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InfraRed NF acquires rare mixed-use complex in Shanghai French Concession Area

InfraRed Capital Partners

InfraRed NF, the leading Greater China real estate investment manager, is pleased to announce the acquisition of an 84% equity stake in Project Sycamore, a US$112 million mixed-use complex in Shanghai together with Collab, a Shanghai-based value-add investment and asset management firm. The project was acquired from a local NPL asset management company at a discount to replacement cost.

Located in the French Concession area, the cultural and historical heart of “Old Shanghai”, the project sits within the Xuhui creative office cluster, surrounded by some of the city’s well-known urban renewal examples, and is a 10-minute walk to three metro stations.

The mixed-use complex has a GFA of 18,466 sqm and comprises four separate commercial buildings and a central courtyard. Originally built as a silk factory, the property was subsequently converted for commercial office and retail use. The condition of the property has since deteriorated, and it is currently vacant.

InfraRed NF will implement a value-add strategy to revitalise the property’s exterior, undertake structural strengthening works and reposition the property to attract tenants from the cultural, creative and technology innovation sectors, as well as high-end retail and F&B services. The outdoor space and central courtyard will be designed to encourage interactions between office, retail and F&B tenants. Green building systems (LEED or WELL) will be embedded in the design and renovation process to ensure the sustainability of the project and its neighbourhood.

This is the fourth value-add acquisition that InfraRed NF has completed in Shanghai, in line with InfraRed NF’s strategy of acquiring well-located but under-managed commercial assets in Tier-1 cities and adding value through change of use, upgrading and active asset management.

Hans Kang, Chief Investment Officer of InfraRed NF, commented:

“This is another showcase of our strategy to acquire well-located but distressed or under-performing assets disrupted by technology and new economy, at discount to replacement cost, and generate value by creating spaces catering for the new economy and the evolving work and lifestyles of a new generation. There is a growing, sustainable and scalable opportunity to capitalise on in Tier 1 cities in China, particularly in Shanghai, the largest commercial city of China.”

 

About InfraRed NF

InfraRed NF is a joint venture between InfraRed Capital Partners and Vervain. Established in 2007, InfraRed NF is a leading investor in Greater China real estate with a proven track record of delivering superior returns through a combination of mezzanine financing and value-add investing. InfraRed NF has invested US$1.9 billion across 25 transactions in Greater China.

InfraRed Capital Partners is a leading global investment manager focused on infrastructure and real estate. It operates worldwide from offices in London, Hong Kong, New York, Seoul and Sydney and has launched 18 funds including two listed companies on the London Stock Exchange. With c.160 professionals, InfraRed Capital Partners manages US$12 billion of equity in multiple private and listed funds, primarily for institutional investors across the globe.

Vervain (which includes entities operating under the former name of “Nan Fung China”) is a private company established in 2004 and based in Hong Kong. Vervain has a diversified real estate business, including property investment, property development, project management and real estate private equity investments. Vervain’s property portfolio comprises high-quality residential, commercial, industrial, serviced apartments and hotel projects in Hong Kong and other global cities including London, New York, Seoul, Tokyo and Da Nang. The company’s financial investments include global equities, fixed income portfolios and fund partnerships.

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Software and technology investor Fortino Capital is kicking off its second Benelux VC fund

Fortino Capital

targeting early growth companies

ANTWERP, April 10, 2020 – Fortino Capital Partners is raising the successor of its first VC-fund. Fortino Capital Venture II is aiming for a target size of €80 million and will be focussing on promising early stage European software and technology companies with a regional bias to the Benelux. As of today a total of €45 million in commitments have been signed up.

With its second VC fund, Fortino Capital Partners now has three funds in its portfolio.

The first VC fund, Fortino Capital I, with a capital of €80 million, is to date invested in 8  software companies including Teamleader (BE), BuyBay (NL) and Bloomon (NL). The fund is also an investor in Dobco and Riaktr, two companies that are actively involved in the diagnosing and monitoring of Covid-19. The fund has also realized a few important exits: Melita, Trendminer, Zentrick and Piesync, currently a subsidiary of Hubspot.

The second fund, Fortino Capital Growth PE I, is a growth private equity fund with a capital of €242 million targeting larger enterprises and their management, banking on accelerated organic growth. The fund currently supports MobileXpense (BE), Efficy CRM (BE) and Odin Groep (NL).

