Category Archives: News

Partners Group-led investor group to sell PCI Pharma Services, a leading global provider of outsourced pharmaceutical services

Partners Group

Partners Group, the global private markets investment manager, has agreed the sale of a majority equity stake in PCI Pharma Services (“PCI” or “the Company”) on behalf of its clients and alongside its investment partners Thomas H. Lee Partners and Frazier Healthcare Partners. Following the sale to private equity firm Kohlberg & Company and Abu Dhabi-based sovereign investor Mubadala Investment Company, Partners Group will retain a meaningful minority equity stake in the Company. The terms of the transaction are not disclosed.

PCI, which is headquartered in Philadelphia, PA, is a global provider of outsourced pharmaceutical supply chain solutions supporting biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies throughout the various stages of drug development and commercialization. Partners Group acquired a majority stake in PCI in June 2016, on behalf of its clients.

During the last four years, Partners Group’s investment and industry value creation teams have worked alongside the Company’s management team to further establish PCI as a strategic partner to the pharmaceutical industry, by expanding in high-growth, high-value capabilities and services categories such as clinical trial services and complex molecule and biologics commercial packaging capabilities. The Board-led value creation strategy also included a focus on operational excellence and digital innovation, culminating in PCI launching a first-of-its-kind digital customer portal. Under Partners Group’s ownership, PCI’s EBITDA increased by 15.6% CAGR.

Partners Group also led a talent transformation, appointing a new management team with a clear vision for the future of the business, and implemented numerous sustainability initiatives, such as establishing best-practice health and safety standards across PCI’s global operations. During the COVID-19 global health crisis, PCI proved itself as an essential partner in the pharmaceutical supply chain, responding with a high degree of flexibility to address urgent customer needs and supporting its pharmaceutical and biotech customers across drug development and commercialization to address the health crisis.

Remy Hauser, Managing Director and Head of Healthcare, Industry Value Creation, Partners Group, states: “We are extremely proud of our work with PCI Pharma Services. Though the last few months have been immensely challenging ones, the COVID-19 pandemic has demonstrated the essential nature of the services that PCI provides to the pharmaceutical and biotech industry. On more than one occasion, PCI was the critical link in the supply chain responsible for ensuring life-saving medicine reached those in need.”

Salim Haffar, Chief Executive Officer, PCI Pharma Services, adds: “It has been a pleasure working with Partners Group to cement PCI’s leading position in the outsourced pharmaceutical services sector. The Partners Group team has offered substantial operational value during the investment period and has been a true partner throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, providing significant additional expertise and resources. With Partners Group’s help, we are proud that PCI has been able to contribute meaningfully to the global response to this virus.”

Sujit John, Member of Management, Private Equity Directs Americas, Partners Group, adds: “We initially identified PCI as a prospective investment via our Thematic Sourcing strategy, based on the strong fundamentals supporting outsourced pharmaceutical services. During our ownership, we were able to add significant value to the business through a combination of operational improvements and bolt-on acquisitions. PCI has a strong growth trajectory ahead and we are excited to contribute to that through our continued investment in the Company.”

Jefferies LLC served as lead financial advisor to PCI and Morgan Stanley & Co LLC served as co-advisor. Goodwin Procter LLP served as legal counsel.

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Welcoming Open Payments to our portfolio

Industriefonden

August 23, 2020

Industrifonden is proud to announce that we have led a 3 MEUR seed round in Swedish FinTech Open Payments. Existing investors Brightly Ventures, Luminar Ventures, and angel investors also participated in the round. The capital will be used to continue to grow the team and establish the platform in the Nordic and European market.

Swedish fintech Open Payments is one of the leading Open Banking platforms in the Nordic region to offer genuine PSD2 API aggregation via a single and secure API. Open Payments is an FSA licensed Payment Institute that provides a cutting edge modular Open Banking Platform that enables businesses to easily and efficiently integrate with banks and other financial services through pure APIs. The platform has allowed third-party providers and business partners to develop their own products and services under their own brand-name and still own their user journey.  The platform supports an ecosystem where third-party providers and business partners will further enhance the development of the platform going forward.

