3i Group Plc announced last week that it has made an offer to Barclays Plc, to acquire its Barclays Infrastructure Funds Management Ltd. (BIFM).

BIFM has assets under management of about £780 million and an investment team based in London and Paris. According to the company, BIFM raised its first fund in 1996.

3i is an investor, focused on mid-market private equity, infrastructure and debt management across Europe, Asia and the Americas.

The proposed transaction is subject to completion of an employee information and consultation process, as well as other regulatory conditions. The firm said the acquisition would not affect 3i's existing advisory agreement with 3i Infrastructure Plc.

3i Infrastructure announced in mid May its decision to rebalance its investment strategy in favour of less volatile investments in more developed markets.

The latest acquisition announced by Barclays Infrastructure Funds (BIF) was a 51 % stake in Vimercate Salute S.p.A., the company that developed and currently manages the new Vimercate hospital, in the region of Lombardy, Italy.

Source: 3i Group