European private equity firm Cinven has appointed three new partners and two principals. All five appointments, in its London, Paris and Frankfurt, Germany, are effective immediately.

Newly-minted partner Caspar Berendsen joined Cinven in 2003 as a member of the business and financial services sector team. He previously worked at JPMorgan in London advising Dutch and Belgian clients in a variety of sectors. Matthew Sabben-Clare, also named a partner, joined the firm in 2005 from Merrill Lynch where he worked for five years in the leveraged finance team. And Xavier Geismar, joined Cinven in 2001 and is a member of the firm’s retail, leisure and consumer sector team. He was previously a consultant at the Boston Consulting Group in Paris.

Alexis le Marié, promoted to principal, joined the firm in 2005 and is a member of the business and financial services team. Previously, he worked at Clayton, Dubilier & Rice in London. Fellow new principal Christoph Hobo joined the firm in 2004 and is a member of the healthcare sector team. Prior to joining Cinven he was at UBS in London where he worked in the investment banking division.