Open Payments is positioned somewhere between the traditional FinTech and BigTech business models. Open Payments is licensed by the FSA to provide financial services, and the platform itself is more towards a BigTech model, with its openness and modularity. The platform not only provide open APIs, but also extensibility, openness and modularization for businesses and developers to build their unique customer offerings.

“Open Payments platform makes it easy for companies to take advantage of the enormous business development potential that Open Banking entails for small and large companies. It is also exciting to find such a strong founding team with long international experience here in the small Swedish market. I look forward to work with a young, agile company that with ingenious technical simplicity gives customers favourable freedom and flexibility in their open banking offerings”, says Anna Ljungdahl, Investment Manager at Industrifonden.

Open Payments has launched its services in Sweden and Finland with a strong customer base that has built their open banking solutions leveraging Open Payments Platform. The company plan to continue expand into more markets cross Nordics and EU by the end of the year.

The founding team of Open Payments consists of Louise Brandt, CCO, who was previously with iZettle where she held several senior positions and CEO Jonas Kjellin, with background from the startup scene in the US and many years at Microsoft. The founding team has combined experience from FinTech and BigTech which defines Open Payments vision and strategy.

“I believe that BigTechs will have a big impact on how we perform financial services in the future, but also requires traditional FinTechs, and by bridging the gap between them, we have a great position to offer our customers a flexible solution”, says Jonas Kjellin, Founder and CEO at Open Payments.

Open Payments last closed a pre-seed investment of 1.3 MSEK in May 2019. With the new funding, Open Payments will continue to grow the team expand the platform to drive and enable Open banking in the Nordic and European markets.

Read more about Open Payments here https://openpayments.io/

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Montagu fully exits stake in Visma

Montagu

Montagu Private Equity (“Montagu”), a leading European private equity firm, announced today that it has agreed to a full exit of its stake in Visma, a leading provider of business-critical software to private and public enterprises in the Nordic, Benelux and Central & Eastern European regions, to a consortium of new and existing investors.

The transaction is part of a further investment from existing shareholders Hg, GIC and CPPIB, as well as from new shareholders TPG and Warburg Pincus, that will place an enterprise value on Visma of NOK 110 billion (US$ 12.2 billion), making this the largest ever software buyout globally.

Montagu has been an investor in Visma since 2010, reinvesting in 2014 and again in 2017. During that period Visma has grown to become the leading provider of SaaS productivity solutions to businesses across the Nordics, Benelux and Central & Eastern European regions. Since Montagu’s initial investment, the company has completed over 150 add-on acquisitions and achieved annualised revenue growth of over 20%, expanding geographically and developing Visma’s technology offerings in the process.

Visma is the largest provider of cloud-delivered Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) products to European businesses, having strategically invested in SaaS technology for more than a decade. Today Visma has over 11,000 employees, including 4,000 software developers who serve over 1 million business customers.

Ed Shuckburgh, Director at Montagu, commented: “We are proud to have joined and supported Visma’s management team over the past decade in their impressive growth journey. Since our initial investment, the company has expanded to become one of the most successful software businesses in Europe. We wish the team and everyone at Visma well as they embark on this next stage of their journey.”

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Hg leads further majority investment in Visma valued at US$12.2 billion in the world’s largest ever software buyout

HG Capital

  • Hg Saturn 2 will put forward the majority of the new invested capital to acquire a further stake in Visma from a group of current investors including Montagu, who will fully exit the business.
  • New investors, Warburg Pincus and TPG will also invest in the business for the first time, acquiring minority stakes.  Existing investor CPPIB will also acquire an additional stake;
  • The investment will value Visma at an Enterprise Value of NOK 110 billion (US$12.2 billion), making this the largest ever software buyout globally;
  • Visma’s strategy is to improve society through greater productivity.  It does this by providing world-class, mission-critical, Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) to over one million businesses in areas such as accounting, resource planning, payroll, HR and commerce applications;
  • Hg will continue to support this proven strategy, alongside a group of world-class technology investors.

