Maguar Capital and co-investors acquire HRWorks

Harriet Matthews
26 August 2020

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Germany-based GP Maguar Capital has announced its debut deal, acquiring HR software business HRWorks alongside co-investors Aberdeen Standard Investments, EMZ Partners, Golding Capital Partners and LFPE.

Founder and CEO Thomas Holzer will retain a stake in the business.

Unquote sister publication Debtwire reported in May 2020 that Maguar was in exclusive negotiations with HRWorks to acquire the business, and that the GP was seeking all-senior or unitranche financing of €20-25m to finance the deal.

EMZ has provided a combination of subordinated debt and co-investment capital, with Berenberg also providing acquisition financing.

The deal is EMZ's second deal in Germany since its Munich office opened in 2020 and follows its investment in spice retailer Ankerkraut in August 2020. The firm is deploying from its ninth fund, which held a final close in July 2020 on €1.043bn, surpassing its target of €900m. The fund can invest €10-100m per business but generally deploys tickets of around €50m.

Maguar was founded in 2019 by Arno Poschik, Gunther Thies and Matthias Ick. The firm makes small-cap technology investments, targeting DACH-based software companies with EBITDA of around €1-6m.

The GP is currently investing from Maguar Fund I, according to a statement, but the firm had not responded to a request for comment on the vehicle at the time of publication.

Company
HRWorks provides HR software for Germany-based SMEs, serving 1,700 businesses. Its software functions include time management, travel expenses and recruiting. The company was founded in 1999 and is based in Freiburg, with additional offices in Frankfurt and Berlin. It employs 60 staff. The company was marketed based on EBITDA of €7m, according to Debtwire.

People
HRWorks – Thomas Holzer (founder, CEO); Guntram Kieferle (associate).
Maguar Capital – Arno Poschik, Gunther Thies, Matthias Ick (founding partner).
EMZ Partners – Klaus Maurer (partner).
Aberdeen Standard Investments – Mark Nicolson (head of primary investments).

Advisers
Equity – Clifford Chance (legal); Lupp & Partner (legal); Deloitte (debt advisory); Wachter Digital Partners (commercial due diligence).
Mezzanine – Latham & Watkins (legal).
Vendor – Carlsquare (corporate finance).