REG - HgCapital Trust PLC - Visma attracts new investors for expansion

HgCapital TrustAnnouncement

21/12/2023 13:00

For best results when printing this announcement, please click on link below:
http://newsfile.refinitiv.com/getnewsfile/v1/story?guid=urn:newsml:reuters.com:20231221:nRSU6604Xa&default-theme=true

RNS Number : 6604X  HgCapital Trust PLC  21 December 2023

 

Hg, the Manager of HgCapital Trust plc ("HGT"), today announces that it has
agreed to a further investment in Visma, a leading provider of
mission-critical cloud software in Europe and Latin-America.

 

Visma will welcome around 20 new investors to the shareholder register, worth
over €1bn of equity investment. In addition the transaction will result in
c.€3bn new investment from existing shareholders including majority
investor, Hg.

 

HGT, whose shares are listed on the London Stock Exchange, gives private and
institutional investors the opportunity to participate in all Hg's
investments.

 

HGT will make a net investment of approximately £83.5 million in Visma, with
other institutional clients of Hg investing alongside HGT through the Hg
Saturn Funds. As part of the transaction, Hg's Genesis 7 fund will fully exit
its remaining position in Visma. HGT's net exposure to Visma will be £309.5m
at closing representing approximately 13.6% of current NAV.

 

Note that these figures only relate to HgCapital Trust's share of Hg's overall
investment in Visma.

 

Based on the 30 September 2023 reported NAV, the pro-forma NAV of the Trust is
expected to be £2.3 billion (or 498.5 pence per share).  HGT's available
liquid resources, which includes the undrawn bank facility of £350 million
for future deployment (including all announced transactions and the interim
dividend paid in October) are estimated to be £663 million (29% of the
pro-forma 30 September 2023 NAV).

 

The investment will reduce HGT's outstanding commitments to invest in Hg
transactions to approximately £890 million (39% of the pro-forma 30 September
2023 NAV).

 

Visma attracts new investors for further international expansion in a
transaction valuing the company at EUR 19 billion

·      Investment follows another period of strong growth and continued
international expansion, with now 17-years of uninterrupted, year-on-year,
revenue and EBITDA growth (18% and 22% CAGR respectively, during the period).

·      Visma will welcome around 20 new investors to the shareholder
register, worth over €1bn of equity investment. In addition the transaction
will result in c. €3bn new investment from existing shareholders including
majority investor, Hg.

·      With revenue of €2.4 billion, Visma will continue its growth
strategy of international expansion and product innovation, supported by a
solid and knowledgeable shareholder base.

London, UK and Oslo, Norway. 21 December 2023.  Visma, a leading provider of
mission-critical cloud software in Europe and Latin-America, today announces
that it has expanded its shareholder base through a secondary sale to leading
international shareholders, to support further international growth.

The transaction, which values Visma at EUR 19 billion, will welcome around 20
new investors to the shareholder register, worth over €1bn of equity
investment, with new investors including Altaroc, Jane Street and NYC
Retirement System.

The transaction will also result in around €3bn new investment from existing
shareholders, including Hg, who will continue its 17-year long investment in
the business with a majority stake, in addition to a group of co-investors
including ICG, TPG and Visma management.

"We are delighted to receive this further vote of confidence from Hg and other
leading investors, in a transaction that confirms our stellar development and
attractive outlook. Visma delivers the digital tools that businesses need to
drive efficiency, innovate and stay competitive. Supported by a solid and
knowledgeable shareholder base, we are perfectly positioned to continue our
unique growth journey", says Merete Hverven, CEO of Visma.

 

Visma's growth journey

Today Visma is the largest privately-owned software business in Europe, and a
leading provider of cloud accounting and ERP solutions to small and medium
sized businesses in the region. After a period of significant international
expansion, entering France, Germany, Portugal, Peru and Iceland in the last
two years alone, the Group is currently present in 28 countries with more than
15,000 employees.

 

Meanwhile, divestments of non-core assets within IT consulting and cloud
infrastructure services in 2022 has further focused the company's business
model on standardised SaaS (Software as a Service) products to the private and
public sectors. Visma's annualized repeatable revenue (ARR) stood at EUR 2.2
billion at the end of Q3 2023, representing a growth of 17 percent from the
same period last year and 17 years of uninterrupted, year-on-year, revenue and
EBITDA growth (18% and 22% CAGR respectively during the period).

 

"Visma's success is a result of the fantastic efforts of our highly skilled
and engaged employees. With our industry-leading investments in product
development and AI-driven automation of critical business processes, we remain
well equipped to capture the strong growth in digital services", Hverven adds.

 

Nic Humphries, Senior Partner at Hg, said: "Today Visma is Europe's largest
private equity owned software business, growing twice as fast now compared to
when we first invested in 2006, despite having become a business that's over
20 times larger. This incredible achievement is the result of an investment in
modern SaaS products over ten years ago, progressed by a thirst for innovation
and a world-class management team led by Merete. We welcome our new investors
and look forward to the next chapter of this European tech success story."

 

For further details:

 

Hg

Tom Eckersley
 
+44 (0)208 148 5401

 

HGT

Laura
Dixon
+44 (0)20 8396 0930

 

Brunswick

Sofie
Brewis
+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, Visma and all named investor websites
are not incorporated into, and do not form part of, this announcement.

 

 

 

 

This information is provided by RNS, the news service of the London Stock Exchange. RNS is approved by the Financial Conduct Authority to act as a Primary Information Provider in the United Kingdom. Terms and conditions relating to the use and distribution of this information may apply. For further information, please contact
rns@lseg.com (mailto:rns@lseg.com)
 or visit
www.rns.com (http://www.rns.com/)
.

RNS may use your IP address to confirm compliance with the terms and conditions, to analyse how you engage with the information contained in this communication, and to share such analysis on an anonymised basis with others as part of our commercial services. For further information about how RNS and the London Stock Exchange use the personal data you provide us, please see our
Privacy Policy (https://www.lseg.com/privacy-and-cookie-policy)
.   END  UPDUAVUROAUUUAA