Carried interest:

The portion of earnings and capital gains allocated to a fund manager or private equity firm, with the remainder going to investors.

Development capital (or growth capital):

Financing provided to further grow an unlisted company that has successfully completed an initial business development phase.

Due diligence:

A series of analyses and audits carried out prior to the acquisition of a company.

Eurolist:

Eurolist was created by Euronext in 2005 to facilitate trading, by merging the Paris , Amsterdam , Lisbon , and Brussels stock exchanges into a single list. Compartment A consists of companies with market capitalisations above €1 billion; Compartment B, between €1 billion and €150 million; and Compartment C, less than €150 million.

FCPR ( Fonds Commun de Placement à Risque ):

A mutual fund based on co-ownership of marketable securities governed by Articles L. 214-36 et. seq. of the French Monetary and Financial Code, and subject to favourable tax treatment according to Article 163 quinquies B of the French Tax Code.

Late stage venture capital:

Used to describe mature companies with an established sales base and positive earnings.

Leveraged buy-in (LBI):

An LBO transaction (see definition below) in which the investors acquiring the company include managers from outside the company.

Leveraged buy-out (LBO):

General term applied for all operations through which investors acquire an interest through a holding company, which is generally dedicated to the holding of this stake, and financed through bank loans to be paid back out of net cash flow (primarily dividends) generated in connection with this interest.

Management buy-in (MBI):

The takeover of a company (with or without leverage) by a team of managers from outside the company.

Management buy-out (MBO):

The takeover of a company (with or without leverage) by the management team in place.

Private equity:

Activity involving investments in companies whose securities are not traded on a public market.

SCA ( Société en Commandite par Actions ):

A French corporate legal structure with two distinct types of partners: a general partner, with unlimited joint and several liability, and a limited partner, whose liability is limited to his capital contribution.

SCR company ( Société de Capital Risque) :

An investment company which receives special tax treatment under French law .

Stock warrant (Bon de Souscription d'Action):

A type of security issued by a corporation that gives the holder the right to purchase the issuer's stock at a specified price within a specified period of time.

Turnaround:

A situation where a company turns from losses to profitability, generally accompanied by raising equity or funding.