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Vaaka Partners raised EUR 250 million for its new fund very quickly, bringing in new international investors

The private equity firm Vaaka Partners has raised a new EUR 250 million fund, Vaaka Partners Buyout Fund IV Ky. The fund attracted strong interest from both existing and new investors and was significantly oversubscribed in a rapid process that lasted only 11 weeks.

Vaaka Partners’ fourth buyout fund is a continuation of Vaaka’s three previous funds, through which Vaaka has supported medium-sized Finnish companies in achieving ambitious growth targets. Vaaka invests in companies that have a strong market position and significant growth potential with a controlled level of risk. Through the fourth fund, Vaaka continues partnering with similar companies in the future as well.

“We added new international investors, who will now contribute to the growth of Finnish companies. The imperative for Finland to attract international capital is to maintain its predictable and low-risk operating environment also in the future,” says Juha Peltola, the Managing Partner of Vaaka Partners.

“We had the pleasure of choosing for the new fund, for example, Alfred I. DuPont Charitable Trust, the US non-profit foundation with a very special mission as an investor,” Peltola continues.

The Trust, through its beneficiary the Nemours Foundation, is one of the largest institutions in the United States focused exclusively on pediatric healthcare. Hospitals funded by the charitable foundation treat half a million children in need of care each year, regardless of their ability to pay.

“As a long-time investor in global private markets, we seek long-term partnerships with high-integrity teams investing in and growing small businesses globally. We were first introduced to Vaaka Partners in 2016 and have developed a deep admiration of the team’s investment judgment and ability to find and partner with management to build great businesses in Finland and beyond. In addition to finding a high-caliber, high-integrity team in Vaaka Partners, we have found Finland to be an attractive investment environment due to the favorable business climate and depth of intellectual and managerial talent. We couldn’t be more excited to partner with Vaaka on their journey to building Finland’s next great business champions,” says Sean Kelly, Associate Director of Investment Operations of Alfred I. DuPont Charitable Trust.

Active and constructive collaboration creates growth

Together with the operating management of its portfolio companies and entrepreneurs, Vaaka Partners has, on average, more than tripled the revenue of its portfolio companies during its period of ownership. Half of the portfolio companies’ growth has come through organic growth, in addition to which they have grown by implementing and integrating more than 100 strategy-supporting acquisitions. Behind the growth is a model of active and constructive collaboration.

Artti Aurasmaa, the recently nominated CEO of Vaaka portfolio company Staria Oyj, describes collaboration as follows:

“The co-operation has started extremely well and upbeat: the atmosphere is goal-oriented, but at the same time human in the right way, as people are the source of creative growth even in the digitalizing world. Vaaka’s approach has opened up new angles for my thinking about growth, the most important of which is the ability to combine mutual respect and extreme goal-orientation particularly well,” says Aurasmaa.

Founder of another current Vaaka portfolio company, Jungle Juice Bar, Noora Fagerström describes the importance of Vaaka for herself and the company:

“From a personal perspective, the most important thing has been having someone sharing the financial risk. From the company’s perspective, moving forward. Almost everything has been developed and the company has grown into a major player in the industry.”

Collaboration is one of Vaaka’s core values.

“We are not a passive investor; we bring our portfolio companies new know-how and previous experience in, for example, internationalization or growth through acquisitions,” Peltola explains.

The role of Vaaka Partners has also been significant in the internationalization of Framery, with origins in Tampere.

“Vaaka has provided the grounds for rapid development for both me and the company. When the board and the management team get the best expertise in the whole world instead of just the best in the province, things start to happen. We would certainly have succeeded without Vaaka’s involvement, but with Vaaka we have made the same development in three years as we would have done in ten alone,” explains Samu Hällfors, CEO of Framery.

“The creation of significant profitable growth has also led to high returns with a controlled risk profile, which the companies’ key employees have been able to enjoy together with the funds’ investors,” Peltola continues.

