Anders Invest acquires De Waal Staal

Anders Invest

June 20, 2018 | Anders Invest

On June 15th, Anders Invest has finalized its 12th acquistion by the takeover of 95% of the shares of De Waal Staal from Deurne (NL). The shares have been bought from the son in law of the founder of the company. The remaining shares are taken over by the new director Sieger Volkers, the former CEO of M&G, worldmarketleader in gasflue pipes for heating systems and a manufacturer of ventilation products.  

De Waal Staal (website) is marketleader in the Netherlands and top 3 player in Europe in the field of mounting systems and flanges for metal airducts. The customers are mainly airductmanufacturers and installers for larger buildings. De Waal Staal is able to produce large part of the products on their own machinery in their production facility in Deurne (NL). They produce millions of meters every year. The company has a long and stable history, and is know by their quality and customer focus, this has resulted in a very stable and growing client base in the last 45 years. 

Due to increasing attention for airtightness, healthy indoor climates and fire protection in buildings the company sees many opportunities to increase their international position.

 

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Cinven to acquire Envirotainer

Cinven

Investment in global temperature-controlled air freight market

International private equity firm, Cinven, today announces that it has signed an agreement to acquire Envirotainer (‘the Group’), a leading global provider of temperature-controlled air cargo containers, for an undisclosed consideration.

Headquartered in Stockholm, Envirotainer designs, manufactures and leases active temperature-controlled containers used primarily for air freighting biopharma products, transporting up to two millions doses of medicine per day.  The Group serves c. 600 customers worldwide, including many of the blue-chip global biopharma companies. With c. 300 employees, Envirotainer operates from regional centres in Stockholm, Frankfurt, Dallas and Singapore, with a portfolio of more than 5,500 leased containers globally.  The Group developed and marketed the first container with an active temperature control system in 1995 and since then has significantly invested in technology and its container fleet.

Cinven’s Business Services, Healthcare and Nordic teams identified Envirotainer as an attractive investment opportunity given:

  • Market leadership: Envirotainer is a clear market leader with the most innovative product offering, consistent service delivery, and global delivery capability;
  • Attractive market: the rise in biopharma sales for a broad range of clinical treatments, in combination with tightening regulatory requirements for transporting these products is driving strong growth in Envirotainer’s markets;
  • Global growth opportunity: Cinven will support Envirotainer’s global growth by developing its technology and expanding its container fleet and global service network.

Pontus Pettersson, Partner at Cinven, said:

“Envirotainer shares several common characteristics with Cinven’s highly successful investments including the provision of a critical service – temperature-controlled containers for the transportation of highly regulated and valuable biopharma products – in a growing market, with high barriers to entry.  

“Cinven has achieved strong growth for the many healthcare companies in which it has invested that span medical devices, pharmaceuticals, CROs and, specifically in Sweden, Phadia. Building on our pharmaceutical experience, we are delighted to be backing another strong management team, led by Michael Berg, and investing in the future growth of this exciting business.”

Ben Osnabrug, Senior Principal at Cinven, added:

“Within Business Services, Cinven looks to acquire companies that demonstrate structural growth, cash generation and defensibility in certain sub-sectors.  Envirotainer has a strong business model with excellent growth prospects and shares key characteristics with many of Cinven’s successful Business Services investments, in particular, including Tinsa and Hotelbeds, and previous investments in CPA Global and Amadeus. These companies provide mission-critical services to a diverse customer base in growing market niches, and benefit from long-term recurring revenue streams.” 

Michael Berg, CEO of Envirotainer, commented:

“Envirotainer is well positioned to capture significant growth from the biopharma market.   New ‘blockbuster’ drugs are being developed given the rising population with access to high end medicine and higher incomes; as well as a rise in chronic diseases. In addition, it is still necessary for pharma companies to supply vaccines, insulin and blood products, where biopharma demand is most strongly growing outside of key manufacturing centres in Europe and the US and these products therefore need to be transported via highly regulated and controlled air freight.

“We are particularly pleased to partner with the team at Cinven given their unique combination of healthcare expertise and track record of supporting the growth of Nordic companies.”

