.
20-Jul-2000

Alpha Telecom, the telecoms reseller with 240 employees, has been bought out of receivership by investment vehicle Fusion for £20m.
20-Jul-2000

Seymour Pierce is to acquire PFM, the asset management group, for up to £13m.
20-Jul-2000

John Wood Group is planning to acquire 80% of Mustang Engineering, the US oil engineering and design company, for £74m.
19-Jul-2000

InterX is to sell its Ideal Hardware distribution business to Bell Microproducts of the US for up to £18m, in order to focus on its internet business.
19-Jul-2000

Cable & Wireless has bought five more small internet companies for £67m, including Eaisa of Spain, Pictime of France, Point of Presence of Germany, and Widex and Impact of the Netherlands.
19-Jul-2000

National Express has announced a £162m takeover bid for Prism Rail, which will give the group seven out of the 25 train operating franchises and a 20% share of the rail market.
19-Jul-2000

Scottish Power has sold its Hamilton-based electrical contracting business to Alstom for undisclosed terms.
19-Jul-2000

RP Hodson has bought a 76% stake in John Wimble Insurance Brokers, the London City brokerage, for about £1.8m.
19-Jul-2000

Hepworth has sold Hepworth Minerals & Chemicals to Watts Blake Bearne, a subsidiary of Belgium's SCR-Sibelco, for £86m.
19-Jul-2000

Diageo has confirmed plans to merge its Pillsbury food division with General Mills of the US and to combine its UDV spirits business with its Guinness brewing division, in order to focus the group on alcoholic drinks.
18-Jul-2000

Enterprise Oil has acquired R&B Falcon's exploration interests in the Gulf of Mexico for £84m.
18-Jul-2000

United News & Media is to sell Miller Freeman USA to VNU for £433m, but is still looking for a buyer for Miller Freeman's European business titles.
18-Jul-2000

Kewill Systems has sold its logistics software business to Swisslog of Switzerland for £17m.
18-Jul-2000

BBA has sold its automotive brake pads business to HSBC Private Equity for £389m, as part of a strategy to focus on aviation services and materials technology.
18-Jul-2000

Perry Group has acquired four motor accident repair businesses from Pendragon for £3.4m, and will integrate them into its Nationwide Crash Repair Centres subsidiary.
18-Jul-2000

Homestyle is to acquire Harveys Furnishings for £136m, and the Harveys' high street stores will be converted to the Rosebys and Knightingales formats.
17-Jul-2000

Adare Printing, the stationery and printing company, has agreed a £104m management buy-out.
17-Jul-2000

Pland Stainless, the Leeds-based manufacturer of steel fittings, has undergone a management buy-out, securing 37 jobs.
17-Jul-2000

Brake Bros is to acquire Cearns & Brown, the Cheshire-based foodservice wholesaler, for £24m.
14-Jul-2000

SmartStream, the banking software and services company, has been acquired by 3i from Geac of Canada for £71m.
14-Jul-2000

Low & Bonar has sold its polymers business to Ineco Acrylics, the former ICI subsidiary, for £11m.
14-Jul-2000

Carlton Communications has sold its Quantel image processing equipment business to management for £51m.
14-Jul-2000

BAe Systems has reached agreement to acquire Lockheed Martin's aerospace electronics business for £1.1bn, and the deal is expected to be completed later this year.
14-Jul-2000

Bridgend Group is to undergo a reverse takeover by Hemscott.net, the online financial information company that is also raising £16m in a share placing.
14-Jul-2000

Associated British Foods has bought the polyols business of Lonza for undisclosed terms, in order to expand its US-based SPI Polyols division.
14-Jul-2000

Dial Direct is to buy 0700 2 Insure, the Redditch-based insurance intermediary that collapsed last week, and expects to re-employ up to 130 staff.
14-Jul-2000

Psion has acquired Teklogix, the Canadian network integration company, for £243m, as part of a strategy to shift its emphasis from consumer products towards the business market.
13-Jul-2000

Reflec, the inks and coatings company, has raised £7.2m to fund three acquisitions - Corrosion Control International, a 75% stake in Reflective TV, and the global rights to the Kevlar anti-corrosion trademark.
13-Jul-2000

Regal Hotel Group is to be acquired by a takeover vehicle set up by affiliates of Malaysian United Industries in a £88m deal.
12-Jul-2000

Jellyworks, the internet investment vehicle, is to be acquired by Shore Capital in a £64m deal that is conditional on Shore joining Aim.
12-Jul-2000

Unilever is to sell European Bakery Supplies Business to CSM of the Netherlands for £440m, and is now said be looking to sell the recently-acquired Bestfoods consumer bakery division.
12-Jul-2000

Fourth Estate, the independent publishing house, has been acquired by HarperCollins for undisclosed terms, and its 36 London-based staff will move to new offices.
12-Jul-2000

Nycomed Amersham has sold its Nycomed Amersham Medical Systems subsidiary to a management buy-out team for £10m.
12-Jul-2000

Waterman Partnership, the consulting engineer, has bought Moylan Engineering and its John Moylan & Associates division for £1.3m, in order to expand into Ireland.
12-Jul-2000

Ultrasis is to acquire Calm Corporation, the developer of diagnostic healthcare software, for £4.1m.
11-Jul-2000

Britvic has acquired Orchid Drinks, the Hartlepool-based producer of herb-based drinks, for about £20m.
11-Jul-2000

Wade Furniture Group has sold its consumer division to JDP Furniture for undisclosed terms, which will involve the transfer of 850 staff.
11-Jul-2000

P&O has sold Quantum Publishing to a management buy-out for £20m, and the business will be renamed Quantum Business Group.
11-Jul-2000

ASW is selling its 86% stake in SAM, its French wire rods subsidiary, for £82m, in order to focus on its UK plants in Cardiff and Sheerness.
10-Jul-2000

Propertyfinder, the online estate agency, has been acquired by a consortium of Arts Alliance and Hamptons International in a £5.5m deal.
10-Jul-2000

Courtaulds Textiles has sold Christy, the Cheshire-based towels business, to management for £15m.
10-Jul-2000

Premier Direct has acquired Books UK for £2.4m, in order to expand its book distribution network.
10-Jul-2000

WSP Group has acquired Flack Kurtz Group, the international building services engineering consultancy, for up to £17m.
07-Jul-2000

Albert Fisher has sold Van Soest, its Dutch cold storage and frozen vegetables subsidiary, to management for £6.1m.
07-Jul-2000

Hanson is to acquire Birchwood Concrete Products from YJL for £8.5m, and YJL is expected to use the proceeds to fund future acquisitions.
07-Jul-2000

Oxford Molecular is selling Cambridge Discovery Chemistry to Millennium Pharmaceuticals for £35m, in order to reduce debt.
07-Jul-2000

Hickson International is to be acquired by Arch Chemicals of the US for £97m, enabling Arch to expand its international operations and increase its presence in the biocides and performance urethanes markets.
07-Jul-2000

Pearson has acquired The Forum Corporation, the US management training company, for £60m, in order to expand its FT Knowledge subsidiary and develop a global education business.
07-Jul-2000

Centrica is to acquire Direct Energy, the Canadian natural gas retailer, for £406m, and will use it as a platform for further North American growth.
07-Jul-2000

Access Plus, the marketing services company, is to acquire Software Stationery Holdings, the supplier of printed products and print management services, for up to £11m.
07-Jul-2000

Mersey Docks & Harbour is acquiring Imari, the Irish logistics and port services group, for £16m.
07-Jul-2000

Asprey & Garrard, the upmarket jeweller, has been acquired by the co-chairmen of US fashion group Tommy Hilfiger for undisclosed terms, and they plan to open more stores.
06-Jul-2000

Orange has acquired Ananova, the Press Association's new media division, for £95m, leaving PA to focus on the wholesale supply of news and information.
06-Jul-2000

Cordiant Communications is acquiring Lighthouse Global Network of the US for £259m, in order to expand its marketing services business.
06-Jul-2000

Chelford is to undergo a £12m reverse takeover of SSI, the developer of e-business fulfilment software.
06-Jul-2000

Eskmuir Properties is to go private in a £135m deal that will return ownership to the Laing family.
06-Jul-2000

Raglan Properties is to undergo a £51m management buy-out, in response to the lack of interest shown by investors in small public property companies.
06-Jul-2000

Culver Holdings, the insurance broker, is acquiring Aortech Systems, the supplier of IT solutions to the travel industry, for £4.5m.
06-Jul-2000

Cordiant Communications is to acquire Domino White & Partners, the US marketing agency, for up to £20m.
04-Jul-2000

Balfour Beatty is planning to acquire Integral Technologies, the US developer of security and surveillance technology, for up to £33m, in order to increase the capabilities of its Andover Controls business.
04-Jul-2000

WSP Group has acquired Cantor Seinuk Group, the New York-based structural engineer, for £7.9m, in its first move into the US.
03-Jul-2000

BCO Technologies, the Belfast-based electronics company, has accepted a £100m takeover offer from Analog Devices of the US.
03-Jul-2000

InTechnology has announced a £165m reverse takeover of two data storage companies - Vdata and Storm - and plans to set up more data storage centres in the UK and Europe.
03-Jul-2000

Paramount is selling its chain of 145 pubs to Royal Bank of Scotland's KUC subsidiary for £20m.
03-Jul-2000

J&J Dyson is acquiring Acme Marls of Stoke-on-Trent for £1.9m, in order to become one of the world's leading manufacturers of kiln equipment.
03-Jul-2000

Oxford Cryosystems, the life sciences research group, has been acquired by Ferraris for £6.7m.
30-Jun-2000

Fitness First is acquiring Sportathlon Holdings for £2.9m, in order to expand its health clubs into Hong Kong, Thailand, Singapore, China and Indonesia.
30-Jun-2000

Pearson is acquiring an 87% stake in Family Education Network, the US online education company, for £85m.
30-Jun-2000

Smith & Nephew is to sell its consumer products division to a management team and Beiersdorf of Germany, in order to raise £235m and focus on its more profitable high-tech activities.
29-Jun-2000

SFI is planning to acquire the Slug & Lettuce chain of managed pubs for £32m.
29-Jun-2000

Limit is to be acquired by QBE of Australia for £375m, which will make QBE the biggest Lloyd's of London insurer.
29-Jun-2000

Hanover International is to acquire Andrew Weir Hotels, the operator of six business hotels, for £33m.
29-Jun-2000

Skillsgroup is acquiring Direct Media Technology, the developer of training systems, for up to £5.3m.
29-Jun-2000

Dolphin Packaging, the plastic packaging company, is being acquired by Sealed Air of the US for £79m, in order to give the US company greater access to Europe and additional products in convenience food packaging.
29-Jun-2000

Clyde Marine, the Glasgow-based manufacturer of boating equipment, is to sell its Simpson Lawrence UK distribution business to Dorset-based Sowester for £4m, which will involve the transfer of 90 employees.
29-Jun-2000

Littlewoods is selling its football pools and gaming division to Rodime for £161m, in order to focus on high street, internet and catalogue retailing.
28-Jun-2000

Vislink is to acquire the Microwave Radio Communications division of Adaptive Broadband of the US for £14m, partly funded by a £4.5m share placing.
28-Jun-2000

Rentokil Initial is selling PTP Aerial Platforms to Loxam of France for £24m.
28-Jun-2000

Baker Tilly is to merge with Fraser Russell to create a combined accountancy group with almost 1,000 employees at 17 locations.
27-Jun-2000

Highbury House Communications has acquired the publishing operations of Columbus for £59m, while Columbus's dating business will be demerged into a separate company prior to a listing on Aim.
27-Jun-2000

JSB Software has acquired the Cyber Patrol division of Matel for £66m, in order to expand its internet filtering software business.
27-Jun-2000

Chronos Richardson, the Nottingham-based weighing and bagging firm, has been acquired by Babcock International for undisclosed terms.
27-Jun-2000

