Morning all, Craig McGlashan here with the Europe Wire from the London newsroom.
We’ve got more carve-out action to report this morning, as CVC portfolio company Ahlsell wins regulatory approval to buy the Nordic operations of personal protection product provider Skydda.
Next, we’ve got another add-on in the busy HR software sector, where TA Associates and Warburg Pincus portfolio company Epassi Group has made another acquisition. It's of a FPE-backed company that was itself the subject of a carve-out.
Finishing with a sale, Axcel has closed a €266 million continuation fund for SuperOffice, a CRM platform for small and medium-sized businesses in Europe.
Nordic push
The carve-outs keep coming. After yesterday’s deep dive into the strategy and Endless completing the acquisition of Ecobat’s European battery distribution business, we’ve got another divestment to report.
CVC-backed Ahlsell, a distributor of installation products, tools and supplies based in Stockholm, has won regulatory approval to buy the Nordic operations of Skydda, a personal protection product provider.
Read the premium version of the Wire for details including the valuation, revenue and EBITA of the divested business.
Beneficial ownership
Elsewhere in add-ons, TA Associates and Warburg Pincus portfolio company Epassi Group has made another purchase, acquiring Zest, a SaaS platform for employee benefits, from FPE.
Check out the premium Wire for more on the company and how the exit contributed to FPE's Fund II MoC.
For more on the sector, PE Hub’s Irien Joseph wrote a rundown on some of the biggest deals in HR software of last year and the forces driving them – check that out here.
Staying in
Several sources have told us that they expect the secondaries market to have another banner year as the exit market remains tough. But in a lot of cases, like one we look at this morning, private equity firms are staying invested in businesses via continuation funds to get access to further upside.
Axcel has closed a €266 million continuation fund for SuperOffice, a CRM platform for small and medium-sized businesses in Europe.
Read the premium Wire for details on the M&A strategy under the new investment.
OK, that’s it from me today. Rafael Canton is on US Wire duty later today and Nina Lindholm will write to you from Europe tomorrow.
Cheers,
Craig
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