Envirotainer is the 10th investment from the Sixth Cinven Fund. The transaction follows Cinven’s most recent Business Services investments in JLA, the critical asset supply and services business for laundry, catering and heating in the UK (June 2018); Tinsa, a provider of property valuation, analysis and real estate advisory (Aug 2016); and Hotelbeds, a global business to business bedbank (Sept 2016); as well as previous investments in CPA Global, the IP management software and services provider; and Amadeus, the provider of technology solutions to the travel industry.

Cinven also has a long and proven track record of successfully investing in market leading growth companies serving the pharma and life sciences industry through its investments in CeramTec, the manufacturer of high performance ceramics for application in the medical and industrial end-markets; and Sebia and Phadia – both in-vitro diagnostics companies. In the Nordic region, Cinven has previously invested successfully in Visma, a leading software and business process outsourcing services business; Phadia and Ahlsell, a leading distributor of building products.

The completion of the transaction is subject to customary regulatory approvals.

Advisors on the transaction included: Citigroup and SEB (M&A); Roland Berger (commercial); FTI Consulting (financial); Clifford Chance and Vinge (legal); Deloitte (tax); and Aon (insurance).

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Alpega expands its product portfolio with 4flow vista®, a leading transport planning and optimization software

Castik Capital

Alpega Group’s inet is strengthening its product offering with the integrated transport planning and optimization software 4flow vista®. With the acquisition of the rights to 4flow vista’s planning software, inet is now offering a seamlessly integrated TMS (“Transport Management System”) including planning, tendering, execution and highly developed analytics capabilities. Customers will benefit from higher visibility and flexibility, more automated processes and logistics cost savings of 20%+. Customers comprise mid-sized to large enterprises, some of which have saved more than €100m p.a. in logistics costs.

inet and 4flow are cooperating since 2003. Headquartered in Berlin, 4flow optimizes mid- and long term transportation requirements and networks, evaluating the best transport modalities, network structures and routes. The combination of inet products and 4flow vista® has already been deployed at various key customers such as Magna, Lear, Agco, Volvo and Robert Bosch. inet and 4flow plan to continue their joint product development in the future.

Following the acquisition of procurement software TenderEasy earlier in the year, the 4flow vista® addition allows Alpega to deliver an end-to-end solution to its global customers across different industries.

Alpega was formed in 2017 as a leading global logistics software company that offers end-to-end solutions covering all transport needs, including TMS solutions and freight exchanges and offering its customers the largest network of carriers in Europe. Key products comprise:

  • inet – TMS solution for complex, multi-modal global transportation networks including unique dynamic optimization capabilities
  • TenderEasy – Freight procurement solution that allows its customers to run tenders across verticals and geographies
  • Transwide – Modular TMS solution for shippers, logistics service providers and carriers to manage the end-to-end execution of transports
  • TAS-tms – Modular TMS solution that enables carriers and freight forwarders to manage the entire transport process
  • Teleroute, Bursa and 123cargo – Pan-European freight exchanges that connect to more than 50,000 carriers to offer and allocate shipments and trucks

About Castik Capital
Castik Capital S.à r.l. (“Castik Capital”) manages investments in private equity. Castik Capital is a European multi-strategy investment manager, acquiring significant ownership positions in European private and public companies, where long-term value can be generated through active partnerships with management teams.
Castik Capital has an investment horizon of up to ten years – longer than most other private equity funds. This enables Castik Capital to focus resources on its portfolio companies and ensure sustainable, long-term value creation.

Founded in 2014, Castik Capital is based in Luxembourg and focuses on identifying and developing investment opportunities across Europe. Investments are made by the Luxembourg-based fund, EPIC I SLP, the first fund managed by Castik Capital, which had its final close at EUR 1bn in July 2015.

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Ardian Real Estate acquires an office complex on Avenue de la Grande Armée in Paris

Ardian

Paris, July 11, 2018 – Ardian, a world-leading private investment house, announces today the completion of the acquisition of an office complex at 46-48 Avenue de la Grande Armée, in Paris. This transaction is in line with Ardian Real Estate’s strategy of investing in real-estate assets with a strong potential for value creation.

The 8,120 square metre post-Haussmann style complex comprises two interconnected buildings of six and eight floors. The property will be refurbished to prime standards through an ambitious program to optimize the working and tenant service areas, in accordance with key environmental certifications. The complex is very well located in the axis between the Central Business District and La Défense, adjacent to the Argentine metro station (line 1).