John Mowlem is to acquire Bower Group, the mechanical and electrical maintenance business, and the company will become part of Mowlem's Leeds-based Aqumen division.
27-Jun-2000

Candover is to sell the Brannigans chain of bars and clubs to a new company called Mustard Entertainment Restaurants for £67m.
26-Jun-2000

Scottish Radio Holdings has acquired KPH, the Irish publisher of weekly newspapers, for £23m.
26-Jun-2000

Lumination, the light fittings manufacturer, is being acquired by Steeple for £28m.
26-Jun-2000

United Norwest Co-op has bought 12 AM/PM convenience stores from CG Paletta of Wrexham for undisclosed terms.
26-Jun-2000

Platignum, the Royston-based pen manufacturer, has been acquired by Universal Writing Instruments of Italy for undisclosed terms.
26-Jun-2000

Mice Group is expanding its conferences business with the acquisition of City Conference Services for £2.5m.
23-Jun-2000

Halifax has acquired Bank One's UK credit card operation, and plans to relocate most of its existing cards business to Cardiff.
23-Jun-2000

Crown Eyeglass, the Aim-listed spectacles company, is to undergo a £1.4m management buy-out.
23-Jun-2000

One-2-One has acquired the Pocket Phone Shop, which includes a network of 167 shops, for £73m.
22-Jun-2000

Hampden Agencies and SOC Group are to merge to create the largest members' agency in the Lloyds insurance market, and their tax consultancy divisions will also be merged.
22-Jun-2000

CRH is to expand its US aggregates and building materials business by acquiring Dolomite Group and the Northern Ohio Paving Company for a total £114m.
22-Jun-2000

Hays has acquired Argon, the French supply chain consultancy, for £6.6m, and has also announced a distribution agreement with i2 Technologies of the US that will enhance its e-commerce capabilities.
22-Jun-2000

Allen has sold its 82% stake in Sheet Piling (UK) to management for £1.2m, in order to focus on its core contracting business.
22-Jun-2000

High-Point Rendel has acquired Vantagepoint Management Consultancy for £1.7m.
22-Jun-2000

Freshfields has announced plans to merge with Bruckhaus Westrick Heller Lober of Germany to create a combined law firm with 30 offices in 19 countries.
21-Jun-2000

Saatchi & Saatchi is to be acquired by Publicis of France for £1.2bn, creating the world's fifth largest advertising agency.
21-Jun-2000

Northern Foods has sold its Irish food service and frozen food distribution business to IAWS for £16m, in order to allow its Green Isle Foods division to focus on the development of frozen food retail brands.
21-Jun-2000

Ward Holdings, the Kent-based housebuilder and plant hire company, is to undergo a £34m management buy-out.
21-Jun-2000

Story Construction of Carlisle has acquired Point on Trackwork, the recently-formed railway maintenance company, for undisclosed terms, and more than 100 jobs are expected to be created.
21-Jun-2000

Mentmore Abbey has acquired British Self Storage, the operator of six storage sites, for £27m.
21-Jun-2000

Apax Partners is planning to merge its investment banking division with Gold-Zack Group of Germany, and the business will be renamed Altium Capital.
20-Jun-2000

PA Consulting is to acquire Hagler Bailly for £63m, in order to expand its US transport and energy consultancy business.
20-Jun-2000

Tomkins is to sell Red Wing, the US manufacturer of grocery products, to Ralcorp for £88m.
20-Jun-2000

Rentokil Initial is acquiring Bilger Schwenk, the German textile service company, for £40m, and has also announced six smaller acquisitions in Belgium, Australia, Hong Kong and the US.
20-Jun-2000

Impact Fork Lifts, the Immingham-based Toyota forklift dealer, has been bought by Saficon Industrial Equipment of South Africa, and a £16m expansion programme will result in more depots being opened across the country.
20-Jun-2000

Nurseryworks, the operator of nine nurseries in the London area, has been acquired by Bright Horizons Family Solutions of the US.
19-Jun-2000

Knutsford is to acquire WILink, the US-based supplier of financial information, for £55m, as part of a strategy to transform itself into an online investment bank and information group.
19-Jun-2000

Netcentric, the business software company, has undergone a £5m reverse takeover of Manx & Overseas, the Aim-listed property company.
19-Jun-2000

Peter's Food Service has acquired Green Country Foods, the Cardiff-based sandwich manufacturer, for undisclosed terms.
19-Jun-2000

Moorland Poultry of Dalton has undergone a management buy-out for undisclosed terms.
19-Jun-2000

Heatsave, the building services and energy management company, has been acquired by Gaz de France's Cofathec subsidiary, and is recruiting new staff to meet rising demand.
19-Jun-2000

First Choice has bought the travel division of Barcelo in a £34m deal, giving it access to a network of 275 Spanish travel agencies, and the two companies are also planning a joint hotels venture.
16-Jun-2000

Kelda is planning to sell Yorkshire Water's physical assets to a customer-owned mutual company for about £2.4bn, in order to help it finance a large investment programme.
15-Jun-2000

Guardian iT is acquiring Safetynet, the computer disaster recovery company, for £170m, in order to expand its product range and strengthen its position in Asia and western Europe.
15-Jun-2000

Bass has agreed to sell its brewing operations to Interbrew of Belgium for £2.3bn, and the proceeds will be invested in its pubs, hotels and restaurants.
15-Jun-2000

Berisford has acquired Merrychef, the manufacturer of commercial microwave ovens, for £17m.
15-Jun-2000

Scottish Radio Holdings has acquired Title Media, the publisher of the Ireland on Sunday newspaper, for £6m.
15-Jun-2000

Pearson is to acquire Talkback Productions, the independent television production company, for £62m.
15-Jun-2000

English Architectural Glazing is being bought out of receivership by its original founder, saving 62 of the 150 threatened jobs.
15-Jun-2000

Fads has bought Crest Decor, the Scottish DIY retailer with 13 stores, for undisclosed terms.
15-Jun-2000

Nelson Hind, the catering company that operates 250 restaurants and corporate dining rooms, has been acquired by Elior of France for undisclosed terms.
14-Jun-2000

WF Electrical, the electrical products distributor, is to be acquired by Hagemeyer of the Netherlands for £85m.
14-Jun-2000

Daily Mail & General Trust is to sell its radio assets to GWR for £146m, and the two companies plan to form a closer partnership in their print, internet and radio businesses.
14-Jun-2000

Whitehead Mann is acquiring Pendleton James, the US executive search firm, for £6.8m.
14-Jun-2000

Shaw Export Services, the West Yorkshire-based export packing company, has been bought out of receivership by Neal Brothers of Leicester for undisclosed terms.
14-Jun-2000

Scoot has acquired Loot, the free-ads newspaper, for £190m, in order to attract more readers to its online and interactive TV services.
13-Jun-2000

Rentokil Initial is selling its international container business to Yardbrace for £75m and its US personnel services business to an equity investor for £43m.
13-Jun-2000

John Mansfield has sold its Waddington North America disposable plastic tableware business to management for £140m, in order to transform its Waddington packaging division into a printing business.
13-Jun-2000

Cedar Group is to acquire the knowledge management software business of the former British Gas for £7m.
13-Jun-2000

PSL, the Aberdeen-based oil services group, has acquired the AGR Ability Group of Norway for £20m, in order to expand its well services and subsea products business.
13-Jun-2000

PNC Telecom is to acquire KJC, the mobile phone retailer, for up to £62m, and plans to add 20 more stores and create separate areas to sell internet services.
12-Jun-2000

UCB Films has submitted plans for a new R&D centre at its Wigton plant in Cumbria, with the creation of 130 jobs.
12-Jun-2000

Freedom Group has acquired VIP Bin Cleaning, the international franchise company offering wheely bin cleaning from 80 depots, for undisclosed terms.
12-Jun-2000

United Norwest Co-op has bought the Apollo Travel Group from Cosmos Holidays for undisclosed terms, which will involve the transfer of 400 staff at 25 branches across Yorkshire and two call centres in Rotherham and Leeds.
12-Jun-2000

Tate & Lyle is selling its Australian sugar business to Societe Financiere des Sucres of Belgium for £165m, as part of a reorganisation that will also see it pay £274m to buy out minority shareholders in its Amylum and Staley starch business.
09-Jun-2000

Kewill Systems has acquired Evcor, the US systems integration company, for £30m.
09-Jun-2000

Linx Printing Technologies is acquiring Xymark, the Hull-based laser coder business, for £5.9m.
09-Jun-2000

Incepta has acquired Milan-based Financial Communications and Financial Net for up to £5m, in order to develop an integrated communications and marketing group in Italy.
09-Jun-2000

Carillion has sold Stanger Science & Environment, the Wolverhampton-based environmental consultancy, to Casella Group for £3m, and Cimage Enterprise Systems of Bracknell to a management team for £1.7m.
08-Jun-2000

Royal Doulton is to sell its Royal Crown Derby subsidiary to a management buy-out team for £16m, securing 250 jobs.
08-Jun-2000

Hays is to acquire QA Myriad from Skillsgroup for £31m, in order to expand its IT staffing division.
08-Jun-2000

Queensborough, the caravan park and leisure attraction operator, is to be taken private in a £23m management buy-out.
08-Jun-2000

Britax International is planning to sell its car mirrors business to Reitter & Schefenacker of Germany for about £200m, and is looking to make acquisitions in aircraft interiors, child car seats, and vehicle systems.
08-Jun-2000

Rotrax Engineering Services of Middlesbrough is merging with CJ Bartley and Total Environmental Maintenance Services to create a new mechanical and electrical contracting group called Mea.
08-Jun-2000

Allen has sold Speedy Scaffolding to a management team for £2.1m.
07-Jun-2000

Unilever is to acquire Bestfoods of the US for £13.4bn, creating the second largest global food business after Nestle.
07-Jun-2000

N-S Eurowire, the Kidderminster-based manufacturer of tyre bead wire has been bought out of receivership by Romwire, saving 180 jobs.
07-Jun-2000

Pilkington is planning to acquire an 80% stake in Visteon, Ford's glass division, in order to double its share of the North American automotive glass market to about 40%.
06-Jun-2000

Brewin Dolphin is to acquire Hill Osborne, the Leicester-based stockbroker, for up to £31m, which will expand its branch network to 31.
06-Jun-2000

First Choice is to acquire Ten Tour for up to £77m, in order to expand its specialist European tour operating business.
06-Jun-2000

Severn Trent is to acquire UK Waste for £380m, and will combine it with Biffa to create the country's largest waste management group.
06-Jun-2000

Vibroplant has acquired Handi Hire, the Long Eaton-based plant hire company, for £2.6m, and is planning to expand the network of 25 depots.
06-Jun-2000

BBA is planning to acquire Lynton Aviation of the US for £37m and Osprey Aviation of Southampton for £2.5m, as part of a strategy to develop a global airline maintenance business.
05-Jun-2000

Edinburgh Fund Managers has acquired Northern Venture Managers, the Newcastle-based private equity firm, for up to £9m.
05-Jun-2000

BPB has acquired the US wallboard and ceiling tile business of Celotex for £230m, giving it five US plants to add to its six in Canada.
05-Jun-2000

Rank has agreed to sell its 50% stake in Universal Studios Escape, the Orlando theme park operation, to the Blackstone Group for £185m.
05-Jun-2000

Pall Mall Support Services has acquired Compass Cleaning for £23m, in order to create the country's largest retail cleaning business.
05-Jun-2000

Ring, the Leeds-based lighting distributor, has been acquired by Group Catalina International of the US for £22m, and is also looking to expand into continental Europe.
05-Jun-2000

British Vita has acquired Imperial Packaging, the US manufacturer of thermoplastic sheet, for £3.7m.
02-Jun-2000

MEPC, the property company, is to be taken private following a £3.5bn takeover offer from Leconport Estates.
02-Jun-2000

