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Main Capital Partners announces its largest strategic exit to date with acquisition of Enovation by Legrand after successful partnership

Main Capital Partners

Legrand is a French publicly listed specialist in electrical and digital building infrastructures and digital care solutions, dedicated to supporting technological, societal and environmental change around the globe. Under Main’s stewardship, Enovation expanded its market-leading position in the healthcare industry and successfully became one of the few healthcare software providers to cover a wide spectrum of the connected care ecosystem with a presence in Northwestern Europe. This strategic exit represents yet another successful exit for Main in one of its core product-markets and marks Main’s largest exit in its history.

In 2018, Main Capital Partners made its strategic investment in Enovation and started its collaboration with the management team of Enovation. During its cooperation with Main, Enovation transformed its profile significantly from a secure communication and information exchange vendor in the Dutch healthcare market, to a leading European connected care and eHealth platform provider focused on digital care and collaboration throughout the entire patient journey, currently employing around 300 FTE.

Supported by Main, Enovation significantly grew its software businesses, both organically as well as through eight selective strategic add-on acquisitions that broadened the company’s product portfolio and expanded its addressable market. Main’s CEO Charly Zwemstra has served as Chairman of the Supervisory Board during Main’s investment period, in which, Enovation’s revenues nearly tripled and the international footprint improved significantly from a primary focus on the Dutch market to activities in almost 20 countries. Enovation is well positioned to further capitalize on these achievements in the coming years, contributing further to digitizing the healthcare sector throughout Europe. This step of joining Legrand, enables Enovation to leverage their joint expertise and knowledge in order to continue on Enovation’s mission to contribute to an efficient healthcare system, making good care accessible to everyone, everywhere, at all times.

Jeroen van Rijswijk, CEO of Enovation, comments on the combination with Legrand: “During our successful partnership with Main over the past six years, Enovation was able to substantially improve its international profile and market position. Main moreover helped us to create further value in healthcare by enhancing the care experiences of patients across the European healthcare industry. This new chapter marks a wonderful next step for Enovation and we are excited to join Legrand and serve our clients even better, as we now have access to a lot of new expertise as well as great international execution power.”

Benoît Coquart, Legrand’s Chief Executive Officer, adds: “We are very pleased to announce this investment in areas that are at the heart of buoyant trends and as such, of our growth acceleration strategy. We are also excited to work with the teams of these industry-leading companies.”

Sjoerd Aarts, Partner & Head of Benelux at Main Capital, concludes: “We supported in expanding Enovation’s product proposition and increasing its international footprint across North-Western Europe, transforming Enovation’s profile into a market-leading software player in healthcare. This successful partnership within one of our core product-markets once more underlines the added value of our highly specialized investment strategy, and culminated in a milestone exit for Main. We congratulate Enovation on this new chapter, joining Legrand.”

This successful partnership within one of our core product-markets once more underlines the added value of our highly specialized investment strategy, and culminated in a milestone exit for Main.”

– Sjoerd Aarts, Partner & Head of Benelux at Main Capital Partners

About

Enovation

For more than 40 years, Enovation has been bringing technology and healthcare together. By facilitating digital cooperation and connections between people, we make the care of today and the future possible. This is how we contribute to the sustainable healthcare system of the future, in which the human experience remains at the center. Thanks to our platform, healthcare providers can focus on what is most important: time and attention for people. Our software supports digital care and collaboration throughout the patient journey. From early detection to remote monitoring and everything in between, our platform facilitates integrated care – at every step.

Legrand

Legrand is the global specialist in electrical and digital building infrastructures. Its comprehensive offering of solutions for commercial, industrial and residential markets makes it a benchmark for customers worldwide. The Group harnesses technological and societal trends with lasting impacts on buildings with the purpose of improving life by transforming the spaces where people live, work and meet with electrical, digital infrastructures and connected solutions that are simple, innovative and sustainable. Drawing on an approach that involves all teams and stakeholders, Legrand is pursuing its strategy of profitable and responsible growth driven by acquisitions and innovation, with a steady flow of new offerings—including products with enhanced value in use (faster expanding segments: datacenters, connected offerings and energy efficiency programs). Legrand reported sales of €8.3 billion in 2022. The company is listed on Euronext Paris and is notably a component stock of the CAC 40, CAC 40 ESG and CAC SBT 1.5 indexes. (code ISIN FR0010307819).

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NEFFA | New Fashion Factory secures Seed funding, spearheaded by the Capricorn Industrial Biotech Fund

Capricorn

Dutch biotech innovator NEFFA (New Fashion Factory) proudly announces the successful closure of its seed funding round, signalling a significant milestone in its mission to revolutionize the fashion and interior industries through the use of innovative automated, seamless 3D manufacturing technology powered by circular lab-grown materials, including the revolutionary mushroom-based MYCOTEX.

Founded by Aniela Hoitink, NEFFA has attracted a prestigious consortium of investors, each bringing not only essential funding but also a wealth of industry expertise and influential connections, having extensive experience in biotechnology and fashion. This achievement also reaffirms the trust of NEFFA’s current investors, who share the vision of a brighter future for sustainable technology and materials.