London, UK and Oslo, Norway. 21 August 2020. Hg, Europe’s leading software investor, today announces that the Hg Saturn team and its investors have agreed to a further investment in Visma, a leading provider of business-critical software to private and public enterprises in the Nordic, Benelux and Baltic regions.  Hg will put forward the majority of the new invested capital in a transaction valuing the business at an Enterprise Value of NOK 110 billion (US$12.2 billion), making this the largest ever software buyout globally.

The Hg Saturn 2 Fund will purchase the stake from Montagu, a leading European private equity firm which has been an investor in the business since 2010, and other investors including Hg’s Genesis 7 Fund which will reduce its holding in Visma. Warburg Pincus and TPG will invest in the company for the first time, acquiring minority stakes. Existing investor CPPIB will increase its stake, alongside other current co-investors in the business, including General Atlantic who invested earlier in the year.  Following completion of the transaction, Hg will continue to own a majority (c.54%) stake in Visma, with co-investors GIC, ICG, CPPIB, Warburg Pincus, TPG, General Atlantic and management.

Hg led the original delisting of Visma from the Oslo Stock Exchange in 2006 and has been the lead or co-lead investor in Visma for the last 14 years. During this period Visma has grown to become a leading provider of SaaS productivity solutions to businesses across Northern Europe – the Nordics, Benelux and Central & Eastern European regions.

Visma is a true Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) champion and the largest provider of cloud-delivered SaaS to European businesses. This is the result of an early decision by Visma and Hg to invest in cloud and SaaS technology in 2008.  This early investment has given Visma a leading suite of SaaS products across a number of sectors.  Today Visma has over 11,000 employees, including 4,000 software developers who serve over one million business customers. The success in SaaS has resulted in uninterrupted, year-on-year, revenue and EBITDA growth over the last 15 years of (19% and 23% CAGR respectively).

“For almost 15 years now, Visma has benefited from a supportive and highly knowledgeable private equity investor base, led by Hg. This guidance and know-how in the software sector has enabled us to consistently and significantly expand both our product offering and geographic footprint. This includes a significant investment in SaaS which has strengthened our recurring revenue model.  We continue to invest in world-class technology including new areas of innovation, such as AI and machine learning. We warmly welcome this further support from Hg, General Atlantic and new investors Warburg Pincus and TPG and look forward to continuing Visma’s journey to create a fully online ecosystem for SMBs across Europe.”

Merete Hverven, CEO of Visma.

“Visma is Europe’s biggest success story in cloud software for businesses. This is a result of consistent investment in SaaS technology by Øystein Moan, Merete Hverven and their world-class team.  Today we’re as excited as we’ve ever been about the future prospects of the business. Most recently, Covid19 has demonstrated the power of Visma’s cloud solutions – empowering businesses to stay connected and continue working through the crisis.  We’re also delighted to welcome new investors, who join the other strategic investors already supporting Visma from across the globe.”

Nic Humphries, Senior Partner and Head of the Hg Saturn team.

Advising on the transaction were: on the buy side, Arma Partners (financial adviser), Jefferies (financial adviser), Carnegie Investment Bank (financial adviser), Skadden (M&A legal), Kirkland & Ellis (financing legal), Deloitte (structuring), EY (financial and tax DD), Alvarez & Marsal (operational DD) and OC&C (top-up commercial support). On the sell side, advisors were Goldman Sachs (financial adviser), BofA Securities (financial adviser), ABG Sundal Collier (financial adviser), Linklaters (legal), Wiersholm (Norway legal), Deloitte (financial DD), Crosslake (tech DD) and OC&C (commercial DD).

