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Investindustrial acquires CSM’s European and International bakery ingredients business

investindustrial

6th October 2020 – An investment subsidiary (“Investindustrial”) of Investindustrial VII L.P. has signed an agreement to acquire the CSM Ingredients business (“CSM Ingredients”), the carve-out of a division of CSM Bakery Solutions Limited and its subsidiaries (“CSM Group”), a supplier of bakery solutions held by investment vehicles affiliated with Rhône Capital. CSM Ingredients comprises the European and International activities and assets of CSM Group dedicated to bakery ingredients. The transaction is subject to customary regulatory approval and is expected to close by Q1 2021.

CSM Ingredients is a manufacturer and distributor of bakery ingredients mainly to the artisanal traditional trade (pastry and bakery shops) and industrial channels, with a wide product portfolio focused primarily on bread ingredients, pastry mixes, bakery fats, fillings, glazes, toppings and icings. Key brands include Artisal, Arkady, Braims, Craigmillar, Marguerite, Masterline, MeisterMarken and Ulmer Spatz.
CSM Ingredients generates annual revenues of approximately €500 million with 8 manufacturing facilities, including one in China and one joint venture in Tunisia. The main markets in Europe are Germany, Italy, France, the UK and Benelux, with a growing presence in China and Asia.
Investindustrial has a deep sector experience in the food & beverage production sector with numerous past investments, and current investments in fruit-based ingredients company Italcanditi and chocolate maker Natra. Italcanditi recently announced its third add-on acquisition of a niche ingredients company since Investindustrial acquired a majority stake in 2019. The Italian market, in addition to being the second largest country in terms of sales, is of particular interest for CSM Ingredients for potential acquisition-led growth given the many niche producers currently lacking scale to fully access global markets.

In order to capture the expected opportunity set in China and Italy, CIICF, a newly formed strategic partnership with China Investment Corporation and UniCredit, will be investing alongside Investindustrial VII.
Andrea C. Bonomi, Chairman of the Investindustrial Industrial Advisory Board, commented: “CSM Ingredients is a leading player across Europe, with a growing international presence, over 400 salespeople and strong coverage of the region. This is a unique opportunity to become a long-term owner of a sizeable pan-European platform in the stable but still fragmented food ingredients sector. It is an ideal platform from which to pursue M&A-led growth and organically diversify further into higher value add ingredients and higher growth regions, including Italy and China.”
UBS (M&A) and Deloitte (Debt) acted as financial advisors while Slaughter and May provided legal advice to Investindustrial on the transaction.
PRESS RELEASE

About Investindustrial
Investindustrial is a leading European group of independently managed investment, holding and advisory companies with €11 billion of raised fund capital. With ESG principles deeply embedded into the Firm’s core approach, Investindustrial has a 30-year history of providing mid-market companies capital, industrial expertise, operational focus and global platforms to accelerate sustainable value creation and international expansion. Certain companies of the Investindustrial group are authorized by, and subject to regulatory supervision of the FCA in the United Kingdom and the CSSF in Luxembourg. Investindustrial’s investment companies act independently from each other and each Investindustrial fund. Additional information is available at www.investindustrial.com.

About CSM Bakery Solutions Limited
(the parent company from which CSM Ingredients is being acquired)
CSM Bakery Solutions is a global supplier of bakery ingredients, products and services for retail and food service markets as well as artisan and industrial bakeries. CSM serves more than 45,000 customers in 100-plus countries and offers a broad portfolio of well-recognised brands providing specialised ingredients (dry mixes, fillings, icings, glazes, mélange, toppings, batter, frozen dough and more) and finished products (cakes, donuts, muffins, brownies, cookies, specialty bread, viennoiserie and more). CSM’s mosaic of heritage bakery brands includes some of the industry’s most trusted names: Brill, Henry & Henry, MeisterMarken, Multifoods, and Waldkorn, to name but a few. Additional information is available at www.csmbakerysolutions.com.

For further information please contact:
UK Media Maitland/AMO
David Stürken Jonathan Cook
Mob: +44 (0)7990 595 913 Mob: +44 (0)7730 777 865
Email: dsturken@maitland.co.uk Email: jcook@maitland.co.uk
Investindustrial Carl Nauckhoff
Senior Principal & Head of Investor Relations Tel: +44 (0)20 7664 2138
Email: cnauckhoff@investindustrial.com

Investindustrial Advisors Limited is registered in England with its registered address at 16 Palace Street, London SW1E 5JD and company number 01316019. Investindustrial Advisors Limited is authorised and regulated by the United Kingdom’s Financial Conduct Authority as an Alternative Investment Fund Manager (Financial Services Register number: 170924).

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TA Associates Completes Significant Growth Investment in Priority Software

TA associates

BOSTON, LONDON, and Tel Aviv District, ISRAEL – TA Associates, a leading global growth private equity firm, today announced that it has completed a significant growth investment in Priority Software Ltd., a leading global provider of Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) software.

TA joins existing investor Fortissimo Capital, a leading private equity firm based in Israel and focused on special situations and growth opportunities, as an institutional investor in Priority Software. Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

Founded in 1986, Priority Software provides end-to-end cloud-based (SaaS) and on-premise business management solutions for organizations of all sizes to improve business efficiency and the customer experience. The company’s Priority PRO product provides comprehensive ERP software for medium to large organizations encompassing demand planning, manufacturing operations, financial management, human capital management, procurement and supply chain management. Priority Software also provides business management software for smaller companies that focuses on financial management, reporting and accounting. The company has more than 10,000 customers and over 300,000 end users across multiple end markets, including manufacturing, construction, healthcare and pharma, services, and retail and wholesale. Priority Software has more than 200 employees located across five offices in Israel, the U.S., the UK and Belgium.