—

Vaaka Partners is an ambitious private equity company that helps medium-sized Finnish companies to become business champions. Current Vaaka champions are e.g. AINS Group, Staria, Framery and Jungle Juice Bar. With its fourth buyout fund, the company is responsible for over EUR 0.6 billion of private equity funds. To realize new growth opportunities, Vaaka’s approach combines strategic and operational expertise with trust-based collaboration. The largest investors in Vaaka funds are leading pension funds.

www.vaakapartners.fi/en

More information:
Juha Peltola, CEO
Vaaka Partners
tel. +358 50 514 8401

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Transflo and True Wind Capital announce significant new equity investment from Bregal Sagemount

Truewind

New investment provides leading software company for the supply chain and transportation sectors with significant additional resources to drive growth

NEW YORK & SAN FRANCISCO, December 14, 2021 – Transflo, a leading provider of mobile business intelligence and payments facilitation tools to the transportation sector, today announced a significant new equity investment. Together with True Wind Capital (“True Wind”), a San Francisco-based private equity firm focused on investing in leading technology companies, Transflo welcomes Bregal Sagemount (“Sagemount”), a global private equity firm that specializes in backing growing companies to the Board and investor base. Carousel Capital, Transflo’s first institutional investor, remains a significant minority investor. Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

Headquartered in Tampa, Florida, Transflo’s cloud‐based technologies digitize nearly 800 million shipping documents each year with over $100 billion in freight spend flowing over the Transflo rails. Transflo is the only customizable, open, and secure digital ecosystem that offers complete visibility, all-in-one driver tools, document management, and two-way communications to increase efficiency across the logistics arena.

Philip Yates, a Founding Partner of Sagemount, said, “We are thrilled to partner with the management team and investor base at Transflo. We believe that Transflo is poised to expand its position as a leading cloud-based business intelligence and payments engine in the transportation sector. The company occupies valuable real estate at the point of load consummation that continues to enhance velocity, accuracy and compliance in the payments flows for carriers, brokers and shippers. We look forward to accelerating Transflo’s product innovation and pursuing strategic acquisitions with this new funding.”

Aaron Matto, Partner of True Wind, said, “As the transportation and supply chain sectors continue to evolve amid this dynamic environment, we are excited to welcome Sagemount as a significant investor in Transflo to accelerate the company’s strategic growth objectives. Since True Wind’s initial investment in 2017, Transflo has built on its leadership position in the industry by delivering real-time communications to thousands of fleets, brokers, and commercial vehicle drivers while driving increased efficiency, improved cash flow, and reduced costs for its clients. We look forward to partnering with Sagemount and Transflo’s leadership team to drive further value creation.”

“At Transflo, we strive to drive better business results for our clients through technology and innovation,” said Frank Adelman, Chief Executive Officer of Transflo. “We are thrilled to have the support of best-in-class technology investors such as Sagemount and True Wind as we continue building our integrated software platform that enables transportation and supply chain businesses to improve velocity in the workflow and speed of payment.”
Transflo has continued to make significant enhancements to its software product suite. Over the past several months, the company announced the release of the latest iteration of its driver-focused workflow app, Transflo Mobile+ 5.0, and introduced Transflo Intelligent Automation, a suite of document automation services that provide carriers, freight brokers, factoring providers, shippers and freight auditors powerful new tools to manage and process load related documents.

Harris Williams served as financial advisor to Transflo. Simpson Thacher & Bartlett served as legal advisor to True Wind Capital. K&L Gates acted as legal counsel to Carousel Capital. Goodwin Procter served as legal advisor to Bregal Sagemount.

About Bregal Sagemount
Bregal Sagemount is a growth focused private capital firm with $4.0 billion of committed capital. The firm provides flexible capital and strategic assistance to market-leading companies in high-growth sectors across a wide variety of transaction situations. Bregal Sagemount invests $40 million to $200 million per transaction into targeted sectors including software, digital infrastructure, healthcare IT / services, business and consumer services, and financial technology / specialty finance. For more information, please visit www.sagemount.com.

About True Wind Capital
True Wind Capital is a San Francisco-based private equity firm focused on investing in leading technology companies. True Wind has a broad investing mandate, with deep industry expertise across software, data analytics, tech-enabled services, internet, financial technology, and hardware. Founded in 2015, True Wind has completed 10 platform investments and 20 add-on acquisitions. For more information, please visit www.truewindcapital.com.