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Sovos to gain new investment

HG Capital

Sovos to Gain New Investment by Hg Saturn and TA Associates, Fueling Continued Growth as Digital Transformation of Tax Accelerates Worldwide

Global tax software provider Sovos today announced that Hg — a leading global software investor, partner and supporter of the expansion of Sovos for more than four years — will lead a further, majority investment in the company through the Hg Saturn 2 Fund. TA Associates, a leading global private equity firm with more than four decades of software investing experience, will also join as a significant minority investor to support the next wave of Sovos’ growth. Following this new investment, Sovos is poised to continue its geographic expansion, deepen its partner ecosystem, and respond rapidly to emerging tax and regulatory changes around the world.

Sovos has grown substantially since Hg first invested in the company in 2016. Since then, Sovos has acquired more than 10 companies across North America, Latin America and Europe; more than doubled its customer base to 8,000-plus, including half of the Fortune 500 companies; and added more than 1,000 employees working across 10 countries. With the continuity of support from Hg and the added resources and experience from TA Associates, Sovos will advance its initiatives in adjacent segments, as well as the overall growth strategy integral to its mission to Solve Tax for GoodⓇ everywhere its customers do business.

“Hg’s new investment in Sovos is a sign of their confidence in our market, our position and our unique ability to deliver a complete solution for modern tax, including tax determination, continuous transaction control compliance and tax reporting. With the renewed support from Hg and the additional backing of TA Associates, Sovos is ready for the next stage of growth at a crucial time, as the digital transformation of government, technology and business converge.”

Andy Hovancik, CEO, Sovos

“In 2016, Hg invested in the Sovos vision to put tax compliance software where it belongs — in the modern, digital financial core. Since then, Sovos’ team has executed perfectly on a formidable strategy. In addition to strong organic growth generated from a robust recurring revenue model, Sovos has also executed on its targeted acquisition strategy, bringing new entrepreneurial founders into the business. As we move further into a world of digitized tax and regulation, Sovos is a trusted, future-ready solution for its multi-national customers.”

Jonathan Boyes, partner at Hg

“Sovos leads a large, acyclical, global sector driven by increasingly complex tax regimes. Without a global solution, the rise of digital taxation has the potential to disrupt supply chain and finance transformation efforts. Sovos recognized that, and its leadership team has built the regulatory expertise, product innovation and business strategy to address it. We believe Sovos is ready to execute globally, and TA Associates is ready to support the company as it enters this next stage of growth.”

Hythem El-Nazer, managing director at TA Associates

“Sovos has been a cornerstone partnership for Hg as we’ve expanded into the U.S. over the years. The new Hg investment marks a new stage for the business, with Sovos offering an increasingly valuable proposition for customers with complex multinational operations.  We’re absolutely delighted to continue our support for the Sovos team.”

Gero Wittemann, partner and co-lead of Hg’s New York team

The terms of the deal, which is expected to close in the second half of 2020 pending regulatory approvals and closing conditions, were not disclosed. William Blair and Jefferies served as financial advisors to Sovos. Hg (as manager of Saturn 2) was advised by Goldman Sachs and Shea & Company, and TA Associates was advised by Barclays. Skadden and Kirkland and Ellis provided legal counsel and accounting and tax advice was provided by Ernst & Young and Deloitte.

Upon closing of the transaction, Gero Wittemann of Hg and Hythem El-Nazer and Morgan Seigler of TA Associates will be appointed to the Sovos Board of Directors.

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Melijoe and Gimv join forces with The Babyshop Group to strengthen global leadership in high-end children’s fashion

GIMV

20/08/2020 – 10:55 | Portfolio

Melijoe, a leading multi-brand website for premium children’s fashion, announced today that it has joined forces with The Babyshop Group (BSG), a Swedish high-end children’s fashion group. The merger with BSG fits Melijoe’s ambition to further expand its vision and international presence to become the largest and most professional e-tailer for premium children’s fashion. Gimv and the Melijoe founder remain shareholders and join a group of recognized investors led by Verdane Capital.

Melijoe (Paris, www.melijoe.com ) was founded in 2007 when Parisienne Nathalie Genty, mother of five, launched a website offering some of the world’s most coveted children’s fashion brands.