“TA’s extensive experience investing in the enterprise software space and in partnering with growing companies like Priority Software made the firm an attractive investment partner,” said Andres Richter, CEO of Priority Software. “We’ve identified opportunities to accelerate our growth and further expand Priority Software’s market penetration both nationally and internationally, and we believe that TA will be a valuable partner for us alongside Fortissimo to help us realize our ambitions.”

“Priority Software is considered by many to be a market leader in the Israeli ERP space, and we believe that the company has significant untapped potential,” said Stefan Dandl, a Senior Vice President at TA Associates who has joined the Priority Software Board of Directors. “Additionally, there is significant opportunity for Priority Software to expand internationally in its addressable market through acquisitive and organic growth. We look forward to partnering with the Priority Software and Fortissimo teams in these growth efforts.”

“We have been following Priority Software for several years and have been impressed by the quality of the company’s management team and the growth they have achieved to date,” said Naveen Wadhera, a Managing Director and Co-head of the EMEA Technology Group at TA Associates who has joined the Priority Software Board of Directors. “The ERP market continues to see strong growth globally, driven by a need for operational efficiency and transparency, coupled with increasing adoption of cloud-based solutions. We believe that Priority Software’s flexible, innovative and high-quality products make it well-positioned to capitalize on these opportunities, and we are pleased to become an investment partner alongside Fortissimo as the company enters its next stage of growth.”

“As a firm focused on creating value from growth, Fortissimo is proud to have partnered with the Priority Software team and been a part of the company’s rapid growth over the last six years,” said Yuval Cohen, Managing Partner at Fortissimo Capital. “We continue to believe in Priority Software’s growth potential in Israel as a result of its leadership position, loyal customer base and superior technology and its potential to continue driving growth worldwide. We are excited to welcome TA as a new partner to further accelerate Priority Software’s growth.”

About Priority Software
Priority Software provides flexible, end-to-end business management solutions for organizations of all sizes in a wide range of industries, from a fully featured ERP platform serving multinational corporations, to small and growing businesses. Recognized by top industry analysts and professionals for its product innovation, Priority Software improves business efficiency and the customer experience, providing real-time access to business data and insights in the cloud, on premise and on-the-go. With offices in the U.S., the UK, Belgium and Israel, and a global network of business partners, Priority Software enables more than 10,000 companies in 40 countries to manage and grow their business. For more information, visit www.priority-software.com.

About TA Associates
TA Associates is a leading global growth private equity firm. Focused on targeted sectors within five industries – technology, healthcare, financial services, consumer and business services – TA invests in profitable, growing companies with opportunities for sustained growth, and has invested in more than 500 companies around the world. Investing as either a majority or minority investor, TA employs a long-term approach, utilizing its strategic resources to help management teams build lasting value in high quality growth companies. TA has raised $33.5 billion in capital since its founding in 1968 and is committing to new investments at the pace of over $2 billion per year. The firm’s more than 90 investment professionals are based in Boston, Menlo Park, London, Mumbai and Hong Kong. More information about TA Associates can be found at www.ta.com.

About Fortissimo Capital
Fortissimo Capital is a private equity fund, established in 2004, that invests primarily in Israeli-related technology and industrial companies to expedite growth. Fortissimo raised $1.6 billion across five funds. Fortissimo Capital is a special situations and growth capital Israeli-related private equity fund focused primarily on maturing technology and industrial companies that are at a point of inflection. Fortissimo’s investment strategy is to achieve capital appreciation through taking a leading role and active approach in Israeli-related global businesses that require immediate and significant change, or stimulation of growth and by building business fundamentals to facilitate sustainable long-term growth and value creation. More information about Fortissimo Capital is available at www.ffcapital.com.

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Seaya Ventures launches its third fund with an initial closing of €85 million, reaching €250 million in assets under management

Seayaventures

  • c.90% of the commitments of the first closing come from investors in Seaya’s
    predecessor vehicles
  • Seaya’s first two funds rank among the top-quartile of their respective vintages
  • Seaya was the first financial investor in Glovo and Cabify, Spain’s first unicorns,  and continues to be the largest financial shareholder in both companies
  • Seaya III has already made its first investment in a European technology company that uses computer vision and artificial intelligence

Madrid, 5 October 2020. Seaya Ventures, Spain’s leading Venture Capital firm, has announced today that its third fund, Seaya Ventures III, has reached a first close of €85 million. With a target size of €125 million, the fund will remain open to new investors for the next few months.

Seaya Ventures III comes to the market only two years after the final closing of the previous fund. Seaya’s first two funds delivered above-market returns, ranking among the top-quartile of their respective vintages.

“We are honoured to have our investment thesis validated with nearly 90% of the commitments of the first closing coming from existing Limited Partners (LPs) of our predecessor vehicles,” said Beatriz González, founding partner of Seaya Ventures.

The new fund will follow Seaya’s strategy of investing in outstanding and mission-driven founders. Seaya aims to invest mainly in top Southern Europe tech companies, partnering with companies and contributing to their international expansion. By leveraging its local knowledge with a global ecosystem, Seaya can help companies scale and become regional and global leaders.

Seaya is known for taking significant stakes in companies, becoming the reference investor for founders and providing them with sustained hands-on support. The fund will continue to focus on leading Series A and B rounds, being able to invest up to €20 million per company throughout several rounds. Seaya partners exclusively with companies that target long-term, sustainable growth, which hold themselves to the highest professional and ethical standards.

