Category Archives: News

Partners Group publishes market outlook for H2 2017: ‘In search of platform-building opportunities’

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aar-Zug, Switzerland, 30 August 2017

Partners Group publishes market outlook for H2 2017: ‘In search of platform-building opportunities’

Partners Group today publishes its H2 2017 Private Markets Navigator report, which shares the firm’s mid-term outlook and investment preferences for all private markets asset classes.

Introducing the report, Steffen Meister, Partner, Delegate of the Board of Directors, and Chairman of the Relative Value Committee at Partners Group, says: “We continue to believe in a base case macroeconomic projection of sustained low but steady growth. However, after nearly a decade of rising markets, and with a shift away from extremely loose monetary policy, there is the risk of a deviation from our base case. Identifying anchor assets with platform-building potential in above-average growth segments and testing their resilience to adverse economic scenarios is key to outperformance in this environment.”

A short summary of the views presented in the H2 2017 Private Markets Navigator:

Private equity: the prospect of different potential macroeconomic outcomes paired with high valuations makes for a challenging investment environment. To continue to generate sustainable returns, we focus on ‘platform investments’ through which we can develop resilient market leaders at a reasonable price. Next to platform investments, we maintain two additional major investment strategies: we aim to find ‘category winners’, which are leaders in terms of market share or growth potential in sub-sectors benefiting from trend-based tailwinds, and seek out ‘niche leaders’ with strong defensive capabilities. A recent example of our ability to capture a category winner is our acquisition of Cerba HealthCare, a leading European operator of clinical pathology laboratories.

Private real estate: an uncertain market environment has prompted us to take a more measured investment approach. We seek properties and locations benefiting from social, demographic and technological trends and remain focused on identifying assets with value creation potential. To crystallize value, we buy assets in rebounding markets below replacement cost, we ‘buy, fix, and sell’ older properties in great locations that are in need of active asset management and we selectively develop core. The European office market, for instance, offers opportunities to buy properties below replacement cost and upgrade their design to cater to the changing ways in which people live and work. One such opportunity is represented by our acquisition of CB16 Tower in La Défense, Paris.

Private debt: while many market participants have been willing to pursue more aggressive structures with even lower pricing, we favor more conservatively structured investment opportunities which we source and negotiate outside of traditional syndicated loan markets. We continue to focus on supporting successful sponsors and management teams in their buy-and-build strategies, on offering creative structures that support companies’ specific cash flow profiles and working capital needs, and on targeting niche industries where we have the depth of experience and confidence in underlying growth fundamentals. For example, based on our long track record of investment in the restaurant industry, we recently invested in Checkers, a quick service restaurant chain in the US.

Private infrastructure: as infrastructure asset valuations continue on their steady upward trajectory, especially in the core space, our investment focus remains firmly on assets that offer value creation potential, with platform-building being our preferred strategy. We consider platform investments in all sectors of the infrastructure market and currently see the most attractive opportunities within the communications and energy infrastructure spaces. Proactively building core assets instead of buying them continues to be our preferred strategy for renewable power generation assets, particularly in Europe and the Asia-Pacific region. One example is our investment in Sapphire Wind Farm, a 270MW onshore wind project in Australia.

To request a copy of the report, please contact Milevka Grceva: milevka.grceva@partnersgroup.com

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Cinven to sell CPA Global

Cinven

International private equity firm, Cinven, today announces it has agreed to sell CPA Global, the world’s leading Intellectual Property (‘IP’) management and technology company, to Leonard Green & Partners, L.P. (‘LGP’), a leading US buyout firm, for an undisclosed consideration.

CPA Global is the world’s leading provider of IP software, services and data & analytics for corporates and law firms. The business manages more than two million patents for more than 10,000 customers across the globe. The business has 23 offices worldwide and operates from its headquarters in Jersey, Channel Islands.

CPA Global

Cinven acquired CPA Global in March 2012 as part of its strategy of investing in world-class European-headquartered companies where it can support global growth using its sector expertise and Asian portfolio capabilities.

Cinven acquired the business directly from a group of IP law firms who had originally established the company.  Under Cinven’s ownership, CPA Global has achieved strong growth, accelerated its global expansion, and led a successful transformation into a technology-led business.

