Premium sells ATBB to trade

The sale ends a five-year holding period for Premium, which acquired the business with the support of a group of LPs on a deal-by-deal basis. Premium's first three acquisitions, Actech, ATBB and Weka Holzbau, were made using this method, before the GP raised a €30m short-duration fund last year, which has completed three more deals.

Premium is expected to raise a longer-duration vehicle to invest in DACH small-cap businesses next year. The fund will target €125-150m and launch in Q1 2019, Unquote understands.

ATBB almost doubled its revenues under Premium's ownership as a result of organic growth. The GP introduced a new CEO and strengthened the supervisory board during its tenure, as well as overseeing the opening of a new factory in Weimar in 2017.

Desay said the acquisition will complement its automotive product and technology portfolio. Desay went public at the end of 2017 with a market capitalisation of €2.1bn. The company generated revenues of €783m in 2017.

Company
The company that became ATBB was founded as Herman Pawlik- Elektrotechnische Fabrik Heliogen in Thuringia in 1919. It became a Soviet limited company in 1946 and rebranded several times as a radio antenna manufacturer, television antenna manufacturer and modular amplifier manufacturer, until the car antenna division was privatised in 1993 and then underwent two management buyouts before Premium's entry in 2013.

Today the company makes antenna systems for automotive and industrial applications, focusing on industry 4.0 concepts. It employs 90 people and generates revenues of less than €20m.

People
Premium Equity Partners – Marcel van Wijk (managing partner).
Antennentechnik ABB Bad Blankenburg – Michael Weber (CEO).

Advisers
Acquirer – Steen Associates (corporate finance).

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