Fortino Capital Venture II, now its third fund, will continue its predecessor’s strategy and is targeting investments in successful start-up and scale up companies with a focus on software and technology.

Duco Sickinghe, Managing Partner Fortino: “We are living through uncertain and tough times and as an investment company we would like to, more than ever, send out a sign of hope and trust to young entrepreneurs. With our new fund we would like to reiterate our trust in entrepreneurs, driving the digitalization of our economy and society. We will use our new capital, our experience and our expertise to boost the success story of early growth companies. We believe in the future and therefore would like to send out this positive signal. We are delighted that many investors follow the same philosophy and have reiterated their trust in Fortino.”

Fortino Capital Venture II is targeting minority participations in successful and ambitious early growth Benelux companies with entry investment tickets ranging from €500,000 to €5 million, and sufficient capacity for successor capital rounds.

Amongst our investors we count many well-known private investors and entrepreneurs as well as strong institutional investors such as PMV and SFPI-FPIM.

Arie Kuipers, CEO Buybay, one of the companies in Fortino’s first VC-fund confirms the importance of a viable investment partner:  “It is comforting in these turbulent times to know that one can count on investors believing in and supporting innovation and leadership. We are getting closer to a post Covid-19 period where innovative entrepreneurs will make the difference in an accelerated digital transformation. The track record of Fortino, the team and their expertise help us to make the difference and privileged partner to turn our strategy into reality.”

About Fortino Capital Partners

Fortino Capital is a leading venture capital and growth private equity firm investing in European software and technology companies with a focus on Benelux. Our mission is supporting ambitious management teams in realising their growth plans.

We invest in early growth (venture capital) and more mature companies (growth capital) for which organic growth is at the hart of their strategy. Fortino has offices in Belgium and the Netherlands. Fortino is currently investor in Odin Groep (NL), MobileXpense (BE), Tenzinger (NL), Teamleader (BE), Bloomon (NL) and Buybay (NL).

www.fortinocapital.com.

 

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DIF Capital Partners sells its stake in Royal Jubilee Hospital

DIF

DIF Capital Partners (“DIF”) is pleased to announce the sale of its stake in Royal Jubilee Hospital to its co-shareholder Innisfree by DIF Infrastructure III (“DIF III”).

Royal Jubilee Hospital is a PPP hospital located in Victoria, Canada and was DIF’s first PPP investment in North America. The project consists of the design, construction, financing, maintenance and operations of the hospital during 30 years from construction completion which was in December 2010. The facility includes 500 beds and provides inpatient services to medical/surgical patients and patients suffering from mental health and addiction issues.

Andrew Freeman, Head of Exits, said: “We are very pleased to have been able to complete another strong exit, underpinning the high quality and stable nature of our assets also during uncertain times.”

DIF was advised by DLA Piper (Canada) LLP (legal).

About DIF Capital Partners

DIF is an independent infrastructure fund manager, with €7.4 billion of assets under management across nine closed-end infrastructure funds and several co-investment vehicles. DIF invests in greenfield and brownfield infrastructure assets located primarily in Europe, the Americas and Australasia through two complementary strategies:

  • DIF Infrastructure funds target equity investments in public-private partnerships (PPP/PFI/P3), concessions, utilities and renewable energy projects with long-term contracted or regulated income streams.
  • DIF CIF funds target equity investments in small to mid-sized infrastructure assets in the energy, transportation and telecom sectors with mid-term contracted income streams.

DIF has a team of over 135 professionals, based in nine offices located in Amsterdam (Schiphol), Frankfurt, London, Luxembourg, Madrid, Paris, Santiago, Sydney and Toronto. Please visit www.dif.eu for further information.

Contact:
Allard Ruijs, Partner
Email: a.ruijs@dif.eu

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Ardian Infrastructure acquires LAKIAKANGAS Wind Farm in Finland, growing existing portfolio in the Nordics

Ardian

The investment is the first build-up for eNordic, Ardian’s windfarm platform in the Nordics. Ardian’s first investment in Finland, supporting the transition towards sustainable energy.

