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Clearlake Capital-backed Cornerstone enters definitive agreement to acquire Sumtotal, a Skillsoft company

Clearlake

Strategic combination will further expand Cornerstone’s capabilities, enhance reach of employee-centric innovation, and broaden vertical expertise in highly regulated markets

SANTA MONICA, Calif. — June 13, 2022 — Cornerstone OnDemand, Inc., a leader in adaptive cloud-based HR software solutions, backed by Clearlake Capital Group, L.P. (together with its affiliates, “Clearlake”), today announced it has entered into a definitive agreement with Skillsoft (NYSE: SKIL), to acquire SumTotal, a provider of learning and human capital management software-as-a-service (“SaaS”) for customers in highly regulated and complex industries.

With the addition of SumTotal, Cornerstone will be positioned to help a larger, more diverse group of customers transform the way they identify and develop the skills of the future, engage and develop their people, and optimize talent and business agility. The combined company will be positioned to deliver a differentiated, expanded portfolio of learning, talent, and people growth solutions with broader vertical expertise, greater financial resources, and a shared vision for the future of work.

This announcement follows Cornerstone’s recent acquisition of EdCast, which has fueled the company’s strategy to create an open platform for people development, growth, and mobility.

“Today is an exciting day for our teams, our customers, and our industry,” said Himanshu Palsule, CEO of Cornerstone. “SumTotal and Cornerstone share a passion for people growth and development. The additional depth of expertise from SumTotal, particularly in high-consequence vertical markets, is an ideal complement to Cornerstone. With Cornerstone’s broad portfolio and agnostic approach to innovation, we expect to offer SumTotal customers even more options for extensibility and growth. Together, we will continue our mission in helping organizations and their people to develop future-proof skills, flexibly grow their careers, and achieve shared success.”

“The acquisition of SumTotal continues to underscore the fundamental growth thesis we see for Cornerstone, as a leading talent management SaaS platform provider,” said Prashant Mehrotra, Partner, and Paul Huber, Managing Director, at Clearlake. “We are excited to continue building on Cornerstone’s industry reputation for providing innovative software solutions to our customers through acquisitions and organic initiatives. This acquisition represents an incredible opportunity for Cornerstone to deliver more value to customers and employees alike, and combined with our O.P.S.® approach, should drive accelerated growth and value for the business.”

Cornerstone will continue to advance its products, technologies, and services with an unwavering commitment to customer success, and the most flexible options to support the skills transformation, people experience and talent management priorities of an expanded global customer base.

Deal details at a glance
  • The transaction is expected to close in the second half of 2022, subject to regulatory approvals and other customary closing conditions.
  • Centerview Partners LLC is serving as financial advisor to Cornerstone and Clearlake, and Sidley Austin LLP is serving as legal counsel.
  • PJT Partners served as the exclusive financial advisor to Skillsoft, and Weil, Gotshal & Manges LLP served as the Company’s legal counsel.
About Cornerstone

Cornerstone powers the future-ready workforce with adaptive HR solutions designed to unite technology, data and content and inspire a work environment of growth, agility and success for all. With an AI-powered, skills-forward, experiential system designed for the contemporary workforce, we help organizations modernize their learning and development experience, deliver the most relevant content from anywhere, accelerate talent and career mobility and establish skills as the universal language of growth and success across their business. Cornerstone serves over 6,000 customers and 75M users and is available in 180 countries and 50 languages. Learn more at www.csod.com.

 

About SumTotal

SumTotal provides a unified, comprehensive Learning and Talent Development suite that delivers measurable impact across the entire employee lifecycle. With SumTotal, organizations can build a culture of learning that is critical to growth, success, and business sustainability. SumTotal’s award-winning technology provides talent acquisition, onboarding, learning management, and talent management solutions across some of the most innovative, complex, and highly regulated industries, including technology, airlines, financial services, healthcare, manufacturing, and pharmaceuticals.

SumTotal partners with many leading global organizations, including a number of Fortune 500 companies. SumTotal’s Talent Development suite supports learning and talent management initiatives for their customers and offers measurable impact across the entire employee lifecycle. Learn more at www.sumtotalsystems.com.

 

About Skillsoft

Skillsoft (NYSE: SKIL) is a global leader in corporate digital learning, focused on transforming today’s workforce for tomorrow’s economy. The Company provides enterprise learning solutions designed to prepare organizations for the future of work, overcome critical skill gaps, drive demonstrable behavior-change, and unlock the potential in their people. Skillsoft offers a comprehensive suite of premium, original, and authorized partner content, including one of the broadest and deepest libraries of leadership & business skills, technology & developer, and compliance curricula. With access to a broad spectrum of learning options (including video, audio, books, bootcamps, live events, and practice labs), organizations can meaningfully increase learner engagement and retention. Skillsoft’s offerings are delivered through Percipio, its award-winning, AI-driven, immersive learning platform purpose built to make learning easier, more accessible, and more effective. Learn more at www.skillsoft.com.

