Funds advised by Apax Partners LLP (“Apax”) completed the acquisition of OCS from Charme Capital Partners and of Finwave from the Lutech Group, creating one of the preeminent players in financial software in Europe. The two companies will continue serving customers under the OCS and Finwave brands.

OCS is a leading consumer-finance digital partner, delivering end-to-end omnichannel software and services in Italy, Spain, and Mexico. OCS supports banks and specialized financial institutions, guiding them through the LendTech revolution, redesigning consumer finance models thanks to deep industry expertise and advanced software capabilities. 

Finwave is a leader in specialized financial software for factoring, leasing, UTP/NPL, post trading and global custody. Finwave has long-term relationships with top-tier financial institutions and credit providers, with a strong focus on the Italian market.

The combination of OCS and Finwave creates a €100 million revenue European financial software platform of scale. Together, OCS and Finwave will leverage their collective expertise and talent to accelerate the development of innovative software solutions to support the evolving needs of financial institutions and operators. As a combined group, OCS and Finwave will be better positioned to serve their customers in Italy and internationally, with a large offering covering consumer finance, corporate finance and capital markets software and solutions.

Gabriele Cipparrone, Partner at Apax, commented: “We’re incredibly excited about this transaction. The combination of OCS and Finwave will create a truly unique, European financial software platform of scale, with huge potential for future growth. We look forward to partnering with both teams to execute on our vision for the combined business, creating a digital-first, future-proof business, and trusted technology partner.”

Gianni Camisa, CEO of OCS, said: “I would like to thank Charme Capital Partners – personally and on behalf of the entire OCS team –  for having been a capable and very professional shareholder and partner to all of us. Under their tenure OCS successfully transitioned to a structured, managerialized company, introducing an experienced management team and reinforcing the existing structure with an extensive hiring plan. Under Charme ownership, OCS grew, implemented a new vision and strategy, expanded internationally, and set ambitious targets in terms of innovation and product development. With Apax we will take a further leap forward. The Apax Funds’ acquisition of OCS and the combination with Finwave marks the beginning of another exciting chapter in our history of supporting Italian financial institutions with their technology needs. As one of the leading software businesses in Europe focused on the retail financial market, this transaction will allow us to continue delivering innovative solutions, as we have done for the past four decades, while empowering us to expand our offering and presence across Europe. Apax, like ourselves, are tech experts with a deep understanding of the power of digital, and I am excited to embark on this journey”.

Willy Burkhardt, CEO of Finwave, said: “This is a great milestone for Finwave. The Apax funds’ strategic plan is to acquire and integrate leading players in the market to create innovative solutions for credit management and capital markets. OCS and Finwave are the leading players in Consumer and Corporate Finance Software. Both companies offer premium technology solutions that provide the foundation for strong future growth. We are starting today with €100 million in revenues and almost 1,000 people highly skilled in financial market software, and we are well positioned to grow in Italy and in Europe.”

About Apax

Apax Partners LLP (“Apax”) is a leading global private equity advisory firm. For over 50 years, Apax has worked to inspire growth and ideas that transform businesses. The firm has raised and advised funds with aggregate commitments of more than $65 billion. The Apax Funds invest in companies across four global sectors of Tech, Services, Healthcare, and Internet/Consumer. These funds provide long-term equity financing to build and strengthen world-class companies. For further information about Apax.

Please visit www.apax.com

About OCS

Based in Milan, Brescia, Turin, Madrid and Mexico City, OCS is a leading digital partner and software provider in the banking and financial sector. Since 1984, the company has supported the evolution of the market. Today, with a solid experience and deep knowledge of the different processes, OCS works alongside its customers to guide them through the LendTech revolution, redesigning with them the ‘consumer finance’ models thanks to the most advanced modular digital solutions. OCS offers the opportunity to establish stronger relationships with end customers, taking advantage of the introduction of new processes and technologies. In addition to the know-how and the development and integration capabilities, OCS combines expertise and consultancy in compliance with current European regulations and standards.

Please visit www.ocsnet.it/en

About Finwave

Finwave represents the evolution and synthesis of the skills and experiences of the prestigious companies Arcares, Liscor, Finance Evolution and CSTTech. This merger has created a unique and dynamic entity, with a turnover of almost 50 million euros, positioning as the primary company in Italy for credit management software and other specific needs of the banking world. Finwave stands out for the ability to meet the needs of all players in the financial market, offering end-to-end platforms and distinctive expertise in several key areas from Factoring to Lending, from Consumer Credit to UTP/NPL, from Bank applications to Wealth Management, from Security Services to Fund management, up to Compliance. Finwave works end-to-end, developing complete application and infrastructure solutions and working with the best technology partners in the market to build an integrated ecosystem which grows and evolves with customers business goals. Finwave knows the specific processes of each industry, and is able to optimize them covering every step, from onboarding and operations right through to regulatory reporting.