Seaya views the current Covid crisis as a catalyst for exponential growth in technological innovation as demonstrated by the digital transformation that has taken place in just a few months and that in regular circumstances would have taken years. This strong digital transformation is being reflected in the types of deeptech companies that Seaya III is currently considering for potential investment, which are in sectors ripe for disruption such as healthtech, edtech and fintech.

“Seaya’s goal is to partner with the best founders and support them to make their global vision become a reality. Founders that are mission-driven and look for long-term sustainable growth have proven that they are more resilient and have a larger positive impact on society”, said Beatriz González, founding partner of Seaya Ventures.

“Through Seaya’s high-conviction investment strategy we become a major shareholder in our companies and we build a strong relationship with the founders, supporting them during their exponential growth, not only by providing capital but also with our know-how and global network”, explained Antonio Giménez de Córdoba, partner of Seaya Ventures.

Since 2013, Seaya has invested in 26 disruptive tech companies that have become leaders in their respective industries, including Cabify and Glovo, Spain’s first two unicorns. Seaya led the first institutional rounds in both companies and remains their largest financial shareholder. Other investments include Savana, a medical technology company accelerating health science by unlocking the clinical value embedded within the Electronic Health Records; Wallbox, a leading designer, manufacturer and distributor of the most advanced smart charging solutions for electric vehicles; and Buguroo, a cybersecurity company that uses data analytics to help digital businesses protect themselves from online and mobile fraud.

Seaya’s aggregate portfolio is currently worth more than €3 billion, after having attracted over €1.2 billion in funding from Europe, USA and Asia, as well as having created 4,500 direct and 240,000 indirect jobs. At present, including the new funds raised, Seaya has €250 million of assets under management.

Seaya III has already completed its first transaction, leading a Series A investment in a European technology company that uses computer vision and artificial intelligence. The new investment will be officially announced in the next few weeks.

About Seaya Ventures

Based in Madrid, Seaya Ventures has been backing the best entrepreneurs and teams in Southern Europe since 2013. Seaya focuses on supporting founders in scaling their businesses, enabling them to become global leaders. For more information visit www.seayaventures.com.

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EQT Real Estate II closes at EUR 1bn hard cap – fortifies commitment to thematic, value-add investments across key European cities

eqt

  • EQT Real Estate II surpasses its target size of EUR 750 million by 33 percent following strong support from both new and existing international blue-chip investors
  • EQT Real Estate II follows a thematic investment approach focusing on high-conviction, value-add investment opportunities primarily in the logistics and residential real estate sectors
  • The Fund benefits from EQT Real Estate’s “local with locals” approach with 25 professionals based in EQT’s offices in London, Stockholm, Madrid, Milan and Paris

EQT is pleased to announce that the EQT Real Estate II fund (the “Fund”) has held its final close at its hard cap of EUR 1 billion in fee-paying assets under management. Demand from both existing and new investors was robust, with commitments into the Fund coming from a diversified group of investors across Europe, the Nordics, Asia, North America and the Middle East.

The successful fundraise of EQT Real Estate II exceeded its target size of EUR 750 million and, at EUR 1 billion, is more than 2.5 times larger than its predecessor fund, EQT Real Estate I. The Fund will seek to make direct and indirect controlling investments in real estate assets, portfolios, operating companies and joint ventures and will target equity investments ranging in size from EUR 40 million up to EUR 200 million.

EQT Real Estate II will execute a thematic investment approach with a focus on attractive investments which are decoupled from the financial cycle. Target opportunities, which are underpinned by key secular growth drivers, include urban logistics and warehouse assets that benefit from an ongoing shift in retail consumption trends towards e-commerce and residential investments, including new build for-rent housing, student housing and senior living, which benefit from continued favorable supply-demand dynamics, urbanization and population growth. These are sectors that the EQT Real Estate Advisory Team has extensively researched and in which it has built strong investment convictions.

The Fund benefits from EQT Real Estate’s “local with locals” approach (the team’s 25 investment professionals are based in EQT’s offices in London, Stockholm, Madrid, Milan and Paris). The team will also benefit from the knowledge and resources of the wider EQT platform to source and execute off-market investment opportunities and create value through intensive asset management. The team’s expertise combined with EQT’s proven sustainability framework allow EQT Real Estate to navigate future trends to meet the current and future needs of occupiers.

To date, EQT Real Estate II has committed capital into four high conviction investment programs in Sweden, France and the UK, all with a social impact strategy underpinned by EQT’s industry leading sustainability credentials:

  • Stendörren Fastigheter – majority control of a publicly-listed company which owns a portfolio of 733,000 sqm of operational logistics / urban warehouse real estate across 124 assets in and around Stockholm and a further 666,000 sqm of consented land on which it plans to build 800 apartment units and additional logistics / urban warehouse assets;
  • Svenska Verksamhetsfastigheter (Rock) – a portfolio of 28 urban logistics properties located in university cities around Sweden with a pipeline of additional add-on acquisitions;
  • Nest – a residential solutions platform in France with plans to deliver 4,000 purpose-built apartment units to address the housing and services needs of people with physical disabilities; and
  • Saturn – a residential joint venture focused on the delivery of 3,000 newly built, high-quality rental homes in affordable parts of Greater London.

The Real Estate Advisory Team is also actively evaluating transactions in Germany, Spain, Italy and Benelux.