Over the past five years, Cinven has worked closely with CPA Global’s management team to:

  • Achieve double-digit organic EBITDA growth in the company’s core business of IP software and renewals, driven by consistent increases in the total global stock of patents;
  • Drive significant investment in CPA Global’s technology platform, software suite and IP data and analytics proposition;
  • Develop new innovative products for IP professionals to automate IP processes and workflows (including CPA Global File, and CPA Global’s proprietary IP PlatformTM);
  • Complete six bolt-on acquisitions in the IP management sector, including three in the United States, two in Europe, and one in Asia;
  • Accelerate the company’s geographic expansion, particularly in China and South Korea, both organically and through acquisitions; and
  • Transition to a best-in-class management team, led by CEO, Simon Webster, and CFO, Ben Gujral.

Stuart McAlpine, Managing Partner at Cinven, said:

“Cinven acquired CPA Global because we saw an exceptional company in a highly attractive market, with an opportunity to transform the business from a service provider into a technology-led business, as Cinven has done with other successful investments, such as Amadeus.”

“During our ownership, Cinven and CPA Global’s management team have driven this transformation as well as consolidated the sector through a buy-and-build strategy. CPA Global is now in a strong position to continue taking advantage of the market opportunity.”

Anthony Cardona, Principal at Cinven, added:

“Cinven and CPA Global’s entrepreneurial management team have led CPA Global’s transition to a technology-led business, by investing in the company’s software suite and technology platform, and extending into other parts of the IP process such as patent filing and patent data & analytics.”

“Cinven also supported CPA Global’s global expansion – with the support of our Portfolio team in Asia – and executed multiple bolt-on acquisitions across the world.  We wish the company and its management team, led by Simon Webster, success in its next stage of growth.”

Simon Webster, Chief Executive Officer, CPA Global, commented:

“Cinven has provided huge support to CPA Global over the past five years. Our investment in technology has enabled us to provide an unrivalled integrated technology platform for end-to-end IP management for both corporates and law firms. In addition, we have successfully built our proposition to span the entire IP lifecycle, providing products and services to customers to support innovation, ensure patent protection, and enable companies to commercialise their IP. We would like to thank the Cinven team and are now looking forward to the next exciting phase of our growth.”

This transaction follows Cinven’s recent sale of HEG, the web hosting provider, to GoDaddy Inc. in the US in April 2017.  During 2017, Cinven has also realised its investments in SLV, the residential and technical lighting provider (Germany); Avio Space Propulsion, the international operator of space launchers and space propulsion (Italy); and will complete the partial realisation of Visma, the provider of business critical software (Nordics and Benelux).

The completion of the sale of CPA Global is subject to customary regulatory approval.

Advisors to Cinven on this transaction included: Goldman Sachs (M&A), J.P. Morgan (M&A), Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer (legal), Boston Consulting Group (commercial), Ernst & Young (financial), BDO (tax).

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Inside Secure completes the acquisition of Meontrust

Vendep

Aix-en-Provence, France, August 28, 2017 – Inside Secure (Euronext Paris: INSD), at the heart of security solutions for mobile and connected devices, today announced it has completed the acquisition of Meontrust, a Finland-based cybersecurity emerging-growth company, in an all-cash cash transaction of up to 5 million euros.

Meontrust has developed MePIN™, a flexible authentication, identification and authorization technology, ideally suited for the financial, insurance, retail and telecom markets. MePIN dynamically authenticates a user with a tap, PIN, fingerprint or face recognition, depending on the service provider. It runs on all major operating systems and is flexible to serve small to very large customers. The MePIN solution is provided as an on-premise deployment or as a cloud-based service with customers paying on a subscription or “pay-per-use” basis.

Meontrust’s authentication capability is vital in serving the strong demand seen from banks to meet the more stringent authentication requirements for all online payments imposed by the European Union by 2018. These include PSD2 (Payment Services Directive) and GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation). This acquisition is a significant step in accelerating the deployment of Inside Secure strategy.