About Transflo
Transflo®, a Pegasus TransTech company, is a leading provider of mobile, business intelligence and payments facilitation software to the transportation industry. The company’s cloud‐based technologies digitize nearly 800 million shipping documents each year with over $100 billion in freight spend flowing over the Transflo rails. Organizations throughout the Transflo client and partner network use the solution suite and digital platforms to increase efficiency, improve cash flow, and reduce costs. Headquartered in Tampa, Florida, USA, Transflo is setting the pace for innovation in transportation software. For more information, visit www.transflo.com.

Media Contacts:
For Bregal Sagemount:
Michelle Riley
(212) 704-3050

For True Wind Capital:
Jonathan Gasthalter/Nathaniel Garnick
Gasthalter & Co.
(212) 257-4170

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H.I.G. Europe Completes the Acquisition of Standard Hidraulica

H.I.G. Europe

MADRID – December 14, 2021 – H.I.G. Capital (“H.I.G.”), a leading global alternative investment firm with over $45 billion of equity capital under management, announced that one of its affiliates acquired Standard Hidraulica (“STH” or the “Company”), an international industrial group with a leading presence in the plumbing supplies category, previously part of industrial technology company Aalberts N.V. which is listed at the Euronext stock exchange in Amsterdam, the Netherlands. H.I.G. plans to accelerate the Company’s growth and lead a consolidation in its core markets.

STH is headquartered in Montcada i Reixac (Barcelona, Spain), and operates subsidiaries in Pinto (Madrid, Spain), United Kingdom (Leigh, Greater Manchester), South Africa (Johannesburg, Port Elizabeth and Cape Town), and Greece (Acharnes, Athens).

Jaime Bergel, Managing Director of H.I.G. Spain, said: “We are committed to supporting the senior leadership team of STH in achieving their ambitious business plan which should translate in substantial growth over the coming years. As part of the transaction, H.I.G. will support STH in its transition to an independent company while accelerating its customer-focused expansion in the local and international markets.”

Jaume Llacuna, CEO of STH said: “The investment by H.I.G. is great news for STH and its stakeholders. STH is recognised as one of the market leaders across many of our businesses and the categories that we operate in. I am very excited to work with the team at H.I.G. to capitalise on the enormous potential for growth we have within our local and international geographies. We are well positioned to push forward with our plans for organic and inorganic growth. Our collective commitment, energy and passion will be at the heart of our future success. Together with H.I.G., we look forward to building an even stronger business in the coming years.”

About Standard Hidraulica
STH was founded in 1975 in Montcada i Reixac (Barcelona). With a philosophy based on product quality, customer service, constant technological research and respect for the environment, STH has become a reference partner in the water and gas connection and control, kitchen and bathroom taps in both residential and non-residential areas, and civil works such as water and gas distribution networks. STH is certified with ISO 9001 and ISO 14001. For more information, please refer to the STH website: https://www.standardhidraulica.com.

About H.I.G. Capital
H.I.G. is a leading global alternative assets investment firm with over $45 billion of equity capital under management.* Based in Miami, and with offices in New York, Boston, Chicago, Dallas, Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Atlanta in the U.S., as well as international affiliate offices in London, Hamburg, Madrid, Milan, Paris, Bogotá, Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo, H.I.G. specializes in providing both debt and equity capital to small and mid-sized companies, utilizing a flexible and operationally focused/value-added approach:

  1. H.I.G.’s equity funds invest in management buyouts, recapitalizations and corporate carve-outs of both profitable as well as underperforming manufacturing and service businesses.
  2. H.I.G.’s debt funds invest in senior, unitranche and junior debt financing to companies across the size spectrum, both on a primary (direct origination) basis, as well as in the secondary markets. H.I.G. is also a leading CLO manager, through its WhiteHorse family of vehicles, and manages a publicly traded BDC, WhiteHorse Finance.
  3. H.I.G.’s real estate funds invest in value-added properties, which can benefit from improved asset management practices.
  4. H.I.G. Infrastructure focuses on making value-add and core plus investments in the infrastructure sector.

Since its founding in 1993, H.I.G. has invested in and managed more than 300 companies worldwide. The firm’s current portfolio includes more than 100 companies with combined sales in excess of $30 billion. For more information, please refer to the H.I.G. website at www.higcapital.com.

