Category Archives: News

Veritas Capital Completes Acquisition of Cambium Learning Group

Veritas Capital

DALLAS, TX. – Cambium Learning® Group, Inc. (“Cambium” or the “Company”), a leading educational technology solutions company committed to helping all students reach their full potential, announced today that it has completed its previously announced sale to certain affiliates of Veritas Capital, a leading private equity investment firm.

The Company also completed its previously announced acquisition of VKIDZ Holdings Inc. (“VKidz”), an award winning edtech company dedicated to helping deliver the best education to students using digital solutions.

“We are excited to welcome the Cambium management team and employees and look forward to supporting their many growth opportunities ahead,” said Ramzi Musallam, CEO and Managing Partner of Veritas Capital. “The education technology space is a key focus area for Veritas, and we believe our partnership with Cambium will accelerate the company’s mission of improving outcomes for districts, educators, students and parents.”

John Campbell, Chief Executive Officer of the Company commented, “We are thrilled to partner with Veritas Capital as we embark on the next chapter of our long-term growth. I am proud of the transformation we have accomplished at Cambium as we continue to improve our product suite in terms of technology, efficacy, and engagement. We look forward to helping even more students with the addition of VKidz.”

“It has been our pleasure to work with John and the world-class team at Cambium,” said David Bainbridge, Managing Director of Veronis Suhler Stevenson (“VSS”), an affiliate of the former majority stockholder of the Company. “Since our investment, we have partnered with management to invest in new technology, execute strategic acquisitions, and implement initiatives to accelerate the Company’s growth, and are proud of the progress the Company has made in transitioning to a digital subscription business. We thank Cambium’s leadership and employees for their tremendous efforts and collaboration over the years and wish them well in their next phase of growth.”

Cambium Learning® Group’s stock will cease trading on the NASDAQ under the ticker symbol ABCD effective today.

Macquarie Capital acted as the Company’s financial advisor and Lowenstein Sandler LLP acted as the Company’s legal counsel in connection with the transactions.

Schulte Roth & Zabel LLP acted as Veritas Capital’s legal counsel in connection with the transactions.

About Cambium Learning Group

Cambium Learning® Group, Inc. is an award-winning educational technology solutions leader dedicated to helping all students reach their potential through individualized and differentiated instruction. Using a research-based, personalized approach, Cambium Learning Group, Inc. delivers SaaS resources and instructional products that engage students and support teachers in fun, positive, safe and scalable environments. These solutions are provided through Learning A-Z® (online differentiated instruction for elementary school reading, writing and science), ExploreLearning® (online interactive math and science simulations and a math fact fluency solution) and Voyager Sopris Learning® (blended solutions that accelerate struggling learners to achieve in literacy and math and professional development for teachers). We believe that every student has unlimited potential, that teachers matter, and that data, instruction, and practice are the keys to success in the classroom and beyond. Come learn with us at www.cambiumlearning.com.

About Veritas Capital

Veritas Capital is a leading private equity firm that invests in companies that provide critical products and services, primarily technology and technology-enabled solutions, to government and commercial customers worldwide, including those operating in the aerospace & defense, healthcare, technology, national security, communications, energy, government services and education industries. Veritas seeks to create value by strategically transforming the companies in which it invests through organic and inorganic means. For more information on Veritas Capital and its current and past investments, visit www.veritascapital.com.

About VSS

Veronis Suhler Stevenson (www.vss.com) is a private investment firm that invests in the information, education, healthcare, and tech-enabled business services industries.  VSS provides capital for growth financings, recapitalizations, strategic acquisitions and buyouts to lower middle market companies and management teams with the goal of building companies organically as well as through a focused add-on acquisition program.  VSS makes privately-negotiated investments across the capital structure and invests in situations requiring control or non-control equity, mezzanine securities and structured equity securities.

Media Contacts:

Cambium Learning Group, Inc.
Barbara Benson
investorrelations@cambiumlearning.com

or

Jody Burfening/Carolyn Capaccio
LHA
212.838.3777
ccapaccio@lhai.com

Veritas Capital
Andrew Cole/David Millar/Julie Rudnick
Sard Verbinnen & Co
212.687.8080
VeritasCapital-SVC@sardverb.com

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Leadec closes Veltec sale to Plant Systems & Services PSS GmbH

Triton

Stuttgart/Niedernberg, 2018-12-21 – Today, the Leadec Group announced the closing of the sale of the Veltec Group to Plant Systems & Services PSS GmbH after receiving the competent competition authorities’ approval.