 

About Clearlake

Clearlake Capital Group, L.P. is an investment firm founded in 2006 operating integrated businesses across private equity, credit and other related strategies. With a sector-focused approach, the firm seeks to partner with management teams by providing patient, long-term capital to businesses that can benefit from Clearlake’s operational improvement approach, O.P.S.® The firm’s core target sectors are technology, industrials, and consumer. Clearlake currently has over $72 billion of assets under management, and its senior investment principals have led or co-led over 400 investments. The firm is headquartered in Santa Monica, CA, with affiliate offices in Dallas, TX, London, UK and Dublin, Ireland. More information is available at www.clearlake.com and on Twitter @Clearlake.

 

Media Contacts

 

Cornerstone
Deaira Irons
dirons@csod.com

 

Clearlake
Jennifer Hurson
jhurson@lambert.com

 

Skillsoft
Nancy Coleman
nancy.coleman@skillsoft.com

Categories: News

Apollo Funds to Acquire Cardenas Markets, One of the Largest Hispanic Grocery Chains in the U.S. from KKR

KKR

Upon completion of the acquisition, Apollo Funds’ portfolio company Tony’s Fresh Market to combine with Cardenas Markets to create a leading Hispanic and ethnic-focused grocer.

 

NEW YORK, June 13, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Apollo (NYSE: APO) today announced that funds managed by its affiliates (the “Apollo Funds”) have agreed to acquire Cardenas Markets (“Cardenas”), a leading grocery retailer focused on serving the Hispanic community, from investment funds affiliated with KKR, a leading global investment firm. Upon completion of the transaction, Apollo Funds will combine Tony’s Fresh Market, a Chicago-based portfolio company, with Cardenas Markets, which operates across California, Nevada and Arizona, to create a leading Hispanic- and ethnic-focused grocer. Both companies will continue to operate under their respective brands and local leadership, while benefitting from greater scale, complementary capabilities and an expanded operating footprint.

Founded in 1981, Cardenas is one of the largest Hispanic grocery chains in the country with a differentiated store concept providing high-quality, specialty groceries at affordable prices. The Company, led by CEO Doug Sanders, today operates 59 stores and sources products from over 500 vendors. The combined Cardenas-Tony’s footprint will span nearly 80 stores across the western and mid-west United States with approximately $1.8 billion in combined revenues. Sanders will serve as CEO of the combined company and Cardenas chain, while Frank Ingraffia will continue to serve as the CEO of the Tony’s chain.

“Since joining Cardenas, we have made great progress in growing and enhancing our operations with KKR’s support, and I am thrilled by the opportunity for our team to now partner with Frank and the Tony’s team, leveraging our collective strengths. Together, as two of the highest quality Hispanic and ethnic grocers, we can deliver even greater value to the communities we serve,” Doug Sanders, CEO of Cardenas said. “Apollo private equity has an extensive best-in-class track record of success in food retail, and I am thrilled to partner with Andy Jhawar and the Apollo team again in this exciting next chapter for Cardenas. I would also like to thank KKR, which has been a tremendous strategic partner over the past six years, helping us grow and professionalize the business.”

Andrew Jhawar and Joanna Reiss, Apollo Private Equity Partners, said: “Cardenas has grown significantly over the last several years under Doug’s leadership and we are excited to accelerate its growth in combination with Tony’s in this next phase. We are excited to once again partner with Doug following our highly successful investment in Sprouts Farmers Market which Doug led as CEO under Apollo funds’ ownership. Cardenas and Tony’s have robust positions in the ethnic grocer space, and together can leverage best practices across their complementary go-to-market strategies, merchandising, customer loyalty programs and more. This transaction will combine the best of both retailers and provide greater opportunities and scale for the respective brands and teams as they continue to bring quality, affordable groceries to diverse communities.”

In 2016, KKR acquired Cardenas Markets from the Cardenas family with the thesis of transforming the business into a growth platform. Under KKR’s ownership, Cardenas doubled in size through a combination of organic growth and strategic acquisitions.

Vishal Patel, a Managing Director at KKR, said: “We are immensely appreciative of everything Doug and the management team have done to build a great company dedicated to bringing fresh and affordable groceries to the communities that it serves, consistent with the values that the Cardenas family instilled in the business. We are confident that Apollo and Tony’s Fresh Market are the right partners for Cardenas as it enters its next chapter of growth.”

The transaction is subject to customary closing conditions and is expected to be completed by Q3 2022. Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP acted as legal counsel to the Apollo Funds. Solomon Partners acted as lead financial advisor to Cardenas Markets and KKR. BMO Capital Markets also advised, and Kirkland & Ellis LLP served as legal advisor to Cardenas Markets and KKR. Credit Suisse, Wells Fargo and Rabobank have provided committed debt financing for the transaction.

About Apollo
Apollo is a high-growth, global alternative asset manager. In our asset management business, we seek to provide our clients excess return at every point along the risk-reward spectrum from investment grade to private equity with a focus on three investing strategies: yield, hybrid, and equity. For more than three decades, our investing expertise across our fully integrated platform has served the financial return needs of our clients and provided businesses with innovative capital solutions for growth. Through Athene, our retirement services business, we specialize in helping clients achieve financial security by providing a suite of retirement savings products and acting as a solutions provider to institutions. Our patient, creative, and knowledgeable approach to investing aligns our clients, businesses we invest in, our employees, and the communities we impact, to expand opportunity and achieve positive outcomes. As of March 31, 2022, Apollo had approximately $513 billion of assets under management. To learn more, please visit www.apollo.com.