The seed funding round was spearheaded by the Dutch Industrial Biotech Seed Fund (part of the Capricorn Industrial Biotech Fund) and is managed by the Cleantech Team of Capricorn Partners. Collaborating alongside are two of NEFFA’s existing institutional investors: the DOEN Foundation and ROM Utrecht Region. The final partner in this stellar consortium is PDS Ventures, a fashion-centric fund committed to fostering a sustainable value chain within the fashion industry.

Nicoline van Enter, Co-founder of NEFFA, underscores the alignment between the company’s mission and its investors:

  • NEFFA offers a holistic solution to the sustainability challenges faced by the fashion and interior industries. These sectors grapple not only with material concerns but also supply chain complexities. Our goal is to enable local, on-demand production with customization options and a robust end-of-life system. Having spent considerable time in the fashion industry ourselves, Aniela and I appreciate the multifaceted nature of these issues. Hence, our approach encompasses a full spectrum, from a digital 3D design system to lab-grown natural materials that can be home-composted, and a zero-waste robotic production line.”

NEFFA’s commitment to translating vision into action is evident through its partnership with German machine producer DESMA. Together, they have already conducted successful tests on a pioneering robotic production cell, leveraging technologies commonly found in current manufacturing processes. This strategic move ensures that NEFFA’s innovative system is primed for scalability. The newly secured capital will drive the development of this production line to pilot scale, while simultaneously enhancing the quality and versatility of NEFFA’s materials.

Aniela Hoitink highlights one of NEFFA’s unique advantages:

  • Distinguishing us from most competitors, we employ liquid biomass, enabling us to construct products in 3D. In the past year, our biochemistry lab has unearthed several promising material compositions previously unexplored, endowing our materials with unparalleled versatility and tactile qualities. The infusion of new funding will allow us to further refine and patent these groundbreaking innovations.”

The investment in NEFFA marks the first investment for the Dutch Industrial Biotech Seed Fund. As an early-stage Article 9 Fund, it invests in young ventures that use the power of industrial biotech to solve sustainability challenges.

Damien van der Bijl, Investment Director at Capricorn Partners:

  • We truly believe in the holistic approach of NEFFA to tackle the big sustainability challenges of the fashion industry, by offering a fully sustainable material, as well as reductions in waste and water usage. On top of that, the NEFFA method offers designers a whole new universe of possibilities in shapes, textures, and functionality. We really look forward to the exciting products that designers and brands will create with NEFFA!”.

NEFFA’s successful seed funding round not only marks a significant step forward for the company but also reaffirms the growing momentum of sustainable solutions within the fashion and interior industries. As NEFFA continues to push the boundaries of what’s possible, the global community can look forward to a more sustainable, customizable, and environmentally conscious future.

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CBPE-backed BKL joins forces with Wilson Wright

CBPE

BKL is a top 50 accountancy firm and Wilson Wright is a leading City of London based accountancy firm. Both firms specialise in supporting fast-growing owner-managed businesses, SMEs, entrepreneurs and high net worth individuals by providing specialist accountancy, tax and business advisory services.

The two firms have a long history of working together and have built a strong relationship over many years. As a result of this deal, the combined business will have two well-established bases in London: BKL’s office in North London and Wilson Wright’s office in Central London. Together they will have a team of over 400 people, including 39 partners, and a combined turnover of £46 million.

BKL has been on an ambitious growth path since partnering with leading private equity investors CBPE in April 2023. This deal comes on the back of three successful BKL mergers in the past year: chartered accountants Landau Baker, virtual finance team specialists CFPro and chartered accountants Alan Heywood & Company.

It’s very exciting to share news of this new chapter for BKL and Wilson Wright. Our discussions, which were incredibly positive from the start, have confirmed how much we have in common: our supportive cultures, our values, the quality of our clients and the excellence of our teams. This is a significant next step for both our businesses. I’m looking forward to everything we’ll achieve together as we continue investing in our people and our clients.

Lee Brook, CEO
BKL

At Wilson Wright we have been exploring the best way to continue to develop and future-proof our business so that we can further enhance our client offering. We have known BKL for many years, and we share their ambitions for the future. Their purpose, drive, and desire to ensure they remain a responsible employer resonate strongly with us. It became clear from an early stage in our discussions that our two organisations are very much aligned, and we are looking forward to coming together as one team. We are excited about the possibilities that lie ahead for both of our teams to learn from each other, develop a stronger offering and add increased value to our clients.

Adam Cramer, Managing Director
Wilson Wright

Having partnered with Lee and the BKL team a year ago, we are delighted for Adam and the Wilson Wright team to be joining us on the next stage of the journey. It is clear that both firms share a strong employee culture and values, with a commitment to quality that results in exceptional client service. The SME accountancy market is going through a period of transition, and together the firms are ideally placed to capitalise on the exciting opportunities this presents for both colleagues and clients.

Adam Richardson, Director
CBPE

About BKL

BKL is a top 50 firm of chartered accountants and tax advisers based in North London.

BKL specialise in helping owner managed businesses, entrepreneurs, high net worth individuals and families. Their clients benefit from deep expertise in many sectors, including property, construction, financial services, not-for-profit, and music, media, sport & entertainment.

