Ins & outs
Bridgepoint news
€1bn rotation for crop specialist Rovensa
Bridgepoint has completed the €1bn exit of Rovensa, a leading provider of crop nutrition and protection products
Rovensa is a pioneering specialist in crop nutrition, biocontrol and protection products. Headquartered in Portugal, the company was founded in 1926 and has developed a renowned portfolio of solutions that help farmers to improve yields and enhance food security.
The group focuses on formulating sustainable products that reduce the environmental impact of agriculture, combat its contribution to climate change and support the cultivation of healthy food.
Its products are sold in more than 70 countries and generate an annual revenue of approximately €360 million.
Bridgepoint acquired Rovensa, then known as Sapec Agro, in 2017, since when it has expanded significantly, both organically and through acquisition.
Bridgepoint partner Héctor Pérez explains: “Today, Rovensa leads the field globally in biosolutions and its products have become a prominent component in sustainable agriculture. The business has made a significant leap forward, both through continued organic development, fuelled by its product innovation capabilities, and through the execution of six strategic add-on acquisitions.”
Rovensa, led by chief executive Eric van Innis, works across three divisions: Bionutrition provides agricultural crops with nutrients for growth and healthy development; Crop Protection eliminates or prevents biological threats in crops; and Biocontrol creates products based on biological inputs, such as plant extracts and microorganisms. The company has been sold to private equity firm Partners Group n
Acquiring new customs
KGH Customs Services, a leading provider of trade and customs management, has been sold by Bridgepoint Development Capital (BDC).
Headquartered in Gothenburg, Sweden, and operating in 12 countries across Europe, KGH has been acquired by A.P. Moller - Maersk, the internationally renowned shipping and logistics group.
With 775 dedicated trade and customs professionals, KGH works with more than 25,000 customers every year. Offering a wide range of customs services, the company helps to improve trade performance, drive operational efficiency and enhance risk management and customs duty control.
BDC acquired KGH in 2013, since when it has delivered strong profitable growth and expanded its geographic footprint across Europe. The group has also invested heavily in its digital arm, developing a comprehensive and industry-leading customs software platform.
BDC partner Johan Dahlfors comments: “Together with the management team, we have developed KGH from a leading Nordic player into a customs service provider of scale with a much broader footprint in Europe. The team’s progress has been outstanding, and we believe that KGH is now uniquely positioned to continue to deliver on its strategic growth agenda n
Miya heads towards new waters
Miya, the leading water operator and consultancy group, has been sold by Bridgepoint
Miya is the largest private operator of water concessions in Portugal and a global provider of water efficiency solutions for public and private utilities.
Headquartered in Madrid, the company has a long record of significantly improving water distribution efficiency, while its consultancy business combines engineering expertise and technological excellence. These twin capabilities mean that Miya is ideally placed to help utilities reduce water lost through leakage. It has designed and implemented more than 200 projects worldwide, improving legacy networks of dozens of utilities and reducing commercial losses in the Americas, Africa and Asia by more than 50 per cent on average.
With more than 700 employees, Miya also provides more than 600,000 people in Portugal with running water, via six long-term concessions and one public-private partnership.
Bridgepoint acquired Miya in March 2019, since when the company has performed strongly and proved particularly resilient during the Covid-19 pandemic.
Bridgepoint partner Héctor Pérez says: “Miya is a unique business with a superb management team. We are extremely pleased to be a part of its journey and to continue supporting its growth ambitions in this new stage.”
The company is being sold to private equity firm Antin Infrastructure Partners n
A step change for Bridgepoint Credit with EQT deal
Bridgepoint has acquired EQT Credit, an international credit business with assets under management of more than €5 billion.
EQT will be combined with Bridgepoint’s existing credit business, creating an enlarged group with total assets under management of approximately €7 billion.
Bridgepoint managing partner William Jackson says: “This transaction significantly accelerates the growth of our credit activities, in line with our wish to continue to offer a diversified range of investment products to our investors. It strengthens Bridgepoint Credit’s existing local presence in London and Paris, and adds new credit teams in Germany, the Nordic region and the US.”
Andrew Konopelski, managing partner of Bridgepoint Credit, explains: “We now have a dedicated team of 50 professionals in seven countries, investing in three highly complementary strategies that cover corporate credit, from syndicated loans through European direct lending to opportunistic credit. Combining the two businesses marks a new chapter that will mutually strengthen our knowledge of companies, industries and key trends in today’s market.” n
Change of hands for IT business
Bridgepoint Development Capital (BDC) has agreed the sale of BigHand, a highly regarded IT business that specialises in digital dictation workflow and productivity software to the legal, healthcare and professional services markets.
Headquartered in London, with offices in Chicago, Seattle, Sydney, Eindhoven and Toronto, BigHand supports more than 3,500 organisations worldwide.
Customer satisfaction levels are high and the group enjoys strong recurring revenues. BDC acquired BigHand in 2012, since when the business has expanded both organically and through acquisition, completing six add-on deals in recent years.
The group’s portfolio now includes a range of legal workflow, document production, business insight and pricing tools.
BDC partner Mark Stroud says: “Under our ownership, BigHand expanded its product portfolio and diversified into adjacent sectors. It is now well placed to continue its growth under new ownership.” n
Local authority staff recruiter poised for growth
Local government recruitment specialist Matrix SCM has received new growth investment from Bridgepoint Development Capital (BDC).
Founded in 2008, Matrix uses state-of-the-art technology to help Britain’s local authorities hire and manage temporary staff.
A leader in its field, Matrix acts as a neutral intermediary between local governments and a nationwide pool of vetted and approved recruitment agencies. The model enhances efficiency, providing cash-strapped local authorities with greater visibility and control of recruitment spending and access to a large number of accredited candidates.
BDC director Matt Legg says: “The Matrix team has demonstrated a track record of strong annual revenue growth and has a leading position in an attractive, resilient market. In partnership with BDC, it is now well positioned to drive growth further, as well as target new sectors within the broader professional and specialist n
BDC backs fast-growing marketing firm
Bridgepoint Development Capital is acquiring a minority stake in Sendinblue, a leading digital marketing platform focused on small and mid-sized businesses (SMBs).
Founded in Paris in 2012, the company has expanded rapidly, developing an international presence and experiencing annual growth rates of more than 60 per cent in recent years.
“Sendinblue is positioned in a growing market as more and more SMBs are going digital, with their numbers soaring in the past few months. We seek investments that meet a critical market need and Sendinblue is one such business,” says Bridgepoint partner Olivier Nemsguern.
Originally focused on France, Germany, Austria and Switzerland, the company has recently expanded into North America, the UK and other international markets. Overall, it supports more than 180,000 active users across 160 countries n
It offers SMBs a one-stop shop for digital marketing services, covering tools such as email, SMS, marketing automation, sales management and live chat.