Granada has acquired NFER-Nelson, the provider of test and assessment products, for £20m, in order to expand its Granada Learning online education business.
02-Jun-2000

Guardian iT has acquired the disaster recovery division of Catalyst Solutions for £27m.
02-Jun-2000

Duke Street Capital, the private equity firm, has acquired full control of Marie Brizard, the French drinks company, in a deal worth £118m.
02-Jun-2000

Signet has acquired Marks & Morgan, the US jewellery retailer, for £77m, which will expand its US outlets to 969 stores.
02-Jun-2000

Meadow Farms, the Devon-based organic milk supplier, has been acquired by Horizon of the US for £16m.
02-Jun-2000

Kvaerner has acquired Whessoe International of Darlington, in order to offer total capability in the design and construction of liquid natural gas facilities.
02-Jun-2000

Penna is to acquire Crane Davies for £10m, in order to expand its human resources consultancy business.
02-Jun-2000

Kvaerner has sold Cleveland Bridge, its Darlington-based bridge building business, to a management buy-out for about £8m.
01-Jun-2000

Invensys has announced a £468m takeover offer for Baan, and plans to improve the profitability of the Dutch software company by cutting about 1,000 jobs.
01-Jun-2000

Stanley Leisure has acquired Regency Bookmakers, the Midlands-based chain of 23 betting shops, for undisclosed terms, taking its total number of outlets to 660.
01-Jun-2000

West Midlands Co-op has acquired Morris Foods, the Shropshire-based chain of seven supermarkets, for undisclosed terms.
31-May-2000

Emess is selling its three international lighting operations to SLI of the US for £81m, in order to reduce borrowings and focus on its UK business.
31-May-2000

Geo Interactive Media is to acquire Zapex Research, the Israeli semiconductor subsidiary of Brother International, for £18m, in order to speed up the development of its internet multimedia business.
31-May-2000

Anite is to acquire Datavance, the French IT consultancy, for £49m, in order to develop a pan-European service for its banking and telecoms customers.
31-May-2000

Energis is to acquire Stentor, the Irish telecoms provider, for £36m, through its Nevada joint venture with Viridian.
31-May-2000

Vodafone AirTouch has agreed to sell its Orange mobile phone business to France Telecom for £31bn, and Orange's existing management team will be retained in preparation for a partial flotation.
31-May-2000

National Express is to acquire School Services & Leasing, the US school bus operator, for £137m.
31-May-2000

Pifco has acquired DH Haden, the Staffordshire-based electrical appliances company, for £3.2m.
30-May-2000

NewMedia Spark has acquired Softtechnet.com, the rival internet incubator fund, for £30m, and has also announced plans to expand into India.
30-May-2000

ISI Group has announced the demerger of McLaren, its Glasgow-based document management software business, with Penta Capital acquiring a £10m stake.
30-May-2000

Iceland is to acquire Booker, the cash and carry group, in a £326m all-share deal, and the combined group will aim to achieve cost savings of £50m within two years.
26-May-2000

Whitbread is selling its beer division to Interbrew of Belgium for £400m, in order to focus on hotels and leisure.
26-May-2000

Bloomsbury has acquired A&C Black for £16m, in order to expand its catalogue of reference books in both print and electronic form.
26-May-2000

Flow Industries has acquired Shipham, the Hull-based manufacturer of valves for the oil industry, for undisclosed terms.
26-May-2000

Sage has acquired Apex Software International, the Irish supplier of computer-based services to accountants, for £16m.
26-May-2000

Ford has completed the £1.85bn acquisition of Land Rover from BMW, and is expected to invest heavily in the assembly facilities and dealer network.
25-May-2000

Cadbury Schweppes is planning to acquire the French chewing gum and candy business of Kraft Foods, and a deal is expected to be announced within weeks.
25-May-2000

Low & Bonar has sold its European cartons business to Malbak of South Africa for £80m.
25-May-2000

Parkman, the environmental consultant, has undergone a £10m management buy-out.
25-May-2000

Marconi has acquired Systems Management Specialists, the US operator of five data centres, for £76m.
24-May-2000

Taurus Design, the Horsham-based project engineer, has been acquired by Weeks Group to create a combined consultancy group with 450 staff.
24-May-2000

Viridian is to acquire First Software Group, the Manchester-based developer of software for local government, which will add a further 250 staff to its Sx3 division.
24-May-2000

International Greetings has bought the New Jersey-based Stephen Lawrence Company for £1.6m, in order to expand its US wrapping paper business.
24-May-2000

Reed Elsevier is to sell Springhouse Corporation, the supplier of information and services to the US nursing market, to Dutch publisher Wolters Kluwer.
24-May-2000

Carlton Communications has acquired Screenvision for £63m, in order to move into the US cinema advertising market.
23-May-2000

Arjo Wiggins Appleton has accepted a £2.2bn takeover bid from Worms of France, but will retain its UK headquarters.
23-May-2000

Proudfoot Consulting has sold its Japanese management consulting business to local management for about £29m.
23-May-2000

Vosper Thornycroft has acquired Bombardier Defence Services UK from Bombardier of Canada for £30m, in order to expand its support services business.
22-May-2000

J&J Dyson has bought the kiln furniture business of Hewitt Refractories for £1.4m, and plans to consolidate operations on its existing Diamond Gimson site in Stoke-on-Trent.
22-May-2000

3i is acquiring SFK Finance of Finland for an initial £6.9m, in order to expand its share of the venture capital market in Scandinavia.
19-May-2000

Stenoak Services is to acquire the road surfacing and highways maintenance division of Associated Holdings for about £9m.
19-May-2000

Autonomy is acquiring a majority stake in SoftSound, the Cambridge-based developer of speech recognition software.
19-May-2000

James Finlay, the tea plantations company, is being acquired by Swire, the Asian conglomerate, in a £101m deal.
19-May-2000

Tequila Manchester is to merge with BDH to create a combined £10m direct marketing group, and 27 staff will be brought together at new offices in Didsbury.
19-May-2000

T&S Stores is to acquire Day & Nite, the Preston-based chain of 98 convenience stores, for £25m.
18-May-2000

Incepta is to acquire JKD Communications, the online media design company, for up to £10m.
18-May-2000

TransTec, the engineering group that went into receivership in January, has sold Earby Light Engineers to management for £7m.
18-May-2000

Highbury House Communications has acquired Security Publications, the publisher of consumer magazines, for £5m.
18-May-2000

QXL is to acquire Ricardo.de, the German online auction company, in a £627m deal that will create a new group called QXL ricardo.
17-May-2000

Liberty, the London department store, has been acquired by Marylebone Warwick Balfour for £72m, and the main Regent Street building will be refurbished at a cost of £9m.
17-May-2000

First Group has sold its New World First bus business in Hong Kong for £39m, as part of a strategy to focus on the UK and the US.
17-May-2000

YJL has acquired Lodge & Sons, the Essex-based building restoration company, for undisclosed terms.
17-May-2000

SSL International is to sell its 57-strong Scholl footcare stores business to Alliance UniChem in a £3m deal.
17-May-2000

United Engineering Forgings is selling its Lincoln-based aerospace division to Precision Castparts Corporation of the US for £22m, in order to focus on its automotive and cylinders operations.
16-May-2000

Thomson Travel is to be acquired by Preussag of Germany for £1.8bn, which will create the world's largest package holiday operator.
16-May-2000

Lombard Street Research, the financial research house, has undergone a management buy-out from Gerrard Group for undisclosed terms.
16-May-2000

LSC Group of Tamworth has acquired the electronic document management business of Pennant International Authoring Group for undisclosed terms.
16-May-2000

Grafton Group has acquired Essex Heating Supplies for £13m, and will merge the business with its Plumbase building supplies division.
16-May-2000

WPP has agreed a £2.8bn merger with Young & Rubicam of New York, which will create the largest advertising group in the world.
15-May-2000

Caradon has acquired Eltek Fire & Safety of Norway for £22m, in order to expand its security and building controls business.
15-May-2000

Johnston Press has bought the Lincoln Standard Group and Four Counties Newspapers from Southnews for £16m.
15-May-2000

WT Foods has acquired Rio Pacific Food Services, the Tex-Mex and Cajun specialist, for £7.5m.
15-May-2000

Alltruck, the Ashby-based contract hire company, has sold its two main businesses to a management buy-out, including transport management, contract hire of commercial vehicles, truck rental, and an ERF dealership in Leicester.
15-May-2000

Hanson is to acquire two US concrete pipe manufacturers for £89m - Cincinnati Pipe and Joelson Taylor.
12-May-2000

P&O is acquiring Festival Cruises, the operator of four cruise ships with a Europe-wide sales network, for £260m.
12-May-2000

Schroders is to acquire Liberty International Pensions, the insurance and pensions company that is 80% owned by Liberty International, in a £60m deal.
12-May-2000

Hogg Robinson, the business travel agency, has agreed to a £232m management buy-out, which will take the company private.
11-May-2000

Luminar is to acquire Northern Leisure in a £392m deal, creating a combined group with 237 nightclubs and late-night pubs.
11-May-2000

BSkyB has acquired Sports Internet for £300m, in order to expand its online sports business with new content and e-commerce potential.
11-May-2000

Yorkshire Group has acquired the global textile dyes and the European industrial dyes business of Crompton & Knowles of the US, in a deal worth about £50m.
11-May-2000

SEP Industrial is transforming itself into a software company, having sold its Birmingham-based Presstech car parts business and bought London-based banking software house IAS II from its US parent for £1.5m.
11-May-2000

United News & Media is to sell its UAP consumer magazines business in the US to Trader Publishing for £338m, and the proceeds will be used to reduce debt and invest in its new media strategy.
10-May-2000

Reuters is to acquire The Yankee Group, the US e-business research company, for £47m.
10-May-2000

BMW has agreed to sell Rover to the Phoenix Consortium of Midlands-based businessmen for a nominal sum, which is expected to secure 8,000 jobs at Longbridge.
10-May-2000

Weir has sold its Bristol-based Strachan & Henshaw bulk handling division to Svedala Industries of Sweden for £2.5m.
10-May-2000

The Post Office has acquired Extand, the French parcel delivery service, in a £71m deal.
10-May-2000

Viridian has acquired XBS, the Tyneside-based systems integration company, as part of a strategy to expand its Sx3 division.
10-May-2000

Aggregate Industries is paying £19m for two US companies - Capitol Excavating & Paving and Klett Construction.
10-May-2000

Williams is to sell its US paint businesses for £300m, with North American Paint going to a management buy-out and Masterchem Industries going to Masco Corporation.
09-May-2000

Sportingbet.com has acquired Betmaker.com, the Costa Rica-based internet gambling business, for about £15m, as part of a strategy to create a global betting brand.
09-May-2000

United Drug, the healthcare services company, has acquired Ashfield Healthcare of Birmingham for up to £16m.
09-May-2000

Romac Gloucester Rewind, the Gloucester-based electric motors and transformers company, has been acquired by the Nottingham-based Ford Group for undisclosed terms.
09-May-2000

Newsquest is to acquire News Communications & Media for £444m, in order to create a combined regional newspaper publishing group with 286 titles.
08-May-2000

Royal Bank of Scotland is to sell Ulster Bank Investment Managers to KBC Group of Brussels for about £60m.
08-May-2000

ICL has sold its LOGiCOM IT logistics business to an institutional buy-out led by 3i, in a £50m deal.
08-May-2000

Jourdan is to acquire two companies from Robert Lowe for £8.7m, including the Westfield sterilised packaging business and the Nelsons labels business.
05-May-2000

Galen is to acquire Warner Chilcott, the US supplier of women's health products, for £190m.
05-May-2000

Allied Leisure is to acquire Waterfall Holdings for £23m, in order to expand its snooker and pool business from 100 to 155 clubs.
05-May-2000

Freecom.net has acquired 80% of Systems Union, the supplier of Sun business software, for £32m.
05-May-2000