BKL’s services include tax consultancy, audit, assurance, accounts, corporate finance, outsourcing, payroll, private client advice, and a growing number of consulting services, including commercial finance, IT, and sustainability.

In April 2023 BKL took private equity investment from CBPE. Since then, BKL has completed three acquisitions: Landau Baker, academy specialists; CFPro, virtual finance team specialists; and Alan Heywood & Company, a music, media & entertainment sector firm of accountants.

BKL is committed to growing in a sustainable way. As a certified B Corporation (B Corp), they are verified as a business that acts with consideration for people, planet and purpose, not just profit.

Last year, BKL won Best Employer in Tax at the Tolley’s Taxation Awards 2023, and Tax Team of the Year at the Accounting Excellence Awards 2023.

About Wilson Wright

Wilson Wright is an accounting, tax and business advisory firm based in the City of London with origins that go back over 130 years. Many of their client relationships span generations and decades.

Being a longstanding and active member of DFK International, a worldwide association of independent member firms, enables the team to deliver international and cross-border advice to their clients.

Traditionally an accounts, assurance and audit-focused firm, in the last decade they have developed a range of highly specialised tax services including, international and national tax structuring, tax risk and dispute resolution and tax transactions.

Wilson Wright’s client base includes high net worth individuals, international sports personalities, renowned entrepreneurs, sole traders, and multinational groups. Their sector expertise ranges from fast-growing technology and environmental start-ups to family offices, property, professional services, charities, sport, media, and the arts.

Wilson Wright is recognised and ranked in Chambers & Partners High Net Worth Guide for Accountants and Tax Advisers, ePrivateClient Top Accountancy Firms, and as a Tolley’s Taxation Awards finalist in 2023. They were also listed in the Sunday Times Best Places to Work 2023.

Wilson Wright is proud to be a people-centric, proactive, professional advisory firm, where heritage, trust and partnership are at the heart of what they believe in. Their culture fosters a close-knit environment that provides support, guidance and the motivation required to deliver complex and exceptional work for the benefit of clients.

About CBPE

CBPE is a leading UK private equity firm which pursues a disciplined and consistent investment strategy, targeting buy-outs and development capital investments in UK-headquartered businesses with enterprise values up to £150 million. Since 2000, CBPE has made over 60 such investments from five funds.

BKL represents one of eight investments out of CBPE Fund X, which closed at the hard cap of £561m in November 2020.

For more information, please get in touch with Adam Richardson.

adam.richardson@cbpe.com

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DIF Capital Partners enters into exclusive negotiations to acquire TDF fibre business

DIF

DIF Capital Partners, a leading global infrastructure fund manager, has entered into exclusive negotiations with TDF and La Banque des Territoires to acquire the fibre business of the TDF Group, the operator of infrastructure and digital networks.

TDF Fibre is a French fibre business owned by TDF (79.5%) and Banque des Territoires (20.5%). The company owns four public-initiative networks under concession agreements that are all fully operational: Val d’Oise Fibre, Val de Loire Fibre, Anjou Fibre and Faucigny Glières Fibre, and one wholly-owned network: Yvelines Fibre. Its expertise in operating very high-speed networks with quality of service ranks among the best in France according to recent ARCEP studies.

TDF fibre

DIF Capital Partners, via its DIF Infrastructure VII fund, is negotiating to invest in TDF Group’s fibre business by acquiring the entire share capital in (i) TDF Fibre and (ii) Lumière Fibre, a newly incorporated vehicle entirely held by TDF and to which TDF is expected to contribute its engineering, maintenance, fibre roll-out and construction services business units. Following the planned transaction, the TDF Group will continue to support TDF Fibre, particularly in terms of network supervision.

The investment being considered by DIF Capital Partners will enable TDF Fibre to continue to bring its recognized expertise to the benefit of local authorities, individuals and businesses, as well as to pursue development opportunities in existing and new territories.

This transaction, which is being negotiated, will require the implementation of the information and consultation process with the relevant French employee representative bodies, and could be completed by the end of 2024, subject to satisfaction of the customary conditions precedent.

 

About DIF Capital Partners

DIF Capital Partners is an infrastructure fund manager with more than EUR 17 billion of assets under management. DIF was founded in 2005 and has a leading position in managing mid-market investments, primarily in Europe and North America.

DIF follows two strategies: its traditional DIF funds invest in infrastructure projects and companies in the energy transition (incl. renewables) and utilities sector, as well as concessions. The firm’s CIF funds invest in companies with strong growth potential that are active in infrastructure sectors such as digital infrastructure, energy transition and sustainable transportation.

With a team of over 240 professionals in 12 offices, DIF offers a unique market approach combining global presence with the benefits of strong local networks and investment capabilities. DIF is located in Amsterdam, Frankfurt, Helsinki, London, Luxembourg, Madrid, Milan, New York, Paris, Santiago, Sydney and Toronto.

In September 2023, CVC, a leading global private markets manager, announced that it would be acquiring a majority stake in DIF Capital Partners. Closing of the transaction is subject to regulatory approvals and is expected in Q2 2024.

For more information, please visit www.dif.eu or follow us on LinkedIn.

