Warpwire marks STG’s third investment into a unified platform following the acquisitions of CadmiumCD and EthosCE earlier this year.

Symphony Technology Group (“STG”), a Palo Alto-based private equity firm focused on investing in the software, data analytics, and software-enabled technology services sectors, today announced that it has acquired Warpwire, a Durham, North Carolina-based educational video management company.

“Warpwire focuses on providing world-class reliability and security to our customers. Our partnership with STG will only increase our capabilities for robust video delivery,” said Warpwire co-founder and CTO Monte Evans.

This acquisition underscores STG’s commitment to building a unique, market-leading software platform offering continuing education, professional development, events, learning and content management solutions to associations, healthcare & life sciences organizations, hospitals, and universities globally. Warpwire marks STG’s third investment in this platform following the acquisitions of CadmiumCD and EthosCE earlier this year.

“The acquisitions of EthosCE, CadmiumCD, and now Warpwire, are the continuation of STG’s vision of a unified technology platform for professional education,” said William Chisholm, co-founder and Managing Partner of STG.

“We’re impressed with STG’s research in this product space, and vision to join and strengthen like-minded teams. As we align with EthosCE and CadmiumCD, Warpwire is energized to continue creating compelling media solutions for our shared client base,” adds Warpwire co-founder and COO Andrew Synowiez.

This acquisition is another step toward STG’s vision to create a purpose-built software platform for association, healthcare, life sciences and university customers to help them manage various continuing education, professional development and learning activities through events and online content for their members.

“We released an integration with Warpwire in March 2018,” said EthosCE founder and CTO Ezra Wolfe. “We look forward to offering Warpwire’s video services in new and unique ways as an additional value-add for clients who use video content as part of their continuing education programs.”

“We are very excited to bring Warpwire into our expanding portfolio of industry-leading products and scale it even further by investing in new solution areas and complementary acquisitions,” said Rushi Kulkarni, Principal at STG.

Benefits of the expanded platform include:

• Trackable video content and learner usage metrics
• Low-cost video hosting for continuing education programs
• Secure video delivery inside a password-protected continuing education environment
• Ad-free video player environment for CME
• Multi-camera video recording and playback
• Multiple closed caption provider options, and manual video captions

A 5-minute demo of the Warpwire integration with EthosCE is available on the Warpwire platform.

About Warpwire

Warpwire is a video delivery platform for leading enterprise and educational institutions whose users require a secure, simple, and reliable system for hosting media content. Founded in 2013, Warpwire’s team has extensive experience custom-integrating media technologies for learning environments in ways that are accessible, flexible, and collaborative.

For more information, please visit www.warpwire.com

About EthosCE

EthosCE is the leading learning management system for medical associations, universities, health systems, and medical education companies. EthosCE is produced by DLC Solutions, LLC. Established in 2001, DLC Solutions develops innovative e-learning solutions to support diverse professional populations.

For more information, please visit www.ethosce.com

About CadmiumCD

CadmiumCD is an event management software company with more than 15 years of experience providing solutions for Meeting Planners, Exhibition Organizers, Education Directors, and Attendees. The company’s award-winning platform is trusted by more than 3,500 meeting professionals worldwide to collect, manage and share content to all event stakeholders.

For more information, please visit www.cadmiumcd.com

About Symphony Technology Group

STG is the private equity partner to market leading companies in data, software, and analytics. The firm brings expertise, flexibility, and resources to build strategic value and unlock the potential of innovative companies. Partnering to build customer-centric, market winning portfolio companies, STG creates sustainable foundations for growth that bring value to all existing and future stakeholders. The firm is dedicated to transforming and building outstanding technology companies in partnership with world class management teams. STG’s expansive portfolio has consisted of more than 30 global companies.

Partnered with majority shareholder Abénex since 2018, Eureka Education has today issued a statement on its ongoing growth strategy alongside Naxicap Partners, an affiliate of Natixis Investment Managers*.
On completion of the deal, Abénex and the Finoli Group will transfer their interest to Naxicap Partners, which will hold a majority of the group’s capital alongside managers, who are reinvesting in the deal.