Founded in 2007 by Nathalie Genty, mother of five with a passion for fashion and the internet, Melijoe (Paris, www.melijoe.com) has in just a few years become the privileged partner of major fashion houses. Today, the company offers more than 150 of the world’s most coveted children’s fashion brands on its website, with highly inspiring and aesthetic choices.

Gimv acquired a stake in Melijoe in November 2014, mainly to support the company in its international development towards market leadership in a global and at the same time fragmented fashion market in digital transformation.

To meet the desire of major brands to collaborate with a limited number of professional partners in a consolidating market, Gimv, as majority shareholder, has fully supported Melijoe’s strategy. A high-end positioning for an international customer base, a high-quality customer experience, an original product range and strategic partnerships with leading brands were key in this, more than a growth strategy based on volume. Thanks to this shared vision, the company was able to record sustainable international growth and is now ready for the next step, through the collaboration with BSG.

The complementarity between BSG and Melijoe is attractive: BSG’s well-developed back office (data management, acquisition marketing, retail logistics, etc.) can be deployed on a broader scale and enables the group to build further on an ambitious plan for the future.

“From my perspective, clothes are a reflection of children’s emerging personalities. When I created Melijoe, I dreamt of an online store where parents could be free to pick and play with fashion for their kids. Joining Babyshop Group will give me the opportunity to further expand my vision of what Melijoe and our new sister sites should be and represent globally.” comments Nathalie Genty, founder and CEO of Melijoe.

“Combining scale and deep sector expertise within an established but fragmented global niche market such as children’s fashion ensures the continued potential of the new Stockholm-London-Paris team. In the new group, operational capabilities and privileged relationships with consumers and A-brands should enable the very best customer experience in the business. “ add Guillaume Bardy, Partner and Gert Kerkstoel, Associate Partner at Gimv.

Through this transaction Melijoe founder Nathalie Genty and Gimv join a solid group of shareholders, with  Swedish Verdane Capital as main investor and benchmark investor for consumer internet companies in Northern Europe.

For more information, we refer to the press release of The Babyshop Group in attachment. No further financial details on this transaction are being published.

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Eurazeo Brands announces investment in Waterloo Sparkling Water

Eurazeo

Paris, 19 August 2020–Eurazeo, today announces a minority investmentin Waterloo Sparkling Water (“Waterloo”). The investment will provide Waterloo with additional operational resources, brand building expertise, and capital to grow its business by accelerating its product and marketing innovation. This marks Eurazeo Brands’,the division of Eurazeo focused on differentiated, high-growth North American and European consumer brands with global growth potential,second investment within food and beverage and sixth investment since inception.

Austin, Texas-based Waterloo was founded in 2017 and has quickly becomeone of the fastest-growing and largest independent sparkling water brands in the United States, with distribution in over 13,000 retail doors, including Whole Foods Market, Costco, Target, Kroger, Walmart, Publix, H-E-B/Central Market and others. Jason Shiver, CEO of Waterloo, who has driven the company’s rapid growth over the last three years, will continue to lead the company alongside COO Jeff Arnold. Eurazeo Brands joins a consortium of investors led by Flexis Capital, including Moore Strategic Ventures, JW Levin Management Partners, and Waterloo Capital. Waterloo’s managementteam is rolling over a significant stake as part of this transaction.

Jason Shiver, CEO, Waterloo, said: We’re very proud of the company we’ve built so far, the distinct consumer appeal of our products and the tremendous support of our retail distribution network. Choosing the best partners for Waterloo was critical to continuing our momentum and we’re confident that Eurazeo, Flexis Capital, and JW Levin will provide deep brand-building experience and industry relationships that will be key to accelerating our growth, while Moore Strategic Ventures’ financial acumen will add firepower to our capabilities. We also want to thank the CAVU Ventures team for their support to date.

