Pinova and BIP team up to buy Utimaco Safeware

The GPs acquired Utimaco from UK security software provider Sophos.

As part of the transaction, Utimaco will appoint a new advisory board. However, the firm continues to operate independently.

Munich-based buyout house Pinova financed the deal via its €115m Pinova Fund I vehicle, which had an initial target of €150m and held a final close in 2010.

The fund now holds eight portfolio companies, four of which were acquired last year. Hemoteq, Invent Umwelttechnik, Wendt Sit were bought in 2010.

Prior to the Utimaco deal, Pinova's latest investment was a growth capital injection into fabfab, an online fabrics retailer, in October 2012. In August 2012, Pinova invested in deconta, a decontamination specialist, as part of an owner buyout. Prior to that, the German private equity house acquired Norafin Industries in a management buyout in May 2012. Two months before, Pinova bought a controling stake in packaging films producer Clarus Films as part of a management buyout.

Company
Utimaco Safeware provides solutions for cyber security. The company develops hardware-based high-security appliances and compliance solutions for telecom-provider regulation.

The firm is based in Aachen, Germany.

People
Katrin Wehr-Seiter is managing director at BIP and will join Utimaco's advisory board. Joern Pelzer is a partner at Pinova and will also join Utimaco as adviser. Malte Pollmann is the CEO of Utimaco.

• Tweet  
• Facebook  
• LinkedIn  
• Google plus  
• Send to  

• Topics
• DACH
• Technology
• Buyouts
• Germany
• Pinova Capital
• BIP Investment Partners