Helsinki, 2 April 2020 – Ardian, a world-leading private investment house with $96bn assets under management, today announces the 100% acquisition of Lakiakangas 1 from, German based wind power company, CPC Finland Oy. The wind farm is Ardian’s first investment in Finland. It is an add-on to Ardian Infrastructure’s existing asset base in the Nordics and will be part of Ardian and eNordic’s partnership.

“With this investment, we aim to make a lasting contribution to the delivery of clean energy to our customers and we will continue to pursue strong cooperation with our local partners. Thanks to Fingrid’s long-sighted grid reinforcement programme, we will be able to add additional turbines, which would significantly increase the capacity of the power plant” says Eero Auranne, CEO of eNordic.

The Lakiakangas 1 wind farm currently has 14 turbines in operation and a production capacity of 57MW, with permits to build-up capacity to 90MW.

“Although this investment comes during a challenging period for the world, we remain committed to sustainable energy, which will continue to play an important role in the transition to a more climate friendly society. This investment, our first in Finland, is underpinned by agreements with strong counterparties to whom we will deliver all of the produced electricity under long term contracts. This combined with the opportunity to build additional capacity in the future is a great fit for our industrial asset management strategy” says Simo Santavirta, Head of Asset Management of Ardian Infrastructure.

CPC Finland built the Lakiakangas 1 wind farm in Isojoki in 2018-2019. Following the transaction, CPC will remain responsible for the technical and commercial asset management of the wind farm in cooperation with Ardian and eNordic. The parties will not disclose the value of the transaction.

“We are pleased to partner with Ardian and eNordic in this transaction. It was one of the most efficient transactions and it has been a real pleasure to work with the Ardian/eNordic’s highly competent team. We look forward to a long lasting partnership” says Erik Trast, Managing Director of CPC Finland Oy.

“This investment is a significant step in our strategy to build a leading independent sustainable energy group with presence across three Nordic countries” says Amir Sharifi, Managing Director at Ardian Infrastructure.

Ardian Infrastructure’s portfolio, which already includes three wind farm investments in Norway and Sweden, is now at nearly 500MW of gross capacity, corresponding to the yearly energy consumption of more than 750,000 electric vehicles. The portfolio is comprised of a balanced mix of greenfield and brownfield assets. The assets all operate under a mixture of pay as produced schemes. Ardian’s total renewable portfolio represents 3.5GW of capacity across Europe and Americas.

Lakiakangas Wind Farm transaction was completed through the Ardian Infrastructure Fund IV and Ardian Clean Energy II funds.

ABOUT ARDIAN

Ardian is a world-leading private investment house with assets of US$96bn managed or advised in Europe, the Americas and Asia. The company is majority-owned by its employees. It keeps entrepreneurship at its heart and focuses on delivering excellent investment performance to its global investor base.

Through its commitment to shared outcomes for all stakeholders, Ardian’s activities fuel individual, corporate and economic growth around the world.

Holding close its core values of excellence, loyalty and entrepreneurship, Ardian maintains a truly global network, with more than 680 employees working from fifteen offices across Europe (Frankfurt, Jersey, London, Luxembourg, Madrid, Milan, Paris and Zurich), the Americas (New York, San Francisco and Santiago) and Asia (Beijing, Singapore, Tokyo and Seoul). It manages funds on behalf of around 1,000 clients through five pillars of investment expertise: Fund of Funds, Direct Funds, Infrastructure, Real Estate and Private Debt.

www.ardian.com

ABOUT ENORDIC

eNordic is the Nordic’s first sustainable energy platform, formed by a partnership between Ardian, a world-leading private investment house, and leading domestic industry executives.
Through a local, responsible and agile investment approach, eNordic enables the transformation of the energy sector through long-term partnerships with those that develop or operate sustainable energy projects in the Nordics.
It invests in opportunities in wind, biomass, hydro and district heating, in addition to traditional energy assets that have the potential to be transformed or managed in a particularly sustainable way.
eNordic is based in Sweden and Finland, with local teams operating throughout the Nordics region.
www.enordic.fi