The building is also located on the edge of Porte Maillot, an area where numerous redevelopment projects are set to be unveiled in the coming years. Transport infrastructure is also being developed there, notably with the construction of line E of the Grand Paris Express rail network and Tramway T3, whose Porte Maillot stop will open in 2022.

This transaction follows the acquisition of Lagardère’s headquarters in Levallois in 2017. In 2018, Ardian Real Estate acquired the historic Europe 1 radio station’s headquarters Rue François 1er and another building, Place Rio de Janeiro, both in the 8th arrondissement.

 

LIST OF PARTIES INVOLVED

Investment manager/ Purchaser: Ardian
Purchaser’s advisors: Victoires Notaires, Linklaters, De Pardieu, Arsène-Taxand, JLL, Orféo
Architect: Franklin Azzi
Seller’s advisors: BlueBird Immobilier

 

ABOUT ARDIAN

Ardian a world-leading private investment house with assets of US$71bn 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 500 employees working from fourteen 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). It manages funds on behalf of around 700 clients through five pillars of investment expertise: Fund of Funds, Direct Funds, Infrastructure, Real Estate and Private Debt.
Follow Ardian on Twitter @Ardian

 

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TA Associates to Invest in Compusoft

TA associates

BOSTON & SARPSBORG, Norway – TA Associates, a leading global growth private equity firm, today announced that it has entered into a definitive agreement to invest in Compusoft, a leading provider of computer-aided design (“CAD”) software to the kitchen and bathroom retail industries.

The investment is expected to close in the third quarter of 2018. Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

Compusoft’s main products, Winner Design and Innoplus, provide design and sales support to kitchen and bathroom retailers, respectively. The user-friendly CAD systems include proprietary databases of graphic elements, pricing information and language translations from more than 2,800 digital manufacturer catalogues. They also feature fully-integrated graphics displayed in real‐time 3D. Additional Compusoft products allow individuals to easily design and view kitchens or bathrooms in 3D on a smartphone or tablet. The company also offers back-office customer relationship management (CRM) and process management software systems for small and large businesses. Founded in 1989 in Sarpsborg, Norway, Compusoft operates in 14 countries across Europe, as well as South Africa and Australia, and serves approximately 12,00o customers, including leading global manufacturers and retailers.

“Compusoft is among the industry leaders in Europe, with a high quality business model and an impressive history of sustained growth,” said Naveen Wadhera, a Managing Director at TA Associates who will join the Compusoft Board of Directors. “We look forward to partnering with Compusoft, which fits squarely within our focus on profitable businesses with strong management teams and proprietary products and services, to help the company capitalize on its strategy and accelerate growth.”

“Given our mission to create measurable added value for our customers, we believe TA Associates, with their well-earned reputation for helping businesses reach their full potential, is an ideal partner for Compusoft,” said David Tombre, Chief Executive Officer, Compusoft. “We have enjoyed notable organic and acquisitive growth over the course of our nearly 30-year history and are confident that TA can help us build on that success. We welcome the opportunity to work with TA as we explore opportunities for continued expansion.”

“As the demand for kitchen and bathroom modeling services continues to rise, we expect interest in Compusoft’s unique offerings and capabilities to expand further across Europe and other regions,” said J. Morgan Seigler, a Managing Director at TA Associates who will also join the Compusoft Board of Directors. “Importantly, Compusoft’s innovative technology provides customers with a user-friendly experience to develop fully-customized spaces to meet their individual needs and desires. With the company’s leading market position, we anticipate continued meaningful growth for Compusoft.”

Goodwin is providing legal counsel, while Alvarez & Marsal and KPMG are providing consulting services to TA Associates. Kvale is providing legal counsel and ABG Sundal Collier is serving as financial advisor to Compusoft.

About Compusoft
Founded in 1989 in Sarpsborg, Norway, Compusoft provides sales, management, communication, web and business solutions for the kitchen and bath industry. The company’s advanced CAD software solutions offer dynamic sales tools for retailers, helping them lead customers through the entire planning process, from sketch to fully installed kitchen or bath. With a focus on creating added value for its customers, Compusoft combines the development of high-quality software with a dedication to customer service. Compusoft operates in 14 countries across Europe, as well as South Africa and Australia. For more information, please visit www.compusoftgroup.com.