For more information

Indside Secure Press Release

Vendep Capital

Vendep Capital Fund invests primarily in Finnish startups offering software to B2B customers. In April 2017, Vendep Capital launched a new €40 million fund aimed at SaaS startups. The fund was raised from Finnish private and institutional investors such as Tesi (Finnish Industry Investment Ltd) and The Finnish Innovation Fund Sitra. The fund may make investments alone or as part of a syndicate.

www.vendep.com

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Sweco expands in Belgian building consultancy market

SwecoSweco is acquiring Snoeck & Partners, a Belgian building consultancy with a well-established market position in western Belgium.“Snoeck & Partners is a good complement to Sweco’s Belgian offering. This acquisition strengthens our presence in western Belgium and supports the continuous ambition to be the most approachable and committed partner with recognized expertise,” says Tomas Carlsson, President and CEO of Sweco.Snoeck & Partners was established in 1958 and offers services in architecture, structural engineering, and infrastructure. It has a well-established position in the West-Flemish region of Belgium, 24 employees, and an office in Kortrijk. Net sales in 2016 were EUR 3.3 million.

“Joining Sweco is the right next step for our company, from aspects such as our shared view on operations and customer focus, as well as Sweco’s international presence. We look forward to work together with our new colleagues, solve our customers’ challenges, and plan and design the cities and communities of the future,” says Hugo Snoeck, Managing Director of Snoeck & Partners.

“We are happy to welcome our new colleagues at Snoeck & Partners to Sweco. Our companies are well-matched in areas of customer offerings and culture. This acquisition strengthens our ability to further serve customers with local presence and global expertise,” says Erwin Malcorps, Managing Director of Sweco Belgium.

For additional information, please contact:Tomas Carlsson, President and CEO, Sweco, tomas.carlsson@sweco.se, +46 8 695 66 60Erwin Malcorps, Managing Director, Sweco Belgium, erwin.malcorps@swecobelgium.be, +32 473 888 202Per Holmlund, Head of Public Relations, Sweco, p.holmlund@sweco.se, +46 73 156 03 12

Sweco plans and designs tomorrow’s communities and cities. Our work produces sustainable buildings, efficient infrastructure and access to electricity and clean water. With 14,500 employees in Europe, we offer our customers the right expertise for every situation. We carry out projects in 70 countries annually throughout the world. Sweco is Europe’s leading engineering and architecture consultancy, with sales of approximately SEK 16.5 billion (EUR 1.7 billion). The company is listed on Nasdaq Stockholm. www.swecogroup.com

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With $2.6M in funding, Gabi wants to ensure you always have the best insurance rate

Project A

With $2.6M in funding, Gabi wants to ensure you always have the best insurance rate “Something this important should not be so complex.” – Hanno Fichtner

Gabi, a San Francisco based insurance startup, has raised $2.6M in seed funding from A Capital, SV Angel, Project A and a group of angels. Gabi is a personal insurance platform that ensures customers always have the right coverage at the best price.

Gabi provides insurance shoppers with unprecedented visibility into rates, in a single place where they can compare all the major insurance companies’ rates and instantly get a quote without having to go to multiple sites and fill out forms. Moreover, Gabi’s quotes are completely unbiased, as they’re driven by technology rather than insurance agents focused on commissions.

Gabi’s powerful technology reviews and compares people’s current insurance rates to major insurer’s rates, then finds the right coverage at the best rate possible. At signup, customers link their car and home insurance accounts or send their policies to Gabi. Gabi then analyzes their current coverage and compares the rate with those of major insurance companies to find a better price for the same coverage.

“Our technology allows us to put the customer first again, simplify the process and save consumers a lot of money every year,” said Gabi co-founder and CPO Krzysztof Kujawa. “Our algorithm looks into the existing insurance policies of our customers and automatically checks for savings across the 20 biggest insurance companies,” explains Kujawa. “Customers no longer need to provide their detailed insurance information. By scanning existing insurance documents to create an insurance profile for each customer, Gabi saves the customer this tedious step.”

“Before Gabi, insurance customers typically had to fill out long forms, then get quotes from a handful of companies and make relatively uninformed decisions, never hearing back from their agent after they’ve purchased coverage,” says founder and CEO, Hanno Fichtner. Gabi is turning this model around by letting the technology do the tedious and time-consuming search for the best insurance, faster and with more transparency for customers than ever before.