ABOUT CPC FINLAND

CPC Finland is a fully owned subsidiary of the German based CPC Germania GmbH & Co. KG. CPC Germania plans,  builds and operates wind farm projects. It is one Europe’s oldest wind energy company with more than 650 MW of wind energy projects constructed in Germany and Europe since its founding in 1993. CPC Germania manages a portfolio with a total installed capacity of more than 750 MW for institutional investors, utilities and the CPC Group.
www.cpc-germania.com

PRESS CONTACTS

Ardian/eNordic
Headland Consultancy
CARL LEIJONHUFVUD
cleijonhufvud@headlandconsultancy.com
+44 20 3805 4827

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Nordic Capital-backed Signicat acquires Dutch Identity Specialist Connectis to create Europe’s strongest digital identity platform

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Nordic Capital

The combined entity will accelerate Signicat’s share of the identity verification market—worth $15 billion by 2024

Signicat, the Trusted Digital Identity™ company, has acquired digital identity specialist Connectis, to create the most comprehensive digital identity platform in the European market.

Connectis was founded in 2008 and is headquartered in Rotterdam with an office in Bucharest, Romania. Connectis primarily delivers digital identity solutions to customers in the Netherlands, particularly organisations in the public sector, health care, insurance and financial services. The company has 52 employees in total.

Connectis develops secure solutions for online identification, authentication and authorisation for more than 350 organisations to identify over 14 million customers. Its products include:

  • Connectis Identity Broker: With connections to multiple electronic identities, such as eHerkenning, iDIN, DigiD, and more.
  • Connectis Identity & Access Management (CIAM): A comprehensive, yet fast and user-friendly CIAM solution.
  • We-ID eRecognition tokens (eID): A standardised login system supplied as certified supplier in a public-private partnership with the Ministry of the Interior and Kingdom Relations.

As society continues to move online and interactions between consumers, businesses and institutions are becoming predominantly digital and increasingly mobile-first, trust is at a premium. Reducing fraud, and meeting regulatory requirements around digital identification, verification and recurring authentication ensures transactions can proceed with a stronger degree of trust.  The identity verification market alone is set to be worth $15 billion by 2024 (Goode Intelligence, 2019).

Signicat’s and Connectis’ combined expertise forms a strong collaboration from which to continue to drive and shape the digital identity industry in Europe. Signicat’s heritage in the Nordics and Connectis’ footprint in Benelux, particularly in the government and healthcare sector, will be instrumental in developing solutions that tackle some of the most complex digital identity challenges. The combined entity will focus on helping organisations looking to streamline online business while reducing risk and meeting a range of regulations such as KYC and AML. The combined offering now represents the most comprehensive digital identity solution on the market.

“The adoption of digital identity in the Netherlands and Belgium has been impressive, and we are very pleased with now expanding our operations in the region,” states Asger Hattel, CEO of Signicat. “With Connectis joining Signicat, we are not only expanding our reach and customer base, we are creating Europe’s strongest digital identity platform. We are really looking forward to working together and to offer existing and new customers an even stronger digital identity offering.”

“It’s time for Connectis to take the next step, towards a prominent role on the European market.” said Jeroen de Bruijn, CEO, Connectis. “By joining forces with Signicat, we really have the expertise, scale and competence to be an European market leader. We are looking forward to jointly serving customers a market-leading offering and driving innovation in the market.”

“Nordic Capital acquired Signicat a year ago with the ambition to support and accelerate its international expansion and strengthen its position as a leading digital identity platform. This acquisition is an important step to deliver even better digital identity solutions to the market, and Nordic Capital is enthusiastic about supporting Signicat’s continued growth journey in Europe”, said Fredrik Näslund, Partner, Nordic Capital Advisors.

Connectis’ previous owners, SIDN and 2050 Foundation, have reinvested in the combined entity, providing a further endorsement in Signicat’s future.

-End-

About Connectis

Connectis was founded in 2008 and is located in Rotterdam with an office in Bucharest, Romania. Over 14 million customers have been identified using its software and eRecognition tokens, and 70% of all transactions using the eHerkenning identity and authorisation system (one of the most prevalent identity schemes in the Netherlands) are performed using Connectis infrastructure. Connectis allows customers to log in to online services using DigiD, eHerkenning, Facebook, Google, eIDAS, iDIN and many other digital identity methods.