Robert Rackind, Partner and Head of EQT Real Estate, commented: “We would like to thank all of the investors – both new and existing – for their support of EQT Real Estate II. As we are entering a new investment cycle, we see a strong pipeline of attractive value-add investment opportunities that fit EQT Real Estate’s thematic approach to investing primarily into Europe’s key cities and in particular in our current focus on ‘beds’ and ‘sheds’ assets that are benefitting from positive growth drivers and secular trends.”

Lennart Blecher, Deputy Managing Partner and Head of EQT Real Assets, added: “The high demand that EQT Real Estate II received from a truly global blue-chip investor base is a testament to the compelling combination of EQT’s platform and our Real Estate Advisory Team’s proven real estate expertise. EQT’s ability to cross-pollinate market knowledge, draw on expertise in key areas like sustainability and share networks across our platform is an excellent complement to EQT Real Estate’s in-house talent.”

Christian Sinding, CEO and Managing Partner at EQT, commented: “Real estate is one of the most exciting growth areas for EQT and the success of this fundraise is a reflection of EQT Real Estate’s ability to source attractive opportunities and then develop sustainable, future-proofed assets, while delivering strong results to its investors. We look forward to continuing to build on that success.”

More than 35 percent of the commitments were closed after February 2020 during a period of significant global lockdowns due to the COVID-19 pandemic which showcases not only the investor appetite for the Fund but also the strengths of EQT’s tech infrastructure as the latter part of the fundraising process was carried out digitally.

EQT Real Estate II is backed by a highly regarded, international investor base including public and corporate pension funds, insurance companies, sovereign wealth funds, global asset management firms, commercial banks, endowments and foundations, private wealth channels and family offices.

Contact
Robert Rackind, Partner and Head of EQT Real Estate, Investment Advisor to EQT Real Estate I and II, +44 7860 271 392
Eric Lemer, Managing Director, Head of Business and Capital Development of EQT Real Estate, Investment Advisor to EQT Real Estate I and II, +44 7971 226 842
EQT Press Office, press@eqtpartners.com
UK media enquiries: Greenbrook, eqt@greenbrookpr.com, +44 20 7952 2000

About EQT
EQT is a differentiated global investment organization with more than EUR 62 billion in raised capital and around EUR 40 billion in assets under management across 19 active funds. EQT funds have portfolio companies in Europe, Asia-Pacific and North America with total sales of more than EUR 27 billion and approximately 159,000 employees. EQT works with portfolio companies to achieve sustainable growth, operational excellence and market leadership.

More info: www.eqtgroup.com
Follow EQT on LinkedIn, Twitter, YouTube and Instagram

About EQT Real Estate
EQT Real Estate, part of EQT Group and Investment Advisor to EQT managed real estate funds, seeks direct and indirect controlling interests in value-add real estate assets, portfolios and operating companies across gateway cities in the UK and Europe that offer significant potential for value creation through repositioning, redevelopment, refurbishment and active asset management. The EQT Real Estate Advisory Team comprises 25 experienced Investment Advisory Professionals working out of EQT’s offices in London, Madrid, Milan, Paris and Stockholm. The Investment Advisory Team, which has access to the full EQT network including 11 European offices and more than 500 EQT Advisors, has experience analyzing and investing across the pan-European real estate market and has, collectively, advised on over 130 real estate projects in multiple asset classes across Europe.

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Eurazeo strengthens its asset management activities with a new organisation meeting the needs of its investors

Eurazeo

Christophe Bavière promoted Senior Managing Partner of Eurazeo and Head of Investment Partners

Paris, 5 October 2020

Eurazeo is a leading global investment company with more than €18.5 billion in assets under management and provides investors with valuable access to investment strategies diversified across asset classes, industry sectors and geographies. Currently, 65% of these assets are directly invested in companies’ equity or real assets. Similarly, the Group’s activities in private debt and secondary transactions make it a European leader in these areas and have seen steady growth for several years.

Underscoring the appeal of its investment strategies to investors, Eurazeo reached new heights with its fundraising bringing in €2.4 billion in 2019. Following a robust first half of this year, with €1.2 billion raised in unfavourable and uncertain market conditions, Eurazeo expects to build on this momentum over the remainder of the year, driven in particular by the success of the Eurazeo Growth III fund. This performance is not only the result of the renewed commitment and confidence of the Group’s long-standing institutional investor partners, but is also driven by Eurazeo’s increasing ability to attract new international partners.

In line with this growth trajectory and in order to offer investors services of the highest standards, Eurazeo today announced that it is strengthening its function dedicated to institutional investors and wealth management structures by bringing together the veteran management teams of Eurazeo and Idinvest. The Group’s teams who focus on maintaining and developing these relationships, are staffed by some 30 investment professionals. They are divided by specialisation, for each geographic region and type of investor (sovereign wealth funds, pension funds, insurance companies, wealth managers, strategic industrial partners, etc.) and cover all market segments seeing rapid growth (venture capital, growth equity, private debt, asset-backed securities, secondary transactions, funds of funds, real assets, and small and mid-cap buyouts).

Under the leadership of Christophe Bavière, appointed as Senior Managing Partner of Eurazeo and Head of Investment Partners, these teams will work to consolidate the Group’s leading position among French investors, increase its market share among international investors, particularly in the United States, Europe, the Middle East and Asia, and further diversify its client portfolio: from retail investors to large sovereign wealth funds, insurance companies and international pension funds.