About TDF

As a transparent and impartial operator, TDF helps digital firms in mainland France and French overseas territories meet their strategic transmission goals. For radio and DTT broadcasting, mobile ultra high-speed broadband coverage and rolling out optical fibre, TDF brings clients in-depth operational expertise, a mix of unique and ground-breaking technology and an exceptionally widespread local presence. In an ever more connected world, over the last four decades or more TDF has enabled telecoms and media companies to connect the French regions and people, backed by its 8,600 sites, everywhere and faster. www.tdf.fr

About Banque des Territoires

Banque des Territoires is one of the entities of the Caisse des Dépôts. Banque des Territoires brings together in-house expertise for local areas. As a one-stop shop for customers, it acts alongside all local stakeholders: local authorities, local public-sector enterprises, social housing bodies, legal professions, businesses and financial players. Banque des Territoires assists them in the implementation of their public interest projects with a continuum of offers : advisory, loans, equity, bank services, consignments and special deposits. It has been set up to serve the interests of all local areas alike, from rural municipalities to large cities, with the ambition of maximizing its impact notably on ecological transformation and social and regional cohesion. The 37 territorial offices of Banque des Territoires ensure the implementation of its action across all metropolitan and overseas territories. www.banquedesterritoires.fr 

 

Press contacts:

DIF Capital Partners: press@dif.eu

TDF: Pauline Mauger. Tel.: 07 70 01 18 27 – pauline.mauger@tdf.fr

Banque des Territoires – Groupe Caisse des Dépôts: Nathalie Police. Tel.: 06 07 58 65 19 – nathalie.police@caissedesdepots.fr

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Global Insights Series: the Future of Renewable Energy

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DIF

DIF Capital Partners recently hosted its Global Renewable Energy & Storage Industry Days. This two-day event brought together industry advisors, portfolio company leadership and DIF’s global team of in-house energy transition experts, to discuss industry trends, opportunities and challenges in the evolving renewable energy landscape.

Renewable Energy

This Global Insights Series publication summarizes the key takeaways of the event.

As a leading global mid-market infrastructure manager, DIF is proud to have a proven track record of investing in and scaling up companies that are enabling the energy transition.

The decarbonization of the global economy represents a large-scale and attractive investment opportunity – from renewable power generation, to more efficient heating and cooling of buildings via district heating and geothermal solutions, to conversion of waste into energy, to the electrification of transport.

The themes addressed in the report include:

  • The push to achieve science-based carbon reduction targets coupled with rising electricity use has led to accelerating demand for renewable energy from governments, utilities, corporates and individuals alike.
  • Providing renewable energy direct to corporates and industrials is a growing market for renewables providers, with many large businesses still unaware of how it can help them hit their net zero targets.
  • A significant amount of public and private capital will be required to execute the energy transition.
  • The influx of capital into building intermittent renewable generation, but without the commensurate investment into upgrading and reinforcing power grid infrastructure is resulting in widespread grid congestion and curtailment. However, colocation with storage or other technologies, and strategic siting of assets can help to mitigate this risk.
  • Geopolitical disruption in Europe (and the world) has further increased focus on security of supply and reducing reliance on fossil fuels. In North America, the Inflation Reduction Act represents the largest government incentive package for the renewable energy industry to date.

Read the report here: DIF Global Insight Series – The Future of Renewable Energy (April 2024).

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TA-backed Fincare Small Finance Bank Merges with AU Small Finance Bank

TA associates

The merger creates a pan-Indian retail banking franchise focused on financial inclusion

April 18, 2024 – TA Associates (“TA”), a leading global private equity firm, is pleased to announce that Fincare Small Finance Bank Limited (“Fincare SFB”) has merged with and into AU Small Finance Bank Limited (“AU SFB”), effective 1st April 2024. The merger marks a significant milestone for Fincare SFB and the Indian banking sector, creating a pan-Indian retail banking franchise committed to promoting financial inclusion. TA first partnered with Fincare in 2017 and will remain a shareholder in the combined AU SFB group.

Fincare SFB caters to the banking needs of micro enterprises enabling their financial inclusion, while also providing innovative banking services along with digital solutions to metro and urban customers across Southern and Western India. AU SFB is the largest Small Finance Bank in India and is a Fortune India 500 company. Following the transaction, the combined entity will serve more than 10 million customers, with over 43,500 employees and a network of over 2,350 physical touchpoints across 25 states and union territories.

In addition to expanding resources and geographic reach, the merger will significantly strengthen and diversify the combined entity’s product portfolio. Post-merger, all 5.9 million customers of Fincare SFB will be able to experience and enjoy the best-in-class digital services and flagship products of AU SFB including its offerings like credit cards, QR code and video banking. Additionally, Fincare SFB’s rural, inclusion-focused microfinance, mortgages and gold loan businesses will bolster AU SFB’s financial inclusion charter.

“Over the last seven years, we have supported the Fincare SFB team as they have successfully scaled and delivered on their mission of providing rural and semi-urban communities with essential financial services,” said Dhiraj Poddar, Managing Director and India Country Head at TA. “This transformative merger with AU SFB, which has a complementary geographic footprint, product portfolio and importantly, a shared ambition to redefine banking excellence in India, marks an exciting new chapter for the business. We look forward to supporting the combined group as it continues to create a more inclusive banking ecosystem.”

