Morning all, Craig McGlashan here with the Europe Wire from the London newsroom.
We’ve got the second of our PE Hub Deal of the Year 2024 write-ups this morning. This time it’s One Equity Partners in the spotlight, for its exit from sustainable packaging company Walki.
Next, we look at what some potential government plans in Italy and Germany could mean for dealmaking in the countries, before we hear how US tariffs could have a positive effect on UK dealmaking.
Formidable foe
One Equity Partners is engaged in a “war on plastics,” having invested within that theme for several years, partner Marc Lindhorst told PE Hub. Its success in building up a company engaged in that battle meant it took home the spoils of PE Hub’s Mid-Cap Europe Deal of the Year Award.
OEP – and the world – faces a formidable foe. The average EU citizen generated 36kg of plastic packaging in 2022, up from 28kg in 2012, according to the latest official figures. The percentage recycled per capita in 2022 was just 40 percent – roughly the same proportion as 10 years earlier.
The private equity firm sought to fight back by acquiring Walki from CapMan in 2018. It had a clear goal in mind: take a regional leader and turn it into a pan-European sustainable packaging champion. To achieve that, OEP helped the Finnish business complete an add-on spree, culminating in a highly successful exit to a strategic Japanese buyer, Oji Holdings.
Read the premium version of the Wire for details including the EV and IRR, how Walki grew with M&A, how Walki it dealt with the covid-19 pandemic, EBITDA growth figures and where Lindhorst sees further growth for the business.
Rule change
Private equity interest in Italy has been on the up, thanks in part to a more stable political picture and attractive entry prices relative to other European countries, as PE Hub’s Nina Lindholm wrote in a February round-up of recent deals in the country.
There could be further momentum, as the government is open to tweaking ‘golden power’ legislation.
Read more in the premium version of the Wire.
That news came as German chancellor-in-waiting Friedrich Merz said that his government would amend the constitution to excuse defense and security spending from fiscal limits and is planning a €500 billion infrastructure fund.
Are these government interventions like to buoy M&A in Italy and Germany? Send me your thoughts at [email protected]
Going global
Sticking with the macro theme, we’d been looking for comment on how the US government’s tariff push might affect dealmaking in Europe. There could be an uplift in some areas, said Jonathan Boyers, head of corporate finance EMEA at professional services company Alvarez & Marsal, in a note.
Find out why in the premium version of the Wire.
That’s it from me today. As always, if you’ve got any comment you’d like to share on any of our articles or anything else going on in private equity dealmaking, get in touch with me at [email protected]
Rafael Canton will bring you the US Wire later today and Nina Lindholm will be in the Europe chair tomorrow.
Happy dealmaking…
Craig
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