The signing took place on November 23, 2018. The Veltec Group was taken over retroactively as of December 31, 2017. It has been agreed to maintain silence on the framework conditions of the sale.

Leadec will completely focus on its strategic growth targets in the manufacturing industry, while Veltec will strengthen its position in the process industry with PSS as a strategic partner. The sale has no impact on Veltec’s current projects and framework contracts.

About Leadec

Leadec is the leading provider of technical services for the automotive and manufacturing industries. The company, which is headquartered in Stuttgart, employs almost 20,000 people worldwide. In 2017 Leadec earned sales of around EUR 900 million. For more than 50 years, Leadec has been supporting its customers along the entire production supply chain. The service provider is based at more than 200 locations, often directly at the customers’ plants and facilities.

Leadec’s global services comprise: Install (installation and automation, disassembly and reassembly), Maintain (production equipment maintenance and technical cleaning), Support (IFM/TFM and internal logistics) and Digitize&Optimize (process engineering and digital services) as well as other local services.

For more information about Leadec go to: www.leadec-services.com

About Veltec

Veltec is a leading European provider of technical maintenance services for the process and power plant industries, focusing on customers in Central and Northern Europe. Veltec currently has 9 branches and the Veltec service team supports customers in the process industries oil and gas, chemicals, life sciences, raw materials and power plants on site at 35 additional sites.

For more information about Veltec go to: www.veltec-services.com

About Plant Systems & Services PSS GmbH

Plant Systems & Services PSS GmbH is the holding company for a group of specialized companies that provide services for the energy and process industry, such as for power plants and chemical and steel companies, waste incineration plants and district heating suppliers.

The group is composed of four companies, including Etabo Energietechnik und Anlagenservice GmbH, which has its headquarters in Bochum, Germany and has more than 40 years of experience in construction and maintenance of pipelines and components for power plants and industrial sites in Germany. The group also comprises three smaller companies in other locations in North Rhine-Westphalia and Lower Saxony.

For more information about Plant Systems & Services PSS GmbH go to: www.elka-beteiligungs.de

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Fresks acquires XL-BYGG Vetlanda

Litorina

Fresks continues to expand through the acquisition of XL-Bygg Vetlanda, a builder’s merchant located in Vetlanda in Jönköping county. The current owners, Johan and Catrine Aronsson, will reinvest part of the proceeds from the transaction and become shareholders in Fresks Group.

XL-BYGG Vetlanda (Vetlanda Trävaru AB) was foundedin 1972, at the time operating a plaining mill, and today the business is a focused full-service builder’s merchant with a turnover of approximately SEK 70million.

After the acquisition Fresks Group will have a total of 33 stores with pro forma revenues of approximately SEK 2.2 billion and 530 employees.

The transaction will complete on 15 January 2019.

For further information, please contact:
Leif Lindholm, +46 70 698 27 00, CEO Fresks Group

Fresks, founded in 1862 is a leading Swedish builder’s merchant group. The company has 33 stores under various local brands whereof the majority is branded XL-BYGG. Fresks sells high quality building material with high degree of service primarily to small and mid-sized professional customers. For more information, please visit www.fresks.se

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H.I.G. Portfolio Company Maillis Group Sells Wulftec to Duravant

HAMBURG – December 21, 2018 – The Maillis Group (“Maillis”), a portfolio company of H.I.G. Capital LLC (“H.I.G.”), and the world’s second largest manufacturer of end-of-line packaging equipment, has sold Wulftec International, Inc. (“Wulftec”) to Duravant, a global engineered equipment and automation solutions provider to the food processing, packaging and material handling sectors.

Wulftec is the market-leading provider of end-of-line packaging automation solutions in North America. Wulftec leverages decades of engineering expertise and manufacturing know-how to deliver highly customized and scalable solutions that address the most complex end-of-line packaging challenges across a diversified customer base. Founded in 1990, Wulftec is located in Ayer’s Cliff, Quebec.

Wolfgang Biedermann, Managing Director of H.I.G. Europe, commented: “Wulftec is the leader in the end-of-line packaging automation market with a truly compelling value proposition. The capability to deliver highly value-added solutions, and to provide around-the-clock customer service with a best in class technical support team are unmatched in the industry. Since our acquisition of Maillis, we have significantly invested into Wulftec’s expansion and management has done an outstanding job to drive the company’s strong growth trajectory”.