As part of this merger, Mr. Rajeev Yadav, former MD & CEO of Fincare SFB, has been designated as the Deputy CEO of AU SFB and shall continue to lead all key asset businesses of Fincare SFB, now housed within the Fincare Unit at AU SFB.

“This is a defining milestone in our journey towards facilitating financial inclusion in India,” added Mr. Rajeev Yadav. “By joining with AU SFB’s strong franchise, we are confident in building a world-class bank with a robust balance sheet and a truly national franchise.”

About TA
TA is a leading global private equity firm focused on scaling growth in profitable companies. Since 1968, TA has invested in more than 560 companies across its five target industries—technology, healthcare, financial services, consumer and business services. Leveraging its deep industry expertise and strategic resources, TA collaborates with management teams worldwide to help high-quality companies deliver lasting value. The firm has raised $65 billion in capital to date and has over 150 investment professionals across offices in Boston, Menlo Park, Austin, London, Mumbai and Hong Kong. More information about TA can be found at www.ta.com.

About AU Small Finance Bank
AU Small Finance Bank Limited (AU SFB) is a scheduled commercial bank and has established itself as the largest SFB in India since starting its banking journey in April 2017. Established in 1996 by Mr. Sanjay Agarwal, a first-generation entrepreneur, AU SFB boasts of a 28 years-legacy with deep understanding of the rural and semi-urban markets and customer segments. The Bank operates a sustainable business model that facilitates credit to the unserved and underserved retail and MSME customer segments while providing complete banking solutions to its deposit and branch banking customers. As a tech-led Bank, AU has a strong digital presence with innovative products and services like 24×7 video banking, credit card, personal loan, UPI QRs, payments, merchant lending, WhatsApp Banking, Chatbot etc. and its digital bank application AU0101 remains among the highest rated banking apps in India.

The Bank operates from 1,049 banking touchpoints across 21 States & 3 Union Territories serving 46.8 Lac customers with an employee base of 28,904 employees. As on 31st Dec’23, the Bank has a net worth of ₹12,167 Crore, deposit base of ₹80,120 Crore, Gross Advance of ₹67,624 Crore and a Balance sheet size of ₹1,01,176 Crore. AU SFB enjoys the trust of marquee investors and is listed at both NSE and BSE. It has consistently maintained high external credit Rating and is presently rated ‘AA/Stable’ by CRISIL, CARE Ratings and India Ratings, while the Bank’s FD is rated ‘AA+/Stable’ from CRISIL Ratings. For more information, please visit the company’s website at www.aubank.in.

About Fincare Small Finance Bank
Fincare Small Finance Bank is a ‘digital-first’ small finance bank offering banking services through banking outlets, ATM, WhatsApp, Video Banking, Mobile Banking, Internet Banking and website Chatbots. The bank aims to transform banking through automated processes, instant account opening, and seamless transactions. Powered by technology, on one hand, Fincare Small Finance Bank caters to the banking needs of micro enterprises enabling their financial inclusion, and on the other, provides innovative banking services along with digital solutions to metro and urban customers. The Bank offer a comprehensive suite of financial products and services, ranging from savings account, fixed deposit, loans as well as digital banking solutions, designed to simplify banking and enhance convenience for customers.

Fincare Small Finance Bank commenced banking operations on 21st July 2017 under Section 22 of the Banking Regulation Act, 1949. It was included in the Second Schedule to the RBI Act, 1934 published in the Gazette of India dated April 13, 2019. As of December 31, 2023, Fincare Small Finance Bank’s Gross Loan Portfolio amounted to ₹13,352 Crore, while Deposits reached ₹9,734 Crore. The Bank efficiently caters to a customer base exceeding 59 Lakhs+, supported by a robust team of over 14,800 dedicated employees. With a widespread presence, the Bank boasts 1,303 touch points strategically located across 20 states and 3 Union Territories.

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The tech firm Embention partners with Amazon to enhance its drone division

Axon

Embention, a portfolio company of the Axon Innovation Growth IV Fund, the only financial investor in the business, has just signed a commercial agreement with Amazon. Amazon has selected Embention’s autopilot technology to be installed in all the drones it is developing for aerial package delivery.

The Spanish technology company will be a key player in the ultra-fast aerial delivery service that the group founded by Jeff Bezos has already launched in the United States and is expected to reach the United Kingdom by the end of the year.

Based in Alicante, Embention is a world leader in the design and manufacture of autopilots and components for unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) and urban aerial mobility (UAM) solutions, including eVTOL (electric vertical take-off and landing) solutions that aim to revolutionise urban transport. The company works with aircraft manufacturers worldwide, installing the Veronte autopilot system or advising on developing customised solutions.

Its products are essential for industrial use in drones (in sectors such as firefighting, agriculture, or package delivery, among others). The company has more than 500 customers in over 70 countries (95% of turnover outside Spain) and a robust pipeline of new customers. These include Toyota of Japan, Airbus, and IAI of Israel.