H.I.G. European Capital Partners Spain is a legally independent advisor to H.I.G. Capital LLC, H.I.G. Europe Capital Partners, L.P., H.I.G. Europe Capital Partners II, L.P. and H.I.G. Europe Capital Partners III, L.P.

* Based on total capital commitments managed by H.I.G. Capital and affiliates.

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Philips acquires Gilde portfolio company Vesper Medical to further expand its image-guided therapy devices portfolio

GIlde Healthcare
December 14, 2021
Amsterdam & Utrecht (the Netherlands)

Royal Philips (NYSE: PHG; AEX: PHIA), a global leader in health technology, today announced that it has signed an agreement to acquire Vesper Medical Inc., a US-based medical technology company that develops minimally-invasive peripheral vascular devices. Vesper Medical, a portfolio company of Gilde Healthcare, will further expand Philips’ portfolio of diagnostic and therapeutic devices with an advanced venous stent portfolio for the treatment of deep venous disease. The transaction, which is subject to customary closing conditions, is expected to be completed in the first quarter of 2022. Financial details of the transaction were not disclosed.

Complementing Philips’ strong intravascular ultrasound (IVUS) offering in venous imaging, Vesper Medical will add a venous stenting solution to address the root cause of chronic deep venous disease (DVD). The Vesper DUO Venous Stent System® consists of venous stents intended to treat deep venous obstruction. Uniquely engineered to address the multiple anatomical challenges of the deep venous system, it provides physicians with a modular portfolio to customize therapy, restore venous flow, and resolve the painful symptoms of deep venous disease for the broad range of patients suffering from chronic venous insufficiency.

The acquisition of Vesper Medical is another step in our objective to innovate patient treatment with more sophisticated technology and expand our growth in the vascular therapy space.

Chris Landon, Senior Vice President and General Manager Image Guided Therapy Devices at Philips:
“The acquisition of Vesper Medical is another step in our objective to innovate patient treatment with more sophisticated technology and expand our growth in the vascular therapy space,” said Chris Landon, Senior Vice President and General Manager Image Guided Therapy Devices at Philips. “Leveraging our significant procedural expertise, we see strong clinical synergies between Vesper Medical’s innovative stenting solution and our existing peripheral vascular offering. This combined offering will help to better support clinicians to decide, guide, treat and confirm during the procedure, thereby enhancing patient care.”

“I am proud that Philips will become the home for our innovations and our people, joining forces to shape the future of treating deep venous disease,” said Bruce Shook, President and CEO of Vesper Medical. “I look forward to further advance our next generation venous technology and bring it to patients and clinicians globally, together with Philips.”

Vesper Medical was founded in 2016 and is headquartered in Wayne, Pennsylvania, US. Upon completion of the transaction, Vesper Medical and approximately 20 of its employees will become part of Philips’ Image-Guided Therapy business.

About Gilde Healthcare
Gilde Healthcare is a specialized healthcare investor with two fund strategies: Venture&Growth and Private Equity. The firm operates out of offices in Utrecht (The Netherlands), Frankfurt (Germany) and Cambridge (United States). Gilde Healthcare Venture&Growth invests in fast growing, innovative companies active in (bio)pharmaceuticals, healthtech and medtech that are based in Europe and North America. For more information, please visit: www.gildehealthcare.com.

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CREtelligent secures $10 million credit facility from Espresso Capital

espresso capital

Sacramento, Calif. — December 14, 2021 — Espresso Capital announced today that it has provided CREtelligent, a one-stop commercial real estate (CRE) due diligence platform, with a $10 million credit facility. The company will use the capital to extend its runway and make strategic investments in its ongoing growth.

“Our RADIUS platform and CRE due diligence services have been embraced by the marketplace, putting us in hyper growth mode,” said Anthony Romano, CEO of CREtelligent. “So far this year, we’ve added over 175 clients and have completed three acquisitions with more on the horizon. The facility from Espresso ensures we can continue to run the play as we prepare for a larger equity raise in the spring.”

CREtelligent has grown its business by over 300 percent so far this year, adding 4,000 new users to its RADIUS platform as well as 40 new team members.