About Cardenas Markets, LLC
Cardenas Markets is headquartered in Ontario, CA, and currently operates a total of 51 stores under the Cardenas Markets banner, 7 stores under the Los Altos Ranch Markets banner and 1 store under Cardenas Ranch Markets banner. Today, Cardenas Markets is one of the largest Hispanic grocery chains in the country with stores in California, Nevada, and Arizona. For more information visit cardenasmarkets.com.

About KKR
KKR is a leading global investment firm that offers alternative asset management as well as capital markets and insurance solutions. KKR aims to generate attractive investment returns by following a patient and disciplined investment approach, employing world-class people, and supporting growth in its portfolio companies and communities. KKR sponsors investment funds that invest in private equity, credit and real assets and has strategic partners that manage hedge funds. KKR’s insurance subsidiaries offer retirement, life, and reinsurance products under the management of Global Atlantic Financial Group. References to KKR’s investments may include the activities of its sponsored funds and insurance subsidiaries. For additional information about KKR & Co. Inc. (NYSE: KKR), please visit KKR’s website at www.kkr.com and on Twitter @KKR_Co.

Contacts

Apollo:

For Investors:

Noah Gunn
Global Head of Investor Relations
Apollo Global Management, Inc.
(212) 822-0540
IR@apollo.com

For Media:

Joanna Rose
Global Head of Corporate Communications
Apollo Global Management, Inc.
(212) 822-0491
Communications@apollo.com

Cardenas Markets:

Marisa Kutansky
Director of Communications
Cardenas Markets LLC
(909) 923-7426
MKutansky@cmkts.com

KKR:

Julia Kosygina
212-750-8300
media@kkr.com

Categories: News

360 Capital launches its new €45M fund to back Preseed & Seed ventures

360 Capital

360 Capital is pleased to announce the launch of its 360 Square II early-stage fund with a closing of €45M.

This comes on the back of the highly successful 360 Square I which among its 24 investments winners such as Exotec (France’s 25th unicorn), Preligens, Casavo, Alsid (sold to Tenable), Bergamotte (sold to Bloom&Wild), Tediber (sold through a management buyout), Tiller Systems (sold to SumUp) and, and Neutrino (sold to Coinbase).

Leveraging its predecessor’s strategy, 360 Square II will continue targeting early-stage tech companies (pre-seed and seed) with a balanced focus on Deeptech, B2B software and consumer tech. As bold trend seekers, 360 Capital seeks talented founders across Western Europe (France, Italy, Spain in particular) to support their ambitious projects with tickets from €200K to €2M. Two investments have already been committed and will be announced shortly.

This new fund has attracted strong support from reputable investors amongst which the “Fonds National d’Amorçage 2” (French Tech Seed 2), managed on behalf of the French State by Bpifrance, MAIF Avenir, Crédit Mutuel Arkéa, Groupe Rocher, and several European Business Angels.

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Catalyst Healthcare Real Estate and Bain Capital Real Estate Break Ground on 60,000 Square Foot Medical Office Building in Laurel Maryland

BainCapital

Pensacola, FL, June 13, 2022 –  Catalyst Healthcare Real Estate (“Catalyst”), a national, full-service healthcare real estate investment firm and Bain Capital Real Estate, the real estate investing business of Bain Capital, today announced the groundbreaking of a 60,000 square foot multi-tenant medical office building (MOB)in Laurel, Maryland.

The University of Maryland Medical System purchased Laurel Regional Hospital and its 42-acre campus from Prince George’s County in 2017 and selected Catalyst to redevelop the medical campus. Through the selection process, Catalyst proposed placemaking, an innovative approach to designing and managing a hospital and/or MOB space whereby the spaces promote the health and well-being of a community. This MOB is the first phase of the master plan which will include the development of 11 buildings, community focused retail, restaurants, and green space.

“Catalyst is grateful for the opportunity to partner with the University of Maryland Capital Region Health,” said Anthony Lampasona, Chief Development Officer of Catalyst. “This MOB is creating the foundation for a vibrant healthy-living campus within the community. This is only the beginning of providing quality care for patients in Laurel and the surrounding communities.”

The property is connected to the University of Maryland Capital Region Health Hospital by an enclosed skyway. The facility will offer a wide range of outpatient services, including: Family Medicine, Health & Wellness, Imaging, Internal Medicine, Oncology, Orthopedics, Pharmacy, Physical Therapy, Vascular, OB/GYN, and Dialysis.

“This best-in-class MOB is being developed to meet the changing needs of healthcare and will enable medical professionals to set the standard for patient care,” said Beth Thomas, a Managing Director at Bain Capital Real Estate. “We are excited to bring this high-quality facility to the Laurel community.”

About Catalyst Healthcare Real Estate
Catalyst is a national, full-service healthcare real estate investment firm. Our platform of integrated real estate deliverables is specifically designed for the ever-evolving landscape of healthcare. Our team seeks to positively impact healthcare with strategic investment in development, acquisition, and strategy services. For more information, please visit catalysthre.com.