The company’s revenues were €3.3m in 2022 and €4.7m in 2023 (44% growth).It is estimated that they could quadruple this year thanks to the pipeline and the Amazon deal. The Amazon contract represents revenues of €17m to be generated over the next three years and will significantly impact the company.  In addition to the commercial agreement, Amazon has obtained the right to invest in the company with warrants in Embention. This will enable Amazon to participate in the company up to 21% of the capital, which could be increased to 27% if Amazon doubles its purchases in the following years (i.e. exceeding €30m in turnover). This is a significant commitment by Amazon, not only because it trusts in technology as a strategic supplier but also because it believes in the important opportunity that the company currently has in such a disruptive market as urban air mobility solutions.

The Axon Innovation Growth IV Fund entered the technology group in 2022 by injecting €7.5m of capital, with which it obtained the aforementioned minority stake. In the same year, the company went public on the Euronext Access Paris market (ticker: MLUAV), a market for small growth companies.

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Flatpay rings up $47M to target smaller merchants with simple payment solutions

Dawn

As the world waits for $65 billion payments tech giant Stripe to go public, a wave of smaller startups continues to roll into the market to pick up more payments business. In one of the latest developments, Danish company Flatpay, which builds payment solutions for small and medium physical merchants like shops, restaurants and salons, has raised €45 million ($47 million), led by Dawn Capital.

Flatpay had raised just under $21 million before this latest Series B, and with this new funding, it’s now valued at well over $100 million. The company plans to use the money to expand into new markets in Europe and to build out more products alongside the point-of-sale and card terminals that it sells today. Some of these products might involve AI but only as an enabler of certain features, rather than a core service, said Flatpay’s CEO Sander Janca-Jensen.

“We have been able to raise money without mentioning the AI buzz word,” he said. “It seems to be rare these days.”

That €45 million is a strong Series B in the current market in Europe, especially when you consider the size of the startup. Founded in 2022, Flatpay currently has just 7,000 customers across Denmark, Finland and Germany.

Even with its revenues and customer base both growing at a monthly rate of 15%, Flatpay’s business is just a drop in the merchant ocean.

There are more than 24 million SMBs in Europe; point-of-sale terminals in the region number more than 17 million; and there are hundreds of other payments services — including Stripe, Adyen, SumUp and PayPal, as well as smaller players like SilkPay — all targeting the same customers as Flatpay.

But investors think there is a lot of potential in the startup, enough to bet early and strong, even in the current economic climate.

Janca-Jensen, who co-founded the company with Rasmus Busk, Rasmus Hellmund Carlsen and Peter Lüth, said the gap Flatpay spotted in the market was a lack of really simple solutions for merchants who want the convenience that technology can bring, without the harder aspects that come along with it, such as troubleshooting, understanding the intricacies of charges, and integrating products into their business flow.

The startup’s approach to addressing that gap comes in three ways, he said. On the customer side, Flatpay works with a defined size of customer: only merchants that process over €100,000 annually, and the customers cannot be multiple-location chains or franchises. Janca-Jensen said that it regularly rejects customers if they don’t meet those parameters.

On the technology side, it has matched its target customer size with the unit economics of its payment solutions to come up with very basic, flat fees (hence the startup’s name) of 0.99% for terminal transactions and 1.49% for POS purchases. Flatpay then doesn’t set a minimum charge for single transactions, and it doesn’t charge fees if customers are paying with international cards. Janca-Jensen admitted that its model means that Flatpay sometimes loses money on transactions, but it overall lowers the bar for usage and encourages more spend and overall revenue for the company.

Perhaps most interestingly, on the sales side, despite its focus on streamlined technology, Flatpay only sells via live sales visits. No online sales (although there are specialists who will help arrange those in-person sales visits and handle support), no virtual visits, and no plans to introduce either.

Janca-Jensen said he and his co-founders developed a fondness for direct field sales when they were selling home alarm systems in a previous life.

As with payments hardware and software, security can be a hard sell to customers. Flatpay found that the only way it could reliably seal deals was by selling in person. And the only way that salespeople can sell in person is by understanding the products really well.  “You have to get salespeople to understand the product enough to explain it well to buyers. It sets high standards for how simple your product must be,” said Janca-Jensen. “We like that challenge.”

Around half of Flatpay’s 200 employees are on the sales side, he said, split between those who help arrange sales visits and handle support and those who visit customers in person. Typically, they are recruited from other retail roles rather than software sales.

“We steer clear of SaaS account executives and fintech people,” he said. In his opinion, SaaS sales are so easy that people who work in that area are “too lazy and complacent” to make the grade for field sales.

So far, in the three markets where Flatpay operates, the aim has been to recruit very local salespeople who understand the nuances of their respective markets. That seems to raise a lot of questions about how well this can scale longer term, but Janca-Jensen brushes that concern aside, and investors are equally bullish.

“The field sales model, when done well, works. You can localize and roll out teams in a cost-efficient way to explain on a local basis why a product makes sense,” said Josh Bell, a general partner at Dawn Capital who focuses on fintech.

He pointed out that iZettle — another company Dawn backed — was also an early mover in using field sales to sell its fancy new tech to non-technical customers. “They were a winner, but even they never did it as well as Flatpay does this. Payments is huge, and Flatplay has touched just at a fraction of the opportunity.”

Denmark’s Seed Capital also participated in this round, along with other unnamed investors.