Jill Granoff, CEO, Eurazeo Brands, said: Sparkling Water is a large and resilient category, with sales of $4 billion in the U.S. alone and growing double digits annually. Waterloo has experienced phenomenal growth and strong consumer loyalty since launching in 2017, and is well positioned to capture additional market share under the company’s impressive leadership. We look forward to joining forces with Flexis Capital, JW Levin and Moore Strategic Ventures, and partnering withJason and his team to drive further success.

|2|Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

About Waterloo Sparkling Water

In 2017, after recognizing that consumers were seeking, but not finding, healthy, authentic, transparent and better-for-them beverage choices that tasted great, the team dared to challenge expectation and launched Waterloo Sparkling. A rebel at heart, Waterloo has been breaking the mold since day one and is driven by its cofounder’s firsthand knowledge of the importance of food and beverage choices. The Austin-based brand is a BOLD take on sparkling water, making its mark by focusing on fruit-inspired flavor and aroma and delivering a richer, more authentic taste. Waterloo is made with Non-GMO Project verified and Whole 30 Approved flavors, free of calories, sodium, sugar and artificial sweeteners. For the benefit of its fans and the environment, Waterloo has only ever been produced in aluminum cans made with BPA-free liners.

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 estateand 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, Sao Paulo, Seoul, Shanghai, London, Luxembourg, Frankfurt, Berlin and Madrid.

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

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DIF Capital Partners acquires majority stake in UK fibre broadband operator

DIF

19 August 2020  |  London

DIF Capital Partners acquires majority stake in UK fibre broadband operator

DIF Capital Partners, through its DIF Core Infrastructure Fund II (“DIF CIF II”), is pleased to announce that it has completed the acquisition of a majority stake (54%) in 4th Utility, a fibre-to-the-premise (“FTTP”) infrastructure developer and internet service provider based in Hale, Manchester (UK).

4th Utility partners with residential and commercial landlords, property developers and house builders to design, install and upgrade their properties with state-of-the-art FTTP infrastructure.

4th Utility currently operates FTTP networks within a number of residential property developments in the North of England. DIF CIF II will provide significant capital to fund a large pipeline of opportunities generated by 4th Utility with their development partners throughout the UK.

“We are excited to partner with DIF Capital Partners who share our desire to invest in high-quality fibre infrastructure providing ultrafast internet access to properties across the UK. This long-term investment allows us to expand our current platform and provide ‘full fibre’ connectivity to a significant number of new customers” comments Tony Hughes, CEO of 4th Utility.

The transaction is the first investment for DIF CIF II in the UK and its third investment in the digital infrastructure sector following recent acquisitions in Canada and France. “We are pleased to bring our experience in digital infrastructure to support 4th Utility and their management team in delivering FTTP infrastructure investment to underserved properties in the UK” comments Willem Jansonius, Head of DIF CIF.

Please visit www.the4thutility.co.uk for further information.

About DIF Capital Partners

DIF Capital Partners is a leading global independent infrastructure fund manager, with €7.5 billion of assets under management across nine closed-end infrastructure funds and several co-investment vehicles. DIF Capital Partners invests in greenfield and operational infrastructure assets located primarily in Europe, the Americas and Australasia through two complementary strategies:

  • DIF CIF funds target equity investments in small to mid-sized infrastructure assets in the telecom, energy and transportation sectors.
  • 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 has a team of over 145 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: Thijs Verburg, IR & BD; t.verburg@dif.eu.

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EQT Infrastructure to acquire leading global data center provider EdgeConneX

eqt

  • EQT Infrastructure has agreed to acquire EdgeConneX, a leading global data center provider serving the fast growing Hyperscale and Edge ecosystems
  • EdgeConneX has a global footprint, operating and developing over 40 facilities in 33 markets across North America, Europe and South America
  • EQT Infrastructure is committed to actively support EdgeConneX’s accelerated growth via new market entries and material expansions of existing locations
  • EQT is acquiring EdgeConneX from an investor group led by Providence Equity Partners

EQT Infrastructure today announced that the EQT Infrastructure IV fund (“EQT Infrastructure”) has agreed to acquire EdgeConneX, Inc. (“EdgeConneX” or the “Company”) from an investor group led by Providence Equity Partners (“Providence”).