About Signicat

Signicat is a pioneering, pan-European digital identity company with an unrivalled track record in the world’s most advanced digital identity markets. Its Digital Identity Platform incorporates the most extensive suite of identity verification and authentication systems in the world, all accessible through a single integration point. The platform supports the full identity journey, from recognition and on-boarding, through login and consent, to making business agreements which stand the test of time. Signicat was founded in 2007 and is headquartered in Trondheim, Norway.

 

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Smith Technologies Completes Acquisition by Francisco Partners and Rebrands as RedSail Technologies

Franciso Partners

Francisco Partners, a leading technology-focused growth equity firm, has completed its acquisition of Smith Technologies, a leader in pharmacy technology and public sector software, from J M Smith Corporation. The investment by Francisco Partners will help the company accelerate its growth strategy as an independent entity. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

As it embarks on a new chapter as a standalone business, the company will be rebranded as RedSail Technologies™. Under this new name, the company will continue to build upon decades of market leadership and will also continue to offer the same solutions under its three core product brands: QS/1®, Integra®, and PUBLIQ®.

In connection with the transaction, Kraig McEwen will join the company as Chief Executive Officer. Kraig McEwen has over 20 years of experience in healthcare technology markets. Previously, McEwen was co-founder of TrellisRx, a leader in the health system specialty pharmacy market. Prior to that, McEwen was the CEO of Aesynt, a market leader in pharmacy medication management solutions.

“I am fortunate to be joining the company at such an exciting time,” McEwen said. “RedSail has developed an unparalleled reputation as a leader across its core markets, and I am grateful for the opportunity to help the company and its employees continue to execute on their vision. Through focused product investments, our goal is to address our customers’ most critical needs, empowering them with innovative software and services.”

“Kraig McEwen is a very accomplished executive in the healthcare technology space, and we are thrilled to have him join RedSail,” said Chris Adams, Co-Head of Healthcare IT at Francisco Partners. “His experience in the pharmacy sector will be invaluable as the company grows and expands its leadership as a standalone business.”

The investment by Francisco Partners marks a transition in ownership from the J M Smith organization, which has grown the company over many decades to provide industry leading software solutions used by thousands of pharmacies and public sector customers across the country.

Piper Sandler & Co. served as financial advisor and Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP acted as legal advisor to J M Smith Corporation. Robert W. Baird & Co. served as financial advisor and Kirkland & Ellis LLP acted as legal advisor to Francisco Partners.

About RedSail Technologies

RedSail Technologies provides healthcare and governmental software solutions to pharmacy and public sector customers across North America. Under its QS/1 and Integra brands, the company designs, builds, and supports industry-leading solutions for the community and institutional pharmacy markets. Under its PUBLIQ Software brand, the company provides software and services for state and local governments, judicial offices, and municipal utilities. The company is headquartered in Spartanburg, SC, with additional offices in Anacortes, WA and Lynnwood, WA.

About J M Smith

J M Smith Corporation was founded in 1925 as a single community pharmacy in Asheville, North Carolina and is now headquartered in Spartanburg, South Carolina. In the decades since, the company has grown to operate business units that supply healthcare and distribution services and technology to pharmacies, institutions, government agencies and businesses across the U.S.

About Francisco Partners

Francisco Partners is a leading global private equity firm that specializes in investments in technology and technology-enabled businesses. Since its launch 20 years ago, Francisco Partners has raised over $14 billion in committed capital and invested in more than 275 technology companies, making it one of the most active and longstanding investors in the technology industry. The firm invests in opportunities where its deep sectoral knowledge and operational expertise can help companies realize their full potential. For more information on Francisco Partners, please visit: www.franciscopartners.com

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airteam secures contract in connection with new underground line in Copenhagen

Ratos

airteam has secured a major ventilation and cooling contract in connection with construction of a new underground line to Copenhagen’s Sydhavn district. The project includes installations at five stations and two crossings.

airteam is carrying out the project for the contractor TUNN3L JV, a joint venture between the French company Vinci and the German Hochtief. The project is expected to be finished in 2024, with the start scheduled for 2021.