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Veesual raises a $7.5 million Seed round

AXA

AI-Powered Virtual Try-On Technology Platform For The Fashion Industry Veesual Raises $7.5 Million, Announces US Expansion With New EILEEN FISHER Partnership

Investment for market leader of image generation technology for fashion brands and retailers in Europe will now support US customers looking to overcome inclusivity challenges

New York, NY—April 17, 2024—Veesual, a Paris-based virtual try-on platform for the fashion industry that revolutionizes the way online shoppers experience digital retail, today announced the closing of a $7.5 million dollar Seed round led by AVP (AXA Venture Partners) and Techstars. The investment will accelerate delivery of the company’s plans to expand into the US market by opening its first US-based office, recruiting senior US talent, enhancing its current product offering for US apparel companies and more. A cornerstone of Veesual’s US expansion is a new partnership with leading women’s fashion brand EILEEN FISHER. Under the terms of the collaboration, Veesual’s augmented shopping experiences powered by next-generation virtual try-on technology have been integrated into the EILEEN FISHER online shopping experience.

Founded in 2020, Veesual is on a mission to transform the online shopping experience for all customers, independent of style, fit and fashion preferences. Through its Augmented Shopping solutions Mix&Match, Switch Model and Look Inspiration, Veesual’s proprietary 2D-based Image Generation Engine (IGT) was designed specifically for fashion brands to deliver high-quality imagery at scale, and to be able to adapt several pieces of clothing on any model, with natural renderings and precise fitting. Veesual works with leading brands and retailers in Europe including premium (Claudie Pierlot), kids fashion (Sergent Major and DPAM), and popular fashion (La Redoute and Gemo).

While brands are working to reflect diversity for e-commerce shoppers by featuring models of different ethnicities, ages and body types, it can be extremely costly to shoot individual products on various models. Veesual’s Switch Model experience allows customers to choose a model they identify with while simultaneously accelerating online sales and reducing returns for brands.

“We are thrilled to be the first US brand to partner with Veesual on this innovative new virtual try-on tool,” notes Blair Silverman, Vice President of E-commerce at EILEEN FISHER. “EILEEN FISHER is committed to inclusivity, designing clothes that cater to every body shape. Navigating online shopping poses challenges, particularly in predicting how garments fit diverse body types. Our collaboration with Veesual addresses these challenges head-on and we are proud to be launching a tool that is sure to be a new standard for e-commerce.”

While 3D-based try-on technology can be expensive and time-consuming, 2D image solutions offer a scalable and cost-effective solution for brands that engage shoppers. According to recent data published by Insider Intelligence, by 2026 e-commerce is expected to total over $8.1 trillion and 24% of retail purchases are expected to take place online. Veesual enables brands to create a more seamless and inclusive shopping experience for customers and in turn, yield higher sales and a lower return rate, allowing them to capture a larger percentage of online sales.

“We are proud to invest in Veesual, in order to accelerate its commercial roll-out and pursue its technological developments, as well as its international expansion,” said François Robinet, Managing Partner of AVP. “We believe in Maxime and his team’s vision. They have demonstrated a strong ability to execute and understand market challenges by offering fashion brands solutions to optimize their customer experience. With a presence on both sides of the Atlantic, AVP’s teams will be able to support Veesual in the next stages of its development.”

To support aggressive growth in the US, Veesual is working to recruit more senior talent and will open its first US office in New York in 2025. In addition to e-commerce, Veesual aims to create value for brands by displaying generated images on their acquisition and retargeting channels.

“The global fashion ecosystem is undergoing a seismic shift right now. The industry is increasingly focused on sustainable production, a better, more relevant buying experience and upcycling as a new standard. At Veesual, we’re meeting those changes by drastically improving how shoppers buy online which creates a more inclusive retail experience while also improving fit and reducing waste,” said Veesual Co-Founder and CEO, Maxime Patte. “This fundraise is critical for our plans as we scale in the United States with brands who are pioneering the augmented shopping experience. We anticipate significant growth in 2024 and beyond.”

About AVP

AVP is a global venture capital firm specializing in high-growth, technology-enabled companies, managing more than $2 billion in assets across four investment strategies: Venture, Growth, Late Growth, and Fund of Funds. Since its establishment in 2016, AVP has invested in more than 60 technology companies in Venture and Growth stages in the US and Europe. With offices in New York, London, and Paris, AVP supports companies in expanding internationally and provides portfolio companies with tailored business development opportunities to further accelerate their growth. AVP operates under AXA IM- Alts, the alternative investment business unit of AXA IM.

For more information, visit axavp.com
Contact: Sébastien Loubry, Partner Business development (sebastien@axavp.com)

About Veesual

Founded in 2020, Veesual was developed when co-founders Maxime Patte and Damien Meurisse recognized the limited means of fashion brands to visually engage diverse customers online. The platform offers solutions that leverage the power of images to create inclusive experiences that engage all customers. Globally, brands including Claudie Pierlot, Sergeant Major and La Redoute use Veesual. To date, these partnerships have outperformed expectations, with a 75% average increase in conversation rate and a more than 20% increase in average order value for shoppers who engaged with one of Veesual’s solutions. Veesual, a Techstars portfolio company, was part of Station F’s Founders program and has raised $7.5M to date. For more information, please visit https://www.veesual.ai/.

