HgCapital Trust PLC Visma Group intends to acquire Raet (4355P)

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RNS Number : 4355P

HgCapital Trust PLC

29 May 2018

HgCapital Trust plc

Hg, the Manager of HgCapital Trust plc ("The Company"), today announces the intended sale of Raet, a leading HR solutions provider, specialising in HR cloud software and services, to Visma, in which the Company already holds a substantial interest. The terms of the intended transaction are not disclosed.

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

This intended transaction values the Company's investment in Raet at approximately GBP26.4 million. This would represent an uplift of GBP6.2 million (31%) or 17 pence per share over the carrying value of GBP20.2 million in the Net Asset Value ("NAV") of the Company at 30 April 2018.

Based on the 30 April 2018 reported NAV (including all transactions announced to date and the resulting revaluation of the carried interest provision), the pro-forma NAV of the Trust is expected to be GBP737.3 million (or 1,975.3 pence per share).

Visma Group intends to acquire Raet

29 May 2018. Visma Group and Raet have signed an agreement whereby Visma intends to acquire 100 percent of the shares of Raet.

The intended acquisition follows a competitive sales process, commenced earlier this year by the Hg7 Fund. The agreement is subject to the parties having completed the consultation procedures with both Raet's Dutch works council and Visma's Dutch works council, and the parties having informed the relevant Dutch trade unions of the intended transaction.

Raet and Visma Group combined will become one of Europe's leading HR solutions providers, delivering software and services to more than 10 million end-users.

Raet is a highly strategic and complimentary acquisition for Visma, strengthening its presence in the Netherlands and Belgium, where Visma already provides bookkeeping, ERP, payroll and related cloud software. In addition to Visma's existing business in the Netherlands, the combined businesses will have over EUR200m revenues, 1,500 employees and increase the previous customer base across the two regions to 50,000.

The combination will also substantially expand Visma's addressable market and allow it to provide Raet's existing customers with access to Visma's leading suite of cloud software applications, enabling them to benefit from joint innovation capacity and agility. This will help make the business more efficient as well as helping to further develop the organisation and people.

Øystein Moan, CEO of Visma, says: "The highly skilled workforce of Visma and Raet together form a strong international HRM environment. This strengthens our ability to continue providing new and existing customers with long-term sustainable solutions. The acquisition leads to mutual added value and growth opportunities as Raet's offering fits well with Visma's HRM strategy'."

Kobe Verdonck, CEO of Raet, says: "Raet joining Visma increases our world-class HR innovation and offering which will provide new opportunities for both our customers and employees. By joining Visma, Raet further strengthens its position in the Dutch market."

Justin von Simson, Managing Partner at Hg, said: "As investors with over 20-years' deep knowledge of software, having invested or acquired over 200 software businesses across Europe, we are able to identify attractive opportunities for companies within our portfolio, such as Visma and Raet, which operate in similar industries. These can lead to significant benefits, such as shared knowledge, complementary capabilities and synergies. Visma submitted a compelling offer for Raet and, by working together, we can see that there are great advantages for both companies and their customers going forward."

No details around the intended transaction will be disclosed. Completion of the transaction is expected in the summer of 2018.

For further details:

Hg

 
                [phone] 
 Laura Dixon     7888 
 

Maitland

 
                                          [phone] 
 Vikki Kosmalska and Seda Ambartsumian     5151 
 

About HgCapital Trust plc

HgCapital Trust plc is an investment trust whose shares are listed on the London Stock Exchange (ticker: HGT.L). The Company is a client of Hg, giving investors exposure to a portfolio of high-growth private companies, through a liquid vehicle. New investments and existing portfolio companies 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 .

Neither the contents of Hg's, HgCapital Trust's, Raet's or Visma's websites nor the contents of any website accessible from hyperlinks on the websites (or any other website) is incorporated into, or forms part of, this announcement.

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May 29, 2018 02:01 ET (06:01 GMT)