About Bain Capital Real Estate
Bain Capital Real Estate was formed in 2018 and pursues investments in often hard-to-access sectors underpinned by enduring secular trends that drive long-term demand growth for real estate assets and services. The Bain Capital Real Estate team has been executing its strategy since 2010 (formerly as a part of Harvard Management Company), having invested over $6.1 billion of equity in more than 500 assets across multiple sectors. Bain Capital Real Estate focuses on small to mid-sized assets where the team applies its deep industry expertise to accelerate impact and drive operational improvements. Bain Capital Real Estate’s strategy aligns with the value-added investment approach that Bain Capital pioneered and leverages the firm’s global platform and significant experience across asset classes to further bolster its insights and sourcing capabilities. For more information, visit https://www.baincapital.com/businesses/real-estate.

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Textkernel expands value proposition for staffers through combination with Akyla

Main Capital Partners

Textkernel, an Amsterdam-based global leader in AI-driven recruitment and talent management technology, has made a strategic combination with best-of-breed staffing app and portal specialist Akyla.

Akyla marks the second step in the international buy-and-build strategy of Textkernel since its management teamed up with strategic software investor Main Capital Partners (“Main”) in October 2020. Last year, Textkernel successfully acquired U.S-based competitor Sovren to solidify the group’s position as a global market leader in AI-driven parsing and search-&-match technology.

Like Textkernel, Akyla is considered a true best-of-breed solutions provider in the HR software market. Akyla is a provider of flexible mid-office working platform solutions that enable automated recruitment, selection and efficient management of flex workers. The company offers two innovative solutions (e-UUR and Xplican) that assist customers with administrative processes involved in the management of flex workers, including onboarding, hourly registration, time interpretation, digital signing and vendor management.

The organizations foresee opportunities for a strong and unique combined product proposition that will competitively position the combination in the market. Notably, by gathering richer and more actionable data, the combination will improve the effectiveness of the search & match algorithms of Textkernel and empower staffing organizations to more effectively match candidates and jobs at the right time automatically. Candidates will enjoy a more tailored and suitable offering of potential jobs, which should lead to higher redeployment and placement rates for staffing agencies and a higher degree of job satisfaction and employee productivity for flex workers, while lowering the sourcing costs and efforts of staffing agencies.

Together, Akyla and Textkernel serve a combined customer base of more than 2,500 organizations, including staffing organizations, payrollers, corporates, job boards, HR solutions providers and other participants in the broader HR market.

Martin Schievink, CEO of Akyla, is excited to join forces with the internationally experienced Textkernel team and looking forward to the cooperation: “Textkernel is an excellent strategic match for Akyla. We share similar cultures and ambitions to help staffing organizations around the globe with our propositions.”

Gerard Mulder, CEO of Textkernel, foresees a fruitful strategic partnership with strong potential to offer a value-added proposition together with Akyla to staffing organizations and software partners across international markets: “While exploring the opportunity for cooperation the response to our ideas from customers and partners were nothing but extremely positive. That feedback, combined with our very similar cultures and go-to-market strategy and Akyla’s wish to become more internationally active, strengthened our belief that joining forces will accelerate the growth of both companies significantly.”

Main Capital has long been in contact with the leadership of Akyla and envisions a productive strategic combination that could bring sustainable competitive advantage, according to Pieter van Bodegraven, Partner at Main and Chair of the Supervisory Board of Textkernel: “We strongly believe in putting together driven and passionate entrepreneurs to accelerate innovation for the benefit of their clients. Over the past 20 years, this has been a key value creation driver in the successful organic and buy-and-build growth strategies we have executed together with our business partners. With Akyla and Textkernel, we combine two organizations that are both renowned for their skills and expertise within their respective adjacent domains of the HR ecosystem.”

Textkernel
Textkernel is an international leader in AI-driven solutions for parsing, data enrichment and matching people and jobs. Textkernel enables thousands of recruitment & staffing agencies, employers, job boards, HR software vendors and outplacement & redeployment agencies worldwide to work smarter and more effectively by creating efficiencies in the HR and recruitment process. Textkernel is headquartered in Amsterdam, with satellite offices in Dusseldorf, Paris and the United States. Including Akyla, the group employs ca. 175 people.

Akyla
Akyla is a provider of flexible mid-office working platform solutions that enable automated recruitment, selection and efficient management of flex workers. The company offers innovative solutions that assist customers with all administrative processes involved in the management of flex workers. Headed by its co-founders, Akyla’s ca. 30 employees serve a loyal customer base of more than 200 staffers, payrollers and HR services providers across the Benelux and Nordics regions.

Main Capital Partners
Main Capital Partners is a leading software investor in the Benelux, DACH and the Nordics. Main has almost 20 years of experience in strengthening software companies and works closely together with management teams of its portfolio companies as a strategic partner, in order to realize sustainable growth and build excellent software groups. Main counts over 50 employees and has offices in The Hague, Stockholm and Düsseldorf. As of October 2021, Main has over EUR 2.2 billion of assets under management. Main has invested in more than 130 software companies to date. These companies have created jobs for approximately 5,000 employees.

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CapMan Residential Fund makes its first Swedish investment through its acquisition of a forward funding project in Örebro

Capman

CapMan Real Estate press release
June 10 2022 at 09:45 EEST

CapMan Residential Fund makes its first Swedish investment through its acquisition of a forward funding project in Örebro

CapMan Residential Fund acquires the forward funding project from the Swedish developer Serneke at a price of SEK 314 million. The project includes 139 apartments scheduled for completion in Q4-2024. The project, situated in the new urban area Tamarinden, is located 2 km to the south of central Örebro, Sweden’s sixth largest city.

