Silverfleet acquires EC4U Expert Consulting, Bulpros

Silverfleet said in a statement that the two companies have been operating in partnership since 2018.

The transaction is a proprietary deal that came about following several years of researching the market, a source close to the situation told Unquote.

Silverfleet will own a majority stake in the new entity, with both companies' founders and management teams holding additional significant shareholdings, according to a statement.

Silverfleet is investing in EC4U and Bulpros via Silverfleet Capital Partners II, which held a final close in June 2015 on €870m. The fund invests in companies with enterprise values of €75-250m. The GP generally follows buy-and-build strategies for its portfolio companies.

Silverfleet's successor fund was registered in July 2019, according to Unquote Data, and is currently on the road, as reported by Unquote.

Click here to read a profile of Silverfleet Capital on Unquote.

Debt
Ares provided financing to back the deal, Silverfleet said in a statement.

Previous funding
New Europe Venture Equity made a growth capital investment in Bulpros in February 2016, investing via Neveq II, which held a final close in December 2014 on €20.3m.

Company
Founded in 2000 and based in Karlsruhe, EC4U employs 400 staff. The company provides software and digitalisation consulting services for businesses in the areas of marketing, sales, services and e-commerce. Its customer base is primarily in the DACH region.

Bulpros was founded in 2010 and has 1,000 employees across 20 offices, with its headquarters in Sofia. The firm specialises in cybersecurity, cloud migration and managed IT services.

The combined companies will employ 1,400 staff, with 25 offices in 11 countries. Both companies also have partnerships with technology providers including Salesforce, Microsoft and SAP.

People
Silverfleet Capital – Christian Süss, Joachim Braun (partners); Benjamin Hubner, Jennifer Regehr (principals).
EC4U Expert Consulting – David Laux (CEO).
Bulpros Consulting – Ivaylo Slavov (CEO).

Advisers
Equity – Latham & Watkins (legal); Shearman & Sterling (legal); NautaDutilh (legal); PwC (financial due diligence); WDP (IT due diligence); Grant Thornton (tax); Kambourov (legal); Noerr (legal); Bär & Karrer (legal); Kearney (commercial due diligence); MD Advisors (debt advisory).

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• DACH
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