About Maillis
Established in 1968, Maillis is the world’s second largest manufacturer of end-of-line packaging equipment and offers its customers “one-stop solutions”. In addition to supplying consumables such as strapping and film products, Maillis produces innovative packaging machines under well-known brand names and offers its customers international after-sales services.

Maillis is an international company with seven production sites located in Germany, Greece, Italy, Poland, Canada and the United States, with approximately 1,300 employees. With more than 15,000 customers and a broad product portfolio, Maillis generates more than €260 million in revenues. The company’s customer base extends to the food and beverage, aluminium, steel, construction, timber and bailing industries and it is the exclusive or preferred supplier to major industrial and consumer products multinationals such as US Steel, Nestle, Coca Cola, P&G, Henkel, Pepsi, Mars, Lafarge, Alcoa, ArcelorMittal, Corus, Wall-mart and others. www.maillis.com.

About Duravant
Headquartered in Downers Grove, Illinois, Duravant is a global engineered equipment company with manufacturing, sales and service facilities throughout North America, Europe and Asia. Through their portfolio of operating companies, Duravant delivers trusted end-to-end process solutions for customers and partners through engineering and integration expertise, project management and operational excellence. With worldwide sales distribution and service networks, they provide immediate and lifetime aftermarket support to all the markets they serve in the food processing, packaging and material handling sectors. Duravant’s market-leading brands are synonymous with innovation, durability and reliability. Duravant is a portfolio company of Warburg Pincus. www.duravant.com

About H.I.G. Capital
H.I.G. is a leading global private equity and alternative assets investment firm with over €26 billion of equity capital under management.* Based in Miami, and with offices in New York, Boston, Chicago, Dallas, Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Atlanta in the U.S., as well as international affiliate offices in London, Hamburg, Madrid, Milan, Paris, Bogotá, Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo, H.I.G. specializes in providing both debt and equity capital to small and mid-sized companies, utilizing a flexible and operationally focused/value-added approach:

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

Since its founding in 1993, H.I.G. has invested in and managed more than 300 companies worldwide. The firm’s current portfolio includes more than 100 companies with combined sales in excess of €28 billion. For more information, please refer to the H.I.G. website at www.higcapital.com.

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

 

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ucandoo makes vacationing easily affordable

BM-T

The finTech-company, ucandoo, is revolutionizing the market for travel financing

Erfurt, Germany based ucandoo raised a single-digit million investment from lead-investor bm|t beteiligungsmanagement thüringen gmbh and Alpanekino Ltd. ucandoo is a fintech start-up that has developed a platform to make financing travel hassle-free. Experts estimate that today 25 percent of all travel is financed, and the market is growing strongly.

ucandoo´s platform replaces the current cumbersome path via banks and unites the largely separate worlds of travel booking and travel financing.

Customers can now decide in a travel agency if they would like to pay for travel in the conventional manner or with a credit financing with a maximum 12-month duration and a fair interest rate. With only a few data inputs, ucandoo´s partner bank performs an instant creditworthiness check and delivers a financing decision. The service is simple and transparent for the customer and saves significant time spent filling out paperwork at a bank, and, importantly, allows for the time-shifting of payment for travel.

Ucandoo Makes Vacationing Easily Affordable

ucandoo is first launching its platform for physical travel agencies and will then address the online market in a second phase. In Germany, for example, over 60% of leisure travel is still booked with physical travel agencies. ucandoo has already won the largest travel-coop in Europe, Raiffeisen-Touristikgruppe, with 7,000 travel agencies in Germany, Austria, Belgian, Holland, and Luxemburg as a key partner. The service will be successively rolled out in Raiffeisen-Touristikgruppe travel agencies throughout 2019. “The product should allow people to take trips that they previously could not have afforded,” explained shareholder and manager Julien Bahadir. Mr. Bahadir also believes the availability of easy financing will result in the booking of higher-end travel. “This investment will allow us to sustainably change the market for financed travel,” he added.

“We strengthen Thüringen´s Economy through targeted investments in innovative growth companies with high potential,” said Kevin Reeder, CEO of bm|t beteiligungsmanagement gmbh. “We believe in the ucandoo team and that they will significantly contribute to the travel market. The startup from Erfurt has a strong idea and vision for disrupting the travel financing market with a sleek technology platform that creates a win-win situation. The travel agencies can offer an added-value service that will increase their bookings and travelers will now have additional options for their travel.”

