Afinum teams up with SHS on Evitria buyout

It is the fifth platform investment from Afinum's latest buyout fund, Afinum Achte Beteiligungsgesellschaft, which held a final close on €410m in September 2017.

Afinum sourced the deal and brought in SHS for its healthcare expertise. The GPs had worked together in the past on an informal advisory basis, but this is the first time they have teamed up on a transaction, Afinum partner Berthold Schmidt-Förger told Unquote.

SHS drew capital from its fifth fund, which held a final close below its €150m target on €90m in July 2018.

Founder Markus Hildinger will retain a 30% stake in the business alongside the two PE firms and will take one of three board seats. The other two will be divvied up between Afinum and SHS.

The company will make senior hires but is not a very labour-intensive business due to its reliance on automation, Schmidt-Förger said. With its new owners' support, it plans to expand its presence in the US.

Luzerner Kantonalbank will provide leverage for this transaction, though the ratio is less than 50% and consists of a single A tranche.

Company
Evitria was founded in 2010 and is headquartered in Schlieren, Switzerland. It does custom antibody research for biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies. It has conducted 30,000 transfections and produced 5,000 different antibodies, according to its website.

People
Afinum Management – Berthold Schmidt-Förger (partner); Philipp Otto (investment manager).
Evitria – Markus Hildinger (founder).

Advisers
Equity – Vischer (legal); G+S Treuhand (tax); Ostschweizerische Treuhand Zürich (financial due diligence); Abalone Consulting (commercial due diligence).
Company – Quarton International (corporate finance); CMS von Erlach Poncet (legal).

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• Topics
• Buyouts
• DACH
• Healthcare
• Afinum
• Switzerland