About EILEEN FISHER, Inc.

EILEEN FISHER has been making a system of simple, timeless clothes for nearly 40 years. A socially conscious company, EILEEN FISHER designs its clothing to be part of a responsible lifecycle, starting with sustainable materials, then taking back its clothes to be resold (Renew) or remade into something entirely new (Waste No More). The company became a B Corp in 2016, which means it voluntarily meets high criteria for social and environmental performance, accountability and transparency. The company’s clothes are sold online at eileenfisher.com, in more than 50 EILEEN FISHER stores in North America and over 500 department and specialty stores globally. Good-as-new pieces are resold at eileenfisherrenew.com, in two EILEEN FISHER Renew stores, and select EILEEN FISHER retail stores nationwide.

Media Contact

Courtney Page
Rally Point PR courtney.page@rallypoint.pr

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Altura raises 3 million euros in funding. AI-driven bid management software changes way of working.

Fortino Capital

Increasingly, government agencies, as well as private and public organisations, are using formal procurement processes such as a Request for X (RFX) to find a supplier for their contract. These processes are known for their complexity and the enormous amount of documentation required of participants. Altura has developed software to simplify the entire process around creating and managing proposals with the help of AI.  In the coming years, this development promises to dramatically change interactions between governmental organisations and companies, as well as business-to-business collaborations. With an investment of three million euros, Netherlands based Altura is poised to change the playing field in the world of proposal procedures.

Matthijs Huiskamp, founder and CEO Altura: “I see inefficiency in how companies and governments do business with other parties. This is because there is so much manual work and unnecessary steps. With the knowledge and automation in our software, those factors are removed and with that there is more room for vision, creativity, strategy and focus. AI plays the leading role in this.”

Matthijs Huiskamp, founder and CEO Altura

Future of doing business

Increasingly, business purchases are being completed through an RFX. In fact, in recent years, we are seeing smaller organisations purchasing through this route as well. RFX deals include a Request for Bid (RFB), Request for Information (RFI), Request for Proposal (RFP), Request for Quotation (RFQ) and a Request for Tender (RFT).

An RFX is an orderly step for an organisation to fairly compare all parties. The government is already required to follow this process in the form of tendering. For participating organisations, an RFX is often an expensive and time-consuming process with stacks of documents involving days of manual work.

From a database with insights into previous proposals, Altura can easily form the right strategy, price and text to increase the likelihood of success.

 

3 million euros funding

Altura launched the first version of its software two years ago. When founders Matthijs Huiskamp and Jordi van der Hek started exploratory talks with investors for a new round of growth, Curiosity VC was immediately enthusiastic and interested. Because of their focus on Artificial Intelligence, Curiosity turned out to be the perfect partner. Subsequently, they found a suitable co-investor in Fortino Capital with the necessary international knowledge and experience.

Wouter Goossens, Investment Director at Fortino Capital: “We see that companies are increasingly buying through RFXs. Matthijs and Jordi have the ambition to become category leaders with software to make bid management more efficient and effective. This objective and the speed at which the company is currently growing really appeal to us.”

Wouter Goossens, Fortino Capital

With the growth money, Altura will further improve their software. There will be a significant investment in tech talent to expand the platform.

The plan is to implement more products and provide even more quality support
to create a perfectly streamlined process.

Herman Kienhuis, managing partner at Curiosity VC: “We have researched the whole market in the field of AI in bid software and see that Altura is the best party. They use new AI technologies for finding and analysing tenders and RFXs, for automating time-consuming manual tasks and also as an assistant for proposal writing. This growth capital will allow them to accelerate their product development and commercial rollout.”

 

AI is storming the proposal management market

Bid management is now subject to AI disruption. That means the manner in which big companies do business and how the government spends is going to be changed. In five years, the field of RFX and procurement will look completely different. Altura is using AI to embrace and accelerate that change. All manual tasks will be solved with artificial intelligence and contextual data from companies. That leaves more time for the work that really matters.

The bid management software uses Large Language Models (LLMs), Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG) and Custom Prompting. Vector database technology and Graph database technology is deployed.

Thus, Altura’s software can support every step, providing a complete proposal process, from identifying new opportunities to project management and data analysis. The software can scrape product data from platforms, very accurately scan information from documents, estimate financial risks, summarize and organise content in a knowledge library. Based on the information found in the documentation, automated actions are created such as a schedule, task list, text for the proposal and other content. This significantly reduces manual tasks.

 

About Altura

Altura is the market leader in bid management software. The software combines data with technology for a winning proposal process. With Altura, teams can make better proposals by getting the right data insights and administrative tasks are automated by AI. Learn more: https://altura.io

 

About Curiosity VC

Curiosity is a Dutch venture capital fund focused on early-stage investments in AI software startups in the Benelux, Nordic and Baltic countries. Curiosity is led by two experienced operator investors, Herman Kienhuis and Maurice Beckand Verwee, supported by a community of expert advisors and portfolio entrepreneurs who are all co-owners of the fund. Learn more: https://www.curiosityvc.com

 

About Fortino Capital

Fortino Capital is a European investment company focused on high growth B2B software companies. From its offices in Belgium, the Netherlands and Germany, Fortino supports ambitious entrepreneurs and founders.

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