Bridgepoint sells CABB International to Permira

Harriet Bailey
22 April 2014

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Bridgepoint has sold German speciality chemicals company Clariant Acetyl Building Blocks (CABB) to Permira, reaping a 2.4x money multiple.

Deal value is understood to be in excess of €800m, equating to an entry multiple of around 8.5x EBITDA. Permira formed a newco in order to complete the purchase of CABB and the transaction is expected to be finalised in June 2014, following regulatory approval.

Permira has some experience in the speciality chemicals sector – in July 2010, the private equity house sold its 43.8% stake in Cognis to BASF in a deal worth €3.1bn. Permira reaped a 3x money multiple following the nine-year holding.

Bridgepoint acquired CABB from Ardian (then Axa Private Equity) in a secondary buyout said to be worth in the region of €340m in April 2011. Ardian had held the company for a period of five years following a €25-50m purchase from Gilde Private Equity. At the point of acquisition, CABB's revenues stood at €311m with a €50m EBITDA.

In June 2011, CABB completed a bolt-on transaction, acquiring Finnish speciality chemicals producer KemFine Group from 3i. The deal was thought to be worth in the region of €140m. DZ Bank, Commerzbank and Societe Generale provided a €110m debt package, adding to CABB's existing facilities.

Company
Founded in 2003, CABB is a global supplier of fine and speciality chemicals and custom manufacturing solutions. It targets end markets including the agro-chemical industry. Headquartered in Sulzbach, CABB has a further six production sites in Germany, Switzerland, India, Finland and China.

Following the acquisition of China-based Jining Gold Power in February, CABB has become a supplier of monochloroacetic acid (MCA), a chemical intermediate used in a variety of applications including agro-chemicals, pharmaceutical products, cosmetics, flavours, fragrances, vitamins and surfactants.

CABB employs approximately 1,000 staff and posted a turnover of nearly €440m in 2013.

People
Martin Wienkenhöver is CEO of CABB. Torsten Vogt is co-head of the industrial team at Permira. Marc Zügel is co-head of Bridgepoint Germany.

Advisers
Equity – Freshfields (Legal); BCG (Commercial due diligence); Roland Berger (Commercial due diligence); PwC (Financial due diligence, tax); Rothschild (M&A); Ecosens (Environmental due diligence); ERM (Environmental due diligence); URS (Environmental due diligence).