By strengthening its ability to offer its investors the best possible service, Eurazeo is intensifying the execution of its growth strategy across all its activities, building on its capacity to generate predictable and recurring revenue over the long term, consolidating its international business network to an even greater degree, and reaffirming its ambition to become the benchmark player among investment platforms in Europe.
Christophe Bavière, Senior Managing Partner of Eurazeo, said:
I am very happy with these responsibilities, which confirm the ambitions of our Group. We serve our clients with a range of funds as well as dedicated investment solutions. We also offer them targeted and diversified investment vehicles, which go hand in hand with a robust approach to managing ESG factors.

About Eurazeo
• Eurazeo is a leading global investment company, with a diversified portfolio of €18.5 billion in assets under management, including €12.9 billion from third parties, invested in over 430 companies. With its considerable private equity, real estate and private debt expertise, Eurazeo accompanies companies of all sizes, supporting their development through the commitment of its nearly 300 professionals and by offering in-depth sector expertise, a gateway to global markets, and a responsible and stable foothold for transformational growth. Its solid institutional and family shareholder base, robust financial structure free of structural debt, and flexible investment horizon enable Eurazeo to support its companies over the long term.

• Eurazeo has offices in Paris, New York, São Paulo, Seoul, Shanghai, London, Luxembourg, Frankfurt, Berlin and Madrid.

• Eurazeo is listed on Euronext Paris.
• ISIN: FR0000121121 – Bloomberg: RF FP – Reuters: EURA.PA
EURAZEO
EURAZEO

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Rabobank, Fonds de solidarité FTQ, CDPQ and Fondaction invest $150 million in Sollio Cooperative Group

Cdpq

Sollio Cooperative Group, the largest Canadian agricultural coop with roots in Quebec, is pleased to announce that Rabobank Capital, Fonds de solidarité FTQ, Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec (CDPQ) and Fondaction will invest $150 million in its organization.

The amounts invested will be paid into Sollio Cooperative Group’s share capital as preferred shares. The proceeds of this subscription will go toward optimizing and modernizing production and supporting the product offerings from Québec and Canada.

“We’re at the tail end of a period of major growth, and this investment will help accelerate our optimization process by facilitating digitization and innovation, maintain our leadership in agri-food and retail in Québec and Canada, and mitigate the effects of COVID‑19 on our growth plans,” said Gaétan Desroches, Chief Executive Officer of Sollio Cooperative Group.  “Such a substantial investment by these reputable financial institutions attests to their confidence in our strategies and our cooperative business model.”

Rabobank, a customer-focused cooperative bank in the Netherlands and a leading global food and agribusiness bank with extensive North American operations, is joining Sollio Cooperative Group’s Québec-based institutional investors to support the organization’s development and modernization.

“This commitment is an opportunity to invest in a solid growth model and a partner who shares our focus on cooperative values and sustainable agricultural development,” said Paul Beiboer, CEO, Rabobank North America. “Rabobank is focused on driving innovation and growth in the global food system that will lead to smarter, more efficient and more sustainable agricultural practices and food distribution around the world.”

“Throughout the pandemic, Québec’s agri-food producers, transformers and workers have been working hard to keep grocery store shelves filled with quality local products,” said Gaétan Morin, President and Chief Executive Officer of Fonds de solidarité FTQ. “Thanks to Quebecers’ savings, our reinvestment in Sollio Cooperative Group is an opportunity to reaffirm our confidence in agrifood SMEs, including several members of the cooperative, who are essential to the prosperity of our regions.”

“Sollio Cooperative Group plays a leading role in our agri-food sector,” said Marc Cormier, Executive Vice-President and Head of Fixed Income at CDPQ. “Its business model is built around companies that meet essential needs and have a clear economic impact on the whole of Québec.”

“Sustainable agri-food is one of Fondaction’s key investment priorities. By investing in Sollio Cooperative Group and its cooperative model, we’re strengthening our food chain and driving change in agricultural practices,” said Geneviève Morin, President and CEO of Fondaction. “We’re building on the nearly 100 years of history behind this collaborative management model that supports our collective wealth.”

ABOUT SOLLIO COOPERATIVE GROUP

Founded in 1922, Sollio Cooperative Group (formerly La Coop fédérée) is one of the largest agri-food enterprises in Québec, the only pan-Canadian agricultural supply cooperative and the 27th largest agri-food cooperative in the world. It represents more than 122,000 members, agricultural producers and consumers in 50 traditional agricultural and consumer cooperatives across several Canadian provinces. It employs more than 15,000 people and has sales of $7.282 billion. It operates through three divisions: Olymel S.E.C., Sollio Agriculture and BMR Group.

For more information about Sollio Cooperative Group, please visit sollio.coop.

ABOUT RABOBANK

Rabobank Group is a global financial services leader providing wholesale and retail banking, leasing, and real estate services in more than 40 countries worldwide. Founded over a century ago, Rabobank today is one of the world’s largest banks with EUR 620 billion in assets. In the Americas, Rabobank is a premier bank to the food, agribusiness and beverage industry, providing sector expertise, strategic counsel and tailored financial solutions to clients across the entire food value chain. Rabobank Canada services Canadian wholesale clients in the food and agricultural sectors as well as over 12,000 farmers under its farm inputs finance program.

Additional information is available on our website or on our social media platforms, including Twitter and LinkedIn.

ABOUT CAISSE DE DÉPÔT ET PLACEMENT DU QUÉBEC

Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec (CDPQ) is a long-term institutional investor that manages funds primarily for public and parapublic pension and insurance plans. As at June 30, 2020, it held CA$333.0 billion in net assets. As one of Canada’s leading institutional fund managers, CDPQ invests globally in major financial markets, private equity, infrastructure, real estate and private debt. For more information, visit cdpq.com, follow us on Twitter @LaCDPQ or consult our Facebook or LinkedIn pages.

