CVC Capital Partners has agreed to sell global business advisory firm AlixPartners to a new investment group formed by founder Jay Alix, Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec (CDPQ), Public Sector Pension Investment Board (PSP Investments) and Investcorp Group. CVC acquired AlixPartners in June 2012 through its fifth fund.
This transaction values AlixPartners at more than $2.5 billion and is expected to close by year end. AlixPartners’ senior leadership team will continue to hold a large equity interest in the firm.
“We are delighted to welcome CDPQ, PSP Investments and Investcorp as long-term shareholders,” said Simon Freakley, Chief Executive Officer of AlixPartners. “Their commitment will allow us to continue to grow our business and best serve our clients. We are now in our 35th year and, with revenues of $1 billion, AlixPartners is on a great trajectory.”
AlixPartners advises its Fortune 500 and middle-market clients on financial and operational performance; corporate turnarounds and restructurings; litigation consulting; forensic accounting; and information management services. The firm was founded in 1981 and has more than 1600 professionals in 25 offices. The firm was founded in 1981 and is headquartered in New York (www.alixpartners.com).
“Over the past 35 years, AlixPartners has developed expertise that is now sought after worldwide and helps companies stay on the leading edge in highly competitive markets. The resilient nature of its activities and its strongly diversified business model make it an attractive investment for CDPQ. By working with partners that share our long-term vision, we aim to support AlixPartners’ growth for many years to come and help further expand the firm’s footprint and capabilities,” said Roland Lescure, Chief Investment Officer and Head of Private Equity at CDPQ.
CDPQ is a Quebec-based institutional investor that manages funds primarily for public and para-public pension and insurance plans. As at June 30, 2016, it held C$255 billion in net assets. CDPQ invests globally in major financial markets, private equity, infrastructure and real estate (www.cdpq.com).
PSP Investments is one of Canada’s largest pension investment managers with C$117 billion of net assets under management. PSP has been investing in private equity since 2004 and has approximately C$10 billion of private equity assets under management. PSP manages pension investments for the Federal Public Service, the Canadian Forces, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and the Reserve Force. PSP has offices in Montreal, New York and London (www.investpsp.com). Guthrie Stewart, Senior Vice President and Global Head of Private Investments, led the transaction for PSP.
Investcorp invests in mid-size companies operating in an array of industry sectors that have total enterprise values between $200 million and $1 billion and are located in North America or Western Europe. As at June 30, 2016, Investcorp had about $10.8 billion in total assets under management. The firm has offices in New York, London, Bahrain and Saudi Arabia (www.investcorp.com). David Tayeh, Head of Corporate Investment North America, led the transaction for Investcorp.
CVC Capital Partners currently manages over $33 billion of assets and funds managed or advised by CVC are invested in 51 companies worldwide. The firm, founded in 1981, is based in London and has a network of 24 offices and 340 employees throughout Europe, Asia and the United States (www.cvc.com).
Bank of America Merrill Lynch, Deutsche Bank and Goldman Sachs acted as financial advisors to AlixPartners and CVC.
© 2016 Private Equity Professional • 11-11-16