“The CREtelligent team has built a differentiated, cloud-based platform that simplifies the CRE due diligence process by enabling customers to order, check the status of, receive, and archive all property due diligence reports in one spot,” said Espresso Managing Director, Will Hutchins.  “They have a high-quality product that their customers love and a seasoned management team with an expansive network, extensive industry experience, and a strong reputation for fantastic customer service.”

“Espresso’s team did an extraordinary job of understanding our market, company, and business plan,” noted Romano. “They moved expeditiously to get the facility in place so we didn’t miss a beat.”

“Anthony and the CREtelligent team have built a phenomenal business that is entering its next stage of growth,” said Lokesh Sikaria, Founder and Managing Partner, Moneta Ventures. “Their ability to postpone a large dilutive equity raise by tapping into Espresso Capital’s innovative financing facility will result in significantly increased value for all shareholders. We’re fortunate to partner with Espresso and CREtelligent.”

About CREtelligent

CREtelligent opened its doors more than six-years-ago as eScreenLogic, a Commercial Real Estate (CRE) environmental due diligence firm focused on desktop RSRA, Phase I, and Phase II site assessments and reporting for commercial lenders, insurance companies, and brokers. The company has grown quickly and market demand for a “one-stop” CRE due diligence platform that offers more than environmental expertise for lenders and corporate entities has become clear. As a result, we’ve expanded to offer not only our full-service Environmental reporting but Valuation, Flood, Full Portfolio Asset Risk Monitoring and a number of other “Platform-as-a-Service” offerings too.

Commercial Real Estate Due Diligence, Simplified isn’t just a tagline, it’s become our product development mantra. We are building the tools that you need to face the new markets we all find ourselves in today. This unique innovation-based approach e

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Equistone bolsters portfolio during pandemic with over 40 bolt-on deals

Equistone

Equistone Partners Europe (“Equistone”), one of Europe’s leading mid-market private equity firms, is pleased to announce that it has supported 41 add-ons across its portfolio since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020. This constituted one of the busiest periods of buy-and-build activity in Equistone’s history, providing another avenue for productively deploying capital and creating value amid uniquely challenging market conditions and exemplifying the attractiveness of private-equity-backed platforms to entrepreneurs and management teams.

Equistone’s active pipeline of bolt-on deals was enabled by its extensive local origination capabilities across its seven offices in five European countries. These 41 transactions entailed 13 acquisitions by companies headquartered in the UK, including three in the space of a month by WHP Telecoms that helped double both the business’s headcount and revenue since Equistone’s initial investment. Both residential property management company FirstPort and technology-led marketing business Team ITG completed multiple add-ons as well.

Equistone also supported 19 bolt-ons by portfolio companies based in France (including online office equipment retailer Bruneau’s acquisitions of Viking Spain and Office Depot Italy), eight by those in in the Benelux region (including five by Amadys, a provider of passive network equipment solutions) and one in Germany, namely RENA Technologies’ add-on of Hirtenberger Engineered Surfaces. The investment team’s experience of executing transactions in foreign markets was instrumental in over a quarter of these deals being cross-border acquisitions.

Commenting on this activity, Steve O’Hare, Senior Partner and UK Country Head at Equistone, said: “We’ve worked extremely closely with our portfolio companies over the past 21 months to help them tackle the operational and financial challenges presented by the pandemic. But after the initial shock, this has also been a period of significant potential opportunity. A well-capitalised mid-market company with a supportive private equity backer is incredibly well positioned to acquisitively grow its market share in a time of disruption, particularly when valuations have dipped in certain sectors. We’re pleased that we have been able to support so many of our investee businesses in consolidating their markets, adding on new capabilities and accelerating their strategic growth plans.”

Dominic Geer, Senior Partner at Equistone, added: “The challenges posed by the pandemic have also demonstrated the value of private equity backing to privately owned, mid-sized businesses. Covid has starkly illustrated the risk posed by future, equally unforeseeable economic downturns. This can be significantly mitigated by the access to capital, increased scale and operational support that comes with being part of a company with a private equity backer. That was undoubtedly an important factor in motivating management teams to explore sales to sponsor-backed platforms like our portfolio companies, even when their earnings weren’t directly affected by Covid.”