The Gabi algorithm has already found savings of more than $460 per year on average for more than 60% of its customers. After the initial comparison at signup, Gabi constantly checks for better offers and functions as a digital insurance folder that allows customers to manage all insurance policies one place. As the customer’s life situation changes, e.g. purchase of a new car, moves, etc., Gabi adjusts its insurance searches accordingly.

Gabi is currently live in California, reviewing insurance for personal lines like auto, home, renters, umbrella and life. Gabi is also free, and customers can be sure to never receive spam or sales calls.

With the engineering team based in Lodz, Poland, and headquarters in San Francisco, the Gabi team consists of 12 people. Gabi was founded in 2016 by Hanno Fichtner, Krzysztof Kujawa, Vincenz Klemm and Pawel Olszewski.

About Gabi
Gabi Personal Insurance Agency, Inc. is an insurance platform that ensures customers always have the right coverage at the best price. Gabi has launched in CA in January 2017 and is backed by A Capital, Project A, SV Angel and a group of angels. It was founded in 2016 by Hanno Fichtner, Krzysztof Kujawa, Vincenz Klemm and Pawel Olszewski.

Contact
Hanno Fichtner, press@gabi.com

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Partners Group to acquire United States Infrastructure Corporation

Partners Group logo

Partners Group to acquire , a leading utility services provider in the US.

 

Partners Group, the global private markets investment manager, has agreed to acquire United States Infrastructure Corporation (“USIC” or the company”), a leading provider of underground utility locating services, on behalf of its clients.

The Company is being acquired from affiliates of Leonard Green & Partners, L.P.(“LGP”). Formed in 2008 and headquartered in Indianapolis, Indiana, USIC specializes in locating pipes and cables for utility customers across the US and Canada.

The Company employs more than 7,500 technicians and performs over 70 million utility locating services annually ahead of excavation or maintenance works.  USIC currently serves around 1,000 customers in all major utility segments, including cable, telecommunications, electricity, gas, water and sewage.

Following the completion of the acquisition, which is subject to regulatory approval, Partners Group will work with USIC’s management team, led by CEO Rob Tullman, to further grow the business.

Value creation initiatives will be aimed at enhancing operations through investments in technology and data management, expanding service offerings in adjacent markets, and growing the Company both organically and through select acquisitions.

Rob Tullman, CEO of USIC, states: ” United States Infrastructure Corporation is passionate about delivering highly responsive, quality-driven solutions that protect our customers’ utility assets. Having enjoyed strong growth over the last few years, we were looking for a partner with experience in corporate asset management and a strong network to enable us to build on our vision of further innovation and service expansion. We believe we have found this in Partners Group and look forward to working with the firm in the months and years to come.”

David Layton, Partner and Head of Private Equity at Partners Group,comments: ” In the current investment environment, we are looking for stable businesses with resilient cash flows and strong growth prospects.

With its market-leading position, blue chip customer base,and exceptional management team, United States Infrastructure Corporation encompasses all of these traits and has in fact been on our radar for several years due to its impressive track record of growth. We are therefore delighted to partner with Rob Tullman and the rest of the management team in this investment.

“Juri Jenkner, Partner and Head of Private Infrastructure at Partners Group, adds: “United States Infrastructure Corporation is a great fit with our investment strategy. The Company provides an essential service to US utilities, and has stable cash flows underpinned by a highly creditworthy customer base.

This investment also highlights the strengths of Partners Group’s broad private markets platform and collaborative investment approach across business lines.” “We are proud to have been associated with the USIC team over several years of outstanding growth and we are tremendously grateful for the amazing job that CEO Rob Tullman and the rest of the USIC team have done,” said Tim Flynn, Partner at LGP. ”

We look forward to seeing continued success for the entire USIC family supported by Partners Group, one of the leading firms in our business. “Ropes & Gray LLP and KPMG LLP are serving as legal and financial advisors, respectively, to Partners Group. Deutsche Bank and Harris Williams acted as financial advisors to USIC, while Latham & Watkins LLP served as the Company’s legal counsel.