About TA Associates
Now in its 50th year, TA Associates is one of the largest and most experienced global growth private equity firms. Focused on five target industries – technology, healthcare, financial services, consumer and business services – TA invests in profitable, growing companies with opportunities for sustained growth, and has invested in nearly 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 growth companies. TA has raised $24 billion in capital since its founding in 1968 and is committing to new investments at the pace of $1.5 to $2 billion per year. The firm’s more than 80 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.

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FiloBlu to accelerate its development with Ardian Growth

Ardian

Paris, 10 July 2018 – Ardian, a world-leading private investment house, today announces the acquisition of a minority stake in FiloBlu S.p.A., a leading digital consulting company based in Italy, focused on digital strategies, e-commerce and omnichannel to develop the online business and enhancing brand equity on a global scale for Brands and Retailers.

The strategic partnership between Ardian Growth and FiloBlu aims to accelerate the growth of the company by strengthening its organization and implementing an ambitious business strategy for the next three years. This partnership will lead to increased investments in research, innovation and training, while expanding FiloBlu’s international presence.

Christian Nucibella, founder of FiloBlu, said: “This partnership with a prestigious and world-leading investment house such as Ardian is an extraordinary opportunity for FiloBlu to strengthen our organization and achieve stronger growth. We will look to improve our ability to offer our clients and partners innovative services and cutting-edge technologies, helping them expand their business in the increasingly global marketplace and take advantage of the range of opportunities for growth offered by digital transformation.”

Laurent Foata, Managing Director of Ardian Growth, stated: “By carrying out this initiative alongside Christian Nucibella, we’re showing our desire to become a leading partner of companies like FiloBlu, which has put into practice an effective growth model on an international scale.”

Bertrand Schapiro, Senior Investment Manager at Ardian Growth, added: “After having combined profitability with very fast organic growth, FiloBlu is starting a new stage of its growth. We are pleased to support the company on its journey of further international expansion.”

The agreement comes at a particularly positive period for FiloBlu, which was recently awarded by Deloitte as one of the “Best Managed Companies” in Italy, and among the fastest-growing European digital companies, making Deloitte’s “Technology Fast 500 EMEA” ranking three years in a row since 2015. The company has also been ranked amongst the “Financial Times: 1000 Europe’s Fastest Growing Companies” for two years in a row since 2017.

ABOUT FILOBLU

FiloBlu is an ideal business partner for brands and retailers looking to develop their businesses and brand awareness internationally, thanks to a tailored sales, marketing and communication strategy that combines online shopping and brick-and-mortar retail. FiloBlu accompanies companies during the growth process. The joint initiatives of the parties are backed by data analysis using the dynamic Commerce Intelligence Platform, which gathers together the most important sources of information in real time. It has the capacity to connect a number of digital sources and monitor and analyse the behaviour and preferences of online users. FiloBlu provides its clients with a comprehensive array of local group companies in the most strategic markets, as well as integrated logistics facilities and a hub of competences with links to a network of international partners. Founded in 2009 by Christian Nucibella, FiloBlu has headquarters in Venice and offices in Milan, Naples, Lugano, Prague, New York, Shanghai and Hong Kong. One big, professional team of more than 120 people carries out digital-oriented business projects on a global scale.

ABOUT ARDIAN

Ardian is a world-leading private investment house with assets of US$71bn 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 500 employees working from fourteen 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). It manages funds on behalf of around 700 clients through five pillars of investment expertise: Fund of Funds, Direct Funds, Infrastructure, Real Estate and Private Debt.
Ardian on Twitter @Ardian

LIST OF PARTIES INVOLVED

Filoblu : Christian Nucibella, Alberto Arcolin, Gaia Coller
Financial Advisor: Buttignon Zotti Milan & Co (Fabio Buttignon, Antonio Zotti, Lucia Scarpari)
Ardian : Laurent Foata, Bertrand Schapiro
Legal Advisor: Giovannelli e Associati (Fabrizio Scaparro, Paola Cairoli, Matilde Finucci)
Financial Advisor : KPMG Italy (Fabrizio Scaparro, Paola Cairoli, Matilde Finucci)

PRESS CONTACTS

FILOBLU
 PR & PRESS – AD MIRABILIA Tel. +39 02 4382191 filoblu@admirabilia.it
Manuela Lubrano Tel. +39 02 43821937 Cell. +39 349 2410696
Valeria Dalcore Cell. +39 3403861104
ARDIAN PR & PRESS – HEADLAND
Carl Leijonhufvud Cell. +44 020 3805 482 cleijonhufvud@headlandconsultancy.com

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Bomgar Acquiring Avecto to Create Leading Privileged Access Management Solution

Franciso Partners

  • Avecto adds market-leading endpoint privilege management to Bomgar’s Privileged Identity and Access solutions, resulting in a best-in-class Privileged Access Management (PAM) portfolio.
  • Combined solution will enable companies to defend against privileged access threats, and improve compliance, productivity, and performance.