The project has high sustainability ambitions and a clear green profile which includes onsite solar collector systems and rainwater collection areas for re-cycling rainwater within the local green areas. The project will pursue Miljöbyggnad green building certification at Silver level.

“This first acquisition in Sweden fits very well with the fund’s investment criteria to invest in modern sustainable residential properties located in major Nordic cities. Through this investment in space efficient, high-quality apartments, we continue on our path to develop a diversified Nordic core residential rental portfolio with stable risk-adjusted returns for our investors,” says Mikael Hjorth, Partner and Fund Director for CapMan Residential Fund.

CapMan Real Estate currently manages approximately EUR 4.0 billion in real estate assets. The Real Estate Team comprises over 60 real estate professionals in Helsinki, Stockholm, Copenhagen, Oslo and London.

The Örebro investment is the 4th acquisition for the CapMan Residential Fund, a core fund launched in June 2021, targeting €1.0 billion of equity during 2023.

For more information, please contact:

Mikael Hjorth, Partner and Fund Director, CapMan Residential Fund, tel: +44 7741 873 663

Magnus Berglund, Partner and Head of CapMan Real Estate Sweden, tel: +46 70 786 68 08

About CapMan

CapMan is a leading Nordic private asset expert with an active approach to value creation. As one of the private equity pioneers in the Nordics we have built value in unlisted businesses, real estate, and infrastructure for over three decades. With over €4.7 billion in assets under management, our objective is to provide attractive returns and innovative solutions to investors. We are dedicated to set science-based targets to reduce our greenhouse gas emissions in line with the Paris Agreement. We have a broad presence in the unlisted market through our local and specialised teams. Our investment strategies cover minority and majority investments in portfolio companies and real estate, and infrastructure assets. We also provide wealth management solutions. Our service business includes procurement and analysis, reporting and back office services. Altogether, CapMan employs approximately 180 professionals in Helsinki, Stockholm, Copenhagen, Oslo, London and Luxembourg. We have been listed on the Nasdaq Helsinki since 2001. Read more at www.capman.com

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Advarra Secures Major Investment from Blackstone and CPP Investments

Linden

Columbia, MD (June 10, 2022) – Advarra, a leading provider of regulatory, quality, and compliance solutions and clinical trial technologies in the life sciences sector, today announced that private equity funds managed by Blackstone (“Blackstone”) and Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (“CPP Investments”) have signed a definitive agreement to make a majority investment in Advarra. The investment includes significant continued equity participation from Genstar Capital and Linden Capital Partners, current shareholders, and management. Blackstone is investing in Advarra through its core private equity strategy, which invests in high-quality companies for longer periods than traditional private equity.

Advarra advances life sciences research by enabling safe, ethical, and compliant clinical trials and providing core workflow technology to support the development of life-saving therapies. Its trusted Institutional Review Board (IRB), Institutional Biosafety Committee (IBC), and related services help ensure compliance and participant safety during clinical trials while its innovative software solutions enable clinical research sites to manage their research in a compliant and efficient way. Advarra’s software solutions also connect life sciences sponsors, contract research organizations (CROs), researchers, and academic medical centers, enabling them to better engage and collaborate throughout the conduct of the clinical trial. Advarra is headquartered in Columbia, Maryland and has extensive geographic reach.

“We are excited to join forces with Blackstone and CPP Investments. Their global reach, leading healthcare and technology franchises, shared values, and commitment to life sciences make them the right partners to further accelerate growth in the next stage of our journey,” said Gadi Saarony, CEO of Advarra. “They bring deep global and sector experience and relationships to support new service, data, and software innovation capabilities that enhance compliance, transparency, collaboration, and overall value to our clients across the life sciences ecosystem. We are grateful for the strong support and contributions from Genstar and Linden over the last several years, and we are pleased they have chosen to remain significant investors.”

Anushka Sunder, a Senior Managing Director at Blackstone, said, “We are proud to back Advarra given its important role in enabling high-quality clinical R&D and helping its clients bring life-changing treatments to patients. Sustained innovation and scientific advancement in life sciences is one of our highest conviction investment themes across Blackstone. We are excited to partner with Gadi and the rest of the Advarra team to continue investing in talent, differentiated scientific expertise, customer-centric solutions, and innovative clinical trial technology to realize Advarra’s full potential in the years ahead.”

“Advarra has established a strong reputation in the industry and is well positioned to address the growing need for high-quality clinical research solutions, making it a good fit for our long-term investment strategy,” said Sam Blaichman, Managing Director, Head of North America, Direct Private Equity at CPP Investments. “We look forward to working with our partners and management to support the growth of the business in the coming years.”

“Since our acquisition in 2019, Gadi and the Advarra team have transformed the business into a leading provider of workflow solutions to make clinical trials safer, more efficient and ultimately, more successful,” commented David Golde, Managing Director at Genstar Capital. “It has been a pleasure driving this transformation with the Advarra team, and the company is on a very exciting trajectory to further its mission supporting the life sciences industry and the patients it serves. We wish Gadi, the entire management team, Blackstone, and CPP Investments the best success in driving Advarra’s next phase of strategic growth.”