About Partners Group Partners Group is a global private markets investment management firm with over EUR 57 billion (USD 66billion) in investment programs under management in private equity, private real estate, private infrastructure and private debt. The firm manages a broad range of customized portfolios for an international clientele of institutional investors. Partners Group has its global headquarter s in Zug, Switzerland; its US headquarters in Denver, Colorado; and its Asian headquarters in Singapore. Additionally, the firm has offices in San Francisco, Houston, New York, São Paulo, London, Guernsey, Paris, Luxembourg, Milan, Munich, Dubai, Mumbai, Manila, Shanghai, Seoul, Tokyo and Sydney. The firm employs over 950 people and is listed on the SIX Swiss Exchange (symbol: PGHN) with a major ownership by its partners and employees. www.partnersgroup.com

About Leonard Green & Partners, L.P.

Leonard Green & Partners, L.P. (“LGP”) is a leading private equity investment firm founded in 1989 and based in Los Angeles. The firm partners with experienced management teams and often with founders to invest in market-leading companies. Since inception, LGP has invested in over 80 companies in the form of traditional buyouts, going -private transactions, recapitalizations, growth equity, and selective public equity and debt positions. The firm primarily focuses on companies providing services, including consumer, business, and healthcare services, as well as retail.

 

www.leonardgreen.com

 

 

Partners Group investor relations contact

Philip Sauer

Phone: +41 41 784 66 60

Email: philip.sauer@partnersgroup.com

Partners Group media relations contact

Jenny Blinch

Phone: +41 41 784 65 26

Email: jenny.blinch@partnersgroup.com

 

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Aquila Capital acquires Danish wind farm

Aquila Capital

Aquila Capital has acquired a wind energy project in Denmark near Kappel on Lolland with an installed capacity of over 25 MW. With the acquisition, Aquila Capital’s transaction volume in the wind sector has now surpassed 1,000 MW.

The project consists of seven wind turbines, all of which are 3.6 MW, by Danish manufacturer Vestas. Six of these are V117 turbines and one is a V126 turbine. The project has entered into a long-term full maintenance contract with Vestas. Due to the project being already operational and takeover having occurred subsequent to final technical examination and certification Aquila Capital is not exposed to any construction risk. Seller of the windpark is European Energy AS.

Denmark offers excellent conditions for wind energy investments, as evidenced by average wind speeds of 8.5 m/s at turbine hub height of this project. Operators of wind energy projects in Denmark receive a feed-in premium for a defined number of full-load hours in addition to the market price realised at the Nordpool electricity exchange. In the case of onshore wind turbines, the premium amounts are up to DKK 250/MWh (approximately EUR 34/MWh). In addition, wind farm operators receive compensation for grid stabilisation charges during the first 20 years of operation after grid connection.

Susanne Wermter, Head of Energy & Infrastructure EMEA at Aquila Capital, said: “Due to the conditions of the region, Northern Europe is very attractive for wind energy investments. For the project on Lolland, we were also able to secure one of the last projects to receive a high feed-in premium.”

Roman Rosslenbroich, CEO and Co-Founder of Aquila Capital, said: “The combination of excellent wind ressources with a very transparent support scheme means Denmark offers an attractive diversification to the wind energy projects we manage. Due to the highly professional sector environment and the well-developed market for commercial power purchase agreements, we believe Denmark will continue to offer an appealing environment for professional investments.”

About Aquila Capital

Established in 2001, Aquila Capital is committed to provide institutional investors worldwide with alternative investment solutions in real assets, financial and private markets. Applying a multi-disciplinary investment approach, Aquila Capital’s range of alternative investments is managed by dedicated specialists in their respective asset classes and underpinned by an infrastructure that combines strong operations, stringent corporate governance and a successful track record. Aquila Capital has been dedicated to develop alternative investment solutions since its establishment. Over 200 professionals across eight offices globally are working across the whole value chain of alternative investments to generate stable, positive returns for investors.

Responsible Publisher:

Aquila Capital

Katrin Rosendahl

Tel: +49 40 87 5050-150

Fax: +49 40 87 5050-129

PR Agency:

Citigate Dewe Rogerson

Patrick Evans / STephen Sheppard / James Madsen

Tel: +44 20 7638 9571

Fax:

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Vendep Capital invests in Brella

Tesi

Brella, developer of a networking application for business events that was founded in Jyväskylä, Finland, in 2016, has raised €1.2 million in private equity. The lead investor was Vendep Capital together with a team of international angel investors, including from the USA, France and Finland.