Contact:

Annette Brünger
ucandoo GmbH
+49 (0) 163 3345100
www.ucandoo.de

About bm|t:

bm|t beteiligungsmanagement thüringen gmbh currently manages eight investment funds with a volume of 320 Mio. EUR. As the universal investment company for the federal state of Thuringia, bm|t invests in innovative companies across all sectors and stages, from seed investments in startups to growth equity and mezzanine funding for established companies to succession investments such as MBOs and MBIs. The company´s mission is to strengthen Thuringia´s economy while generating positive investment results through targeted investments in innovative growth companies with high potential. In addition to capital, bm|t brings a wealth of experience and a strong network to its investee-partners.

www.bm-t.de

 

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EURAZEO completes its acquisition of a stake in ALBINGIA

Eurazeo

Eurazeo announced today the completion of the acquisition of Albingia, a French insurance company, through a co-investment with Financière de Blacailloux, controlled by Bruno Chamoin (Albingia’s CEO), and the management team.
Eurazeo has invested around €263 million to acquire 70% of the share capital, based on an enterprise value of €508 million.
***
About Eurazeo
o Eurazeo is a leading global investment company, with a diversified portfolio of €17 billion in assets under management, including nearly €11 billion from third parties, invested in over 300 companies. With its considerable private equity, venture capital, real estate, private debt and fund of funds expertise, Eurazeo accompanies companies of all sizes, supporting their development through the commitment of its 235 professionals and by offering deep 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, Buenos Aires, Shanghai, London, Luxembourg, Frankfurt and Madrid.

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

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First exit by EQT Ventures – sells stake in Small Giant Games at USD 700 million valuation

EQT Ventures

  • EQT Ventures sells its stake in mobile games company Small Giant Games to Zynga, a leading social games developer
  • EQT Ventures led a USD 5.7 million Series A round in March 2017 and an additional USD 41 million investment at the end of January 2018

The EQT Ventures fund (“EQT Ventures”) today announces that it entered an agreement to sell its ownership stake in the Finnish mobile gaming studio, Small Giant Games (“the Company”) to Zynga Inc. (Nasdaq: ZNGA), a leading social game developer, headquartered in San Francisco, California. The implied valuation of the Small Giant Games transaction is at USD 700 million. EQT Ventures led a USD 5.7 million Series A round in March 2017 and then led an additional USD 41 million investment in January 2018.

Founded in 2013, Small Giant Games’ team of 47 employees developed the hit franchise Empires & Puzzles. The game blends approachable Match-3 battles with deeper gameplay elements including Hero Collection, Base Building and Social Alliances. Just ten months after Empires & Puzzles’ launch in March 2017, the game had developed a strong new brand and loyal following, and Small Giant Games reported USD 33 million in revenues. In the first four months of 2018, the company had already exceeded 2017’s revenue. In addition, Empires & Puzzles has frequently made it into the the Top 10 Grossing Games on the Google Play Store and Apple App Store and has now been downloaded more than 26 million times.

In March 2017, EQT Ventures led Small Giant Games’ USD 5.7 million Series A round and has remained the largest individual owner in the Company since. Following the successful launch of Empires & Puzzles, EQT Ventures was dedicated to supporting the Company’s continued growth journey and, at the end of January 2018, the fund led an additional USD 41 million investment. During the investment period, EQT Ventures – with its team’s mobile gaming experience – supported the Company as it sought to scale Empires & Puzzles.

Timo Soininen, CEO at Small Giant Games, commented: “Our studio has always believed that small, focused and talented teams with a big vision can achieve huge things. EQT Ventures has supported us from the start – not just with capital, but also strategic advice and guidance. The EQT Ventures team’s extensive mobile gaming experience and entrepreneurial mindset has proved invaluable when scaling Empires & Puzzles and we’ve enjoyed working closely with Lars and the rest of the team. I’m confident that partnering with Zynga is now the right next step in our evolution.”

Lars Jörnow, Partner at EQT Partners and Investment Advisor to EQT Ventures, concluded: “Huge congratulations to Timo, Markus, Otto and the rest of the Small Giant team – this is a well-deserved milestone for everyone at the company. The Small Giant team checked all the boxes for EQT Ventures: small, passionate, agile, data-driven and determined to build a global hit game. The EQT Ventures team would like to thank Small Giant Games for letting us be part of their journey – it has been a true partnership and we look forward to the next phase!”