Jefferies LLC is serving as lead financial advisor and Ropes & Gray LLP as legal counsel to Genstar and Advarra. BofA Securities acted as advisor in connection with the transaction. Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP is acting as legal counsel and Goldman Sachs & Co. LLC as financial advisor to Blackstone.

About Advarra
Advarra advances the way clinical research is conducted: bringing life sciences companies, CROs, research sites, investigators, and academia together at the intersection of safety, technology, and collaboration. With trusted review solutions, innovative technologies, experienced consultants, and deep-seated connections across the industry, Advarra provides integrated solutions that safeguard trial participants, empower clinical sites, ensure compliance, and optimize research performance. Advarra is advancing clinical trials to make them safer, smarter, and faster. For more information, visit www.advarra.com.

About Blackstone
Blackstone is the world’s largest alternative asset manager. We seek to create positive economic impact and long-term value for our investors, the companies we invest in, and the communities in which we work. We do this by using extraordinary people and flexible capital to help companies solve problems. Our $915 billion in assets under management include investment vehicles focused on private equity, real estate, public debt and equity, infrastructure, life sciences, growth equity, opportunistic, non-investment grade credit, real assets and secondary funds, all on a global basis. Further information is available at www.blackstone.com. Follow @blackstone on LinkedIn, Twitter, and Instagram.

About CPP Investments
Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPP Investments™) is a professional investment management organization that manages the Fund in the best interest of the 21 million contributors and beneficiaries of the Canada Pension Plan. In order to build diversified portfolios of assets, investments are made around the world in public equities, private equities, real estate, infrastructure and fixed income. Headquartered in Toronto, with offices in Hong Kong, London, Luxembourg, Mumbai, New York City, San Francisco, São Paulo and Sydney, CPP Investments is governed and managed independently of the Canada Pension Plan and at arm’s length from governments. At March 31, 2022, the Fund totalled C$539 billion. For more information, please visit www.cppinvestments.com or follow us on LinkedIn, Facebook or Twitter.

About Genstar Capital
Genstar Capital (www.gencap.com) is a leading private equity firm that has been actively investing in high quality companies for over 30 years. Based in San Francisco, Genstar works in partnership with its management teams and its network of strategic advisors to transform its portfolio companies into industry-leading businesses. Genstar currently has approximately $35 billion of assets under management and targets investments focused on targeted segments of the financial services, healthcare, industrials, and software industries.

About Linden Capital Partners
Linden Capital Partners is a Chicago-based private equity firm focused exclusively on the healthcare industry. Founded in 2004, Linden is one of the country’s largest dedicated healthcare private equity firms. Linden’s strategy is based upon three elements: (i) healthcare specialization, (ii) integrated private equity and operating expertise, and (iii) its differentiated human capital program. Linden invests in middle market platforms in the medical products, specialty distribution, pharmaceutical, and services segments of healthcare. Since its founding, Linden has invested in over 40 healthcare companies encompassing over 200 total transactions. The firm has raised over $6 billion in limited partner commitments since inception. For more information, please visit www.lindenllc.com.

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The Offeror acquires Shares in Accell Group

KKR

June 10, 2022

This is a press release by Sprint BidCo B.V. (the “Offeror“), an affiliate of the affiliated investment funds advised by Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co. LP or one of its affiliates (“KKR“). Teslin Alpine Acquisition B.V., a wholly-owned subsidiary of Teslin Participaties Coöperatief U.A. (“Teslin“) is together with the Offeror and KKR referred to as the “Consortium“. This press release is issued pursuant to the provisions of Section 13, paragraphs 1 and 2 of the Netherlands Decree in Public Takeover Bids (Besluit openbare biedingen Wft) (the “Decree“) in connection with the recommended public offer by the Offeror for all the issued and outstanding ordinary shares in the capital of Accell Group N.V. (“Accell Group“) (the “Offer“). This announcement does not constitute an offer, or any solicitation of any offer, to buy or subscribe for any securities. Any offer will be made only by means of the offer memorandum dated 6 April 2022 (the “Offer Memorandum“) approved by the Dutch Authority for the Financial Markets (Autoriteit Financiële Markten) (the “AFM“), which has been available as from 7 April 2022. This press release is not for release, publication or distribution, in whole or in part, in or into, directly or indirectly, any jurisdiction in which such release, publication or distribution would be unlawful. Capitalised terms not defined in this press release have the same meaning as given thereto in the Offer Memorandum.

Sprint BidCo B.V. announces that it conducted transactions in Accell Group Shares

Reference is made to the joint press release by the Offeror and Accell Group regarding the Offer being declared unconditional dated 9 June 2022. Pursuant to the provisions of Section 13, paragraphs 1 and 2 of the Decree, the Offeror announces that it conducted transactions in Shares of Accell Group or securities that are convertible into, exchangeable for or exercisable for such Shares, the details of which are stated below.

 

Date Transaction type Total number of ordinary shares Volume weighted average price (€)
10 June 2022 Purchase 81,546 58.00

 

The highest price per Share paid in a transaction conducted today was EUR 58.00 per Share.

 

Based on the transactions set out above, the Offeror acquired today a total of 81,546 Shares representing 0.30% of the Shares.

 

Together with the Shares already tendered or committed to the Offeror prior to today, the total amount of Shares owned by, tendered under the Offer or committed to the Offeror now equals 20,971,713 Shares, representing approximately 78.1% of the Shares.

