Adelis Equity Partners, via Adelis Fund II, exits Presto and HVD Group to a Continuation Vehicle led by HarbourVest Partners alongside Adelis Fund III
Adelis Equity Partners (“Adelis”) has raised a Continuation Vehicle to invest in Presto AB (“Presto”) and HVD Group (“HVD”, f.k.a. Hantverksdata), two portfolio companies in Adelis Equity Partners Fund II (“Adelis Fund II”). The Continuation Vehicle, which was led by HarbourVest Partners ("HarbourVest"), will invest alongside Adelis Equity Partners Fund III (“Adelis Fund III”) and the Adelis team.
Presto is the leading European player within fire safety and compliance services, having recently entered Germany through the acquisition of Jockel Brandschutztechnik Service GmbH, the German market leader in fire safety. Since being acquired by Adelis Fund II in December 2018, the company has quintupled its revenues to SEK 2.7 billion with healthy profitability.
Erik Hallert at Adelis says “Presto has had an impressive growth journey to date in the Nordics and has furthermore entered the German market through the transformative transaction with Jockel. We are excited about remaining as the majority shareholder in Presto and, together with management, taking part in the company’s continued growth in both existing and new geographic markets.”
HVD recently merged with Next One Technology (“Next”) to form a leading Northern European provider of ERP and project management software for the tradespeople and construction industries. Adelis Fund II acquired HVD in June 2018 and under Adelis’ stewardship, the business has more than tripled in size, increasing its share of recurring revenue from 66% to more than 90%. The merger with Next, in which the EQT X partnership became a co-investor in the group, further expanded the HVD business.
Joel Russ at Adelis says “After being partners with HVD for over five years and watching management and the company successfully develop into a leading, cloud-based software provider to the Nordic market for tradespeople, we continue to believe that the company is well-positioned in an attractive, growth market. We look forward to supporting HVD’s and Next’s continued growth.”
HarbourVest acted as lead investor in the EUR 430 million Continuation Vehicle, augmented by EUR 183 million of capital invested and committed from Adelis Fund III and the Adelis team.
Edward Holdsworth at HarbourVest says "We are pleased to expand our longstanding partnership with Adelis on this transaction and look forward to continuing to support the exciting growth prospects for Presto and HVD."
Adelis was advised by Akin Gump, White & Case, PwC and Vinge on the transaction.
HarbourVest was advised by Kirkland & Ellis on the transaction.
The transaction is subject to customary regulatory approval and is expected to close in April 2024.
About Adelis Equity Partners
Adelis is a growth partner for well-positioned, Nordic companies. Adelis partners with management and/or owners to build businesses in growth segments and with strong market positions. Since raising its first fund in 2013, Adelis has been one of the most active investors in the Nordic middle-market, making 39 platform investments and more than 200 add-on acquisitions. Adelis manages approximately €3.0 billion in capital. For more information, please visit www.adelisequity.com.
About HarbourVest Partners
HarbourVest is an independent, global private markets firm with 40 years of experience and more than $117+ billion of assets under management as of September 30, 2023. Our interwoven platform provides clients access to global primary funds, secondary transactions, direct co-investments, real assets and infrastructure, and private credit. Our strengths extend across strategies, enabled by our team of more than 1,150 employees, including more than 230 investment professionals across Asia, Europe, and the Americas. Across our private markets platform, our team has committed more than $58 billion to newly-formed funds, completed over $50 billion in secondary purchases, and invested over $37 billion in directly operating companies. We partner strategically and plan our offerings innovatively to provide our clients with access, insight, and global opportunities. For more information, please visit www.harbourvest.com.