Eureka Education is now a major player in private professional and higher education through its three education verticals: Silvya Terrade (beauty, cosmetics, fragrances, and hairdressing); Euridis Business School (complex B2B sales and negotiations); and SupTertiaire (real estate and social housing). Drawing on the skills of more than 1,000 teachers, the group hosts nearly 10,000 students each year for training programmes from high-school to BAC+5 on more than 50 campuses in France and Switzerland. The training courses are fully recognised by the state and professional branches and are based on Education Nationale diplomas (BAC, BTS, etc.) as well as RNCP and CQP qualifications from levels 1 to 5 (V to I in the French nomenclature).

Since its acquisition by Abénex in April 2018, the group has implemented an ambitious buy-and-build strategy with the completion of nearly 20 external growth deals, allowing for the strengthening of Silvya Terrade’s historic leadership and the addition of two new high-growth divisions (Euridis Business School and SupTertiaire).

The Group aims to pursue its organic and external growth strategy in France and in Europe by expanding its existing network of schools, acquiring schools in new education verticals, and increasing investments in the digitisation of content and teaching methods.
Bernard de Sagazan, head of Eureka Education, says, ‘We are very pleased to welcome Naxicap Partners with which we share an ambitious vision of the group’s development. This will allow us to continue to develop our training catalogue according to market needs and better understand the many recent developments in our sector such as the rise in apprenticeship and the arrival of CPF in its new form’.
Antoine Houël, a partner at Abénex, adds, ‘We are proud to have supported Eureka Education Group management during this impressive expansion phase. Eureka is now a major player in education in France, operating three renowned schools, recognised both for the quality of their teaching and their ability to facilitate students’ entry into ambitious career paths. We wish the new shareholders and management every success in continuing this way’.

‘Naxicap Partners is pleased to announce the acquisition of a majority stake in Eureka Education Group alongside Bernard de Sagazan and his teams. The group’s expertise and unique position as well as the quality of its management team make this a rare investment opportunity in the sector’, said Eric Aveillan, Chairman of the Executive Board at Naxicap Partners.

Contacts:
Eureka Education: Bernard de Sagazan
Legal – Corporate: Hugot Avocats (Olivier Hugot, Farrah Ducher)
Legal – Management: Jeausserand Audouard (Erwan Bordet, Eléonore Gaulier)
Financial Adviser – managers: Oloryn Partners (Eric Lesieur, Cyrille Leclerc)
Financial VDD: KPMG (Damien Moron, Sophie Dervain, Charles-Boris Pavard)
Finoli Group: Grégory Declercq, Pierre Juhen
Legal – M&A: Jeausserand Audouard (Erwan Bordet, Eléonore Gaulier)
M&A Adviser: Rothschild & Co. (Pierre Sader, Augustin Delouvrier)
Abénex: Antoine Houël, Karim Hoebanx
Legal – M&A: McDermott, Will & Emery (Grégoire Andrieux, Louis Leroy, Lucas Tabouret)
M&A Adviser: Rothschild & Co. (Pierre Sader, Augustin Delouvrier)
Naxicap Partners: Eric Aveillan, Laurent Sallé, Aurélien Dorkel, Simon Ricque, Agathe Baujard, Mouncef Daifallah, Corentin Desbois
Legal – M&A and Corporate: Edge Avocats (Matthieu Lochardet, Claire Baufine-Ducrocq)
Legal – Tax: Keels Avocats (Laurent Partouche, Hélène Leclère, Adélie Louvigné)
Legal – Financial: Mayer Brown (Patrick Teboul, Marion Minard, Julien Leris)
M&A Adviser: Clearwater (Thomas Hamelin – Edmond de Rothschild Corporate Finance since 01/09/2020, Sophie Lerond), Lazard (Charles Andrez)
Financial Adviser: Clearwater (Laurence de Rosamel, Paul Assael)
Financial Due Diligence: Exelmans (Stéphane Dahan, Manuel Manas, Rodolphe Savary De Beauregard)
Legal, Tax and Social Due Diligence: Edge Avocats (Matthieu Lochardet, Claire Baufine-Ducrocq)
Strategic Due Diligence: Indefi (Julien Berger, Mehdi Belefqih, Adam Laissaoui)
Financing: Barings (Alice Foucault, Benjamin Gillet, Rana Misirlizade)
Barings Legal: Nabarro & Hinge (Jonathan Nabarro)