Cookson is selling its two telecoms businesses for £98m, with Neptco going to a venture capital consortium and Focas to Alcoa Fujikura.
05-May-2000

Fairey is acquiring Spectris AG Sensoren und Systeme, the German controls company, for £125m, partly funded by a £55m rights issue.
04-May-2000

Skipton Building Society has sold its telephone share dealing business to TD Waterhouse for £82m.
04-May-2000

CallCentric has acquired Datapoint, the US call centre specialist, for £38m, and the merged business will be called Datapoint and have its headquarters in Windsor.
04-May-2000

Whitehead Mann is to acquire GKR for £20m, in order to create the country's largest senior executive search firm.
04-May-2000

Ashtead has bought part of Birse's BPH plant hire business for £1.6m, including the hire fleet, motor vehicles and trading contracts.
04-May-2000

Costain has sold its Foundation Engineering geotechnical testing business to Fugro of the Netherlands.
04-May-2000

Scotmid has acquired the Options chain of 27 discount toiletry stores in Northern Ireland, in a deal worth about £3m.
04-May-2000

Zeus Group, the Dudley-based supplier of castings to the motor industry, has undergone a management buy-out, and is planning to invest in new equipment and new staff.
04-May-2000

Viridian has acquired Specialist Computer Programming, the Ballymena-based developer of building control and town planning software, for undisclosed terms.
04-May-2000

Smiths Industries is to acquire Florida RF Labs, the US telecoms components company, for £16m.
04-May-2000

Group 4 is being acquired by Falck of Denmark for £550m, in order to create one of the world's leading security groups.
04-May-2000

Tarsus, the exhibitions and publishing company, is to acquire Paris-based Groupe MM for up to £14m.
04-May-2000

Winterthur Life is to acquire the UK life assurance business of Colonial of Australia for £301m.
03-May-2000

Cambridge Industries, the Reading-based manufacturer of satellite receiver components, has been acquired by Channel Master of the US for about £23m.
03-May-2000

Ennstone is to acquire Breedon for £50m, in order to create an enlarged quarrying group and sell off Breedon's housebuilding business.
02-May-2000

Worldmark, the East Kilbride-based labelling manufacturer, is expanding into China with the £2m acquisition of Lion City Packaging.
02-May-2000

Metal Bulletin has acquired Atalink, the publisher of annual titles for trade associations, for £13m.
28-Apr-2000

Atlantic Telecom is to acquire First Telecom for £520m, and plans to spend £100m expanding First Telecom's DSL network in Germany.
28-Apr-2000

BAe Systems is to acquire the US-based control systems business of Lockheed Martin for £320m, and is also interested in a number of electronics operations being auctioned by Lockheed.
28-Apr-2000

Rodamco is to acquire Scottish Metropolitan Property for £152m, in order to increase its investment in the retail and industrial property markets.
28-Apr-2000

Standard Chartered is to acquire banking group Grindlays from its Australian parent ANZ for £823m, in order to become the leading international bank in India, Pakistan and Bangladesh.
28-Apr-2000

Britten-Norman, the Isle of Wight-based aircraft manufacturer, has been bought out of receivership by two investors from Oman for undisclosed terms.
28-Apr-2000

Hall & Woodhouse has bought King & Barnes, the Horsham-based brewery and pubs group, for undisclosed terms, and the brewery is expected to be closed with the loss of up to 50 jobs.
28-Apr-2000

Caradon is planning to acquire Columbia, the US aluminium extruder company, for £75m, and has also announced plans to put its bathroom equipment and boilers division up for sale.
27-Apr-2000

Charter has accepted a £471m takeover bid from Lincoln Electric, the US welding manufacturer.
27-Apr-2000

Ingenta has announced the reverse takeover of Aim-listed investment vehicle Delyn, and will raise £3m in a share placing in order to fund the expansion of its online academic research business.
27-Apr-2000

Amey Rail has acquired Datel, the developer of railway information management systems, for undisclosed terms.
27-Apr-2000

Greencore of Ireland has acquired Williams Rodgers Foods, the dried fruit manufacturer based in Kirkby-in-Ashfield, for undisclosed terms.
27-Apr-2000

Currie European Transport, the Dumfries-based independent road haulage firm, has undergone a management buy-out for undisclosed terms.
27-Apr-2000

Perkin Elmer has sold its Cambridge-based healthcare imaging division to a management buy-out for £0.8m, in order to focus on life sciences.
27-Apr-2000

Invensys has sold Westinghouse Brakes, the rail industry supplier, to Germany's Knorr-Bremse for £65m.
27-Apr-2000

Momentus, the London-based e-consultancy, is being acquired by Diamond Technology Partners of the US for £6.2m.
26-Apr-2000

Photobition, the supplier of graphics displays, has acquired four former Wace businesses in the US from Applied Graphics Technologies for £7.3m.
26-Apr-2000

Wolseley is selling a number of manufacturing businesses to Cinven for up to £136m, including agricultural, industrial, motor, cable, and photographic operations.
26-Apr-2000

Barclays has sold its Dial car leasing business to ABN Amro for £269m, in order to withdraw from the rapidly consolidating market.
26-Apr-2000

Harvey Nash is to acquire TechPartners International for an initial £15m, in order to expand its US recruitment business.
26-Apr-2000

Magic Moments Internet has acquired WebFusion, the Nottingham-based web site designer, in a deal worth up to £40m.
25-Apr-2000

Alstom has bought Norweb Contracting from United Utilities for £25m, as part of a strategy to develop a one-stop shop for electrical services.
25-Apr-2000

Marconi has acquired MSI, the London-based wireless network consultancy, for £391m, as part of a strategy to position itself against the big telecoms companies.
25-Apr-2000

Confetti Network has acquired Braut.de, the German online wedding business, for undisclosed terms, as part of a strategy to expand across Europe.
25-Apr-2000

Jardine Lloyd Thompson is to acquire Burke Ford Group for an initial £5m, to create a combined retail insurance business operating within the JLT Corporate Risks & Services division.
25-Apr-2000

Smith-Woolley is to merge with Smiths Gore to create a combined chartered surveying business with 370 staff and 25 offices.
25-Apr-2000

Timtec International, the Somercotes-based interior contractor, has been bought by EuroTelecom Communications of Mexborough, Yorkshire, for £0.6m.
25-Apr-2000

WR Group, the Leicester-based refrigeration company, has bought NRC's supermarket services and maintenance business in Wellingborough from Stratagem Group, for undisclosed terms.
25-Apr-2000

Alstom is to acquire Sunvic of Germany, in order to expand its electrical contracting business into the petrochemical and chemical industries.
20-Apr-2000

Rentokil is to sell its US plant hire business to Ashtead for £320m, and the proceeds will be used to fund a share buy-back programme.
20-Apr-2000

Johnstone Douglas, the financial planning consultancy, has been acquired by Alexander Forbes of South Africa for £42m.
20-Apr-2000

Just2Clicks has acquired Granite Rocks, the supplier of geophysical services to oil companies, for £0.7m, in order to start online trading in the energy sector.
20-Apr-2000

Gala has acquired Riva Clubs, the chain of 27 bingo clubs, for £90m, taking its chain to 174 outlets.
20-Apr-2000

HLM Architects and Osprey Communications are planning to merge to create a combined architectural and communications group called RockArchimedia.
20-Apr-2000

Pure Asphalt of Bolton has bought the mastic asphalt division of TotalFina, in order to increase its UK market share to 25%.
20-Apr-2000

Dobbies Garden Centres has acquired Lancashire-based Clifton Garden Centre for £1.7m.
20-Apr-2000

Tactica Solutions, the Norwich-based document management company, has undergone a £60m management buy-out, and the 365-strong workforce will be expanded.
20-Apr-2000

Marlow Ropes has acquired Whitely Products, the Daventry-based cord manufacturer, and will transfer production to Mossley near Manchester with the loss of 34 jobs.
20-Apr-2000

Lynx is to acquire Bankhall Investment Management, the supplier of support services to independent financial advisers, for up to £114m, in order to develop an internet trading platform for the IFA market.
19-Apr-2000

Hyder, the water and electricity supplier, has agreed to a £402m takeover offer from Nomura International, and Nomura has pledged to keep the group headquarters in Cardiff.
19-Apr-2000

John Collins, the Nottingham-based printing company, has undergone a management buy-out for undisclosed terms.
19-Apr-2000

WH Smith is acquiring The Benjamin Company, the seller of books and gifts at nine US airports, for £12m.
18-Apr-2000

Sportsworld Media has acquired Sports & Outdoor Media International, the Australian sports advertising company, for £50m.
18-Apr-2000

Ultra Electronics has acquired Datel Ferranti, the defence software company, for £44m.
17-Apr-2000

Tate & Lyle is to sell its US grains business to JD Keiskell for about £35m, prompting speculation that its US sugar business could be sold next.
17-Apr-2000

The Real Soup Company of Hexham and frozen ready meals company Danby's Foods have been acquired by Authentic Speciality Foods for undisclosed terms.
17-Apr-2000

Biwater Industries, the pipeline manufacturing subsidiary of the Biwater group, has been acquired by Saint Gobain of France for undisclosed terms.
17-Apr-2000

Joseph Dunn Group has sold Dunn Interiors, the Glasgow-based restaurant design and refurbishment business with more than 100 staff, to management.
17-Apr-2000

Skillsgroup is planning to sell its Acuma enterprise solutions division to management, in order to focus its other two divisions, QA and Pontis Consulting, on the e-business IT training market.
17-Apr-2000

Incepta is acquiring Sard Verbinnen, the New York-based public relations agency, for £36m, in order to expand its financial communications capabilities on the US.
14-Apr-2000

Capital Radio has announced an agreed takeover offer for Border Television, in a deal that values the Carlisle-based media company at about £146m.
14-Apr-2000

Rage Software has acquired the Caffeine Studios and The Internet Football Club for £3m, as part of a strategy to transform itself from a games developer into a games publisher.
14-Apr-2000

Singer & Friedlander has sold its Collins Stewart stockbroking business to management for £122m, in order to focus on banking and fund management.
14-Apr-2000

Unilever is acquiring two US food companies for a total £1.63bn - dietary supplement manufacturer SlimFast Foods and ice cream producer Ben & Jerry's Homemade.
13-Apr-2000

Gunn Bros, the Cumbrian chain of builders merchants, has been acquired by Builder Center.
13-Apr-2000

John Tams, the Stoke-based pottery, has had its mug division bought out of receivership by a management buy-out, saving 340 jobs, and buyers are now sought for two other parts of the group.
13-Apr-2000

CCM Distribution, the Altrincham-based computer components company, has undergone a management buy-out, and is now planning to develop a new range of hard drives, fax modems and other components.
13-Apr-2000

Robert Fleming, the investment bank, is to be acquired by Chase Manhattan of the US for £4.8bn, and job losses are expected to be minimal.
12-Apr-2000

Clarity, the internet consultancy, has been acquired by Proxicom of the US for £46m, which will increase its technical capacity and provide access to overseas markets.
12-Apr-2000

AFA Systems has acquired Data Analysis Risk Technology, the derivatives software house, in a £26m deal.
12-Apr-2000

Capita is to acquire IRG, the share registration service, for £100m, in order to expand its back-office administration services into the private sector.
12-Apr-2000

Amec is to acquire the windfarm developer Border Wind, in response to the government's recently-announced commitment to both onshore and offshore wind-energy projects.
12-Apr-2000

Clansman Monarch, the Edinburgh-based travel operator, has acquired Scottish Farmhouse Holidays for undisclosed terms.
12-Apr-2000

ARM Holdings has acquired Infinite Designs, the Sheffield-based microchip designer, for £0.3m.
12-Apr-2000

Balfour Beatty is to acquire US rail track companies Marta Track Constructors, based near Pittsburgh, and Metroplex for about £40m.
12-Apr-2000