“This is an interesting project that will mean a lot for Copenhagen and its inhabitants for years to come. I’m proud that airteam has been chosen as a ventilation contractor in the construction of the new underground line to Copenhagen’s Sydhavn. This is a project that includes both cooling, traditional ventilation facilities and a solution for the tunnels’ fire ventilation system.

airteam was chosen based on our vast know-how, which is the result of many years of work in comfort and industrial ventilation, and not least based on our previous ventilation contract carried out at the underground at Nordhavn Station. As we accumulate further competence in this field, we will be well positioned for future infrastructure projects in Denmark, Sweden and other Nordic countries,” says Poul Pihlmann, CEO of airteam.

“This contract award is a proof of the strong position airteam has in the Danish market. As airteam has grown and delivered high levels of quality and customer satisfaction, we are now being invited to bid on the largest ventilation projects in Denmark. We remain optimistic about the future of our Danish operations, and about the potential to build the same position in the growing Swedish operation,” says Christian Johansson Gebauer, Head of Business Area Construction & Services, Ratos.

For further information, please contact:
Helene Gustafsson, Head of IR and Press, Ratos, +46 70 868 40 50, helene.gustafsson@ratos.se
Christian Johansson Gebauer, Head of Business Area Construction & Services, Ratos, +46 8 700 1700

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Northlane Capital Partners Invests in VMG Health

Northlane

BETHESDA, Md.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Northlane Capital Partners (“NCP”) announced today that it has made an investment in VMG Health (“VMG”), a leading full-service valuation and transaction advisory firm exclusively focused on the healthcare industry. NCP invested in partnership with VMG’s existing management team and key employees, led by Founder and CEO Greg Koonsman.

“We are very excited to partner with VMG. The company’s compelling value proposition and best in class team, coupled with the continuously evolving healthcare regulatory landscape, provide a strong foundation for future growth.”

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Founded in 1995, VMG Health provides compliance related transaction services including: business, real estate, and asset valuation, physician compensation plan design and valuation, buy side and sell side quality of earnings, litigation and dispute services, and reimbursement consulting. Additional information is available at www.vmghealth.com.

“I am thrilled that we have entered into a partnership with Northlane Capital Partners to continue our firm’s legacy of healthcare transaction expertise. We share a vision with NCP for the next phase of our company as the market leader in healthcare valuation, diligence services, and consulting. Our singular focus in healthcare allows us to differentiate our core services of healthcare business and real estate related valuation, quality of earnings and diligence, physician compensation consulting and valuation, and reimbursement related consulting. Now in our 25th year, we will continue to build the VMG Health brand which has been synonymous with expertise, quality, and responsiveness to our customers,” said Greg Koonsman, Founder and CEO of VMG.

Eugene Krichevsky, Partner at NCP, noted, “VMG is the clear leader in a niche within the healthcare sector where we can utilize our industry expertise and network to help create value. We look forward to working alongside Greg and the VMG team to continue to broaden VMG’s capabilities and customer base, both through organic growth initiatives and the acquisition of complementary service lines.”

Sean Eagle, Partner at NCP, added, “We are very excited to partner with VMG. The company’s compelling value proposition and best in class team, coupled with the continuously evolving healthcare regulatory landscape, provide a strong foundation for future growth.”

ABOUT NORTHLANE CAPITAL PARTNERS

Based in Bethesda, MD, Northlane Capital Partners is a private equity firm focused on key segments within the healthcare and business services sectors, where its principals have invested $1.5 billion of equity capital. NCP seeks investments in middle market companies based in North America with EBITDA of $5 million to $30 million. NCP’s strategy is to partner with industry leading companies and great management teams, aligning incentives to accelerate growth and build value. For more information, please visit www.northlanecapital.com.

Contacts

Eugene Krichevsky, Partner
(301) 841-1399

Sean Eagle, Partner
(301) 841-1377

JJ Carbonell, Vice President
(301) 841-1420

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Nordic Capital increases its shareholding in Norwegian Finans Holding ASA

Nordic Capital

Nordic Capital Fund IX (“Nordic Capital”) has, through its wholly owned subsidiary Cidron Xingu Limited, last night acquired 7,598,162 shares in Norwegian Finans Holding ASA (“Bank Norwegian”) from a group of sellers including Green 91 AS, a company owned by Lars Ola Kjos, at a price of NOK 35 per share. The acquisition was made to strengthen Nordic Capital’s position as the largest shareholder and following the transaction, the holding will amount to 30,646,498 shares, corresponding to 16.4% of the total shares outstanding. In total, Nordic Capital and Sampo collectively own 42,472,603 shares, corresponding to 22.7% of Bank Norwegian following the transaction.