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Carlyle Raises Nearly $8 Billion for Ninth U.S. Real Estate Fund

Washington, DC – Global investment firm Carlyle (NASDAQ: CG) today announced that it has raised approximately $8 billion for its ninth U.S. real estate opportunity fund, Carlyle Realty Partners IX (CRP IX), exceeding its $6 billion initial target. CRP IX will seek to continue Carlyle Realty’s established investment strategy focused on opportunistic U.S. real estate. Carlyle Realty Partners VIII (CRP VIII), its predecessor, raised $5.5 billion in commitments in 2018.

Robert Stuckey, Managing Director and head of Carlyle’s U.S. Real Estate team, said, “We are sincerely appreciative of the confidence and support of our limited partners and the strength and pace of investor commitments. Significant investor demand is a testament to the caliber of our team and the opportunity we see for compelling property investments across select markets. With the successful closing of CRP IX, we are well positioned to continue to execute on our strategy of investing behind demographic-related themes, avoiding exposure to cyclical risk, and identifying deep and growing pools of demand.”

The Carlyle Realty Partners team comprises nearly 100 professionals, with a 20-year average tenure among its senior leadership team. Today, the team is actively investing in sectors where supply and demand dynamics are viewed favorably; including residential, industrial, life science, and self-storage, among others.

About Carlyle

Carlyle (NASDAQ: CG) is a global investment firm with deep industry expertise that deploys private capital across three business segments: Global Private Equity, Global Credit and Global Investment Solutions. With $293 billion of assets under management as of September 30, 2021, Carlyle’s purpose is to invest wisely and create value on behalf of its investors, portfolio companies and the communities in which we live and invest. Carlyle employs more than 1,800 people in 26 offices across five continents. Further information is available at www.carlyle.com. Follow Carlyle on Twitter @OneCarlyle.

 

Media Contact:

Brittany Berliner
(212) 813-4839
brittany.berliner@carlyle.com

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Charlesbank Capital Partners Acquires BOX Partners

Charlesbank

Charlesbank Capital Partners announced today that it has acquired BOX Partners (“BOX” or the “Company”), a leading technology-enabled supplier of packaging, shipping, industrial supplies and related products for the e-commerce and distribution markets. Family-owned since its 1989 inception, the Company has grown to one of the country’s largest wholesalers of packaging products. Headquartered in Elgin, Illinois, the Company has approximately 400 employees. The transaction, which was funded with both equity and debt, introduces the first outside equity for the company.

BOX competes in the $70 billion packaging and shipping supplies end-market. The Company partners with distributors, offering them broad product selection, distribution expertise and marketing tools to compete with even the largest competitors in the industry. The Company is distinguished by its ability to aggregate and efficiently fulfill millions of orders on behalf of its distributor partners, providing access to over 1,000,000 square feet of virtual warehouse space with over 20,000 items. BOX operates nationwide out of its warehouse in Illinois.

In conjunction with the transaction, BOX’s Co-founder and President will step down, and Neil Thomas will become the new CEO. Mr. Thomas is well-known to Charlesbank from his prior role as CEO of Trojan Battery, a family-founded business that Charlesbank owned from 2013-2018.  Other members of the current leadership team will remain in their current roles.

Mr. Thomas said, “I’m very pleased to join BOX at this exciting time. The Company is well-positioned to expand in new product categories and geographies and to optimize and broaden its use of e-commerce platforms. I look forward to leveraging my experience to help this talented management team continue to excel and strengthen its industry presence.”

Added Brandon White, Charlesbank Managing Director, “BOX is a well-respected brand in the packaging industry with a strong competitive position and a firm commitment to excellent quality and service. We are excited to partner again with Neil, who brings strong leadership skills and an impressive track record in building value across multiple brands and businesses.”

Mesirow served as financial advisor to BOX Partners on the transaction.

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BLUEGEM TAKES ACTION ON CLIMATE CHANGE

Bleugem

  • Bluegem achieved climate neutral company status in 2021 supported by leading global climate solutions provider South Pole

  • Bluegem joined the Initiative Climat International, to contribute to the objectives of the Paris Agreement alongside other leading private equity companies

Bluegem has achieved carbon neutral status for its scope 1,2,3 carbon emissions with the help of South Pole, the specialised Swiss consultancy.