The investment will allow Brella to expand its operations in the USA, which is already the conmpany’s most important market. In addition, the company will be able to hire over a dozen product developers, as well as sales and marketing staff, in Finland.

The idea for the service was born when the company’s founders attended numerous business events while studying but generally came away from these events with a lot of marketing material instead of good contacts.

Markus Kauppinen, CEO of Brella, explains: “Events have been the best way to bring together people and ideas for thousands of years, yet until now no one has created a service that could intelligently analyse event visitors and their needs in advance, making it easier to find the best contacts among all the people attending the event.”

Today the service has users in over thirty countries around the world, and its customers include Slush, Samsung, Microsoft and TechCrunch.

The company’s aim is to enable 100 million new business contacts by 2020.

“Networking is valued in the USA even more than it is in Finland. Unlike in Finland, it is often difficult to find the contact information for decision-makers, so events offer a rare opportunity to actually meet them,” says Jyrki Paananen, COO of Brella.

“As the lead investor, we wanted to support a great team and invest in their ambitious growth plan. The market demand for this service was proven by Brella’s tremendous international growth in its first year, when it attracted almost a hundred clients,” says Sakari Pihlava, General Partner, Vendep Capital.

 

Further information:

Markus Kauppinen, CEO, Brella
+358405749287
markus@brella.io

Sakari Pihlava, General Partner, Vendep Capital
+358407713941
sakari.pihlava@vendep.com

Brella is a networking application for business events. The service helps event visitors to grow their business network and meet relevant people by means of an intelligent matchmaking algorithm. The mobile and web application has helped hundreds of thousands of people to find jobs, colleagues, investors, and other business contacts. www.brella.io

Vendep Capital Fund invests primarily in Finnish startups offering software to B2B customers. In April 2017, Vendep Capital launched a new €40 million fund aimed at SaaS startups. The fund was raised from Finnish private and institutional investors such as Tesi (Finnish Industry Investment Ltd) and The Finnish Innovation Fund Sitra. The fund may make investments alone or as part of a syndicate. www.vendep.com

Tesi (Finnish Industry Investment Ltd) is a venture capital and private equity company that accelerates companies’ success stories by investing in them directly and via funds. Tesi always invests together with other investors, providing them with access to high quality deal flow in Finland. Our investments under management total 1 billion euros and we have altogether 723 companies in portfolio. www.tesi.fi // @TesiFII

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HgCapital’s Mercury 1 Fund agrees sale of Sequel Business Solutions to Verisk Analytics

HgCapital

21 August 2017, London: HgCapital is pleased to announce that it has sold Sequel Business Solutions (‘Sequel’), a provider of software and services to the Lloyd’s of London and the broader insurance markets, to Verisk Analytics (Nasdaq: VRSK), a leading data analytics provider serving customers in property/casualty insurance, natural resources, and financial services. Headquartered in Jersey City, NJ USA, Verisk Analytics operates in 29 countries and is a member of Standard & Poor’s S&P 500® Index.

HgCapital partnered with the management of Sequel in July 2014 to support the acquisition from its founder. The deal represented the fourth investment for the Mercury 1 fund and resulted from HgCapital’s ongoing focus on the insurance software sector.

Led by CEO Mario Garcia and with HgCapital’s support, Sequel has transformed over this period. Its core Eclipse product set has been broadened to a full suite supporting all the complex risk activities of insurers and brokers, including risk aggregation, claims management and re-insurance; customer numbers have tripled; and Sequel’s business model has rapidly transitioned to recurring revenue. Over the past three years, the company has seen compound revenue growth of 14% per annum.

Following this sale, the Mercury 1 Fund will have delivered combined returns of 3.0x of invested cost and a c. 44% gross IRR on all realised investments, including proceeds from the prior sales of Zitcom to Intelligent (announced in June 2017 for 3.3x and 141% gross IRR) and Relay Software to Applied Systems (announced in August 2016 for 2.1x cost and 39% gross IRR). The Mercury 1 Fund has now delivered in aggregate 83% of invested cost on all realised investments.