 

Other

To the extent permissible under applicable law or regulation, the Offeror may from time to time after the date hereof, and other than pursuant to the Offer, directly or indirectly purchase, or arrange to purchase, Shares in the capital of Accell Group, that are the subject of the Offer. To the extent information about such purchases or arrangements to purchase is made public in the Netherlands, such information will be disclosed by means of a press release to inform shareholders of such information, which will be made available on the website of KKR. In addition, financial advisors to the Consortium may also engage in ordinary course trading activities in securities of Accell Group, which may include purchases or arrangements to purchase such securities.

 

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Hendrik Jan Eijpe, HJE Consult

+31 622 031 978 / hje@hjeconsult.nl

                            

About KKR

KKR is a leading global investment firm that offers alternative asset management as well as capital markets and insurance solutions. KKR aims to generate attractive investment returns by following a patient and disciplined investment approach, employing world-class people, and supporting growth in its portfolio companies and communities. KKR sponsors investment funds that invest in private equity, credit and real assets and has strategic partners that manage hedge funds. KKR’s insurance subsidiaries offer retirement, life and reinsurance products under the management of Global Atlantic Financial Group. References to KKR’s investments may include the activities of its sponsored funds and insurance subsidiaries. For additional information about KKR & Co. Inc. (NYSE: KKR), please visit KKR’s website at www.kkr.com and on Twitter @KKR_Co.

 

About Teslin

Teslin is an investment fund managed by Teslin Capital Management. Teslin invests in promising small and midcaps. Based on fundamental analysis Teslin selects value creating companies active in attractive markets with a strong market position and a proper corporate governance structure. Teslin focuses on responsible value creation in the long term and acts as an active and involved shareholder. Teslin has been a long-term significant, active and committed shareholder of Accell Group since 1998 and is delighted to support Accell Group in accelerating and realizing its potential in the coming years. For more information, please visit: www.teslin.nl.

 

Disclaimer, General Restrictions and Forward-Looking Statements

 

The information in this press release is not intended to be complete. This press release is for information purposes only and does not constitute an offer, or any solicitation of any offer, to buy or subscribe for any securities.

The distribution of this press release may, in some countries, be restricted by law or regulation. Accordingly, persons who come into possession of this document should inform themselves of and observe these restrictions. To the fullest extent permitted by applicable law, the Consortium and the Offeror disclaim any responsibility or liability for the violation of any such restrictions by any person. Any failure to comply with these restrictions may constitute a violation of the securities laws of that jurisdiction. Neither the Offeror nor the Consortium, nor any of their respective advisors assumes any responsibility for any violation of any of these restrictions. Any Accell Group shareholder who is in any doubt as to his or her position should consult an appropriate professional advisor without delay.

Certain statements in this press release may be considered forward-looking statements such as statements relating to the impact of this Offer on the Offeror and language that indicates trends, such as “anticipated” and “expected”. These forward-looking statements speak only as of the date of this press release. By their nature, forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties because they relate to events and depend on circumstances that may or may not occur in the future, and the Consortium and the Offeror cannot guarantee the accuracy and completeness of forward-looking statements. A number of important factors, not all of which are known to the Consortium or the Offeror or are within their control, could cause actual results or outcomes to differ materially from those expressed in any forward-looking statement. The Consortium and the Offeror expressly disclaim any obligation or undertaking to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, a change in expectations or for any other reason. Neither the Offeror nor the Consortium, nor any of their advisors, accepts any responsibility for any financial information contained in this press release relating to the business, results of operatio

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Gimv takes a significant interest in Picot, an industrial group active in the production of gates & fencing and provider of fencing solutions

GIMV

Topic: Investment

Gimv acquires an interest of approximately 30% in Picot, which was born out of the French market leader Dirickx and is expanding in France and other regions in Europe. With Gimv joining alongside the current shareholders and management, the strategy of internal growth and acquisitions will be continued with a view to building market leadership in Europe.

Picot (Congrier – Fr, www.dirickx.fr) produces fencing and gates, distributes its products through various channels to the private and corporate markets, and is also active in the installation of fencing solutions. In the French market, Picot is the market leader and has several production units; internationally, the group has branches mainly in Sweden, Poland, the Netherlands and Italy. At the end of 2021, Picot had a turnover of EUR 212m and employed 926 people.

The renewed strategy around French Dirickx was set in motion in 2017 with the acquisition of the company by Robur Capital together with co-investor Telesco. The company has now doubled in size by broadening its product range, tapping new geographical markets and making a whole series of selective acquisitions. With the entry of Gimv, Picot wishes to continue and strengthen this strategy in France and in several European countries.

Wim Deblauwe, CEO of Picot, says: “Since 2017 Picot group has grown from a strong player mainly in France to a European position, through a sophisticated strategy of product innovation, customer focus and targeted acquisitions. We are ready to push through to the position of European market leader and are extremely pleased to find a partner in Gimv who endorses our industrial vision and can help us with the further expansion of Picot.”

Eric de La Vigne, Principal Smart Industries, comments: “Picot is a model of industrial dynamism that we are thrilled to accompany. As a minority investor, we are perfectly in line with the path mapped out by the existing shareholders and are strengthening the foundation with them and the management in particular.”

