Genesis wholly acquires Swell

Capital for the transaction was drawn from the €40m GPEF II fund, which was launched in 2009 with a €60m target. The vehicle provides equity financing – typically ranging from €2-6m – to SMEs.

The company's existing owners have left their management positions following the deal. Lucie Baleková has been appointed as CEO of Swell and the company's head of sales and marketing. Petr Havlík, has been promoted to executive director.

The GP stated it was attracted to the deal by the high profile of Swell's existing and potential customers. It plans to grow the company through an acquisitive strategy.

Genesis last invested in the Czech Republic in November last year, when it acquired a 100% stake in Sieza, a supplier of integrated security systems.

Debt
Komercni Banka provided debt to support the buyout. 

Company
Hořice-based Swell is an automotive research and development company with an additional branch in Mlada Boleslav. The company was founded in 1993 and has a headcount of more than 120.

Swell's primary client is Škoda Auto and its customer base also includes Iveco, Hella, Continental, Bosch and Honeywell.

People
Jan Tauber is a managing partner at Genesis. Lucie Baleková is CEO of Swell and Petr Havlík is its executive director.

Advisers
Equity – Holásek & Partners (Legal); Norton Rose (Legal); Ace (Financial due diligence).
Vendor – EY (Corporate finance).

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• CEE
• Buyouts
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• Czech Republic