LDC invests more than £20m in Mitrefinch MBO

Under its new ownership model, the company will undertake an international expansion strategy, with a particular focus on the US, Canada and Australia. It will also invest in new product development.

The size of LDC's stake in Mitrefinch is undisclosed, though the firm said in a statement it would become a "significant shareholder in the company".

Following the deal, Jonathan Bell, LDC's director and co-head of its Manchester office, will take a seat on the Mitrefinch board, alongside investment director Richard Ibbett.

The transaction marks the third investment made from LDC's Manchester office in 2016. In May, it acquired a minority stake in cloud-based IT and communications service Giacom World Networks, while four months later the firm invested in health, safety, HR and employment law adviser Ellis Whittam.

Debt
Silicon Valley Bank provided a debt facility to support the deal.

Company
Founded in 1979, York-headquartered Mitrefinch develops HR software for the management of employee attendance, benefits, training and payroll, as well as premises access. It serves a range of industries, with clients including L'Oreal, Nestlé, The Forestry Commission and the University of Leicester.

Mitrefinch generates a turnover of £15m, up from £10m three years ago. According to publicly available records, the company generated an operating profit of £2.5m in the year to November 2015.

People
LDC – Jonathan Bell (director); Richard Ibbett (investment director).
Mitrefinch – Debbie Guppy (CEO).

Advisers
Equity – KPMG, Jonathan Boyers, Alex Hartley, Graham Pearce, Nick Dodd (financial due diligence); DLA Piper, James Kerrigan, Chris Wilson (legal); Harris Williams (M&A).
Company – GCA Altium, Adrian Reed, Dom Orsini, Jon Stead (corporate finance); Squire Patton Boggs, Steven Glover (legal).

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• Topics
• Buyouts
• UK / Ireland
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• United Kingdom
• LDC