Please visit www.finwave.it/en

German software companies remain profitable and have grown in the past year. Further evidence to these trends was demonstrated during the 2nd edition of the Main Software 50 Germany ranking.

With the Main Software 50 we aim to applaud and recognize achievements in the German software industry

– Sven van Berge Henegouwen, Partner & Head of DACH at Main Capital Partners.

HRBrain is a fast-growing HR software provider in Japan, helping companies manage and engage with talent more effectively through a diversified suite of cloud products

As Japan continues to face talent shortages and increasing regulatory requirements for disclosure of human capital metrics, the demand for solutions to support talent management and employee engagement is growing rapidly

BPEA EQT Mid-Market Growth will support HRBrain’s continued growth by expanding the customer base and support ongoing development of new modules to further enhance its integrated service offering

EQT is pleased to announce that the BPEA EQT Mid-Market Growth Fund (“BPEA EQT Mid-Market Growth”) has agreed to acquire a majority stake in HRBrain (the “Company”), from existing shareholders. The Company’s founder, Hiroki Hori, will remain as a significant minority shareholder and continue as CEO.

HRBrain was established in 2016 to offer software solutions aimed at simplifying and streamlining companies’ performance evaluation processes. Today, the Company’s HR solutions have grown to include comprehensive talent management, employee experience and organization assessment, labor management, AI ChatBot, 360 Reviews, and more. HRBrain is headquartered in Tokyo and has more than 150 employees.

As Japan continues to face talent shortages and increasing regulatory requirements for disclosure of human capital metrics, the demand for solutions to support talent management and employee engagement has been growing rapidly. With an intuitive UI/UX design, flexible module selections, and strong customer support and consulting services, HRBrain has developed a highly diversified customer base, helping more than 2,500 companies in total engage with talent more effectively. Moreover, the Company has best-in-class customer satisfaction and strong retention, particularly from their core target segment of mid to large sized enterprises, with more than 60 percent in annual recurring revenue growth.

EQT has extensive experience developing strong software businesses on a global scale, with more than 15 software investments globally and over USD 10 billion of equity invested since 2018. BPEA EQT Mid-Market Growth will leverage the firm’s in-house software and digitalization capabilities and global network of industry experts to support HRBrain in its next phase of growth.

Tetsuro Onitsuka, Partner within EQT Japan’s advisory team, commented, “HRBrain is one of the top players in Japan’s Talent Management space, which is backed by strong tailwinds from socially significant issues like a shrinking labor force, a growing shift towards job-based hiring, and a regulatory push to visualize and disclose human capital. We see great potential for further expansion of the company’s impressive product and service offerings, and we look forward to leveraging EQT’s experience in technology and software to support President Hiroki Hori and his employees as we work together to accelerate HRBrain’s organic and inorganic growth.”

Hiroki Hori, CEO of HRBrain, commented, “HRBrain promotes solutions in the HR domain mainly for Japanese companies through SaaS-type software and consulting services. We are pleased to have formed a strong partnership with EQT and work to realize our mission. Together, we will continue to provide unique products that are indispensable to diverse workplaces and solving complex issues in the HR field.”

The transaction is expected to close in Q4 2023.

BPEA EQT was advised by SMBC Nikko, Nishimura & Asahi (legal), and KPMG (financial, tax and ESG). The Company was advised by UBS and Shiomizaka (legal).

Contact
EQT Press Office, press@eqtpartners.com

The information contained herein does not constitute an offer to sell, nor a solicitation of an offer to buy, any security, and may not be used or relied upon in connection with any offer or solicitation. Any offer or solicitation in respect of the BPEA EQT Mid-Market Growth fund will be made only through a confidential private placement memorandum and related documents which will be furnished to qualified investors on a confidential basis in accordance with applicable laws and regulations. The information contained herein is not for publication or distribution to persons in the United States of America. Any securities referred to herein have not been and will not be registered under the U.S. Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”), and may not be offered or sold without registration thereunder or pursuant to an available exemption therefrom. Any offering of securities to be made in the United States would have to be made by means of an offering document that would be obtainable from the issuer or its agents and would contain detailed information about the issuer of the securities and its management, as well as financial information. The securities may not be offered or sold in the United States absent registration or an exemption from registration.