ABOUT THE FONDS DE SOLIDARITÉ FTQ

The Fonds de solidarité FTQ is a development capital investment fund that channels the savings of Quebecers. As at May 31, 2020, the Fonds had $13.8 billion in net assets and supported 221,267 jobs. The Fonds is a partner in 3,329 companies and has 707,935 shareholder-savers.

ABOUT FONDACTION

A trailblazer for 25 years now, Fondaction is the investment fund of those who seek to effect positive change in Québec’s economy, those who are striving to create a stronger, greener and more equitable and inclusive economy.

As a labour-sponsored fund, Fondaction represents tens of thousands of shareholders and hundreds of companies committed to Québec’s progress. Fondaction has more than $2.26 billion in assets under management, invested in hundreds of businesses and in financial markets, focusing primarily on investments that are economically, socially and environmental beneficial and generate returns. It helps create and maintain jobs and reduce inequalities, and contributes to the fight against climate change. For more information, go to fondaction.com or visit our LinkedIn page.

  • Hugo Larouche
    Directeur par intérim, affaires publiques et communication d’entreprise
    Sollio Groupe Coopératif
    514 384 6450, poste 3604
    hugo.larouche@sollio.coop

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ST Engineering Accelerates Hybrid Multi-Cloud Management and Governance Capabilities with Investment in CloudSphere

Atlantic Bridge

 

Singapore and Los Altos, CA., 6 October 2020 – ST Engineering today announced that its Corporate Venture Capital unit, ST Engineering Ventures, has joined Atlantic Bridge in the closing of a strategic investment round in CloudSphere Limited, a cloud management and governance provider headquartered in Los Altos, California and Dublin, Ireland.

The investment in CloudSphere also includes a commercial agreement that enables direct access to hybrid multi-cloud management and governance software and expertise, immediately enhancing ST Engineering’s current cloud portfolio beyond assessment, planning and migration. This is in line with the Group’s goal to accelerate and scale its capabilities in Professional and Managed Services in public clouds to provide greater value to its customers and drive long-term growth for the company.

“Large enterprises are operating in hybrid and multi-cloud environments, and using many different sets of tools in resource provisioning and monitoring, cost reporting, security and identity dashboards with multiple, disparate control planes. Our partnership with CloudSphere will allow our customers to gain greater visibility and control of their multi-cloud inventory, performance and costs. This enhanced cloud Managed Service Provider capability will empower us to seize the opportunities with cloud technology,” said Ravinder Singh, President of ST Engineering’s Electronics sector.

“The transition to the cloud will continue to accelerate as forward-looking organisations like ST Engineering help enterprises navigate their digital transformations,” said Patrick McNally, Chief Executive Officer of CloudSphere. “We are excited to work closely with ST Engineering on joint go-to-market activities where our expertise in automation for cloud security and identity governance will allow us collaborate and provide valuable solutions to their customers.”

CloudSphere’s flagship Cloud Governance Platform helps control the challenges of increasingly complex public cloud deployments with automation and intelligence that dramatically simplifies how operators govern access to critical resources, minimise security risks and manage spending in the cloud. It is the only Cloud Governance Platform that takes the key data points from application discovery and migration planning to group cloud resources by application. This unique approach allows more intuitive governance of cloud resources at the application level.

With offices in Singapore, San Francisco, U.S.A., and Tel Aviv, Israel, ST Engineering’s Corporate Venture Capital unit scouts for and invests in promising technology start-ups in high growth areas such as robotics, autonomous technology, data analytics, cybersecurity and emerging technologies. It aims to build successful, collaborative relationships with start-ups, combining technologies and expertise to co-create breakthrough solutions while enabling their access to the Group’s global business ecosystems, expertise and resources.

Atlantic Bridge

 

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Aquiline Capital Partners To Lead The Merger Of CodeBlue And MADSKY

Aquila Capital

NEW YORK, Oct. 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ — Aquiline Capital Partners today announced the signing of definitive agreements in which it will merge Insurance Claims Management, Inc., which operates under the CodeBlue brand, and FV Holdings, LLC dba MADSKY Managed Repair Program (MADSKY). The combination will bring together two industry-leading providers, offering a unique and unified interior and exterior emergency services and direct repair capability. Hunter Powell, currently CEO of MADSKY, will become CEO of the combined business.

CodeBlue is a rapidly growing provider of property claims outsourcing solutions for the insurance industry, using proven science and industry-leading technology to generate superior service and cost outcomes. The company was founded by Paul Gross with the introduction of a revolutionary water damage mitigation solution. It has since expanded to provide a “whole home” set of property claims outsourcing solutions, including First Notice of Loss, Water Mitigation, Direct Property Repair, Desk Repair and Contents Valuation for a multitude of insurance companies.

MADSKY is revolutionizing the handling of roofing and exterior restoration needs in the insurance claims and broader property management space. MADSKY combines a claims concierge service with a network of vetted and highly qualified contractors. The firm offers a revolutionary program that simplifies the property restoration process and helps homeowners get back to their lives faster than ever before. In addition, leveraging its strong base of experienced roofing professionals, MADSKY offers several proprietary expert services aimed at aligning claim outcomes across stakeholders and decreasing loss severity.

“Both CodeBlue and MADSKY utilize technology-enabled claims delivery models that benefit insureds, insurance carriers and contractors,” stated Jeff Greenberg, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Aquiline Capital Partners. “We are excited to back Hunter, Paul and the combined leadership team as they further their market leadership in water mitigation and roofing while also entering compelling new areas where we will provide expertise and capital to support their growth.”