Atlanta, GA – Bomgar, a leader in identity and access management solutions for privileged users, today announced it will acquire Avecto, a global leader in endpoint privilege management. Avecto’s Defendpoint technology combines privilege management and application control, making it easy to protect thousands of endpoints by making admin rights removal simple and scalable. Pairing Avecto with Bomgar’s privileged account and session management technology will enable businesses to fully implement the principle of least privilege and defend themselves against today’s most prevalent threats.

Forrester estimates that 80% of security breaches involve privileged credentials. Privileged accounts are coveted targets for attackers and must be protected from both internal and external threats. Bomgar’s solutions protect privileged accounts, passwords, and credentials, while securing the remote access pathways commonly exploited in these attacks. Avecto’s technology adds another layer of defense at the endpoint by allowing organizations to remove excess admin rights, only elevating privileges for approved applications and actions.

The addition of Avecto will also help the thousands of IT admins and support professionals using Bomgar’s Remote Support solutions to securely manage privileged access to desktops and workstations with minimal user interruption.

“With the addition of Avecto, Bomgar now offers one of the most comprehensive PAM platforms for managing and protecting privileged access,” said Matt Dircks, CEO of Bomgar. “Our companies share a passion for developing security solutions that users love because they’re quick to deploy, intuitive, and don’t impede productivity. We’re excited to combine forces with Avecto’s team, customers, and partners to develop new, innovative ways to mitigate the risks of privileged threats.”

According to Gartner, “The privileged access threat landscape is growing with a higher risk of enabling cyberattacks and severe consequences.” Gartner recommends that, “in order to deliver effective privileged IAM capabilities technical professionals should… acquire and deploy commercial PAM solutions to automate foundational capabilities such as privilege credential discovery, protection, session monitoring, privilege elevation and delegation, and audit controls.”

The acquisition will result in an integrated PAM offering with market-leading capabilities for:

Privileged Account Auto-Discovery: Reliably discover and secure the widest range of privileged accounts across enterprises.

Credential Management & Rotation: Change thousands of privileged passwords across an enterprise in minutes.

Privileged Session Management: Securely manage, monitor, and control privileged access sessions.

Privileged Elevation and Delegation: Making the removal of admin privileges and whitelisting of trusted applications achievable across all endpoints.

Audit and Compliance: Record and track all privilege access across your environment.

“The combination of Avecto’s and Bomgar’s technology will enable companies to quickly and easily automate critical PAM capabilities while also improving end-users’ ability to do their jobs and support the business,” said Mark Austin, co-founder and co-CEO of Avecto. “We’re thrilled to join the Bomgar family and jointly lead the market in developing solutions that address today’s most pervasive and dangerous challenges.”

“It’s exciting to be joining a company that genuinely cares as much as Avecto does about its employees, customers, and partners,” said Paul Kenyon, co-founder and co-CEO of Avecto. “The combination of our teams will not only ensure Avecto’s customers and partners continue to receive the stellar service and support that is a hallmark of our business, but also benefit from the additional solutions and capabilities that Bomgar brings to the table.”

Terms of the transaction, which is expected to close July 31, 2018, will not be disclosed. For more information, please visit www.bomgar.com. Results International acted as exclusive financial adviser to Avecto.

About Bomgar

Bomgar’s secure access solutions enable customers to easily support people, access and protect endpoints, and defend privileged credentials to fight cyber threats and speed business performance. More than 15,000 organizations around the globe use Bomgar to deliver superior support services and reduce threats to valuable data and systems. Bomgar clients include some of the world’s leading IT outsourcers, systems integrators, software vendors, healthcare organizations, government agencies, universities, financial institutions, and retailers. Bomgar is privately held with offices in Atlanta, Jackson, Washington D.C., Frankfurt, London, Paris, and Singapore. Connect with Bomgar at www.bomgar.com, the Bomgar Blog, or on Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn.

