19 June 2018

Apax VIII receives binding offer for Azelis

The Apax VIII Fund (“Apax VIII”) has today announced that it has received a binding offer and has entered into exclusive discussions to sell Azelis to the EQT VIII fund and PSP Investments.

Apax VIII acquired Azelis in 2015 having recognised the global speciality chemicals distribution market was forecast to grow, and within this Azelis was uniquely placed with a resilient and diversified business which could be used as a platform for M&A to create a global industry leader. The business has performed strongly since Apax’s VIII’s investment with revenue more than doubling and EBITDA tripling.

AGA, whose shares are listed on the London Stock Exchange, provides investors with access to the investment expertise of Apax Partners through its investments in a diversified portfolio of private equity funds advised by Apax Partners as well as derived investments in debt and equity. In 2012, AGA’s predecessor vehicle made a commitment of c.€342m to Apax VIII.

Funds advised by Apax Partners receive binding offer for Azelis

London – 19 June 2018 – Azelis, a leading global specialty chemicals and food ingredients distributor, today announced that Funds advised by Apax Partners, the global private equity advisory firm, have received a binding offer and have entered into exclusive discussions to sell Azelis to the EQT VIII fund and PSP Investments. The transaction, which is subject to regulatory approvals, and other conditions including consultation with employee representatives, is expected to close in the fourth quarter of 2018. Financial terms were not disclosed.

Established in 2001, Azelis is a leading global specialty chemicals and food ingredients distributor providing a diverse range of products and innovative services to more than 43,000 customers in over 40 countries worldwide. Azelis provides a high value-add technical sales force to help service its key suppliers (“Principals”), providing substantial market coverage to its customers across a multitude of market segments. Customers benefit from Azelis’ technical expertise, which aids the development of a customers’ product portfolio to suit their applications. In addition, Azelis operates over 50 of its own application laboratories, offering innovative formulations for Azelis’ customers.

Since the Apax Funds’ investment in Azelis, the company has successfully executed on its targeted growth strategy through focusing the business on product development and innovation, as well as developing its M&A platform. Over the course of the last three years, Azelis has more than doubled revenue and tripled EBITDA. Since the acquisition of Azelis by Funds advised by Apax Partners, the company has undertaken nine acquisitions to broaden its geographic reach and product offering, the most significant being the 2015 acquisition of Koda Distribution Group whose North American presence was complementary to Azelis’ European and Asian reach. This transformational acquisition facilitated the expansion of Azelis into a truly global player with the ability to serve Principals and customers at a global, regional and local level, with an expanded suite of services.

Dr. Hans-Joachim Müller, CEO of Azelis, said: “I would like to thank Apax for their support, which has enabled Azelis to expand its global footprint in Europe, Americas and Asia Pacific, delivering sustainable growth and strong results. Going forward, our strategy is to continue to leverage our diversified business model. We have had the chance to get to know EQT and are thrilled to see that they share our values of entrepreneurship, high performance and respect. This new proposal represents an opportunity to facilitate our expansion plans and further accelerate the fantastic growth we have enjoyed with Apax.”

Frank Ehmer, Partner at Apax Partners, added: “We would like to thank Hans-Joachim and all his team for being excellent partners over the last three years. The ability of the company to drive above-market organic growth, as well as both tuck-in and transformational M&A, has allowed Azelis to deliver on its potential of becoming a truly global market leader. In doing so, Azelis has successfully positioned itself as a distributor of choice for a number of its strategic Principals, globally.”

Contact Details

Investor enquiries
Sarah Wojcik
IR Manager – AGA
Telephone: +44 (0)20 7666 6573
Email: sarah.wojcik@apax.com

Media enquiries
Andrew Kenny
Head of Communications
Telephone: +44 (0) 20 7872 6371
Email: andrew.kenny@apax.com

About Apax Global Alpha Limited

AGA is a Guernsey registered closed-ended collective investment scheme incorporated as a non-cellular company that listed on the London Stock Exchange on 15 June 2015. 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) including a dividend yield of 5% of Net Asset Value.

The investment policy of the Company is to make Private Equity investments in Apax Funds, and Derived Investments which are investments in equities and debt derived from the insights gained via Apax Partners’ Private Equity activities. The Company’s portfolio is expected to be allocated in approximately equal proportions between Private Equity and Derived Investments, although the investment mix will fluctuate over time due to market conditions, investment opportunities, cash flow requirements, the dividend policy and other factors. Further information regarding the Company and its publications are available on the Company’s website at www.apaxglobalalpha.com.

About Apax Partners LLP

Apax Partners is a leading global private equity advisory firm and over its more than 35-year history, Apax Partners has raised and advised funds with aggregate commitments of over €42billion as at 31 March 2018. Funds advised by Apax Partners invest in companies across four global sectors of Tech & Telco, Services, Healthcare and Consumer. These funds provide long_term equity financing to build and strengthen world_class companies. For further information about Apax Partners, please visit www.apax.com.

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