TIDMHGT
RNS Number : 1864L
HgCapital Trust PLC
05 September 2023
Hg, the Manager of HgCapital Trust plc ("HGT"), today announces
that it has agreed the sale of Commify, the UK-headquartered
European leader in business messaging solutions to Local
Enterprises, to ECI Partners.
The terms of the transaction have not been disclosed and
completion is subject to closing conditions.
HGT, whose shares are listed on the London Stock Exchange, gives
private and institutional investors the opportunity to participate
in all Hg's investments.
This transaction values HGT's investment in Commify at
approximately GBP21.9 million. This would represent an uplift of
GBP5.3 million (32% or 1.2 pence per share) over the carrying value
of GBP16.6 million in the Net Asset Value ("NAV") of HGT at 31
March 2023.
Note that these figures only relate to HgCapital Trust's share
of Hg's overall investment in Commify.
Based on the 31 March 2023 reported NAV, the pro-forma NAV of
the Trust is expected to be GBP2.2 billion (or 475.3 pence per
share). HGT's available liquid resources, which includes the
undrawn bank facility of GBP350 million for future deployment
(including all announced transactions and the final dividend paid
in May) are estimated to be GBP688 million (32% of the pro-forma 31
March 2023 NAV).
HGT will be announcing its interim results to 30 June 2023 on 18
September 2023.
ECI Partners invests in Commify, Europe's leading provider of
business
messaging solutions to Local Enterprises
London, 5 September 2023: ECI Partners, the leading
growth-focused mid-market private equity firm, today announces its
investment in Commify, the UK-headquartered European leader in
business messaging solutions to Local Enterprises. The deal, valued
at EUR300 million, provides a full realisation for Hg, a leading
investor in European and transatlantic software and services
businesses, that has backed Commify's transformation since
2016.
Commify's integrated solutions enable over 45,000 customers to
communicate with their customers and staff, sending over 5 billion
messages per year, covering a range of business critical use cases
from appointment confirmations to emergency alerts, via a range of
channels including SMS, WhatsApp, RCS, email and voice.
The business is a long-established leader in the European Local
Enterprise segment, complemented by fast-growing operations in the
US and Australia. It operates at global scale, taken to market
locally in each country via both its global solutions brand Esendex
and local self-serve brands. Commify has completed 16 complementary
acquisitions in the last decade, and the investment from ECI will
support further acquisitions across both existing and new
countries, as well as to accelerate future platform and product
development.
Richard Hanscott, CEO, Commify: "With Hg's backing in recent
years we have built a highly differentiated market leading
business, with material investment in both M&A and our business
messaging platform. ECI's ownership will allow us to accelerate our
investment in new products and services, including our growing
range of messaging channels such as WhatsApp. Alongside this we are
excited to continue to drive expansion through further acquisitions
in both existing and new countries. Commify is perfectly positioned
to continue to deliver high quality, sustainable growth. This is a
very exciting time for Commify, our customers and our employees as
we look forward to further strong growth supported by ECI's
significant investment."
Paul McCreadie, Partner at ECI, comments: "Commify has built a
differentiated position in an exciting global market, and with
messaging becoming the number one customer engagement channel,
there is a clear and compelling growth opportunity across Europe,
the US and Australia. We're delighted to be partnering with Richard
and the Commify team to support them on further organic and
acquisitive growth for the next stage of their journey."
Nick Jordan, Partner at Hg comments: "The investment from ECI is
a big milestone for the management and staff at Commify. We have
been incredibly proud to support the business as it expanded into
multiple new European geographies and the US, more than doubling
the size of business in doing so. We wish the team well for the
future, in partnership with ECI."
Advisors to ECI: Houlihan Lokey, Squire Patton Boggs, EY
Advisors to Commify: Moelis & Company, Linklaters, EY,
Strategy&, Liberty Corporate Finance, Baker Botts, KPMG
For further details:
Hg
Tom Eckersley +44 (0)208 148 5401
HGT
Laura Dixon +44 (0)20 8396 0930
Brunswick
Azadeh Varzi +44 (0)207 404 5959
Hg@brunswickgroup.com
About HgCapital Trust plc
HgCapital Trust plc, whose shares are listed on the London Stock
Exchange (ticker: HGT.L), gives investors exposure through a liquid
vehicle to a portfolio of high-growth private companies in the
software and services sector. The selection of new investments and
creation of value in these businesses are managed by Hg, an
experienced and well-resourced private equity firm with a long-term
track record of delivering superior risk-adjusted returns for its
investors. For further details, please see
www.hgcapitaltrust.com.
The contents of the Hg, HgCapital Trust, Commify and ECI
Partners websites are not incorporated into, and do not form part
of, this announcement.
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END
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