EdgeConneX builds and operates data centers for cloud, content, network and other service providers requiring both larger purpose-built facilities as well as edge facilities located closer to consumer and enterprise users to support latency-sensitive applications cost effectively. The Company’s broad footprint and relentless customer-focused business strategy have proven ideally suited to support these sophisticated customers’ strategic data center demands, from the Hyperscale to the Edge. As customers rapidly expand their critical infrastructure around the globe, they look to EdgeConneX as a trusted partner to enable their growth needs in an environmentally friendly manner.

EQT Infrastructure will support the continued development of EdgeConneX and actively assist the Company in its pursuit of new opportunities to grow in existing and new markets globally. EdgeConneX is uniquely positioned to benefit from the secular tailwinds driving increased data center usage. As the need for data grows ever larger, not only because of cloud and content but also driven by new innovations such as Artificial Intelligence, 5G Networks, Autonomous Vehicles, Virtual Reality, Cloud Gaming and the Internet-of-Things, there will continue to be substantial opportunities for EdgeConneX to continue to develop critical infrastructure to support its customers’ needs.

Jan Vesely, Partner at EQT Partners, said, “EQT has followed EdgeConneX’s journey from its early years to its growth into a top data center industry player. We are deeply impressed by EdgeConneX’s management team and the success they have had in creating a key contributor to the global cloud infrastructure. This partnership represents an exciting opportunity for EQT in a sector and geographies where we have significant experience. EQT looks forward to working with the team in continuing to grow the business and identify new expansion opportunities”.

Randy Brouckman, CEO of EdgeConneX, said, “EQT brings significant financial resources and digital infrastructure industry experience which EdgeConneX will use to accelerate growth and invest in new data centers around the world. I look forward to continuing to lead EdgeConneX and we are very pleased to have EQT as our new owner and partner in this exciting growth phase. On behalf of EdgeConneX, I thank our outstanding customers and partners, dedicated employees and long-term shareholders that gave us the latitude to succeed and create lasting value”.

Chris Ragona, Managing Director at Providence, said, “We have enjoyed working with Randy and team over the past five years and are pleased to have helped the company grow significantly, especially overseas. We fully expect EdgeConneX will continue its momentum and success as the company enters this next chapter. On behalf of our entire investor group, we wish them well”.

The transaction is subject to customary closing conditions and is expected to close in the fourth quarter of 2020. With this transaction, EQT Infrastructure IV is expected to be 80-85% invested.

Evercore acted as financial advisor and Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP acted as legal counsel to EdgeConneX. Goldman Sachs acted as financial advisor and Kirkland & Ellis LLP acted as lead legal counsel to EQT Infrastructure.

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

US press contact: daniel.yunger@kekstcnc.com, +1 917 574 8582
EQT press office: press@eqtpartners.com, +46 8 506 55 334

About EdgeConneX
EdgeConneX provides a full range of data center solutions worldwide, from Hyperlocal to Hyperscale, from purpose-built to build-to-order, working closely with our customers to offer choice in location, scale, and type of facility. Delivering flexibility, connectivity, proximity, and value, EdgeConneX is a global leader in anytime, anywhere, any scale data center services for a diverse portfolio of industries including Content, Cloud, Networks, Gaming, Automotive, SaaS, IoT, HPC, Security, and more.

More info: www.edgeconnex.com
Press contact: jsa_edgeconnex@jsa.net, +1-866-695-3629 ext 13

About Providence Equity Partners
Providence is a premier global asset management firm with over $49 billion in aggregate capital commitments. Providence pioneered a sector-focused approach to private equity investing with the vision that a dedicated team of industry experts could build exceptional companies of enduring value. Since the firm’s inception in 1989, Providence has invested in more than 200 companies and has become a leading equity investment firm focused on the media, communications, education and information industries. Providence is headquartered in Providence, RI, and also has offices in New York and London.