Bluegem is a signatory to the UN PRI since 2016 and has since put sustainability at the heart of its operations. As part of its forward-looking approach to sustainability it is proud to have been granted the Climate Neutral Operations label this year.

The carbon neutrality certification is the first step on a journey to full decarbonisation which comprises Bluegem’s investments in a forest conservation project and a clean energy project.

Also, in 2021, Bluegem has been admitted to the Initiative Climat International, a global organisation sharing skills and experience to build towards a sustainable future through investment management and investment choices. The iCI is officially supported by the Principles for Responsible Investment.

The three commitments of the iCI are:

1. We recognise that climate change will have adverse effects on the global economy, which presents both risks and opportunities for investments.

2. We will join forces to contribute to the objective of the Paris Agreement, to limit global warming to well-below 2 degrees Celcius and in pursuit of 1.5 degrees Celcius.

3. We will actively engage with portfolio companies to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions, contributing to an overall improvement in sustainability performance.

For further information, please visit: Initiative Climat International (iCI) | PRI (unpri.org)

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Nautic Partners Announces Strategic Investment from Blackstone GP Stakes

Blackstone

PROVIDENCE, R.I. and NEW YORK — Nautic Partners LLC (“Nautic”), a leading middle-market private equity firm focused on investments in the healthcare, industrials, and services sectors, and Blackstone (NYSE:BX) today jointly announced a new partnership in which funds managed by Blackstone GP Stakes acquired a minority ownership interest in Nautic. Blackstone GP Stakes specializes in value-added, long-term investments in the management companies of leading private equity firms.

On behalf of Nautic, Managing Directors Scott Hilinski, Chris Crosby, Chris Corey, and Chris Pierce said, “Our partnerships form the core of Nautic, including our internal firm talent, limited partners, portfolio company executive teams, and industry relationships. We are thrilled now to add a partnership with Blackstone as a minority investor. We are excited about the opportunity ahead of us and believe that this relationship will be a valuable resource as we at Nautic continue to work on behalf of all of our constituents to drive investment performance. Blackstone is a highly regarded leader in the private equity market, and brings a deep platform of resources and operational tools that we will look to draw upon as we continue to invest in our firm and execute on our playbook of driving value creation in partnership with our portfolio company management teams.”

Mustafa M. Siddiqui, Head of Blackstone GP Stakes, said, “We have been impressed with the Nautic team’s combination of deep sector expertise and dedication to collaborating with strong management teams. This approach has allowed them to deliver outstanding investment results over a long period of time and build an enviable reputation among their peers. The firm is well-positioned for the future and we are delighted to be their partners on this journey.”

Ward Young, Managing Director at Blackstone, added, “Nautic’s strong leadership team, track record, and differentiated investment playbook align with our focus on investing in best-in-class private equity firms. We look forward to leveraging Blackstone’s extensive resources to help Nautic continue to grow and evolve while benefiting all of its stakeholders.”

Nautic recently closed on the firm’s tenth private equity fund at a hard cap of $3.0 billion with strong support from both existing and new institutional investors. Nautic closed its previous fund, Nautic Partners IX, in 2019 with $1.5 billion of committed limited partner capital.

Evercore served as financial advisor to Nautic. Kirkland & Ellis served as legal counsel to Nautic and Simpson Thacher & Bartlett served as legal counsel to Blackstone.

About Nautic
Nautic is a middle-market private equity firm that focuses on three industries: healthcare, industrials, and services. Nautic has completed over 145 platform transactions throughout its 35-plus year history. Nautic’s strategy is to partner with management teams to accelerate the growth trajectory of its portfolio companies via add-on acquisitions, targeted operating initiatives, and increased management team depth. Nautic generally makes equity investments of $50 million up to $400 million or more in a single investment. For more information, please visit www.nautic.com.

About Blackstone
Blackstone is the world’s largest alternative investment firm. 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 $731 billion in assets under management include investment vehicles focused on private equity, real estate, public debt and equity, 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 Twitter @Blackstone.

Contact
Paula Chirhart
paula.chirhart@blackstone.com
+1 347-463-5453

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