Barkbury has acquired Crosbee & Atkins of Warwick for undisclosed terms, to create a combined construction group with 300 employees.
12-Apr-2000

Northern Leisure is in merger talks with Luminar, to create a £600m group with 225 nightclubs.
11-Apr-2000

Lafarge of France has won European Commission approval for its £3.4bn bid for Blue Circle, but the UK cement maker is still trying to resist the deal.
11-Apr-2000

Alvis is selling a division that manufacturers bomb disposal robots to Northrop Grumman of the US for £1.4m, and job losses are expected among the 31 Coventry-based workers.
11-Apr-2000

Albert Fisher has sold its Greencell fresh produce division to management for £1.4m.
10-Apr-2000

Cable & Wireless has acquired Jaguar Communications, the St Albans-based network integration company.
10-Apr-2000

Incepta is acquiring Smarts Advertising & Design, the Scottish advertising agency, for £2.5m.
07-Apr-2000

Brewin Dolphin is to acquire Broadbridge, the Yorkshire-based stockbroker, for up to £10m.
07-Apr-2000

Keystone Software has acquired the legal software division of US-based BISPoint Technologies for £5m, partly funded by a £2.4m share placing.
07-Apr-2000

HP Bulmer is to acquire Dawes Group, the drinks wholesaler that trades as The Beer Seller, for £32m, in order to introduce its cider into more pubs.
07-Apr-2000

Pattern Equipment Company, the Leicester-based tooling business, has undergone a management buy-out, and is now looking to invest in new facilities.
07-Apr-2000

Stagecoach has acquired JW Coaches & Taxis of Banchory, Deeside, in order to expand its public transport business in the north-east of Scotland.
07-Apr-2000

Sage is acquiring CSM, the Birmingham-based developer of tax software, from Freecom.net for £9m.
07-Apr-2000

Morgan Crucible is selling its Laser Diode subsidiary, which makes equipment for the fibre-optic communications industry, to Tyco International for £16m.
07-Apr-2000

IS Solutions, the software and computer services group, is acquiring AXL Business Solutions and AXL Performance Solutions for £2.3m.
06-Apr-2000

Exchange Holdings is acquiring Aspect Online, the German internet financial services business, for £31m, and has also announced plans to change its name to Moneyextra.
06-Apr-2000

Express Dairies has sold Kirkwall Creamery to a local consortium, in order to secure 100 jobs and the future of Orkney Island Cheddar.
06-Apr-2000

Hunting Gate has sold its construction division to a management buy-out, and the business has been renamed HG Construction.
06-Apr-2000

William Wilson, the Aberdeen-based builders merchant, has acquired GL Headley, the Lancashire-based chain of six electrical wholesale branches, for undisclosed terms.
06-Apr-2000

Spring Ram is selling three Scunthorpe-based kitchen divisions to Design Academy, securing the future of about 70 jobs.
06-Apr-2000

J&J Dyson is acquiring the ceramic fibres business of Wade Ceramics for £1.5m, and will relocate the business from Stoke-on-Trent to Burton-on-Trent.
06-Apr-2000

Adams Healthcare of Leeds is to be acquired by Medical Solutions in a £13m reverse takeover, financed by a £20m share placing.
06-Apr-2000

Deltron Electronics of Newmarket has acquired RAB Distribution and OEM Connectique for £1.7m, in order to expand its French telecoms equipment business.
06-Apr-2000

Geo Interactive Media has acquired Orca Computers, the Israeli supplier of broadband data solutions, for £20m.
05-Apr-2000

Wolseley is to acquire Anderson Lumber Company of the US for £108m, in order to expand its building materials business into seven new states.
05-Apr-2000

Rexam has sold its printing division to John Mansfield for £318m, and John Mansfield has also announced plans to sell the recently-acquired Waddington's food service and pharmaceutical packaging operations.
05-Apr-2000

Lloyds Equipment Hire, the specialist lifting company, has acquired Lloyds British Testing in a £5m deal, creating a combined group with 26 outlets and 300 staff.
05-Apr-2000

Britax International is to acquire Bellingham, the US aircraft interiors business, from Hexcel for £73m.
05-Apr-2000

Cedar Group, the software services company, has announced acquisitions worth a total of £21m, including SBA UK and Ansaback for £17m, and a majority stake in Sword Business Services for £4m.
05-Apr-2000

CMG is to acquire Admiral, the computer services group, for £1.15bn, in order to expand its range of products and double its business in the UK, France and Belgium.
04-Apr-2000

Stagecoach has announced a conditional agreement to sell its Porterbrook train leasing business to Abbey National for £773m, and will use the proceeds to reduce debt.
04-Apr-2000

Johnston Press has sold S&E Distributors to JA Magson, the York-based stationery wholesaler.
04-Apr-2000

In4tek, the Altrincham-based developer of software for health and social services staff, has undergone a £3m management but-out from Systems Team.
04-Apr-2000

Rexam is to acquire American National Can, the US drinks cans maker, for £1.3bn, as part of a strategy to build up a global consumer packaging business.
04-Apr-2000

Richmond Foods has acquired Associated British Foods' ice-cream division for £19m, consolidating its position as the country's largest independent ice-cream manufacturer.
04-Apr-2000

Gameplay.com is to acquire Nordic Games, the Scandinavian supplier of computer games by mail order, in a £6m share deal.
04-Apr-2000

Airtours has acquired Hotel Don Pedro, the Spanish operator of 28 Globales hotels, for £44m.
03-Apr-2000

HSBC is to acquire Credit Commercial de France for £6.6bn, in order to create a platform to expand its banking business into continental Europe.
03-Apr-2000

JWE Telecom is to acquire Managed Network Services of Oxford for £24m, as part of a strategy to build up a nationwide telecoms business.
03-Apr-2000

Pearson is launching a £311m takeover bid for Dorling Kindersley, and aims to combine the business with its Penguin book publishing division.
31-Mar-2000

Software Warehouse, the mail order and high street computer retailer, is to be acquired by Jungle.com for up to £100m.
31-Mar-2000

SDL, the developer of translation software, has acquired International Translation & Publishing of Ireland for £14m, funded by a £22m rights issue.
31-Mar-2000

Sanctuary is to acquire Castle Music, owner of the rights to 45,000 songs, from Rutland Trust for £46m.
31-Mar-2000

Royal Bank of Scotland is selling Gartmore, its recently-acquired pension fund management business, to Nationwide Mutual Insurance of the US for £1.03bn.
31-Mar-2000

Pilkington is to sell its technical glass operations in Germany, Italy and the US to management for £50m, in order to focus on building and automotive glass.
31-Mar-2000

BPB is to acquire Heidelberger Dammsysteme, the German manufacturer of expanded polystyrene insulation, for £22m.
31-Mar-2000

Leaf UK has announced the sale of the Elizabeth Shaw and Famous Names chocolate brands to a management team operating under the name of Packbond Holdings.
31-Mar-2000

London & Edinburgh Publishing is planning to acquire Profile Pursuit, the publisher of corporate magazines, for up to £21m.
31-Mar-2000

British-Borneo Oil & Gas has accepted a £788m takeover bid from Eni of Italy, saying it does not have the financial resilience to continue as an independent company.
30-Mar-2000

Just2Clicks has acquired Tradezone, the e-commerce software company, for £10m, in order to help with the development of online procurement exchanges.
30-Mar-2000

Scottish & Newcastle is to sell 361 pubs to Pub Estate Company for £100m, in order to bring its tied estate below the maximum level allowed.
29-Mar-2000

Raphael Zorn Hemsley is to sell its asset management and private stockbroking business to Savoy Asset Management for £2.5m, and has also announced plans to change its name to Numis Corporation.
29-Mar-2000

Webfell has acquired demolition contractor Loxley to create a combined group with 130 staff and £18m turnover.
29-Mar-2000

Spider Software, the Edinburgh-based developer of wireless technologies, has been acquired by Artesyn Technologies of the US for £28m, which will lead to the creation of 60 new jobs.
29-Mar-2000

Signum Circuits, the Selkirk-based printed circuit boards company, has bought Kam Circuits of Wiltshire out of receivership.
29-Mar-2000

Yule Catto is selling its rooflight business to CRH for £39m, in order to reduce debt and increase its focus on speciality chemicals.
28-Mar-2000

Peptide Therapeutics has sold its Mimetrix drug discovery business to Medivir of Sweden for up to £6m, prompting speculation that Peptide could become a takeover target.
28-Mar-2000

Advent International has acquired CyberCity, the Danish internet access company, for £41m.
28-Mar-2000

Storehouse has agreed to sell its chain of 161 Bhs stores to retail entrepreneur Philip Green for £200m, and about £20m of the proceeds will be invested in its Mothercare business.
28-Mar-2000

QXL is acquiring Bidlet, the Scandinavian online auction business, for £313m, and is now expected to seek partnerships in France and Germany.
28-Mar-2000

AR Daunt of Nottingham is to acquire GT News, the chain of 80 newsagents and convenience stores in South Yorkshire and the East Midlands.
28-Mar-2000

Allied Mechanical Services, the Newmarket-based building services company, has been acquired by the Keller Group for £3.6m.
28-Mar-2000

RPC has acquired Dutch thermoforming company TWP Packaging Twente and its Polish subsidiary TWP Polska.
28-Mar-2000

Freecom.net is acquiring Oneview.net, the web site developer, in a £135m deal, and is now seeking joint ventures with telecoms providers.
27-Mar-2000

Courtaulds Textiles is to be acquired by Sara Lee of the US for £150m plus debt, which will double the size of Sara Lee's European clothing business.
27-Mar-2000

DC Thomson has acquired Parragon, the non-fiction book publisher, for £100m, as part of a strategy to expand its comics business into more mainstream publishing.
27-Mar-2000

Norscot Pharmaceuticals, the Aberdeen-based pharmaceutical wholesaler with 56 staff, has been acquired by Germany's Phoenix Pharmahandel for undisclosed terms.
27-Mar-2000

Fenner is selling its polymer engineering business for £2m to a new company called United Polymers, in which Grove Industries will take an 80% stake.
24-Mar-2000

API, the Macclesfield-based foils and laminates group, has acquired Ohio-based Chromagen for £1.8m.
24-Mar-2000

Inter Link Foods has completed the acquisition of Nottingham-based Maid Marian Bakeries for about £1m.
24-Mar-2000

De Vere has acquired the St David's Hotel company, owner of the Carden Park Hotel near Chester and the St David's Park Hotel in Flintshire, for £33m.
24-Mar-2000

Coflexip Stena Offshore is acquiring the US pipeline engineering company RJ Brown of Houston from Kvaerner for undisclosed terms.
24-Mar-2000

Halifax is to acquire a controlling stake in St James's Place Capital for £760m, in order to develop a new internet business for the upmarket life assurer.
23-Mar-2000

Granada Hospitality is acquiring Poplar 2000, the operator of off-motorway service stations, from Pochin for £8.6m.
23-Mar-2000

EC Harris is to merge with building surveyor Povall Flood Wilson, which will result in the amalgamation of offices in Manchester, Liverpool, Glasgow and Cardiff.
23-Mar-2000

Allen has acquired Targett Power Equipment Services of Scunthorpe and Hire Easy of Kent for under £1m, in order to expand the geographical coverage of its tool hire business.
22-Mar-2000

Scottish & Newcastle is planning to acquire Danone's beer operations in France, Belgium and Italy for £1.7bn, to create the second largest brewing group in Europe.
21-Mar-2000

Dialog is to sell its core information services division to Thomson Corporation of Canada for £174m, in order to focus on its technology assets under the new name of Bright Station.
21-Mar-2000

Chime Communications has acquired three companies for a total £20m - Harvard Public Relations, Insight Public Relations and Brass Tacks Publishing.
21-Mar-2000

United News & Media has sold the food and retail exhibitions business of Miller Freeman to William Reed for about £5m.
21-Mar-2000