About Avecto

For organizations seeking to prevent breaches without hindering productivity, Avecto Defendpoint combines best-in-class privilege management and application control software, making admin rights removal simple and scalable across desktops and servers to ensure compliance, security, and efficiency.

Since 2008, the company has enabled over 8 million users across the world’s biggest brands and most highly-regulated industries to successfully work from the safety of standard user accounts while enjoying the flexibility of admin accounts.

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EQT to sell its stake in Sportradar to consortium of CPPIB and TCV

eqt

  • EQT VI to sell its stake in Sportradar, the global leader in understanding and leveraging the power of sports data, to a consortium of CPPIB and TCV in transaction valuing Sportradar at EUR 2.1bn
  • During EQT VI’s investment period, Sportradar has grown significantly, both organically and through add-on acquisitions, with continuous innovation and development of its product offering across the value chain as well as expansion into new geographies
  • EQT VI will reinvest a portion of the sale proceeds into Sportradar alongside Carsten Koerl, CPPIB, TCV and other minority shareholders

EQT VI has entered into a definitive agreement to sell its 35% stake in Switzerland-based Sportradar AG (“Sportradar” or the “company”) to a consortium consisting of CPPIB (Canada Pension Plan Investment Board) and Silicon Valley-based investor Technology Crossover Ventures (TCV) in transaction valuing Sportradar at EUR 2.1bn (~USD 2.4bn).

Sportradar is the global leader in understanding and leveraging the power of sports data, uniquely positioned at the intersection of sports betting and digital entertainment. Founder and CEO Carsten Koerl will continue to lead the business as CEO and will become controlling shareholder following completion of the transaction.

EQT first invested in Sportradar in 2012 via the EQT Expansion Capital II fund which sold its stake to EQT VI in 2014. During EQT’s investment period Sportradar’s annual sales grew at a compound annual growth rate of more than 40% per year to approximately EUR 300 million during the most recently completed twelve-month period. In the same period, Sportradar increased its headcount by 1,400, a rate of 25% per year.

With the support of EQT, Sportradar expanded and diversified its product offering by adding services such as audiovisual and managed trading services. Additionally, Sportradar entered into exclusive strategic partnerships with all key US sports leagues (NBA, NFL and NHL) as well as UEFA and FIFA, whilst at the same time strengthening its organizational structures and processes.

Sportradar also expanded via several add-on acquisitions and secured a strategic investment by Revolution Growth which led to the formation of dedicated US advisory board comprising Ted Leonsis, Mark Cuban and Michael Jordan. The strong focus on the US market over recent years has positioned Sportradar well to capture the significant growth potential from the opening of the US sports betting market.

Dominik Stein, Partner and Head of the TMT sector team at EQT Partners and Investment Advisor to EQT VI, says: “Sportradar has undergone an extraordinary transformation and is today a true global market leader in the sports data and digital content solutions space. The management team – led by Carsten – has done a fantastic job in driving the business towards the strategic vision that formed the basis for the partnership between Carsten and EQT. We are convinced that CPPIB and TCV will be great partners to drive the strategic agenda for the future and EQT is excited to maintain a minority stake in the company.”

Carsten Koerl, founder and CEO of Sportradar, adds: “Working with EQT over the last six years has been an exciting journey and the tremendous growth of Sportradar is the best testimony for the success of this partnership. EQT has been a great partner supporting Sportradar in its globalization and diversification as well as the development towards the global leader in its market. Now, the management team and I are excited to drive Sportradar to the next level together with CPPIB and TCV and are excited to retain EQT as a minority shareholder in the company.”

The transaction is subject to approval from the relevant authorities and is expected to close in Q4 2018.

Contacts
Dominik Stein, Partner and Head of the TMT sector team at EQT Partners, Investment Advisor to EQT VI, +49 89 255 499 508
EQT Press office, +46 8 506 55 334, press@eqtpartners.com

About EQT
EQT is a leading investment firm with approximately EUR 50 billion in raised capital across 27 funds. EQT funds have portfolio companies in Europe, Asia and the US with total sales of more than EUR 19 billion and approximately 110,000 employees. EQT works with portfolio companies to achieve sustainable growth, operational excellence and market leadership.