In August 2019, Nordic Capital together with Sampo signed an agreement to become the largest shareholders in Bank Norwegian. The acquisition was completed in October 2019.

Nordic Capital has extensive experience and a strong track record in the financial services sector in the Nordic region and continues to see Bank Norwegian as an interesting company with strong growth potential.


Press contact
Katarina Janerud, Communications Manager
Nordic Capital Advisors
Tel: +46 8 440 50 50
e-mail: katarina.janerud@nordiccapital.com

 

About Nordic Capital
Nordic Capital is a leading private equity investor with a resolute commitment to creating stronger, sustainable businesses through operational improvement and transformative growth. Nordic Capital focuses on selected regions and sectors where it has deep experience and a long history. Core sectors are Healthcare, Technology & Payments, Financial Services and Industrials & Business Services. Key regions are Northern Europe and globally for Healthcare. Since inception in 1989, Nordic Capital has invested more than EUR 14.5 billion in over 110 investments. The Nordic Capital vehicles are based in Jersey. They are advised by several non-discretionary sub-advisory entities based in Sweden, Denmark, Finland, Norway, Germany, the UK and the US, any or all of which are referred to as Nordic Capital Advisors. For further information about Nordic Capital, please visit www.nordiccapital.com

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Belgian wallpaper producer Grandeco expands its shareholder base

GIMV

20/03/2020 – 07:30 | Portfolio

Grandeco announces a reorganisation of its shareholder base: Down2Earth Capital (D2E) comes in as majority shareholder, while Gimv and management remain on board and reinvest significantly. By broadening the investor group, Grandeco seeks to strengthen its position as a future-proof market leader in decorative wallpaper, including through potential strategic acquisitions.

Grandeco Wallfashion Group Belgium (Tielt – BE, www.grandecogroup.com) is one of the world’s leading wallpaper producers. With a state-of-the-art Belgian production plant and a compound average growth rate of 3.2% in recent years, it is largely outperforming the market. Grandeco has six sales offices in Belgium, the United Kingdom, France, Poland, Russia and Germany, a dynamic team of more than 300 employees and is represented in more than 80 countries. Today, Grandeco is an innovative, customer-oriented group that responds to the demand for a personal style in a global market through distinguished collections and digital printing.

Patrick Molemans, CEO Grandeco, about this transaction: “With Gimv’s unconditional support we have succeeded in transforming ourselves into an attractive and strongly market-oriented company. The time is now right to shift up a gear: with new shareholder D2E we want to further strengthen Grandeco’s market power going forward. With carefully targeted acquisitions and a continued  focus on organic growth and returns, we will maintain our  leading sustainable position (product range and customer portfolio) and achieve the best results in the worldwide market for decorative wallpaper.”

Tom Van de Voorde, Managing Partner Gimv and contact person for Grandeco so far: “After the difficult years at the time of the financial and economic crisis in 2008, Grandeco has become the future-proof market leader in decorative wallcovering thanks to the continued efforts of its staff and management, through forward-looking investments in growth and technology and through its commercial repositioning.”

Barbara Arnst, Partner in the Connected Consumer platform of Gimv and now part of the deal team, adds: “With a lasting belief in the company we look forward to positioning Grandeco Group even more as a contemporary, digital and sustainable player towards the modern consumer. Together with our partner D2E, we want to further realize the external growth opportunities – including strategic acquisitions.”

Alain Keppens, Partner Down2Earth Capital, about this transaction: “Grandeco is a market performer in a highly fragmented industry, the company has achieved above-average growth and profitability in recent years. In addition to its strong reputation in analogue printing, the company has a clear advantage in the area of digital printing. Together with our partner Gimv and the strong management team, we look forward to further building the company into one of the Pan-European market leaders.”

Grandeco is part of Gimv’s Connected Consumer platform, which invests in companies with a clear vision of the needs and preferences of today’s consumer,

Over the entire period, the investment offered a positive return with only a small impact on the net asset value of Gimv per 30 September 2019. No further financial details on the transaction are being published.

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