Cochran Boilers, the Dumfriesshire-based boiler manufacturer, has been sold by Rolls-Royce to the Lincolnshire-based BIB Group.
21-Mar-2000

Percy Dalton Group is planning to move its peanuts business to Canvey Island early next year, with the creation of 100 jobs.
20-Mar-2000

Meridian Foods of Denbighshire has acquired Organic Valley, the supplier of organic canned foods, for undisclosed terms.
20-Mar-2000

Misys is to acquire IE Group, the supplier of software support to independent financial advisers, for £21m.
20-Mar-2000

Haden MacLellan has sold its industrial services division for £15m, as part of a restructuring programme to focus on industrial fasteners.
20-Mar-2000

Ford has agreed to acquire Land Rover from BMW for £1.85bn, and is expected to integrate the dealership, finance and marketing functions with those of its other premium car brands.
20-Mar-2000

Staveley Industries has announced the sale of its British Salt business to US Salt for £80m.
17-Mar-2000

National Grid has won US regulatory approval to acquire New England Electric System for £2bn.
17-Mar-2000

Ebookers.com is acquiring Rejsegalleriet of Denmark and Reisbureau Nova of the Netherlands for £1.6m, in order to expand its sports travel agency business.
17-Mar-2000

YJL, formerly known as YJ Lovell, is to acquire the Britannia construction company for £12m.
17-Mar-2000

Freeserve is to acquire SmartGroups.com, the creator of web-based communities, for up to £60m in new shares, in order to provide new advertising and e-commerce opportunities.
17-Mar-2000

Geoconference, the Glasgow-based teleconferencing group, has been bought by a subsidiary of Bermuda-based Global Crossing for £20m.
17-Mar-2000

Greatminster has sold its Yachtline marine insurance business to management for undisclosed terms.
17-Mar-2000

Sage is acquiring Ubiquis, the French developer of e-commerce software, in a £20m deal.
17-Mar-2000

Sema is to acquire LHS, the US telecoms software company, in a £2.5bn deal, and will merge its SemaVision mobile phone operation with LHS's Targys.
16-Mar-2000

Britt Allcroft has acquired Media Merchants, the producer of children's TV programmes, for £14m.
16-Mar-2000

Goodhead, the Bicester-based printing company, is to undergo a management buy-out in a deal that values the group at £31m.
16-Mar-2000

Greenway Holdings of Leeds is to be acquired by OSS Group, the Liverpool-based waste oils recycling group, for £7.6m.
15-Mar-2000

BP Amoco is to acquire Burmah Castrol for £3bn in order to expand its lubricants business, but Burmah's chemicals business is expected to be sold off for about £800m.
15-Mar-2000

The Post Office has acquired Pakke-Trans, the Danish parcels company, for £18m.
15-Mar-2000

ED&F Man has sold Farmers Fertiliser & Milling Company, its US peanut shelling business, to Birdsong Corporation for £60m.
15-Mar-2000

Hydro Seafood is set to be acquired by Nutreco of the Netherlands, to create a combined fish-farming group employing 1,100 staff in Scotland.
15-Mar-2000

Elgro has sold its Freshtime vegetable growing business in Boston to a management buy-out, in a £4m deal backed by 3i.
14-Mar-2000

Deanes Holdings is to undergo a reverse takeover by Hunters Leisure, the health club operator that is looking to raise £4.1m and open six new outlets.
14-Mar-2000

Heywood Williams has acquired Pioneer Plastics, the US supplier of plastic pipe products.
14-Mar-2000

The Ninth Floor is acquiring Farsight Surveillance Technologies and a 60% stake in its software development division IO MM Software, for £5.6m.
14-Mar-2000

Taylor Valves, the Huddersfield-based engineering company, has been bought out of receivership by Wordsworth Holdings of Grantham, securing 51 jobs.
14-Mar-2000

MORI, the polling organisation, has undergone a £32m management buy-out with the backing of 3i, and is planning to grow internationally.
13-Mar-2000

Brake Bros is acquiring M&J Seafoods, the supplier of fish to caterers, for £44m.
13-Mar-2000

Ascot is to acquire Specified Fuels & Chemicals, the US speciality chemicals group, for £14m.
13-Mar-2000

Taylor Nelson Sofres is to acquire Competitive Media Reporting, the US advertising tracking service, for £56m.
13-Mar-2000

Energis is acquiring Carrier24, the German supplier of broadband telecoms capacity, for £20m.
13-Mar-2000

Christian Salvesen has acquired Tinsley Food for £4.9m, in order to expand its chilled food coverage in Kent, Lincolnshire and the north-west.
13-Mar-2000

Strutt & Parker has acquired the City of London property specialist Wright Oliphant from Countrywide Assured Group for undisclosed terms.
13-Mar-2000

Raglan Properties is to acquire Brighton Marina Holdings for £4m, through its Premier Marinas subsidiary.
10-Mar-2000

Shanks is to acquire Waste Management Nederland, the Dutch waste disposal company, for £208m.
10-Mar-2000

Baltimore Technologies has acquired a 72% stake in NSJ, the Japanese distributor of internet security products, for £16m, and is now seeking further acquisitions in Japan.
10-Mar-2000

Biocompatibles International is to acquire Hydron, the contact lens manufacturer, for £38m, funded by a £31m share placing.
10-Mar-2000

UK Safety, the Bristol-based footwear and workwear company, has acquired Romford-based corporate clothing manufacturer Rex Regal.
10-Mar-2000

Brimur and Rocor, the Cambridgeshire-based corrugated packaging companies, have undergone a £3.8m management buy-in, arranged by Watersheds of Northampton.
10-Mar-2000

Pendragon has acquired 32 motor franchises from Lex Service for £95m, in order to improve its nationwide coverage and increase its scale with a number of car manufacturers.
09-Mar-2000

Bell Group is acquiring And Identification, the Dutch supplier of e-commerce security systems, for £15m.
09-Mar-2000

Texon, the Leicester-based supplier of materials to the footwear industry, has acquired Crispin Dynamics, the computer-aided shoe designer, for £2.5m.
09-Mar-2000

Williams is selling its Yale locks business to Assa Abloy of Sweden for about £900m, and has also announced plans to split itself into two separate companies - Chubb Security Services and Kidde fire protection.
08-Mar-2000

Container Sales Hire, the County Durham-based supplier of storage accommodation, has been acquired by Mobile Storage Group of the US for undisclosed terms.
08-Mar-2000

Balfour, the operator of 120 convenience stores and newsagents, has been acquired by a management buy-in team with the backing of 3i, for undisclosed terms.
08-Mar-2000

Taylor Woodrow has sold Greenham Construction Materials to Robert Brett & Sons of Canterbury for £30m.
08-Mar-2000

Dobbies Garden Centres has acquired Findlay Clark, the owner of four Scottish garden centres, for £8.7m.
08-Mar-2000

Caradon is acquiring Brand-Rex, the UK supplier of cable systems, for £145m, and Eff-Eff Alarm, the German supplier of building alarms, for £114m.
07-Mar-2000

National Westminster Bank has sold Ulster Bank Investment Services to Northern Trust for £8.2m.
07-Mar-2000

Savills is acquiring First Pacific Davies, the Hong Kong property services company, for £35m.
07-Mar-2000

Mother Hubbard Cakes of Manchester has been sold to management by Whitworths for undisclosed terms.
07-Mar-2000

Manthorpe has acquired Huthwaite-based Acrumac Precision Engineering for undisclosed terms, in order to strengthen its expertise in the gas turbine sub-contract manufacturing industry.
07-Mar-2000

Joseph Thompson, the Sunderland-based timber firm, has been acquired by North Yorkshire Timber.
07-Mar-2000

Bretton Communications Group has acquired Frank Peters Colour Printers of Kendal for undisclosed terms, to create a combined printing group with 300 staff.
07-Mar-2000

Carlton Communications is to expand its Technicolor division through the £31m acquisition of Consolidated Film Industries, the US processor of large film formats for the movie industry.
06-Mar-2000

Sopheon, the information management software company, is to acquire Teltech Resource Network of the US for £29m, partly funded by a £20m share placing.
06-Mar-2000

Shell has sold its car care products business to management for £4m, and the new independent company will be named Carix Group.
06-Mar-2000

News International has sold its Bun.com internet service provider to World Online for undisclosed terms, in order to focus its internet operations on e-commerce and online content.
03-Mar-2000

Unilever has acquired Cressida, the Honduras-based manufacturer of food and detergents, for about £200m.
03-Mar-2000

First Technology is to acquire City Technology, the maker of gas-testing equipment, for £100m.
03-Mar-2000

Atlantech Technologies, the Cumbernauld-based internet software supplier, has been acquired by Cisco Systems of the US for £125m.
02-Mar-2000

Herald International Mailings has been acquired by Deutsche Post, the German post office, for undisclosed terms.
02-Mar-2000

BBA has acquired Oxford Aviation, the pilot trainer, for £55m, as part of a strategy to double the size of its aviation services business.
02-Mar-2000

Ennstone is to sell its Blockleys Brick and New Acres divisions to Michelmersh Brick for £12m, in order to focus on aggregates.
02-Mar-2000

Renold is acquiring Jeffrey Chain, the US manufacturer of industrial chains, for £34m.
02-Mar-2000

Ash & Lacy has acquired Imas Technology, the Birmingham-based supplier of water filtration systems, for undisclosed terms.
01-Mar-2000

Amchem, the West Midlands-based machine tool division of TransTec, has been bought out of receivership by MP Industries for undisclosed terms.
01-Mar-2000

Cable & Wireless is to sell its Hong Kong telecoms subsidiary to Pacific Century Cyber Works for £22bn.
01-Mar-2000

Carphone Warehouse is planning to buy 50 Viva Voce mobile phone stores in Spain for about £15m, as part of a strategy to build up a pan-European digital communications business.
01-Mar-2000

Cameron Holdings, the Bristol-based manufacturer of hot air balloons, has bought Sky Balloons International of Wrexham for undisclosed terms.
29-Feb-2000

Ernst & Young is planning a £7bn merger of its consultancy arm with Cap Gemini, to create a combined IT consultancy business with 58,000 employees worldwide.
29-Feb-2000

Talisman House is to acquire Farlake Group, the asset management business, for £26m, as part of a strategy to build up a technology and media-focused financial services group.
29-Feb-2000

United News & Media is to sell its Visual Communications stock photography business to Getty Images of the US for £137m.
29-Feb-2000

Exchange Holdings has acquired Fondex, the Swedish mutual fund trading system, for £22m, as part of a strategy to build up an internet-based financial services business across Europe.
29-Feb-2000

Perkins Foods is investing up to £23m to acquire a Dutch chilled and frozen poultry company and a French chilled salads company, and is now seeking manufacturing bases in Spain, Portugal and Italy.
29-Feb-2000

PowerGen is acquiring LG&E, the Kentucky-based electricity and gas supplier, for £1.8bn, in its first major move into the US market.
28-Feb-2000

Tetley has been acquired by Tata Tea of India for £271m, and the brand is expected to be launched into new markets worldwide.
28-Feb-2000

Garma Foods International has acquired Kallo Group, the supplier of stock cubes and organic rice cakes, for £7.5m.
28-Feb-2000

Jefferson Smurfit is acquiring St Laurent Paperboard of Canada for £870m, through its Chicago-based Smurfit-Stone Container division.
28-Feb-2000

Southnews is acquiring Adscene, the regional publisher of free newspapers, for £52m.
25-Feb-2000

CRH has acquired Shelley, the US aggregates group, for £226m, as part of a strategy to expand its building materials business in the Midwest.
25-Feb-2000

Avro Industries has bought Almond Engineering, the Scottish supplier of thermoformed plastic packaging to the food sector.
25-Feb-2000

Gameplay.com is to acquire Computec Media, the German publisher of computer magazines, for £48m.
24-Feb-2000