About Eureka Education
Eureka Education is the leading institution in the field of professional education in France and Switzerland. Every year, the Group provides over 10.000 students with a large array of courses ranging from French BAC (A-Level) to Master’s degrees across a proprietary network of 50 campuses and employed more than 1.000 teachers and administrative staff.
Building on strong and diversified fundamentals, as well as strenghtened financial capabilities, Eureka Education ambitions to further enhance its position as leading consolidation platform for high-employement professional schools in France and in Europe.
www.eureka-education.fr

About Naxicap Partners
As one of the top private equity firms in France, Naxicap Partners – an affiliate of Natixis Investment Managers* – has €3.5 billion in assets under management. As a committed, responsible investor, Naxicap Partners builds solid, constructive partnerships with entrepreneurs so that their projects can succeed. The firm has 39 investment professionals spread across five offices in Paris, Lyon, Toulouse, Nantes and Frankfurt.
For more information, visit www.naxicap.fr/en

About Natixis Investment Managers*
Natixis Investment Managers serves financial professionals with more insightful ways to construct portfolios. Powered by the expertise of more than 20 specialized investment managers globally, we apply Active Thinking® to deliver proactive solutions that help clients pursue better outcomes in all markets. Natixis Investment Managers ranks among the world’s largest asset management firms1 with more than $1 trillion assets under management2 (€906.0 billion).
eadquartered in Paris and Boston, Natixis Investment Managers is a subsidiary of Natixis. Listed on the Paris Stock Exchange, Natixis is a subsidiary of BPCE, the second-largest banking group in France. Natixis Investment Managers’ affiliated investment management firms include AEW; Alliance Entreprendre; AlphaSimplex Group; DNCA Investments;3 Dorval Asset Management; Flexstone Partners; Gateway Investment Advisers; H2O Asset Management; Harris Associates; Investors Mutual Limited; Loomis, Sayles & Company; Mirova; MV Credit; Naxicap Partners; Ossiam; Ostrum Asset Management; Seeyond; Seventure Partners; Thematics Asset Management; Vauban Infrastructure Partners; Vaughan Nelson Investment Management; Vega Investment Managers;4 and WCM Investment Management. Additionally, investment solutions are offered through Natixis Investment Managers Solutions, and Natixis Advisors offers
other investment services through its AIA and MPA division. Not all offerings available in all jurisdictions. For additional information, please visit Natixis Investment Managers’ website at im.natixis.com
| LinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/natixis-investment-managers.
Natixis Investment Managers’ distribution and service groups include Natixis Distribution, L.P., a limited purpose broker-dealer and the distributor of various U.S. registered investment companies for which advisory services are provided by affiliated firms of Natixis Investment Managers, Natixis Investment Managers S.A. (Luxembourg), Natixis Investment Managers International (France), and their affiliated distribution and service entities in Europe and Asia.
1 Cerulli Quantitative Update: Global Markets 2020 ranked Natixis Investment Managers as the 17th largest asset manager in the world based on assets under management as of December 31, 2019.
2 Assets under management (“AUM”) as of June 30, 2020 is $1,017.7 billion. AUM, as reported, may include notional assets, assets serviced, gross assets, assets of minority-owned affiliated entities and other types of non-regulatory AUM managed or serviced by firms affiliated with Natixis Investment Managers.
3 A brand of DNCA Finance.
4 A wholly-owned subsidiary of Natixis Wealth Management.

About Abénex
Founded in 1992, Abénex is a historical player in French private equity market, specialized in growth and buyout transactions both as a minority and majority shareholder. Independent for more than 10 years, Abénex operates in three segments of private equity: Smallcaps, Midcaps and Real-estate.
In Small and Midcap segments, Abénex is a long-term investor partnering with entrepreneurs and founding families, and operationally-involved in growth and operational optimization projects. Abénex is committed to the Management team’s success, providing them with a fully dedicated operational team to support their projects of transformation and external growth strategy. Abénex invests in SMEs valued up to €50m in Smallcaps and between €50m and €500m in Midcaps.
The team is composed of 30 professionals with demonstrated and renowned expertise, located in Paris and Lyon.
Abénex is approved by the AMF (Autorité des Marchés Financiers) to manage FPCI (Fonds Professionnels de Capital Investissement) and OPCI (Organismes de Placement Collectif Immobilier) funds.
www.abenex.com