Tom Van de Voorde, Managing Partner of Smart Industries team, added: “The industrial and technical knowledge, together with the customer focus of the entire company, drives the Picot group forward and shows that industrial companies with the right vision have a bright future. In addition, the will to continue the roll-up in the sector, supported by a stronger capital base, makes the growth potential of this investment very attractive.”

This new investment becomes part of Gimv’s Smart Industries platform, aimed at companies providing B2B products and services, based on value creation through engineering and technology.

 

Read the full document

English – French – Dutch

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Engagement Banking Leader Backbase Raises €120M from Motive Partners

Motive Partners

Having bootstrapped to €200 million in revenue, Backbase is doubling down on its successful category strategy in partnership with specialist investor Motive Partners

Amsterdam, June 9, 2022 – Backbase, creator of the category-leading Engagement Banking Platform, raised €120 million in growth equity funding from Motive Partners. Having grown organically to over €200 million in revenue, Backbase is now partnering with a Fintech specialist private equity firm, to further strengthen its claim on the Engagement Banking category.
This growth investment values Backbase at €2.5 billion. Motive Partners is a founder-friendly partner, fully supporting Backbase in remaining an independent force and driving the Engagement Banking strategy, by continuing to focus on customer-centric innovation that transforms the financial services industry’s siloed channels and legacy applications.
Most banks struggle with a patchwork of disconnected, point and channel solutions that were never designed to service the customer holistically, leaving behind a raft of broken journeys for their customers. This investment will allow Backbase to double down on its vision for Engagement Banking and accelerate its mission of re-architecting banking around the customer.

Engagement Banking is a paradigm shift. Rather than stitching these legacy applications together and trying to rework banking around outdated technology, banks and credit unions can instantly leverage the power of a cloud-based engagement banking platform to create frictionless customer journeys across all the stages of the customer lifecycle. From onboarding, to servicing, to lending, to expanding share of wallet, this investment supports the growth through product expansion and further growing Backbase’s sales and marketing operations.
“Today is a major milestone for more than 2,000 Backbasers and 150 customers around the world, to celebrate the incredible progress we made. With this partnership, we’re even better equipped to drive our Engagement Banking vision to the next level. I couldn’t be more excited about the opportunities that lie ahead and the positive impact we can make,” Jouk Pleiter, Founder and CEO of Backbase said. “To all our customers, I personally want to restate our long-term commitment to being your independent, long-term partner in innovation. For us, it is still day one.”

Motive Partners were advised by Goldman Sachs as corporate finance advisor, Proskauer Rose LLP and Loyens & Loeff as legal counsel, EY as accounting and tax, and Motive Create for technical due diligence. Backbase was advised by De Brauw Blackstone Westbroek as legal counsel.

About Backbase
Backbase is a financial technology company on a mission to re-architect banking around the customer. Our whitelabel Engagement Banking platform empowers banks and credit unions to rapidly digitize their customer-facing operations and create seamless journeys that meet and exceed the expectations of today’s digital-savvy customers. With Backbase, banks and credit unions can put their customers back in the heart of their business.
Industry analysts Forrester, Gartner, Celent, Omdia and IDC continuously recognize Backbase’s category leadership position. Over 150 financials around the world have embraced the Backbase Engagement Banking Platform – including Advanzia, Banco Caja Social, Banco de la Nacion Peru, Bank of the Philippine Islands, Berenberg, BNP Paribas, Citizens Bank, ENT, Greater Bank, HDFC, Judo Bank, KeyBank, National Bank of Bahrain, Navy Federal Credit Union, Natwest, Pictet & Cie, Raiffeisen, SchoolFirst Federal Credit Union, Standard Bank, Société Générale, TPBank, Washington State Employee Credit Union and Wildfire Credit Union.
Backbase was founded in 2003 in Amsterdam (global HQ), with regional offices in Atlanta (Americas HQ), Boise, Mexico City, Toronto, London, Cardiff, Dubai, Kraków, Singapore, Sydney and Tokyo.

About Motive Partners
Motive Partners is a specialist private equity firm with offices in New York City and London, focusing on growth equity and buyout investments in software and information services companies based in North America and Europe and serving five primary subsectors: Banking & Payments, Capital Markets, Data & Analytics, Investment Management and Insurance. Motive Partners brings
“For more than a decade, Backbase has shown leadership and innovation in enhancing digital relationships between financial institutions and its customers,” explained Rob Heyvaert, Founder and Managing Partner of Motive Partners. “We’re excited to support Jouk and the Backbase team with this initial fundraise as they continue to expand, grow and build the leading, customer-centric, Engagement Banking Platform globally.”
Neil Cochrane, Partner at Motive Partners commented, “Backbase continues to lead an innovative category underpinning the banking sector, and we believe that together we have a unique growth opportunity to build upon Backbase’s strong foundations. As Backbase continues its growth journey, we’re excited to leverage our team’s depth of expertise alongside Jouk and the team.”
“Backbase’s proven track record of entrepreneurship and organic growth will continue. Our formula is simple: focus on the needs of our customers and empower highly skilled teams to deliver. We’re changing a big industry, which is hard work. Having critical mass and market momentum allows us to stay laser-focused,” Pleiter added. “Together we’re making it happen.”

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