Contact
Lucy Wimmer, Communications Partner, EQT Ventures, lucy@eqtventures.com, +44 7551 289 177
EQT Press Office, press@eqtpartners.com, +46 8 506 55 334

About EQT Ventures
EQT Ventures is a multi-stage VC fund with commitments of just over EUR 566 million. The fund is based in Luxembourg and has investment advisors stationed in Stockholm, Amsterdam, London, San Francisco and Berlin. Fuelled by some of Europe’s most experienced company builders and scalers, EQT Ventures helps the next generation of entrepreneurs with capital and hands on support. EQT Ventures is part of EQT, a leading investment firm with more than EUR 50 billion in raised capital across 28 funds.

More info: www.eqtpartners.com

About EQT
EQT is a leading investments firm with more than EUR 50 billion in raised capital across 28 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 Small Giant Games
Small Giant Games was founded in early 2013 with the belief that small, talented teams can do extraordinary things. We bring years of experience to the table, with a crew of top players in game development, software engineering and graphic design. We’re based right in the heart of downtown Helsinki, Finland.

More info: www.smallgiantgames.com

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CVC Fund VII agrees to acquire 30% stake in Cosan Lubes Investments Limited

CVC Funds’ first investment in Latin America to help leading manufacturer and distributor of specialty lubricants with international expansion

CVC Capital Partners Fund VII today signed an agreement to acquire a 30% stake in Cosan Lubes Investments Limited (“Moove”), a leading Latin American manufacturer and distributor of specialty lubricants, from Cosan, one of the largest and most successful Brazilian conglomerates with assets in the energy and logistics sectors, all leaders in their respective industries. Cosan will remain the majority shareholder with a 70% stake following the closing of the transaction.

Moove is the sole manufacturer of Mobil-branded specialty lubricants in Brazil and has the exclusive rights to commercialize products in Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay, Paraguay and Bolivia. Within Latin America, Moove sells via a network of exclusive distributors and directly to large industrial groups and OEMs. Since 2012, Moove initiated an expansion plan into Europe and now distributes mainly Mobil-branded specialty lubricants focused on industrial clients in the UK, France, Spain and Portugal.

Jean-Marc Etlin, Partner overseeing CVC’s private equity activities across Latin America based in São Paulo commented: “The partnership with Cosan presents a great opportunity for CVC Funds to invest for the first time in Latin America. We are looking forward to working closely with the excellent management teams of Cosan and Moove, leveraging our expertise and our global network to expand its footprint internationally.”

The transaction is subject to the customary approval process by the relevant regulatory authorities. Closing is expected in the first quarter of 2019.

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Gryphon Investors to Acquire RegEd, Inc.

Gryphon Investors

San Francisco, CA – December 20, 2018 —

 Gryphon Investors (“Gryphon”), a San Francisco-based middle-market private equity firm, today announced that it has signed a definitive agreement to acquire RegEd, Inc. (“RegEd” or “the Company”), the leading provider of compliance and regulatory management services for insurance companies, broker-dealers, banks, and other financial services companies. Founder and CEO John Schobel and other members of RegEd’s management team, as well as current majority owner Falfurrias Capital Partners, will retain an equity ownership in the Company. Mark Schlageter, Gryphon Executive Advisory Board Member and former Thomson Reuters Chief Customer Officer, will be the Chairman of RegEd. The transaction closed on December 20, 2018 and financial terms were not disclosed.

Founded in 2000 and headquartered in Raleigh, North Carolina, RegEd provides SaaS-based enterprise solutions through a suite of over 25 separate software modules to more than 200 blue-chip customers, including 80% of the top 25 financial services firms. RegEd’s comprehensive suite of compliance automation, regulatory change management, and licensing and registration software solutions is focused on the broker-dealer, insurance, and banking end markets, and has broader corporate compliance applications as well.

Alex Earls, Partner and head of the Business Services Group at Gryphon, said, “RegEd is a strong fit with our ongoing initiative focused on investing in market leading businesses within the Governance, Risk, and Compliance (“GRC”) sector. John Schobel and his management team have built a high-quality business and we are excited to partner with them to support the Company’s continued growth both organically and through acquisitions.”

Mr. Schlageter, who has partnered with Gryphon since 2017 and is a recognized expert in GRC SaaS, added, “RegEd has consistently proven that it drives discernible value with its customers via technological approaches to compliance that are cutting edge. RegEd’s mission critical workflow-embedded solutions provide customers a positive ROI, resulting in high levels of customer stickiness and a strong platform for future innovation and growth. I very much look forward to working with John Schobel and his team.”

