Apax IX sells remaining stake in BCG

The Apax IX Fund (“Apax IX”), in which Apax Global Alpha Limited (“AGA”) is a limited partner, has announced the sale of its remaining shares in Baltic Classifieds Group (“BCG”, LSE:BCG), the leading online classifieds group in the Baltic countries specialising in four key segments: automotive, real estate, jobs and services, and general merchandise.

Including prior distributions, this transaction will deliver a realised gross MOIC of 4.2x1 and a total gross IRR of c.59%1 for Apax IX. On completion, taking into account multiple sell downs and prior distributions, AGA’s look-through investment in BCG will have returned a total of c.€31m.

Note that these figures relate to AGA’s look-through position of Apax IX’s overall investment in BCG and are stated before taking into account any closing adjustments, fees, costs, and carried interest, and are translated based on the latest exchange rates available where applicable.

Apax IX acquired BCG in July 2019 after identifying it as a high-quality portfolio of online classifieds portals with market-leading positions. During Apax IX’s ownership, BCG increased its leadership position over the #2 players across all verticals, executed a combination of product development and pricing actions and expanded through M&A with the acquisition of Auto24, the leading automotive classifieds portal in Estonia. In June 2021 BCG announced its intention to float and was admitted to the main market of the LSE, with Apax IX retaining a significant stake.

The Apax Funds have a strong track record in investing in online marketplaces, deploying more than c.$4.8bn of equity into companies across North America, Europe, and Australasia.

AGA, whose shares are listed on the London Stock Exchange, provides investors with access to the Apax Private Equity Funds and a smaller portfolio of mostly debt investments. In 2016, AGA made a commitment of c.$350m2 to Apax IX.

Contact details

Investor Relations – AGA
Katarina Sallerfors
T: +44 7436908492
E: katarina.sallerfors@apax.com

Footnotes

    1. Gross MOIC and Gross IRR shown for both Apax IX EUR and USD Funds
    2. AGA’s commitment in Apax IX of €154.5m in Apax IX euro tranche and $175.0m in Apax IX USD tranche

Notes

  1. Note that references in this announcement to Apax Global Alpha Limited have been abbreviated to “AGA” or “the Company”. References to Apax Partners LLP have been abbreviated to “Apax”, or “the Investment Adviser”
  2. Please be advised that this announcement may contain inside information as stipulated under the Market Abuse Regulations (EU) NO. 596/2014 (“MAR”)
  3. This announcement is not for release, publication or distribution, directly or indirectly, in whole or in part, into or within the United States or to “US persons” (as defined in Regulation S under the United States Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”)) or into or within Australia, Canada, South Africa or Japan. Recipients of this announcement in jurisdictions outside the UK should inform themselves about and observe any applicable legal requirements in their jurisdictions. In particular, the distribution of the announcement may be restricted by law in certain jurisdictions
  4. The information presented herein is not an offer for sale within the United States of any equity shares or other securities of Apax Global Alpha Limited (“AGA”). AGA has not been and will not be registered under the US Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the “Investment Company Act”). In addition, AGA’s shares (the “Shares”) have not been and will not be registered under the Securities Act or any other applicable law of the United States. Consequently, the Shares may not be offered or sold or otherwise transferred within the United States, or to, or for the account or benefit of, US Persons, except pursuant to an exemption from the registration requirements of the Securities Act and under circumstances which will not require AGA to register under the Investment Company Act. No public offering of the Shares is being made in the United States
  5. This announcement may include forward-looking statements. The words “expect”, “anticipate”, “intends”, “plan”, “estimate”, “aim”, “forecast”, “project” and similar expressions (or their negative) identify certain of these forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are statements regarding AGA’s intentions, beliefs or current expectations concerning, among other things, AGA’s results of operations, financial condition, liquidity, prospects, growth and strategies. The forward-looking statements in this presentation are based on numerous assumptions regarding AGA’s present and future business strategies and the environment in which AGA will operate in the future. Forward-looking statements involve inherent known and unknown risks, uncertainties and contingencies because they relate to events and depend on circumstances that may or may not occur in the future and may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of AGA to be materially different from those expressed or implied by such forward looking statements. Many of these risks and uncertainties relate to factors that are beyond AGA’s ability to control or estimate precisely, such as future market conditions, currency fluctuations, the behaviour of other market participants, the actions of regulators and other factors such as AGA’s ability to continue to obtain financing to meet its liquidity needs, changes in the political, social and regulatory framework in which AGA operates or in economic or technological trends or conditions. Past performance should not be taken as an indication or guarantee of future results, and no representation or warranty, express or implied, is made regarding future performance. AGA expressly disclaims any obligation or undertaking to release any updates or revisions to these forward-looking statements to reflect any change in AGA’s expectations with regard thereto or any change in events, conditions or circumstances on which any statement is based after the date of this announcement, or to update or to keep current any other information contained in this announcement. Accordingly, undue reliance should not be placed on the forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date of this announcement.

About Apax Global Alpha Limited

AGA is a Guernsey registered closed-ended investment Company listed on the London Stock Exchange. It is regulated by the Guernsey Financial Services Commission.

AGA’s objective is to provide shareholders with capital appreciation from its investment portfolio and regular dividends. The Company is targeting an annualised Total Return, across economic cycles, of 12-15% (net of fees and expenses).

The Company makes Private Equity investments in Apax Funds, and has a portfolio of primarily debt investments, derived from the insights gained via Apax’s Private Equity activities.

Further information regarding the Company and its publications are available on the Company’s website at www.apaxglobalalpha.com.

About Apax

Apax Partners LLP (“Apax”) is a leading global private equity advisory firm. For over 50 years, Apax has worked to inspire growth and ideas that transform businesses. The firm has raised and advised funds with aggregate commitments of more than $77 billion. The Apax Funds invest in companies across four global sectors of Tech, Services, Healthcare and Internet/Consumer. These funds provide long-term equity financing to build and strengthen world-class companies. For further information about Apax, please visit www.apax.com.

Apax is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority in the UK.