About Groupe Finoli
Groupe Finoli is a French industrial conglomerate founded in 2008 by MM Pierre Juhen and Grégory Declercq, with a strong track record of supporting long-term development projects and values. Groupe Finoli currently operates in the fields of healthcare, beauty and wellness, through its main subsidiaries PATYKA, the leading French organic skincare brand, and NUTRIMUSCLE, European leader in the field of food supplements dedicated to high-intensity ahtletes.

Press contacts

Naxicap Partners
Valérie Sammut – Tel: 04 72 10 87 99
valerie.sammut@naxicap.fr
Abenex
Antoine Houël – Tel : 01 53 93 69 18
antoine.houel@abenex.com

Jun 10, 2020

Montagu announces that it has agreed to participate in the buyout of Galileo Global Education (“Galileo”) within a consortium of financial investors.

Galileo is a leading, international provider of higher education to over 110,000 enrolled students.  Its network of 42 schools on 80 campuses offer a number of subjects including applied arts, fashion, design and digital/Internet, business and medicine.  It operates in 13 countries around the world, with a particular presence in France, Italy, Germany, Cyprus and Mexico.

Founded in 2011 and headquartered in Paris, Galileo is Europe’s largest higher education group, in terms of both geographical spread and breadth of course offering.  Its network includes highly respected institutions including the Paris School of Business (PSB), Cours Florent and Atelier de Sèvres in France, Instituto de Estudios Universitarios in Mexico, Macromedia University in Germany and Istituto Marangoni in Italy.

Montagu is delighted to work with Marc-François and his very capable team who are committed to making Galileo the leading global provider of higher education.  Galileo’s market-leading position and its great reputation in higher education makes it an excellent fit for our investment strategy.

Marc-François Mignot Mahon, CEO of Galileo Global Education, said “Galileo is proud to welcome Montagu, which join forces with other major institutional investors to support us in becoming the world leader in higher education and continue our mission at the service of society: to educate and train.”

This is our second transaction in the education sector in recent years.  Montagu had previously invested in the University of Law – the leading provider of professional legal education and training in England and Wales – which was sold to Global University Systems in 2015.

EQT Credit, through its Direct Lending investment strategy, is pleased to announce that it has provided incremental committed credit facilities to support the continued growth of Dukes Education Group (“Dukes” or the “Company”).

Founded in 2015 by Aatif Hassan, Dukes is a leading UK-based provider of private premium nurseries, K-12 schools, colleges and summer schools, as well as university consultancy services.

Andrew Cleland-Bogle, Partner at EQT Partners and Investment Advisor to EQT Credit, commented: “Dukes comprises a portfolio of schools with outstanding quality and strong academic results. We have been impressed by the high calibre of Aatif and his management team, as well as the track record of growth achieved during our continued partnership. This transaction marks one of several made by the Credit platform in the education sector and is another example of the platform’s ongoing ability to provide long-term support to founder-led companies as they expand.”

Aatif Hassan, Founder and Chairman of Dukes, commented: “EQT Credit’s support has been unwavering. We are pleased to have them as a committed long-term partner as we continue to grow our family of best in class schools and educators.”

Contact
Andrew Cleland-Bogle, Partner at EQT Partners, +44 20 7430 5510
EQT Press Office, +46 8 506 55 334, press@eqtpartners.com

About EQT
EQT is a differentiated global investment organization with more than EUR 62 billion in raised capital and around EUR 41 billion in assets under management across 19 active funds. EQT funds have portfolio companies in Europe, Asia and the US with total sales of more than EUR 21 billion and approximately 127,000 employees. EQT works with portfolio companies to achieve sustainable growth, operational excellence and market leadership.

More info: www.eqtgroup.com

About EQT Credit
EQT Credit invests through three complementary strategies: Senior Debt, Direct Lending, and Special Situations. Since inception, EQT Credit has raised over EUR 7 billion of capital and invested in over 160 companies. EQT Credit’s Direct Lending strategy seeks to provide flexible, long-term debt solutions to support European businesses, across a wide range of sectors. These businesses include privately-owned companies seeking growth capital as well as those that are the subject of private equity-led acquisitions or refinancings.