Mr. Schobel stated, “We are very excited for RegEd’s next phase. Gryphon has a demonstrated legacy of partnering with its portfolio companies to help them successfully achieve their next stage of growth. With nearly 20 years of creating solutions to help our clients manage compliance, mitigate risk, and drive efficiency in their operations, we know there is an even greater opportunity to serve our clients and industry. Gryphon is the ideal partner to help us achieve that vision.”

Evercore and Baird served as financial advisors to Gryphon and Raymond James acted as the exclusive financial advisor to RegEd. Morrison & Foerster, LLP acted as the legal advisor to Gryphon and McGuire Woods acted as the legal advisor to RegEd.

 

About RegEd
RegEd is the market-leading provider of RegTech enterprise solutions with relationships with hundreds of enterprise clients, including 80% of the top 25 financial services firms.

Established in 2000 by former regulators, the company is recognized for continuous regulatory technology innovation with solutions hallmarked by workflow-directed processes, data integration, regulatory intelligence, automated validations, business process automation, and compliance dashboards. The aggregate drives the highest levels of operational efficiency and enables our clients to cost-effectively comply with regulations and continuously mitigate risk.

Trusted by the nation’s top financial services firms, RegEd’s proven, holistic approach to RegTech meets firms where they are on the compliance and risk management continuum, scaling as their needs evolve and amplifying the value proposition delivered to clients. For more information, please visit www.reged.com.

About Gryphon Investors
Based in San Francisco, Gryphon Investors (www.gryphoninvestors.com) is a leading private equity firm focused on profitably growing and competitively enhancing middle-market companies in partnership with experienced management teams. The firm has managed over $4.5 billion of equity investments and capital since 1997. Gryphon targets making equity investments of $50 million to $200 million in portfolio companies with sales ranging from approximately $100 million to $500 million. Gryphon prioritizes investment opportunities where it can form strong partnerships with owners and executives to build leading companies, utilizing Gryphon’s capital, specialized professional resources, and operational expertise.

Contacts

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TowerBrook Announces Acquisition of Orchid Underwriters from Gryphon Investors

NEW YORK and VERO BEACH, FL – December 20, 2018 – TowerBrook Capital Partners L.P. (“TowerBrook”), an international investment management firm, announced today that it has acquired Orchid Underwriters Agency, LLC (“Orchid”), a specialty underwriter of catastrophe exposed property insurance, from private equity firm Gryphon Investors. Financial terms were not disclosed.

Orchid President and CEO Brad Emmons will continue to lead Orchid, working alongside TowerBrook to continue the company’s growth. Gryphon will maintain a significant equity position in the company going forward.

Founded in 1998 and based in Vero Beach, FL, Orchid is a Managing General Agency (MGA)/Managing General Underwriter (MGU) providing specialty P&C insurance products to homeowners, high net worth individuals, and small businesses throughout the United States and the Caribbean. Orchid provides proprietary insurance solutions for “hard-to-place” risks to a growing, national network of retail agents and other strategic distribution partners. The company maintains several long-standing partnerships with high-quality insurance and reinsurance carriers that provide consistent and, in many cases, exclusive risk capacity to Orchid.

“We are thrilled to partner with TowerBrook and look forward to benefiting from its deep operational experience and strong network in the insurance industry,” said Brad Emmons, President and CEO of Orchid. “We have made significant strategic advancements under Gryphon’s ownership, and we now expect TowerBrook’s investment and guidance to further support future development as we continue to grow the platform organically through geographic and product expansion and pursue potential acquisitions. We look forward to the opportunities ahead as we work together to deliver greater value for our partner agents, carriers, and talented employees.”

TowerBrook’s investment in Orchid is the result of a targeted approach to the insurance services market focused on identifying attractive, resilient business models with consistent growth profiles. This acquisition aligns with TowerBrook’s investment strategy to back strong management teams operating in growth markets. TowerBrook will work with Orchid’s management team to develop organic and inorganic initiatives which further scale Orchid’s platform.

TowerBrook has a long history of investments in the insurance and financial services industry and a strong network in the sector, having partnered with companies such as Ironshore, Rewards Network, CapQuest, Hayfin, Fortiva, Validity Finance, and Ladder Capital.

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