About

About EQT
EQT is a purpose-driven global investment organization with EUR 232 billion in total assets under management (EUR 128 billion in fee-generating assets under management), within two business segments – Private Capital and Real Assets. EQT owns portfolio companies and assets in Europe, Asia-Pacific and the Americas and supports them in achieving sustainable growth, operational excellence and market leadership.

More info: www.eqtgroup.com
Follow EQT on LinkedIn, X, YouTube and Instagram

About HRBrain
HRBrain is a one-stop cloud-based platform consisting of seven services for streamlining HR operations and centrally managing and utilizing HR data – the company’s flagship HRBrain Talent Management service, as well as Organizational Diagnostic Survey, Pulse Survey, Personnel Evaluation, 360-degree Review, Labor Management, and AI ChatBot for internal use. HRBrain will continue to expand its services in ways that can further contribute to ESG management, the development of human capital, and digital transformation (DX) in the HR space.

More info: www.hrbrain.co.j

Global investment firm Carlyle (NASDAQ: CG) announced today a majority investment in GBTEC Software AG and affiliates (“GBTEC”), a leading provider of business process management (BPM) and governance, risk and compliance (GRC) software.

GBTEC‘s performance over the last years has been impressive and the time spent with the management on strategic initiatives such as internationalization and product expansion has been extremely exciting.

– Sven van Berge Henegouwen, Managing Partner at Main Capital Partners

LONDON, UK – November 22, 2023 – Blackstone (NYSE: BX), the world’s largest alternative asset manager, announced today that private equity funds managed by affiliates of Blackstone (“Blackstone”) have entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Civica, a global leader in public sector software solutions, from Partners Group, a leading global private markets firm, acting on behalf of its clients. Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

Civica was founded in 2001 and has since grown into one of the UK’s largest software companies and a global leader in software for the public sector, providing mission-critical automating and streamlining technology services to clients that range from local to central and federal government, health and social care providers and education. Its wide-ranging product portfolio includes workflow and automation, risk and compliance, workforce management, financial management, and data analytics and insights. Civica is recognized for its high customer retention rates and benefits from strong recurring revenues. Today, Civica has over 6,000 customers, servicing more than 100 million citizens across the UK, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand, India, Singapore, the United States and Canada.

Civica has benefited from the strong growth of the Government Technology space, powered by the ongoing digitalization of the public sector and long-term investments made by governments to improve their technology capabilities and the services they offer to their constituents.

“Civica is a leader in the ‘GovTech’ space, with an excellent brand and an enviable market position and we are excited to be partnering with a stellar management team to help the business in this next phase of growth. This investment is a testament to our long-standing software experience, a significant focus area for the firm globally, and builds on our strong track record of investing here in the UK,” said Jonathan Murphy, a Managing Director at Blackstone and Miguel García Gómez, a Principal at Blackstone.

“At Civica, our aspiration is to be a ‘GovTech’ champion, providing software that supports the needs of citizens and those that serve them. In partnership with Partners Group, we have significantly transformed our offering and increased growth momentum across cloud, digital enablement, software innovation, and data analytics. We have also cemented our position as an innovation leader. We now have over two decades of growth to build on and look forward to the next phase of our journey,” commented Lee Perkins, Chief Executive Officer at Civica.

The transaction is expected to close in Q2 2024, subject to regulatory approvals. Blackstone was advised by Barclays as lead financial advisor and DC Advisory as secondary financial advisor. Partners Group was advised by Clifford Chance and Arma Partners. Arma Partners acted as exclusive financial advisor to Civica and Management was advised by Travers Smith and Wyvern Partners.

Media Contacts

Blackstone
Rebecca Flower
Rebecca.Flower@blackstone.com
+44 (0)7918 360372

Civica
Fintan Hastings
press@civica.co.uk

About Blackstone 
Blackstone is the world’s largest alternative asset manager. We seek to create positive economic impact and long-term value for our investors. We do this by relying on extraordinary people and flexible capital to help strengthen the companies we invest in. Our over $1 trillion in assets under management include investment vehicles focused on private equity, real estate, public debt and equity, infrastructure, life sciences, growth equity, opportunistic, non-investment grade credit, real assets and secondary funds, all on a global basis.  Further information is available at www.blackstone.com. Follow @blackstone on LinkedIn, X (Twitter), and Instagram.

About Civica Group
We’re Civica and we make software that helps deliver critical services for citizens all around the world. From local government to central government, to education, to health and care, over 5,000 public bodies across the globe use our software to help provide critical services to over 100 million citizens. Our aspiration is to be a GovTech champion everywhere we work around the globe, supporting the needs of citizens and those that serve them every day. www.civica.com