Gyrus is to acquire Everest Medical Corporation, the US manufacturer of surgical equipment, for £32m, which will give it access to a 105-strong US salesforce.
24-Feb-2000

Tilbury Douglas has sold its Scottish house building business to Persimmon for £23m, in order to focus on service-related activities.
24-Feb-2000

Penspen is acquiring Andrew Palmer & Associates, the offshore pipeline engineering specialist, for £1m.
24-Feb-2000

UKae, the Sutton Coldfield-based supplier of double glazing parts, has undergone a £8m management buy-out.
24-Feb-2000

Rank has sold Pinewood Studios to a consortium backed by 3i for £62m, which could be followed by the sale of its remaining film-related activities.
23-Feb-2000

Royal London, the mutual life and pensions group, is set to acquire United Assurance in a £1.6bn deal, creating an enlarged group with premiums of £1bn and more than 3m customers.
23-Feb-2000

Smiths Industries is to acquire Actuation Systems, the US-based aircraft utilities business, from BAe Systems for £63m.
23-Feb-2000

Ocean Group has announced plans for a £3.2bn merger with NFC, in order to create a major new logistics group called Exel.
22-Feb-2000

Rank is selling its chain of 75 Odeon cinemas to Cinven for £280m, and the business will be merged with Cinven's 57 ABC cinemas.
22-Feb-2000

Airtours is acquiring Travel Services International of the US for £240m, which will help to improve its internet booking capability.
22-Feb-2000

Border Construction has bought Finlaysons, the Galashiels-based roofing and joinery business, from the Lothian and Borders Co-operative Society.
21-Feb-2000

Wrights of Horwich, the Bolton-based wholesaler, has been bought out of receivership by Five Star Foods for undisclosed terms.
21-Feb-2000

CGU and Norwich Union are planning a £18bn merger to create a leading supplier of general insurance, life and pensions, and up to 4,000 job losses are expected to follow.
21-Feb-2000

Alphameric is acquiring Pennine Retail, the supplier of IT systems to retailers, for £60m.
21-Feb-2000

Courtaulds Textiles is to sell its Standfast and Weavestyle furnishings operations to Walker Greenbank for £9m, and is now looking to sell Zorbit nursery products and Christy towels.
21-Feb-2000

Unigate has agreed to merge its dairy and cheese operations into Dairy Crest, leaving it free to focus on the expansion of its convenience foods business in Europe.
18-Feb-2000

ED&F Man is to sell off its commodities trading business to a management team for £587m, and the remaining financial services business will be renamed Man Group.
18-Feb-2000

Holidaybreak is acquiring Explore Worldwide, the supplier of adventure holidays, for £30m.
18-Feb-2000

Stewart Ivory, the fund manager, is to be acquired by Colonial First State Investments of Australia for £72m, prompting speculation that other smaller Scottish fund managers could also lose their independence.
18-Feb-2000

Telesmart Developments is to be acquired by Prism Holdings, the South African supplier of secure electronic transaction systems, for £4.5m.
18-Feb-2000

Williams Fasteners has acquired Dunning's Fasteners, the Teesside-based supplier of heavy-duty nuts and bolts, for undisclosed terms.
18-Feb-2000

Kerry Group has sold its DCA bakery business in the US and Canada to Pillsbury, the Diageo subsidiary, for £62m.
18-Feb-2000

Aberdeen Asset Management has acquired the fund management arm of the Irish state electricity company ESB for £5.8m.
17-Feb-2000

ITE Group is to acquire the E-Business exhibition from Redman Media for up to £10m.
17-Feb-2000

Bradford & Bingley is to acquire John Charcoal, the mortgage broker, for £100m, which will give it access to a further 150 independent financial advisers.
17-Feb-2000

Specialist Computer Holdings has acquired the computer distribution business of Buhrmann of the Netherlands for about £115m, in order to meet rising demand for pan-European IT services.
17-Feb-2000

Morgan Crucible is to sell its power industry products business to Tyco International of the US for £44m.
17-Feb-2000

Amec has launched an agreed £221m takeover bid for Agra, the Canadian environmental and engineering business.
17-Feb-2000

Tibbett & Britten has acquired the TCA group of companies for undisclosed terms, in order to expand its fresh produce distribution business in France and Spain.
16-Feb-2000

Tempered Spring, the Sheffield-based manufacturer of suspension systems and components, has been acquired by Meritor of the US.
15-Feb-2000

Dawson International is to sell its Pringle knitwear business to Fang Brothers Knitting of Hong Kong for about £5m.
15-Feb-2000

Utilitec has sold its Kenton Utilities mechanical and civil engineering business to a management buy-out for £13m.
15-Feb-2000

Critchley, the manufacturer of electronic tagging systems, has accepted a £122m takeover bid from Tyco of the US.
15-Feb-2000

Marconi has acquired Australian Communication Solutions, the supplier of network design services, for £28m.
15-Feb-2000

Batleys has acquired Seddons Seedfeeds, the petfood wholesaler, for undisclosed terms.
14-Feb-2000

Finelist has recommended a £159m takeover offer from a group of private equity funds, and the business will be merged with French car parts distributor Autodis.
14-Feb-2000

Ward Knowles, the Accrington-based printing company with turnover of £12m, has been sold to management for undisclosed terms.
14-Feb-2000

United Kenning Rental Group, the car and commercial vehicle rental company, has been acquired by Sixt Rent A Car of Germany for undisclosed terms.
14-Feb-2000

T&D Industries, the Bradford-based steel drums business, has been bought out of receivership by a management team, saving 250 jobs.
11-Feb-2000

Cox Insurance has acquired West Midlands-based Argent Insurance Group and the wholesale broker operation Brokersure, for a total £1.4m.
11-Feb-2000

Care UK has acquired Direct Manpower, the supplier of healthcare professionals to NHS trusts, for £2m.
11-Feb-2000

Wassall, the industrial conglomerate, has agreed to a £627m takeover bid from an investment vehicle owned by Kohlberg Kravis Roberts.
11-Feb-2000

National Westminster Bank has accepted the takeover bid from the Royal Bank of Scotland, which will lead to the creation of the UK's third largest bank and the loss of up to 14,500 jobs.
11-Feb-2000

Science Systems, the software company, is to buy CODA from Baan of the Netherlands for £32m, as part of a strategy to become a leader in the field of internet-based financial services.
10-Feb-2000

Bobcat has acquired Sambron, the French telescopic handling specialist, for undisclosed terms.
10-Feb-2000

PowerGen has sold East Midlands Electricity Contracting to ABB for undisclosed terms.
10-Feb-2000

InterX is to merge with Cromwell Media in a £226m deal, in order to gain access to software tools for the development of its hardware distribution business.
10-Feb-2000

ML Laboratories is acquiring Cobra, the gene therapy company, for an initial £8m.
10-Feb-2000

WPP Group has acquired Rada Recruitment Communications through its J Walter Thompson Specialised Communications division, for undisclosed terms.
09-Feb-2000

Tibbett & Britten has acquired Integrated Systems Logistic, the Polish distributor of frozen foods, for undisclosed terms, as part of a strategy to expand its logistics business in central Europe.
09-Feb-2000

Paragon Software, the Newbury-based developer of mobile phone software, has been acquired by Phone.com of the US for £314m.
09-Feb-2000

RPS Group is acquiring Environmental Engineering Limited of Ireland for £7.3m.
09-Feb-2000

Riva Group is selling its Business Solutions Division to eXegeSys of the US, as part of a restructuring by Riva's parent company Anker that will leave Westhoughton as the group's European head office.
08-Feb-2000

Pfizer has reached agreement to acquire Warner-Lambert for $90bn, in order to create the second largest pharmaceuticals group in the world.
08-Feb-2000

Axis-Shield is acquiring the point-of-care testing business of Nycomed Pharma of Norway for £22m.
08-Feb-2000

Hays is expanding its recruitment agency business with the £22m acquisition of Sedi and MD Concept in France and Roozen & van Hoof in the Netherlands.
08-Feb-2000

Westminster Scaffolding is to acquire MotionPoster in a £15m reverse takeover, in order to market electronic moving-picture advertising space in train tunnels.
08-Feb-2000

Anite is acquiring 2 Sell Marketing & Sales Consultancy, the Dutch internet business, for up to £0.6m, in order to create a training centre for its 800 consultants in continental Europe.
08-Feb-2000

ADI Treatments, the West Bromwich-based metal treatment company, has been acquired by Hulvershorn of Germany for £0.3m.
07-Feb-2000

Tetley is selling its US coffee businesses to Rowland Coffee Roasters and Mother Parker's Tea & Coffee for undisclosed terms, in order to focus on its core teabag brands.
07-Feb-2000

Target Express, the express delivery service, is to be acquired by 3i for £210m, in order to help the business expand into continental Europe and improve its internet ordering process.
07-Feb-2000

Airtours has acquired Manos, the charter tour operator that offers holidays to Greece and Turkey, for undisclosed terms.
07-Feb-2000

Vodafone AirTouch has agreed a £113bn merger with Mannesmann of Germany, which will create the largest telecoms group in the world.
04-Feb-2000

McKay Securities, the property company, has acquired Gibraltar-based Celina Holdings in a £10m deal.
04-Feb-2000

Beeson Gregory, the stockbroker and corporate finance group, is to acquire the technology investment consultancy IndexIT Partnership, and is also planning a flotation to raise £30m.
04-Feb-2000

365 Corporation is acquiring Datanet Holdings, the developer of sports-based web sites, in a £31m deal.
04-Feb-2000

United Utilities has acquired Intercell, the Sheffield-based telecoms company, for undisclosed terms, and it will be merged into its Norweb Telecom operation.
04-Feb-2000

ITnet has acquired French Thornton, the independent management consultancy, for £8.5m.
03-Feb-2000

Allied Domecq is to sell its John Bull international pub franchise business to Charles Wells, the Bedford family brewer, for under £10m.
03-Feb-2000

The Post Office has acquired Crie, the French supplier of express mail services, for £6m, as part of a strategy to expand its international postal network.
03-Feb-2000

BATM Advanced Communications is to acquire Telco Systems, the US supplier of data communications equipment, for about £200m.
03-Feb-2000

Tarsus is acquiring internet portal Martex Communications for £16m, in order to gain access to a delivery system for its online magazines.
03-Feb-2000

Aggregate Industries is expanding its US aggregates business with the £23m acquisition of assets from Holst Excavating, Mobilcrete and Sioux Valley Ready Mix.
03-Feb-2000

MJ Gleeson is acquiring Mabey Construction for £6.3m, in order to strengthen its position in the rail contracting sector.
03-Feb-2000

Meyer International, the builders merchant with 539 UK outlets, is to be acquired by Saint Gobain of France for £1.04bn.
02-Feb-2000

Inmarsat is acquiring part of EAE Group, the Aberdeen-based supplier of integrated telecoms systems, for £2.6m.
02-Feb-2000

Brown & Jackson has acquired North Shoe, the footwear and sportswear retailer with 32 stores, for £23m.
02-Feb-2000

Highbury House Communications is acquiring Nexus Media Communications for £39m, in order to expand its database marketing, internet and event organising operations.
02-Feb-2000

PPM Ventures has acquired Document Management Services, the former Stationery Office subsidiary, for £38m.
02-Feb-2000

Allied Dunbar is to buy the distribution network of Abbey Life from Lloyds TSB for £100m, creating the largest direct life assurance salesforce in the UK.
02-Feb-2000

Fairfield Enterprises, the distributor of packaging and printing machinery, is being acquired by Bobst of Switzerland for £19m.
01-Feb-2000

Low & Bonar is to sell eight North American industrial packaging plants to Hood Companies of the US for £80m.
01-Feb-2000

Westminster Healthcare has acquired Priory Healthcare for £100m, and plans to use the Priory brand to offer corporate services such as stress management programmes.
01-Feb-2000