“Combining CodeBlue and MADSKY brings together the leaders in managing interior and exterior damage assessment and repair. The combined entity will offer unique, value-added and mutually beneficial solutions to insurance carriers, property managers and individual property owners,” said Hunter Powell. “Both firms share a purpose-driven ethos and a people-centric mentality, and together will bring unmatched focus and capabilities to delivering industry-leading services that blend results and performance with care and compassion. It is an incredible privilege to lead this organization.”

“Aquiline Capital Partners has tremendous expertise in insurance, insurance claims outsourcing and financial technology,” said Paul Gross. “Together we will continue to expand our property claim solutions offerings, extend the combined company’s technology platform and market leadership position and develop deeper carrier partnerships.”

About Insurance Claims Management (ICM) Headquartered in Springfield, Ohio with additional offices in Hudson, Ohio and Eau Claire, Wisconsin, ICM, operating under the CodeBlue brand, provides independent First Notice of Loss, Water Mitigation, Direct Repair, Desk Repair and Contents Valuation outsourcing solutions to insurance carriers throughout the United States and Canada. Leveraging proprietary technology during FNOL, CodeBlue captures live videos created by policyholders and contractors get the claim assessed, initiated, approved, and finished more quickly while reducing traditional expense. The platform facilitates CodeBlue contractor management and facilitates communication and business processes for insurance carriers, ICM, network service providers and policyholders. For more information, visit www.codeblue360.com.

About MADSKY

MADSKY is headquartered in Englewood, Colorado and provides insurance carriers and homeowners with the largest network of skilled trade professionals across the U.S. to repair roof and exterior damage following a hail or wind event. MADSKY is the trusted, go-to partner for managing the entire roof restoration process. MADSKY’s network of skilled roofing contractors, general contractors, independent adjusters, suppliers, manufacturers, and more are responsible for doing the restoration work. Learn more at www.MADSKYmrp.com.

About Aquiline Capital Partners

Aquiline Capital Partners, founded in 2005, is a private investment firm based in New York and London investing in businesses across the financial services sector in financial technology, insurance, investment management, business services, credit and healthcare. The firm has $5.3 billion in assets under management as of December 31, 2019. For more information about Aquiline, its investment professionals, and its portfolio companies, please visit: www.aquiline.com.

 

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Empowering companies to communicate more efficiently

Gp Bullhound

Paris, 2 October 2020
GP Bullhound acted as exclusive financial adviser to Bridgepoint Development Capital and BPI on a USD160m investment in Sendinblue.

Sendinblue is a leading all-in-one digital marketing platform empowering B2B and B2C businesses, e-commerce sellers and agencies to build customer relationships through end-to-end digital marketing campaigns, transactional messaging, and marketing automation.

The company offers a unique digital marketing solution developed for small and medium-sized businesses, covering tools such as email, SMS, marketing automation, sales management, and live chat. Headquartered in Paris with offices in Seattle, Berlin, Noida, and Toronto, Sendinblue supports more than 180,000 active users across 160 countries.

The proceeds will be used to drive product expansion to further support small and medium-sized businesses and accelerate growth in the North American market. Since 2018, Sendinblue has experienced 100% year-over-year growth in the US, the fastest-growing market for the company.

Guillaume Bonneton, Partner at GP Bullhound, and Joy Sioufi, Executive Director, commented: “We are delighted to have advised Bridgepoint Development Capital and BPI on their investment into Sendinblue. The company’s management will benefit from these two platforms’ experience to further expand internationally and become the leading all-in-one digital marketing platform.”

This transaction is a further testament to GP Bullhound’s expertise in software with 13 transactions completed in the last 12 months globally – 5 in France – including CVC’s $200m investment in EcoVadis, Wavecrest Growth Partners and Beringea’s $29m investment in EDITED, the acquisition of Assetic by Dude Solutions, and Accel-KKR’s $50m investment in Partnerize, among many others.
Enquiries

For enquiries, please contact:

Guillaume Bonneton, Partner

guillaume.bonneton@gpbullhound.com Joy Sioufi, Executive Director

joy.sioufi@gpbullhound.com

About GP Bullhound

GP Bullhound is a leading technology advisory and investment firm, providing transaction advice and capital to the world’s best entrepreneurs and founders. Founded in 1999, the firm today has offices in London, San Francisco, Stockholm, Berlin, Manchester, Paris, Hong Kong, Madrid and New York. For more information, please visit www.gpbullhound.com.

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Warburg Pincus invests INR 700 cr to acquire equity stake in True North-backed Home First One of India’s leading affordable housing finance companies

TrueNorth

Mumbai,2ndOctober,2020

Home First Finance Company India Ltd (“Home First”) announced today that it has entered into
definitive agreements with Orange Clove Investments BV an affiliate of Warburg Pincus LLC (“Warburg
Pincus”), a leading global private equity firm focused on growth investing for an investment of
approximately INR 700 crore through a combination of primary fund raise and secondary sales by
existing shareholders. Warburg Pincus joins existing marquee PE firm shareholders True North and
Bessemer Venture Partners.