More info: www.provequity.com
Press contact: Andrew Cole and Hayley Cook, Sard Verbinnen & Co, prov-svc@sardverb.com

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Duck Creek Technologies Prices Initial Public Offering

Apax

13 August 2020

Boston, August. 13, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Duck Creek Technologies, Inc. (“Duck Creek”), a provider of SaaS-delivered enterprise software to the property and casualty (“P&C”) insurance industry, announced today the pricing of its initial public offering of 15,000,000 shares of its common stock at a price of $27.00 per share. The shares are expected to begin trading on the Nasdaq Global Select Market on August 14, 2020 under the symbol “DCT.” The offering is expected to close on August 18, 2020 subject to customary closing conditions. The underwriters have a 30-day option to purchase up to an additional 2,250,000 shares of common stock at the initial public offering price, less underwriting discounts and commissions.

Goldman Sachs & Co. LLC, J.P. Morgan and BofA Securities are serving as lead book-running managers for the proposed offering. Barclays and RBC Capital Markets are also acting as book-running managers for the proposed offering. JMP Securities, Needham & Company, Stifel, William Blair, D.A. Davidson & Co, Raymond James and Loop Capital Markets are acting as co-managers for the proposed offering.

This offering is being made only by means of a prospectus. Copies of the final prospectus may be obtained, when available, for free by visiting EDGAR on the Securities and Exchange Commission’s (“SEC”) website at www.sec.gov. Alternatively, copies of the final prospectus, when available, may be obtained for free from the offices of Goldman Sachs & Co. LLC, Attention: Prospectus Department, 200 Wall Street, New York, New York 10282, by telephone at (866) 471-2526 or by email at prospectus-ny@ny.email.gs.com; J.P. Morgan Securities LLC, c/o Broadridge Financial Solutions, 1155 Long Island Avenue, Edgewood, NY, 11717, by telephone at (866) 803-9204 or by email at prospectus-eq_fi@jpmchase.com; or BofA Securities, Inc., Attn: Prospectus Department, 200 North College Street, 3rd floor, Charlotte, NC 28255 or by email at dg.prospectus_requests@bofa.com. The offering is subject to market and other conditions, and there can be no assurance as to whether or when the offering may be completed.

The registration statement relating to these securities has been declared effective by the Securities and Exchange Commission.  This press release shall not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy these securities, nor shall there be any sale of these securities in any state or jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful prior to registration or qualification under the securities laws of any such state or jurisdiction.

About Duck Creek

Duck Creek Technologies is a leading provider of core system solutions to the P&C and General insurance industry. By accessing Duck Creek OnDemand, the company’s enterprise Software-as-a-Service solution, insurance carriers are able to navigate uncertainty and capture market opportunities faster than their competitors. Duck Creek’s functionally-rich solutions are available on a standalone basis or as a full suite, and all are available via Duck Creek OnDemand.

Forward Looking Statements

This press release includes certain disclosures which contain “forward-looking statements.” You can identify forward-looking statements because they contain words such as “believes” and “expects.” Forward-looking statements, including statements regarding the size, timing and expected price range of the initial public offering, are based on Duck Creek’s current expectations and assumptions. Because forward-looking statements relate to the future, they are subject to inherent uncertainties, risks and changes in circumstances that may differ materially from those contemplated by the forward-looking statements, which are neither statements of historical fact nor guarantees or assurances of future performance. Important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements are set forth in Duck Creek’s registration statement on Form S-1, as amended from time to time, including under the caption “Risk Factors.” Any forward-looking statement in this release speaks only as of the date of this release. Duck Creek undertakes no obligation to publicly update or review any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future developments or otherwise, except as may be required by any applicable laws.

Media Contact:

Paul Rechichi
Racepoint Global
617 624 3295
prechichi@racepointglobal.com

Sam A. Shay
Duck Creek Technologies
857 201 5784
sam.shay@duckcreek.com

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