More info: www.eqtpartners.com

About Sportradar
Sportradar is the leading global provider of sports data intelligence. The nexus between sports and entertainment, the company serves leagues, news media, consumer platforms and sports betting operators with deep insights and a suite of strategic solutions to help grow their businesses. Sportradar is the trusted partner of more than 1,000 companies in over 80 countries and serves as the official partner of the NBA, NFL, NHL and NASCAR as well as FIFA and UEFA. It is also the only provider entrusted to work with the US sports leagues in an official capacity to distribute sports data (NBA and NHL) and AV rights (MLB) around the world for betting purposes. The company monitors and delivers insights from more than 400,000 matches annually across 60 sports categories, having developed the industry’s most proficient software while setting new standards for speed and accuracy. With deep industry relationships, Sportradar is not just redefining the sports fan experience; it also safeguards the sports themselves through its Integrity Services division and advocacy for an integrity-driven ecosystem that is fair to partners, players and fans.

More info: www.sportradar.com

 

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Our investment in Lime: Maximising micro-mobility

Atomico

Today, we’re delighted to announce our investment in Lime. Led by co-founders Brad Bao and Toby Sun, Lime is an organisation driving behavioural change at mass scale and lightning speed.

We set out to back founders who can address the world’s biggest challenges, and improve the way we live. Moving more people more frequently, decongesting cities, and improving air quality for those who live there, are certainly monumental challenges. Lime’s e-bikes and scooters tackle them in a sustainable, affordable, and convenient way.

At Atomico, as mobility continues to be disrupted, we are looking to back multiple solutions – especially if consumers love it and it is better for the city too. One of those areas is micro-mobility.

 

The ability to unlock, jump on and off Lime’s distinctive electric scooters anywhere is already delighting city-dwellers in over 70 locations across the US. In San Francisco, each of the company’s scooters is used an average of nine times a day.  It is clear the ‘form factor’ of the electric scooter is going to be a hit for shorter journeys where ride-hailing, public transport or even walking is not quite right.

The team has ambitious plans for European expansion, and we are proud to be their European investor as they scale to our continent. We’re joining the deal with other global investors GV, Andreessen Horowitz and Uber, whose excitement for Lime we share.

This is the ideal juncture for Atomico to partner with Lime. In the last decade, we’ve developed Atomico into a platform for sharing operational experience with our portfolio companies. We’re privileged to work with Brad and Toby, and excited to put our hard-won experience to work for Lime.

 

EQT acquires Saxo Payments Banking Circle

eqt

  • EQT VIII and EQT Ventures, in partnership with Saxo Payments Banking Circle’s founders and other co-investors, to acquire Saxo Payments Banking Circle
  • Saxo Payments Banking Circle’s unique banking platform enables cross-border payments with reduced complexity, time and cost
  • EQT to support Saxo Payments Banking Circle’s continued growth by leveraging the entire EQT platform, including around 25 years of experience in future-proofing companies as well as accelerating hyper-growth businesses, deep TMT expertise, and a global industrial network

The EQT VIII fund (“EQT VIII”) and EQT Ventures fund (“EQT Ventures”) (jointly “EQT”) have together with company founders and other co-investors entered into an agreement to acquire Saxo Payments Banking Circle (“Banking Circle” or “the company”) from Saxo Bank A/S and other minority owners. EQT VIII will have the majority ownership.

Founded in 2013, Banking Circle is a next-generation provider of mission-critical infrastructure for online cross-border payments. Today, Banking Circle is processing around EUR 60 billion run-rate annual payment volumes for several high-profile customers using direct clearing access through partnerships with blue-chip partner banks. The global cross-border payments market is driven by an increasing need for faster and less costly payments, compliance, and transparency, resulting in one of the fastest growing segments within the payments ecosystem.

EQT will support the continued acceleration of Banking Circle’s growth strategy, in current and new geographies, as well as the expansion of the product portfolio. Through EQT, Banking Circle will get access to both operational and financial resources to drive innovation and investments in technology development and talent acquisition. The company will also be able to leverage the entire EQT platform, including deep TMT sector expertise, local presence and EQT’s global network of Industrial Advisors. Banking Circle’s current management team, including founders and co-CEOs Anders la Cour and Laust Bertelsen, will continue to lead the organization, building on a strong track record of growth.