Home First is a technology driven, affordable housing finance company providing home loans to
customers from low- and middle-income segments, who are building or buying their first homes. Over
the last 10 years, Home First has sanctioned home loans to more than 50,000 customers in 60 districts,
across 11 states and a union territory. Coming at a time when the whole world is navigating an
unprecedented crisis, this transaction is a huge vote of confidence for the affordable housing segment
in general and more specifically for the performance of Home First in the face of the crisis.
Divya Sehgal, Partner, True North said, “Home First is one of the fastest growing affordable housing
finance companies in India and has built strong underwriting capabilities for its new-to-credit customer
base. We are proud of the way the company has utilised technology to its advantage, adopting a digital
first approach in navigating Covid-19. We welcome Warburg Pincus and look forward to partnering
with them in the upcoming journey of Home First.”

Narendra Ostawal, Managing Director, Warburg Pincus said, “Home First has had a remarkable
journey to become a leading affordable housing finance company in a relatively short span of 10 years.
It is helmed by a very talented team and robust operating processes that continue to steer the company
to do well through the pandemic and to leverage the growth potential of the affordable segment.
Warburg Pincus looks forward to the partnership with True North and towards backing Manoj and the
management team in its next phase of expansion.”

“Warburg Pincus’ investment in Home First at this juncture, is an acknowledgement of Home First’s
inherent strengths. Our strong focus on the salaried customer segment, our investments in technology
and our deep belief in digital processes and payment mechanisms, have netted excellent dividends
through multiple disruptive events. True North has been a strong partner over the last few years and
has supported the company in its business in tight market conditions. We look forward to partnering
with our shareholders and offering industry leading solutions to our customers.” said Manoj
Viswanathan, Chief Executive Officer, Home First.

About Home First Finance Company:
Home First was founded in 2010 and over the last 10 years has established its presence in 60 districts
across 11 states and a union territory with a significant presence in the urbanized regions of Gujarat,
Maharashtra, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu. The company targets first time home buyers and leverages
technology to deliver the service with minimum disruption to the work routines of its customers. The
company’s customers are typically salaried customers who work in small firms or self-employed
customers who run small businesses. The company deploys proprietary machine learning and
customer scoring models for underwriting and delivers quick turnaround times to its customers. As of
March 31, 2020, Home First had an AUM of INR 3618 cr with a Net worth of INR 933 cr and GNPA of
0.87%

About Warburg Pincus
Warburg Pincus LLC is a leading global private equity firm focused on growth investing. The firm has
more than $53 billion in private equity assets under management. The firm’s active portfolio of more
than 185 companies is highly diversified by stage, sector, and geography. Warburg Pincus is an
experienced partner to management teams seeking to build durable companies with sustainable
value. Founded in 1966, Warburg Pincus has raised 19 private equity funds, which have invested more
than $84 billion in over 900 companies in more than 40 countries. The firm is headquartered in New
York with offices in Amsterdam, Beijing, Berlin, Hong Kong, Houston, London, Luxembourg, Mumbai,
Mauritius, San Francisco, São Paulo, Shanghai, and Singapore. For more information please visit
www.warburgpincus.com.

About True North
Founded in 1999, True North is India’s leading home-grown private equity firm with a focus on
investing in and transforming mid-sized profitable businesses into large well-established businesses
that are valuable, enduring and socially responsible. True North has successfully launched six separate
investment funds with a combined corpus of ~ USD 3 billion including co-investments. True North’s
deep insights and understanding of India has added value to more than 50 businesses over the last 20
years.

Ambit Capital was the lead advisor on the transaction and Axis Capital was the co-advisor.

Contact details for additional information:

Home First:
Shahab Shaikh| shahab@conceptpr.com |+91 93208 97525

True North:
Akhila Natarajan | akhila.natarajan@pitchforkpartners.com | +91-9821689525
Nitanshi Sharma | nitanshi.sharma@pitchforkpartners.com | +91-7000584756
Warburg Pincus: Malini Roy, CDR India: 9920549085

Disclaimer:
Home First Finance Company India Limited is proposing, subject to receipt of requisite
approvals, market conditions and other considerations, to undertake an initial public offer of its
equity shares and has filed a draft red herring prospectus dated November 28, 2019 (“DRHP”)
with the Securities and Exchange Board of India on November 29, 2019. The DRHP is available
on the website of the SEBI at www.sebi.gov.in, the respective websites of the book running lead
managers, i.e., Axis Capital Limited, Credit Suisse Securities (India) Private Limited, ICICI
Securities Limited and Kotak Mahindra Capital Company Limited at
www.axiscapital.co.in,https://www.creditsuisse.com/in/en/investmentbanking/regionalpresence/
asiapacific/india/ipo.html,www.icicisecurities.com and http://investmentbank.kotak.com,
respectively, the website of the National Stock Exchange of India Limited at www.nseindia.com
and the website of BSE Limited at www.bseindia.com. Investors should note that investment in
equity shares involves a high degree of risk and for details relating to such risk, see “Risk
Factors” of the DRHP. Potential investors should not rely on the DRHP for any investment
decision.

The Equity Shares offered in the Offer have not been and will not be registered under the U.S.
Securities Act of 1933, as amended (“U.S. Securities Act”) or any state securities laws in the
United States, and unless so registered may not be offered or sold within the United States,
except pursuant to an exemption from, or in a transaction not subject to, the registration
requirements of the U.S. Securities Act and applicable state securities laws. Accordingly, such
Equity Shares are being offered and sold (i) outside of the United States in offshore
transactions in reliance on Regulation S under the U.S. Securities Act and the applicable laws
of the jurisdiction where those offers and sales occur; and (ii) to “qualified institutional
buyers” (as defined in Rule 144A under the U.S. Securities Act), pursuant to the private
placement exemption set out in Section 4(a) of the U.S. Securities Act.

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