Sequel

Mario Garcia, CEO of Sequel, said: “I would like to thank HgCapital for being a great partner as we developed Sequel into the leading provider of software to the complex insurance market. They had a transformative impact on our business. We are thrilled to join Verisk, whose data and technology capabilities will allow us to continue to deliver first class service to our customers.”

Sebastien Briens, Partner at HgCapital, commented: “We are delighted that Sequel can continue to flourish with such a strong and capable partner. We are proud to have been associated with Mario and his team in driving the growth of Sequel in the past three years, and believe that the business is very well positioned to be successful within the property/casualty insurance markets.”

HgCapital and Sequel were advised by Quayle Munro, Linklaters and Deloitte.

 

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Standout Capital invests in Exsitec

Exsitec

Standout Capital acquires a majority stake in Exsitec, a leading provider of business system software to medium sized companies in Sweden. Standout Capital looks forward to support Exsitec’s continued commitment to provide high quality services to current and future customers and to fuel the continued growth and development of the company. Following the transaction Standout Capital holds 55% of the shares in Exsitec and former owners and management will retain a 45% ownership in the company.

Exsitec is a leading provider of business system software, including ERP, business intelligence and mobile solutions for medium-sized companies in Sweden. The Company’s customer base consists of over 500 companies across several industries and includes many renowned enterprises including Fonus, Linas Matkasse and Tele2 Business.

“We have grown from SEK 30 million to nearly SEK 130 million in sales over the past five years, and want to bring both financial muscle and expertise in expanding the company to the next level”, said Chairman Peter Viberg.

“Our business is about helping our clients in software selection, making sure they are successful in the implementations and taking responsibility for long term support and maintenance. In the coming years, we plan to add additional offers in our portfolio and expand geographically. Standout Capital’s focus on Nordic technology companies makes them a perfect partner for us, and they can bring expertise and resources to help us reach new markets faster. Standout Capital show a deep interest in understanding our customers, our business and our corporate culture, and have been easy to work with in this process”, says CEO Johan Kallblad.

 “Exsitec has displayed impressive growth supported by its strong niche expertise and its outstanding track record of successfully serving its customers. Standout ultimately invests in the digitisation of business and society, and Exsitec is a good example of a successful company with solid prospects for capitalizing on this trend and in a market niche where we are confident to add substantial value. We believe there are significant opportunities to continue growing and developing Exsitec further and we look forward to work with the competent and dedicated team of management and employees to fully realize the potential of the company”, says Standout Capital’s partner Klas Hillström.

Contacts and further information

Klas Hillström, Partner, Standout Capital, +46 70 508 77 12, klas.hillstrom@standoutcapital.com
Johan Kallblad, CEO, Exsitec, +46 706 65 99 09, johan.kallblad@exsitec.se

About Exsitec – Exsitec specializes in enterprise systems including ERP, business intelligence and mobile solutions. The company helps its customers choosing the right IT systems tailored to the customer’s business, making sure that everything works together and takes responsibility for the delivery and support. Exsitec has a nationwide delivery organization with 120 employees with combined expertise in IT and business management. They use leading systems like Visma Business, Visma.net, QlikView / Sense Effect Plan, Mobigo and MediusFlow. Exsitec is headquartered in Linköping and has regional offices in Stockholm, Gothenburg, Malmö, Örebro, Sundsvall and Söderhamn. www.exsitec.se

About Standout Capital – Standout Capital is a Stockholm-based private equity firm investing in growing Nordic tech companies. As an active owner, our mission is to partner with outstanding companies to help them grow and succeed. Standout Capital’s investment strategy is to support the digital transformation in business and society. The founders and investment team build on experience in entrepreneurship, investments and finance. The Standout Capital I fund is SEK 1 billion. www.standoutcapital.com

Standout Capital I AB benefits from the support of the European Union under the Equity Facility for Growth established under Regulation (EU) No 1287/2013 of the European Parliament and the Council establishing a Programme for the Competitiveness of Enterprises and small and medium enterprises (COSME) (2014-2020)

 

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