“We are proud of Saxo Payments Banking Circle’s development and growth. As investor and incubator, we have supported the company with our core competencies in foreign exchange as well as developing and managing global fintech solutions. It is not an easy task to build fintech solutions that create value and are long-term sustainable, but the company has done what few succeed in. We see EQT as the ideal partner for the next part of the journey and we are confident that Saxo Payments Banking Circle will thrive and continue its impressive growth trajectory. We look forward to continuing a close collaboration with the company and EQT, leveraging our technology and market access”, says Kim Fournais, founder and CEO of Saxo Bank.

Anders la Cour and Laust Bertelsen, co-CEOs at Banking Circle comment: “We would like to thank Saxo Bank for a great partnership and look forward to a close collaboration in the years to come. We are excited to partner with EQT. With their support, we will be ideally positioned to continue innovating to serve our customers even better and continue our rapid growth.”

“We have followed Banking Circle for several years and are impressed by the company’s management team and unique innovation capabilities. Saxo Bank and Banking Circle’s management team have built an innovative, secure, and highly automated platform to make competitive, faster, and more transparent payments across borders. EQT is looking forward to supporting Banking Circle and the management team on their continued growth journey and in building a leading global payments infrastructure player. The cooperation between EQT VIII and EQT Ventures enables Banking Circle to benefit from the full EQT platform”, says Mads Ditlevsen, Responsible Deal Partner and Partner at EQT Partners, Investment Advisor to the majority owner EQT VIII.

“We’re excited to partner with the entrepreneurs behind Banking Circle and support them in building the next generation infrastructure for cross-border payments,” says Hjalmar Winbladh, Partner at EQT Partners and Investment Advisor to EQT Ventures. “Cross-border payments is a large and rapidly growing market dominated by traditional players. Banking Circle has built a disruptive solution with a strong value proposition. The customer feedback is excellent and the company’s traction is evident looking at the triple digit growth of the business.”

The transaction is expected to close in Q4 2018, subject to approval from financial regulators.

Contacts
Mads Ditlevsen, Partner at EQT Partners, Investment Advisor to EQT VIII +45 2325 0158
Hjalmar Winbladh, Partner at EQT Partners, Investment Advisor to EQT Ventures +46 708 323286
EQT Press office +46 8 506 55 334
Banking Circle Press office (Harrison Sadler) +44 208 977 9132 bankingcircle@harrisonsadler.com

About Banking Circle
Banking Circle is a rapidly growing payments infrastructure platform that enables faster, competitive and more transparent payments clearing, reducing complexity relative to the traditional correspondent banking network. Today, Banking Circle has around 85 employees and is headquartered in Denmark, with offices in Denmark, Luxembourg and the UK. The company is processing around EUR 60 billion run-rate annual payment volumes for several high-profile customers using direct clearing access and partnerships with blue-chip partner banks.

More info: www.bankingcircle.com

About EQT
EQT is a leading investment firm with approximately EUR 50 billion in raised capital across 27 funds. EQT funds have portfolio companies in Europe, Asia and the US with total sales of more than EUR 19 billion and approximately 110,000 employees. EQT works with portfolio companies to achieve sustainable growth, operational excellence and market leadership.

More info: www.eqtpartners.com

About Saxo Bank
Saxo Bank Group (Saxo) is a leading Fintech specialist focused on multi-asset trading and investment and delivering ‘Banking-as-a-Service’ to wholesale clients. For 25 years, Saxo’s mission has been to democratize investment and trading, enabling clients by facilitating their seamless access to global capital markets through technology and expertise.

As a fully licensed and regulated bank, Saxo enables its direct clients to trade multiple asset classes across global financial markets from one single margin account and across multiple devices. Additionally, Saxo provides wholesale institutional clients such as banks and brokers with multi-asset execution, prime brokerage services and trading technology, supporting the full value chain delivering Banking-as-a-Service (BaaS).

Saxo’s award winning trading platforms are available in more than 20 languages and form the technology backbone of more than 100 financial institutions worldwide. Founded in 1992 and launching its first online trading platform in 1998, Saxo Bank was a Fintech even before the term was created. Headquartered in Copenhagen Saxo Bank today employs more than 1500 people in financial centers around the world including London, Paris, Zurich, Dubai, Singapore, Shanghai, Hong Kong and Tokyo.

More info: www.home.saxo

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