ERF, the Cheshire-based truck maker, has been sold by its Canadian parent Western Star to MAN of Germany for about £110m.
01-Feb-2000

WH Smith has acquired Hazelwood Enterprises, the US company that operates stores in 70 hotels, for about £12m.
01-Feb-2000

Woods Car Rental of Reigate has been acquired by Budget Car & Van Rental for undisclosed terms.
31-Jan-2000

Peter Black is acquiring Hexel International, the supplier of own-label toiletries and other products to retailers, for £19m.
31-Jan-2000

Deans Food Group has acquired Daylay Foods, the former chicken and egg subsidiary of Hillsdown.
31-Jan-2000

NSB Retail Systems, the supplier of retailing software, has acquired Real Time Control for £74m.
31-Jan-2000

Johnson Service, the dry-cleaning company, is planning to acquire Semara for £95m, as part of a strategy to expand its textile rental business.
31-Jan-2000

Invensys has sold its automotive sealing systems business to CVC Capital Partners for £245m, and expects to complete its £1.8bn disposal programme by March.
31-Jan-2000

Artisan, the housebuilder, has acquired Bickerton in a £7.5m all-share deal.
28-Jan-2000

Travis Perkins is expanding its network of builders merchants to 460 through the £25m acquisition of three more regional chains in Scotland, Devon and Cumbria.
28-Jan-2000

Ugland International has sold its vehicle shipping business to joint venture partner Leif Hoegh for £144m.
28-Jan-2000

Marconi has sold its Network Components & Services business in Europe and China to Viasystems of the US for £70m, as part of a strategy to focus on telecoms and other high technology operations.
26-Jan-2000

Hidden Hearing, the Kent-based manufacturer of hearing aids, has agreed to a £23m takeover offer from William Demant of Denmark.
26-Jan-2000

Dixons has acquired Ei System Computer, the Spanish computer retailer with 12 stores, for £16m.
26-Jan-2000

Arriva is to acquire MTL, the Merseyside bus company, for £35m, which will increase its bus fleet by 970 to about 7,000.
25-Jan-2000

Co-operative Wholesale Society is to merge with the Co-operative Retail Society in April, creating a combined group with more than 1,000 stores and 50,000 employees.
25-Jan-2000

BTP, the fine chemicals company, has agreed to a £1.1bn takeover offer from Clariant of Switzerland.
25-Jan-2000

FKI is to acquire SNE Systems, the US supplier of control systems to the materials handling industry, for up to £24m.
25-Jan-2000

Hays is to acquire EPS, the Banbury-based supplier of services to mobile phone operators, for £55m.
25-Jan-2000

Mitel Semiconductor of Lincoln has been acquired by Dynex Power of Canada, in a £5m deal that will safeguard more than 300 jobs.
24-Jan-2000

Grampian Holdings has sold its Glenmuir golfwear business to management, in order to focus on its Edinburgh Woollen Mill and Malcolm Group operations.
24-Jan-2000

Software Box, the York-based software supplier, has undergone a management buy-out for undisclosed terms.
24-Jan-2000

EMI is planning a £12bn merger with Time Warner, in order to create the largest music group in the world.
24-Jan-2000

Charles Manson Group, the Nottinghamshire-based timber merchant, has been acquired by Brooks Group of Ireland for undisclosed terms, and the new company will be called Brooks Manson.
21-Jan-2000

Burmah Castrol has acquired Reax Industria e Commercio, the Brazilian supplier of construction chemicals, for £12m.
21-Jan-2000

Optare, the bus builder, is being acquired by North American Bus Industries in a £21m deal.
21-Jan-2000

Fuller Smith & Turner is to sell its chain of 61 wine shops to Unwins Wine Group for £7.5m.
20-Jan-2000

Babtie Group has acquired Allott & Lomax, the Manchester-based engineering consultancy, for undisclosed terms.
20-Jan-2000

Herbert Green, the Silsden-based furnishing fabrics company, has undergone a management buy-out from Lifestyle Furnishings International, with the backing of Euro Sales Finance of Leeds.
20-Jan-2000

Talisman House is acquiring Keith Harris Partnership for undisclosed terms, in a reverse takeover designed to create a new internet-based brokerage service.
20-Jan-2000

Marwin Production Systems, the Wednesfield-based machine tools division of TransTec, has been sold by the receivers to Marbaix Group for undisclosed terms.
20-Jan-2000

Kalamazoo Computer has sold Kalamazoo Answer, the developer of software solutions for food and drink companies, to a management buy-out for a nominal sum.
20-Jan-2000

Gameplay.com has acquired Joysoft, the German online computer games retailer, for £2.5m, and is now seeking acquisitions in France.
20-Jan-2000

NXT has sold its Mission division, which makes conventional hi-fi speakers, to a management buy-out for £5.2m.
20-Jan-2000

Motherwell Bridge has sold its information systems division to a management team led by venture capital group 3i, in a £75m deal.
20-Jan-2000

RW Buxton, the Birmingham-based contractor, has been acquired by Fifehead Group for undisclosed terms.
20-Jan-2000

John Laing has acquired Beechcroft, the developer of retirement homes, for £9.6m.
20-Jan-2000

Schroders is selling its investment banking business to Citigroup of the US for £1.35bn, and £200m of the proceeds will be used to establish a private banking business.
19-Jan-2000

Old Mutual is to acquire Gerrard Group, the financial services company, for £525m, and expects to establish a private banking service using Gerrard's banking licence.
19-Jan-2000

Arthur Shaw is acquiring Belgravia Internet Productions for an initial £2.3m, in order to produce broadcasts for transmission over the internet.
19-Jan-2000

Glaxo Wellcome is to merge with SmithKline Beecham to create a combined pharmaceuticals group with market capitalisation of £107bn, and the operational headquarters will be moved to the US.
18-Jan-2000

FI Group is to acquire Druid Group, the business software group, for £763m, in order to create a new force in the market for e-business and IT consulting.
18-Jan-2000

Smiths Industries is to acquire EMC Technology, the US manufacturer of high-performance connectors, for £26m.
18-Jan-2000

Baltimore Technologies has acquired GTE CyberTrust Solutions, the US internet security company, for £91m.
18-Jan-2000

Ocean Group is to sell its Cory Towage marine services business to Wijsmuller of the Netherlands for £82m, in order to focus on global logistics.
15-Jan-2000

Rebus is to acquire Moorepay, the supplier of payroll processing systems, for £41m.
14-Jan-2000

Racal Electronics has agreed to a £1.3bn takeover bid from Thomson-CSF of France, and Thomson's existing 6,000 UK employees are expected to be reorganised around Racal.
14-Jan-2000

Scottish Media Group is to acquire Ginger Media Group for £225m, in order to build up its radio and TV activities.
14-Jan-2000

Bristol Water has acquired Operational UK, the supplier of energy and environmental engineering services, for £4m, as part of a strategy to build up its non-regulated business.
13-Jan-2000

Horners Motor Group, the Manchester-based Rover dealership, is to undergo a management buy-out for undisclosed terms.
13-Jan-2000

HM Group, the construction equipment dealer, has undergone a £18m management buy-out.
13-Jan-2000

Babtie has acquired Kensall, the chartered surveying and project management company, and the staff will join Babtie's quantity surveying division.
13-Jan-2000

Villiers is to sell its engineering business for £0.7m, in order to transform itself into an internet-based healthcare company called Ultrasis.
13-Jan-2000

Independent News & Media is to acquire Internet Ireland, the internet service provider, for undisclosed terms.
13-Jan-2000

QXL has acquired Jubii Auktion, the Danish online auction business, in a £6.6m deal.
13-Jan-2000

Sage has acquired Best, the US supplier of back-office software, for £272m, in order to offer a more comprehensive package to small and medium-sized US companies.
13-Jan-2000

Wolstenholme Rink has acquired Nicoll Graphics, the supplier of products to the printing industry, for about £2m.
12-Jan-2000

JW Swithenbank, the Bradford-based fresh food wholesaler, has been bought out of receivership by Wilton Investments, saving 170 jobs.
12-Jan-2000

British Telecom has launched a £1.5bn recommended takeover offer for Esat, the Irish telecoms group.
12-Jan-2000

Rolfe & Nolan is to acquire Contac, the Singapore-based supplier of derivatives software, for up to £15m.
12-Jan-2000

Ruberoid, the protective coatings group, has accepted a £66m takeover bid from IKO Sales of Canada, in order to gain access to more customers and a wider product range.
12-Jan-2000

Manpower is to acquire Elan Group, the IT recruitment agency, for £88m, and will merge all its IT staffing operations across Europe under the Elan brand.
12-Jan-2000

Microcosm Communications, the Bristol-based microchip designer, is being acquired by Conexant of the US for £80m.
11-Jan-2000

Sage has acquired Hartley International, the Bristol-based supplier of accountancy software, for £2.5m.
11-Jan-2000

Cambridge Drug Discovery has merged with Cambridge Genetics in a £2.7m deal involving Cambridge University, and the combined business will have 36 staff.
11-Jan-2000

Celltech has sold Rapigene, its US-based gene analysis contract service, to Qiagen for £7.3m.
11-Jan-2000

TT Group has acquired BI Technologies of the US from Astec International for £40m, in order to increase its focus on electronic components.
11-Jan-2000

Compel is acquiring Pangaea, the supplier of internet and multimedia services, for up to £10m.
11-Jan-2000

Stoll Moss Theatres has sold its 10 London theatres to the Really Useful Group for about £85m, and some of the venues may be sold on to other theatrical groups.
10-Jan-2000

Lovells, the Newport-based chocolate confectionery company, has been sold by NFF to a local businessman for £0.9m.
08-Jan-2000

Laird has completed the disposal of its printing and packaging operations, with the sale of US-based Panel Prints to a management buy-out vehicle for £9.6m.
08-Jan-2000

Ferraris is to acquire Univak, the manufacturer of components for pressure vessels, for £5.7m.
08-Jan-2000

Capita Property Services has acquired engineering company Edward Roscoe Associates for an initial £5m.
08-Jan-2000

Anix Group of Bristol has undergone a £16m management buy-out, and is planning an expansion programme in order to become a leading supplier of IT services.
07-Jan-2000

Rentokil Initial has sold DSI Transports, its US distribution division, to Trimac of Canada for £49m, and further non-core disposals will follow.
07-Jan-2000

Anite has acquired part of the Local Government Solutions business of Bull Information Systems for £2.2m.
06-Jan-2000

Ryland has acquired the E Ward Ford dealerships in Corby and Kettering for £1.4m.
06-Jan-2000

Capita has acquired the LHR teaching staff agency for £12m, in order to strengthen its support services business.
06-Jan-2000

Maygay Holdings, the electronic leisure machines company, is selling a 70% stake in its business to Leisure Link Group for £18m, and the two companies are planning to network machines in pubs.
06-Jan-2000

Clifford Chance has completed a three-way merger with Rogers & Wells of the US and Punder, Volhard, Weber & Axster of Germany, to create a combined law firm with 2,700 lawyers worldwide.
05-Jan-2000

Trent Insulations of Burton has merged with Orion Insulations, and the combined business is planning to open two new insulation distribution centres with the creation of 20 jobs.
05-Jan-2000

National Express has acquired ATC Group, the US bus operator, for £106m, and is now looking for similar bolt-on acquisitions.
05-Jan-2000

Old Mutual of South Africa has sold its UK life insurance business to Century Life for £75m, which will involve the transfer of 150,000 customers.
05-Jan-2000

Inter Link Foods has taken a £0.4m option to buy the William Lusty bakery business out of receivership, and has 27 months to decide whether to acquire the company.
05-Jan-2000

Sherwood has sold its sock manufacturing business to Trident International Textile Group for £2.9m.
05-Jan-2000

Ebookers.com has acquired Geotours, the Norwegian discount travel agency, for £0.6m, and is now seeking acquisitions in Spain, Italy and Denmark.
04-Jan-2000