More info: www.eqtgroup.com/business-segments/credit/strategies/

Investment to support continued growth of a leader in early childhood education

Scottsdale, AZ and New York, NY, February 12, 2020: Funds advised by Apax Partners (the “Apax Funds”) today announced they have reached an agreement to acquire Cadence Education, a leading provider of early childhood education in North America, from investment funds managed by Morgan Stanley Capital Partners (“MSCP”). The transaction is expected to complete in March 2020. Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

Cadence Education serves families and students in more than 225 private preschools through a network of over 40 brands, including the company’s flagship Cadence Academy brand. The company’s schools serve children aged six weeks to 12 years. With more than 27 years in business, Cadence Education schools offer a proprietary curriculum developed by experts to give students the skills and confidence necessary to excel in their next phase of education.

The investment from the Apax Funds will support Cadence Education to continue its impressive growth trajectory, including strategic acquisitions and the expansion of core operational capabilities.

Dave Goldberg, President and Chief Executive Officer of Cadence Education, said: “We are very excited about our new partnership with Apax, which will help drive our continued growth and bring our mission of providing an exceptional education in a fun and nurturing environment to even more children. MSCP has been a great partner to the business, and we thank them for their support.”

Nick Hartman, Partner at Apax Partners, said: “We look forward to working with Dave and the Cadence Education team to continue to execute the strategy that has established the company as a leader in the early childhood education space. Cadence Education’s focus on children and parents delivers industry-leading customer satisfaction which, in combination with a highly-skilled team, positions the company for continued growth.”

David Thompson, Executive Director of MSCP, said: “We are proud to have partnered with Cadence Education to strengthen its educational offering and deepen its position as a leading provider of early childhood education in the US. Cadence Education is deeply committed to its mission of providing high quality education and care to families, and we have appreciated the opportunity to work with Dave Goldberg and the entire Cadence team during this exciting growth period.”

Debevoise & Plimpton LLP served as legal advisor, and William Blair and Lazard Middle Market served as financial advisors to MSCP. Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP served as legal advisor to Apax Partners.

About Cadence Education

Cadence Education is one of the premier early childhood educators in the United States, operating more than 225 private preschools across the country. With more than 27 years in business, Cadence has developed an unparalleled expertise in preparing students to thrive in the next step of their childhood. Cadence Education provides parents with peace of mind by giving children an exceptional education every fun-filled day in a place as nurturing as home. For additional information about Cadence, please visit www.cadence-education.com.

About Apax Partners

Apax Partners is a leading global private equity advisory firm. Over its more than 40-year history, Apax Partners has raised and advised funds with aggregate commitments of c.$50 billion. The Apax Funds invest in companies across four global sectors of Tech & Telco, Services, Healthcare, and Consumer. These funds provide long-term equity financing to build and strengthen world-class companies. For more information see: www.apax.com.

About Morgan Stanley Capital Partners

Morgan Stanley Capital Partners, part of Morgan Stanley Investment Management, is a leading middle-market private equity platform that has invested capital in a broad spectrum of industries for over three decades. Morgan Stanley Capital Partners focuses on privately negotiated equity and equity-related investments primarily in North America and seeks to create value in portfolio companies primarily in a series of subsectors in the business services, consumer, healthcare, industrials, and education markets with an emphasis on driving significant organic and acquisition growth through an operationally focused approach. For further information about Morgan Stanley Capital Partners, please visit: www.morganstanley.com/im/capitalpartners.

Media Contacts

For Apax Partners

Global Media: Andrew Kenny, Apax | +44 20 7 872 6371 | andrew.kenny@apax.com

USA Media: Todd Fogarty, Kekst CNC | +1 212-521-4854 | apax@kekstcnc.com

UK Media: Matthew Goodman / James Madsen, Greenbrook | +44 20 7952 2000 | apax@greenbrookpr.com

Notes to Editors 

London-headquartered Apax Partners (www.apax.com) and Paris-headquartered Apax Partners (www.apax.fr) had a shared history but are separate, independent private equity firms.