Veteran banker Sir Peter Burt has called for more support for UK manufacturing in the absence of funding from the banks.
Sir Peter, the former Bank of Scotland governor who led the government commission which set up the Business Bank, said: "The banks are not keen to lend money."
He was commenting on the acquisition of a leading UK sofa manufacturer by Promethean Investments, where Sir Peter and his sons Michael and Hamish are partners.
Sofa Brands International, which was rescued by new management and had the pensions regulator as its biggest shareholder, includes the Parker Knoll band and employs 750 across four factories, three of them in the UK.
Sir Peter said it was "a great example of strength in specific area of UK manufacturing, where more investors should be looking to help the funding gap left by banks".
Promethean was set up 10 years ago to manage an AIM-listed vehicle buying up stakes in underperforming companies, but wound down its original fund and returned cash to shareholders in a four-year process that ended with a reverse takeover in 2013 by a company now called Link & Prosper.
The partnership set up a new private equity fund Promethean UK Opportunities and last year unveiled the rescue of pawnbroker Albemarle & Bond. This second deal takes its outlay to £97m, and Promethean says it is targeting a second close of the fund by mid-2015.
Michael Burt, managing partner, said: "We see many exciting opportunities to drive the business forward in the coming years. SBI is the epitome of quality UK manufacturing and we are looking forward to working with management to help the business achieve its true potential."
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